Well, last nights little experiment confirms that my body still doesn't want pizza. I was practically grey at work today, and a zombie. I felt pretty sick and tired.
At around noon I ate some strawberries and started to come around. I know I keep saying this, but this proves again, that once the body is cleaned out and in it's natural state, you really do learn the hard way that it does NOT want unnatural substances running through it.
My mood and physical condition today proved that fact.
Meal 1: Strawberries
Meal 2: Bananas
Meal 3: Raw cashews
Meal 4: Grass fed beef and brocolli
Monday, June 30, 2008
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Day 24 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Today I decided to try another experiment in cheat eating with my newly cleaned out body. Last weeks episode was pretty disastrous and convinced me beyond theory that my body will in fact viciously reject certain foods. Last weeks event was pretty nasty as the food that I ate could be called food loosely at best. Today I am going go to indulge a craving, but with a higher quality of food and see what happens.
I spent most of the day today relaxing and working on a few things so my body is pretty well rested.
Meal 1: 4 Kiwi
Meal 2: Green grapes and cheddar cheese (grazed all day)
Meal 3: 1 Cheese Cake Factory Roasted Veggie Pizza
I spent most of the day today relaxing and working on a few things so my body is pretty well rested.
Meal 1: 4 Kiwi
Meal 2: Green grapes and cheddar cheese (grazed all day)
Meal 3: 1 Cheese Cake Factory Roasted Veggie Pizza
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Day 23 Of The Paleolithic Diet
This morning I woke up with the WORST head ache! At first I thought I ate too much yesterday after breaking my fast. But after more careful examination, I realized that the two tiny little pieces of chicken that I ate last night were likely full of MSG.
Just that small dose of MSG kicked my ass! I couldn't believe it. Imagine what would have happened if I had eaten an entire meal full of MSG? It would have probably killed me.
There are a few things that I learned from this fast. Most notable in relation to this post is just how clean by body has gotten. If even such a small dose of something could leave me feeling that bad, I must be pretty sensitive to it. It makes me wonder how anyone can survive at all eating large portions of that food. But they do. My buddy ate two plates of it right in front of me while I nibbled on my edamame. And he's fine.
Today I noticed that I really don't need to eat that much. I am guessing that as my body clears and repairs, it is becoming more able to extract more nutrients from less food. As a result, I am less hungry and more quickly satisfied.
Today's food:
Meal 1: 3 Peaches
Meal 2: 4 Bananas
Meal 3: Handful of cashews (raw)
Meal 4: 3 Kiwis
Just that small dose of MSG kicked my ass! I couldn't believe it. Imagine what would have happened if I had eaten an entire meal full of MSG? It would have probably killed me.
There are a few things that I learned from this fast. Most notable in relation to this post is just how clean by body has gotten. If even such a small dose of something could leave me feeling that bad, I must be pretty sensitive to it. It makes me wonder how anyone can survive at all eating large portions of that food. But they do. My buddy ate two plates of it right in front of me while I nibbled on my edamame. And he's fine.
Today I noticed that I really don't need to eat that much. I am guessing that as my body clears and repairs, it is becoming more able to extract more nutrients from less food. As a result, I am less hungry and more quickly satisfied.
Today's food:
Meal 1: 3 Peaches
Meal 2: 4 Bananas
Meal 3: Handful of cashews (raw)
Meal 4: 3 Kiwis
Friday, June 27, 2008
Day 22 Of The Paleolithic Diet
And Breaking The Fast
I made the decision last night to break my fast today. I think for the first time doing a fast, which was mostly a water fast with the exception of some juice, 3 days is a good effort and probably reaped some benefits. I lost about 7 pounds in the three days, which is probably a combination of water and fat, along with some toxic material. I’m not sure what the proportions of each were, but I am sure it was what my body needed.
Also my food cravings really have gotten ridiculous. Although it’s funny how my body hasn’t been sending me hunger signals. It has been all in my head. They say that you realize what you really like to eat when you are on a fast because you obsess about it. Apparently I really like pizza, calzones, cheese steaks, and oatmeal, peanut butter and egg pancakes.
Anyway, back to today. I made sure I had some juice in the morning so that my stomach wasn’t totally empty. Then at around 11am I had a banana. I chewed really slow, and really well. I was kind of paranoid about running into problems like I’ve read about, although the fatalities resulting from people breaking fasts were in situations far more extreme than mine, ie. 20+ days, breaking with several sandwiches, or diabetics breaking with dates, etc.
A couple hours later I had 2 bananas. An hour or so later, I munched on cashews. Then bananas and PB at home.
Then late night, I went to my favorite sushi place with my buddy. I had some edamame, an order of shrimp, an order of crab. The servings are very small. I also had a bite of some chicken dish, and a few bites of white rice. That wasn’t too smart. We’ll see how I feel in the AM. As of now, no issues.
I made the decision last night to break my fast today. I think for the first time doing a fast, which was mostly a water fast with the exception of some juice, 3 days is a good effort and probably reaped some benefits. I lost about 7 pounds in the three days, which is probably a combination of water and fat, along with some toxic material. I’m not sure what the proportions of each were, but I am sure it was what my body needed.
Also my food cravings really have gotten ridiculous. Although it’s funny how my body hasn’t been sending me hunger signals. It has been all in my head. They say that you realize what you really like to eat when you are on a fast because you obsess about it. Apparently I really like pizza, calzones, cheese steaks, and oatmeal, peanut butter and egg pancakes.
Anyway, back to today. I made sure I had some juice in the morning so that my stomach wasn’t totally empty. Then at around 11am I had a banana. I chewed really slow, and really well. I was kind of paranoid about running into problems like I’ve read about, although the fatalities resulting from people breaking fasts were in situations far more extreme than mine, ie. 20+ days, breaking with several sandwiches, or diabetics breaking with dates, etc.
A couple hours later I had 2 bananas. An hour or so later, I munched on cashews. Then bananas and PB at home.
Then late night, I went to my favorite sushi place with my buddy. I had some edamame, an order of shrimp, an order of crab. The servings are very small. I also had a bite of some chicken dish, and a few bites of white rice. That wasn’t too smart. We’ll see how I feel in the AM. As of now, no issues.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Day 21 Of The Paleolithic Diet
And Day 3 Of My Fast
I am writing this post on Friday in retrospect to yesterday and last night.
First off, I woke up pretty easy, again with that suspended animation feeling. I'm most conscious of the fact that I haven't been eating more than anything else. I weighed in at work, and was shocked to see that I was down to 209. Even though I didn't drop yesterday morning, it looked like I lost two pounds. And even with fluid in take through out the day, my weight didn't increase much. Very interesting indeed.
Well, this day was easy, but the night was ROUGH. There were periods of real euphoria, and periods of neutrality throughout the day, but cravings kicked in HARD at night. I couldn't sleep, and all I thought about as I was trying to fall asleep was food. I was starting to panic a little about what I was going to do, and eat, after this fast was over. I wanted to pig out. And I was thinking about heavy rich foods again, pizza, calzones....etc.
But I did manage to get through it and fall asleep.
I am writing this post on Friday in retrospect to yesterday and last night.
First off, I woke up pretty easy, again with that suspended animation feeling. I'm most conscious of the fact that I haven't been eating more than anything else. I weighed in at work, and was shocked to see that I was down to 209. Even though I didn't drop yesterday morning, it looked like I lost two pounds. And even with fluid in take through out the day, my weight didn't increase much. Very interesting indeed.
Well, this day was easy, but the night was ROUGH. There were periods of real euphoria, and periods of neutrality throughout the day, but cravings kicked in HARD at night. I couldn't sleep, and all I thought about as I was trying to fall asleep was food. I was starting to panic a little about what I was going to do, and eat, after this fast was over. I wanted to pig out. And I was thinking about heavy rich foods again, pizza, calzones....etc.
But I did manage to get through it and fall asleep.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Day 20 Of The Paleolithic Diet
And Day 2 of my Fast.
I would say that titling these posts in my blog as Paleo Diet makes sense, because the people who ate the Paleo Diet during that era didn't eat every day. They couldn't many times because food just wasn't available like it is in the modern day world that we live in. The matrix we live in has us thinking that stuffing our faces several times a day is necessary. But it isn't. The human body really is designed to fast.
I'm pretty amazed that I'm doing this. I woke up today, almost with a sensation of suspended animation. Like I couldn't believe that I hadn't eaten. It was pretty cool. I have been drinking coffee during this thing....not very Paleo of me because there were no coffee makers or Dunkin Donuts during the Paleolithic era. But I will point out that yesterday morning I weighed in at around 216, and this morning I weighed in at 211. That's a pretty heavy drop in weight over a day. It would appear to me that my body has begun its feast on my fast tissue and begun digging for toxins.
I felt somewhat clear all day, although just the slightest bit sick/dizzy. Although this is typical of the detox process, the caffeine probably plays a role in that.
I'm also having some cravings for cheesy, sodium rich foods. Pizza, cheese steak, etc. But I stayed on track all day and drank a gallon plus of distilled water.
As far as sleeping, I'm doing that a lot. I went to bed around 9:30 last night, and I slept pretty solid with the exception of having to get up to take a leak at some point, until about 7:30. My body really seemed to appreciate it too.
Day 2 of my fast was a success.
I would say that titling these posts in my blog as Paleo Diet makes sense, because the people who ate the Paleo Diet during that era didn't eat every day. They couldn't many times because food just wasn't available like it is in the modern day world that we live in. The matrix we live in has us thinking that stuffing our faces several times a day is necessary. But it isn't. The human body really is designed to fast.
I'm pretty amazed that I'm doing this. I woke up today, almost with a sensation of suspended animation. Like I couldn't believe that I hadn't eaten. It was pretty cool. I have been drinking coffee during this thing....not very Paleo of me because there were no coffee makers or Dunkin Donuts during the Paleolithic era. But I will point out that yesterday morning I weighed in at around 216, and this morning I weighed in at 211. That's a pretty heavy drop in weight over a day. It would appear to me that my body has begun its feast on my fast tissue and begun digging for toxins.
I felt somewhat clear all day, although just the slightest bit sick/dizzy. Although this is typical of the detox process, the caffeine probably plays a role in that.
I'm also having some cravings for cheesy, sodium rich foods. Pizza, cheese steak, etc. But I stayed on track all day and drank a gallon plus of distilled water.
As far as sleeping, I'm doing that a lot. I went to bed around 9:30 last night, and I slept pretty solid with the exception of having to get up to take a leak at some point, until about 7:30. My body really seemed to appreciate it too.
Day 2 of my fast was a success.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Day 19 of the Paleolithic Diet -- Or Is It?
Last night I decided that I am going to fast for a few days. I explain why in my post, "Reasons For Fasting" And today was the first day. Let me tell, you, it was educational in a lot of ways. It wasn't as hard as I thought, but it also wasn't easy.
Today was a bit of a combination of a water fast and a juice fast. I ended up going out for some apple juice in the afternoon from a health food store. I made sure I got some real juice made only from fresh organic fruit. And I drank just enough to stabilize my blood sugar and assure myself that I wasn't going to black out and keel over at work. I know this dilutes the effects of the fast, but I didn't want to pass out in the middle of the office. Which is likely the reason why most fasting experts suggest that you do this at home, while resting.
At 6PM I was on the train and getting a bit motion sick, and panicky. I came up out of the subway and was really really hungry. The train or on the street would be another two places that I would prefer not to pass out. I ended up standing in pizza shop windows considering grabbing a slice. I'm glad I didn't. Then I went to went to a health food store and bought some high quality fresh bread and cheese. I was planning on eating it outside.
But I couldn't do it. As bad as I wanted to, I couldn't eat it. So then I was carrying around food, and not eating....starving! It was pretty maniacle thinking back on the situation. All I did was hold on to it.......all the way home.
As I was walking through the tunnels from the green line to the orange line it occurred to me that there were people who felt like I was feeling every day. They might be getting just enough food to stay hungry all the time. I learned from this experience that the physiology of our bodies actually creates that effect. With the realization that I could end how I was feeling just by eating the food that I was carrying with me, it occurred to me that to be hungry, and have the psychological pressure of not being able to fulfill that need must compound the feeling 100 fold. I also realized that in 30 years, I have NEVER been in a position where I was totally unable to fulfill my desire to eat. And this would be the first time in those 30 years that I was going to go at least a whole day without food. I was over come with gratitude at that point, which made getting through that first day much easier.
Now I'm home, I'm exhausted, and I'm glad I didn't blow it. I put the stuff in the fridge.....and I'm going to bed.
And that ended Day 1 of my first fast.
Today was a bit of a combination of a water fast and a juice fast. I ended up going out for some apple juice in the afternoon from a health food store. I made sure I got some real juice made only from fresh organic fruit. And I drank just enough to stabilize my blood sugar and assure myself that I wasn't going to black out and keel over at work. I know this dilutes the effects of the fast, but I didn't want to pass out in the middle of the office. Which is likely the reason why most fasting experts suggest that you do this at home, while resting.
At 6PM I was on the train and getting a bit motion sick, and panicky. I came up out of the subway and was really really hungry. The train or on the street would be another two places that I would prefer not to pass out. I ended up standing in pizza shop windows considering grabbing a slice. I'm glad I didn't. Then I went to went to a health food store and bought some high quality fresh bread and cheese. I was planning on eating it outside.
But I couldn't do it. As bad as I wanted to, I couldn't eat it. So then I was carrying around food, and not eating....starving! It was pretty maniacle thinking back on the situation. All I did was hold on to it.......all the way home.
As I was walking through the tunnels from the green line to the orange line it occurred to me that there were people who felt like I was feeling every day. They might be getting just enough food to stay hungry all the time. I learned from this experience that the physiology of our bodies actually creates that effect. With the realization that I could end how I was feeling just by eating the food that I was carrying with me, it occurred to me that to be hungry, and have the psychological pressure of not being able to fulfill that need must compound the feeling 100 fold. I also realized that in 30 years, I have NEVER been in a position where I was totally unable to fulfill my desire to eat. And this would be the first time in those 30 years that I was going to go at least a whole day without food. I was over come with gratitude at that point, which made getting through that first day much easier.
Now I'm home, I'm exhausted, and I'm glad I didn't blow it. I put the stuff in the fridge.....and I'm going to bed.
And that ended Day 1 of my first fast.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Day 18 Of The Paleolithic Diet
I woke up today feeling pretty cramped up. I almost had trouble standing up straight. My little cheat experiment from the night before did not go unnoticed by my body.
The Paleolithic Diet has shown me a pretty efficient and clean way of eating. To stuff a bunch of processed chemical filled crap into my body didn't feel too good. I spent most of the day listening as my body expelled all the toxins that I ingested the night before.
All in all, it was pretty amazing to see how my body reacted to the assault. Because it has cleaned out so much, it appeared to be pretty efficient at expelling the toxins and repairing itself.
By mid morning I didn't feel so bad, and by the end of the day, I was pretty much back to normal.
Meal 1: Canteloupe
Meal 2: 1lb of strawberries
Meal 3: 2 Kiwis
Meal 4: 1 Peach
Meal 5: edamame, yellowtail, mackerel, white tuna sashimi
The Paleolithic Diet has shown me a pretty efficient and clean way of eating. To stuff a bunch of processed chemical filled crap into my body didn't feel too good. I spent most of the day listening as my body expelled all the toxins that I ingested the night before.
All in all, it was pretty amazing to see how my body reacted to the assault. Because it has cleaned out so much, it appeared to be pretty efficient at expelling the toxins and repairing itself.
By mid morning I didn't feel so bad, and by the end of the day, I was pretty much back to normal.
Meal 1: Canteloupe
Meal 2: 1lb of strawberries
Meal 3: 2 Kiwis
Meal 4: 1 Peach
Meal 5: edamame, yellowtail, mackerel, white tuna sashimi
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Day 17 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Again, I was tired all day. I didn't feel hungry, just drained. I think my body is continuing it's deep cleaning and detox process. I should talk to Adam more about the fatigue. He did mention something about hitting a wall at some point during this diet. Again I slept about 9 hours and then took a 2 hour nap in the afternoon.
Another factor for my being so tired, may also be that I have been keeping myself in the house doing a lot of reading and research. I wonder how much of a role the inertia is playing. I'm not sure because last weekend I was raring to go all day. I suppose time will tell.
My diet was clean all day.......until. Yeah, I had some major pizza cravings again. I thought I had it under control, again with PB and celery. But for some reason, I convinced myself that a cheat would be a good thing. But how wrong I was.
This time, I didn't just pay the price mentally. I feel physically sick and disgusted. I had two of those nasty little Mr Pibs pizzas. I literally tasted like cardboard to me. I didn't even enjoy it. If I'm going to cheat, it should at least be with something worthwhile.
However, my body is becoming so accustomed to eating clean, that I don't think it can even handle anything processed or altered. I feel like there is something alive and evil sitting in my gut.
Meal 1: Grapes
Meal 2: Cashews
Meal 3: 1/4 of a watermelon
Meal 4: 5 Bananas 4 dates and flax seed
Meal 5: Celery and PB
Meal 6: ***Cheat meal from hell!!!*** 2 mr pibbs pizzas (small) and some coconut shrimp
Another factor for my being so tired, may also be that I have been keeping myself in the house doing a lot of reading and research. I wonder how much of a role the inertia is playing. I'm not sure because last weekend I was raring to go all day. I suppose time will tell.
My diet was clean all day.......until. Yeah, I had some major pizza cravings again. I thought I had it under control, again with PB and celery. But for some reason, I convinced myself that a cheat would be a good thing. But how wrong I was.
This time, I didn't just pay the price mentally. I feel physically sick and disgusted. I had two of those nasty little Mr Pibs pizzas. I literally tasted like cardboard to me. I didn't even enjoy it. If I'm going to cheat, it should at least be with something worthwhile.
However, my body is becoming so accustomed to eating clean, that I don't think it can even handle anything processed or altered. I feel like there is something alive and evil sitting in my gut.
Meal 1: Grapes
Meal 2: Cashews
Meal 3: 1/4 of a watermelon
Meal 4: 5 Bananas 4 dates and flax seed
Meal 5: Celery and PB
Meal 6: ***Cheat meal from hell!!!*** 2 mr pibbs pizzas (small) and some coconut shrimp
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Day 16 Of The Paleolithic Diet
I have been sleeping a LOT lately. Last night (Friday) I fell asleep at 7PM and woke up around 9pm. Then I went to bed at around 12 and woke up today around 9:30 - 10, and felt compelled to rest until 11am. I am wodering if my body is just going through the whole detox, deep clean process that I have read about. It also seems that I am continuing to drop weight pretty consistently. I also fell asleep in the afternoon from about 4 to 6. Very odd. But it felt good and I woke up refreshed, so I guess I needed it.
I did a work out today. I didn't do any direct arm or shoulder work because it felt like I was hitting them pretty hard indirectly.
Superset 1:
Weighted Step Ups / Pushup Renegade Rows
*Pushup Renegade Rows Instructions:
Grab 2 dumbbells and put them under your shoulders and grab them like you are getting into pushup position with your feet a little wider than shoulder width apart. Drop down and do a pushup, then while keeping your body parallel to the floor, row with your right arm, then control the weight down. Then drop and do a push up and row the weight up w/ your left arm. That is 1 Rep. When you get really burnt, you can change the push up to only one per rowing with each arm.*
Ok, back to the work out:
Superset 1:
Weighted Step Ups / Pushup Renegade Rows
Set 1: 45lbs ea arm x 10 ea leg / 25lbs ea arm x 8 ea arm x 16 push ups
Set 2: 45lbs ea arm x 10 ea leg / 25lbs ea arm x 8 ea arm x 16 push ups
Set 3: 45lbs ea arm x 10 ea leg / 25lbs ea arm x 8 ea arm x 8 push ups
Superset 2:
Incline Single Arm Dumbbell Press / Medicine Ball Push Up / Lat Pull Down / Front Lat Pull Down
Set 1: 45lbs each arm x 12 / 4 ea arm / 140 x 10 / 50 x 12
Set 2: 45lbs each arm x 10 / 2 ea arm / 120 x 8 / 50 x 10
Meal 1: 1lb of strawberries
Meal 2: 3 large pears
Meal 3: (post workout) 5 bananas blended in water
Meal 4: 5 mashed bananas, 4 dates, and flax seed
Meal 5: 1 pint of raspberries
Meal 6: 1 cup baby carrots
Meal 7: 1 banana
Meal 8: 1/2 bunch of celery w/ lots of chunky all natural pb
I did a work out today. I didn't do any direct arm or shoulder work because it felt like I was hitting them pretty hard indirectly.
Superset 1:
Weighted Step Ups / Pushup Renegade Rows
*Pushup Renegade Rows Instructions:
Grab 2 dumbbells and put them under your shoulders and grab them like you are getting into pushup position with your feet a little wider than shoulder width apart. Drop down and do a pushup, then while keeping your body parallel to the floor, row with your right arm, then control the weight down. Then drop and do a push up and row the weight up w/ your left arm. That is 1 Rep. When you get really burnt, you can change the push up to only one per rowing with each arm.*
Ok, back to the work out:
Superset 1:
Weighted Step Ups / Pushup Renegade Rows
Set 1: 45lbs ea arm x 10 ea leg / 25lbs ea arm x 8 ea arm x 16 push ups
Set 2: 45lbs ea arm x 10 ea leg / 25lbs ea arm x 8 ea arm x 16 push ups
Set 3: 45lbs ea arm x 10 ea leg / 25lbs ea arm x 8 ea arm x 8 push ups
Superset 2:
Incline Single Arm Dumbbell Press / Medicine Ball Push Up / Lat Pull Down / Front Lat Pull Down
Set 1: 45lbs each arm x 12 / 4 ea arm / 140 x 10 / 50 x 12
Set 2: 45lbs each arm x 10 / 2 ea arm / 120 x 8 / 50 x 10
Meal 1: 1lb of strawberries
Meal 2: 3 large pears
Meal 3: (post workout) 5 bananas blended in water
Meal 4: 5 mashed bananas, 4 dates, and flax seed
Meal 5: 1 pint of raspberries
Meal 6: 1 cup baby carrots
Meal 7: 1 banana
Meal 8: 1/2 bunch of celery w/ lots of chunky all natural pb
Friday, June 20, 2008
Day 15 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Today was a rough day. Srong pizza and steak and cheese cravings which I answered with Celery and pb. I was figuring that the cravings were my bodies response to a slight deficiency in sodium. That definitely helped.
My mood also sucked all day. Not sure if it was purely diet related, psychological, or a combination of the two. I went to bed early this day as well. Details about my sleep habits on this day are in Day 16's Paleolithic diet report.
Meal 1: 1lb of Strawberries
Meal 2: 3 Mangoes
Meal 3: 5 Mashed Bananas, 4 figs, flax seed
Meal 4: Coconut and macadamia nut
Meal 5: Handful of Grapes
Meal 6: 1/2 bunch of celery and all natural smooth pb
My mood also sucked all day. Not sure if it was purely diet related, psychological, or a combination of the two. I went to bed early this day as well. Details about my sleep habits on this day are in Day 16's Paleolithic diet report.
Meal 1: 1lb of Strawberries
Meal 2: 3 Mangoes
Meal 3: 5 Mashed Bananas, 4 figs, flax seed
Meal 4: Coconut and macadamia nut
Meal 5: Handful of Grapes
Meal 6: 1/2 bunch of celery and all natural smooth pb
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Day 14 Of The Paleolithic Diet
I think the calories were probably a little low today. My energy was pretty good all day. I did take another day from the gym for good measure. I'm going to hit it seriously hard tomorrow. We'll see how that feels.
Meal 1: 1 Honeydew
Meal 2: Approx 1 lb of Strawberries
Meal 3: Celery and natural peanut butter
Meal 4: 5 mashed Bananas 3 Dates, and flax seed
Meal 1: 1 Honeydew
Meal 2: Approx 1 lb of Strawberries
Meal 3: Celery and natural peanut butter
Meal 4: 5 mashed Bananas 3 Dates, and flax seed
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Day 13 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Today was an interesting day. I felt pretty good, although I got really tired as the day went on. I was also in a sour and nasty mood at work, but I think that has more to do with the ugly predicament I am in than anything else. By the time I got home, I felt like my body was trying to keep me out of the gym. I'm wondering if I've been clean long enough for my body to be digging a little deeper to do some repair work. It feels like that is the case. I heeded Adam's advice (to keep the fruit away from the meat) today, although I didn't do as well as I would have liked. I was hungry soon after meal 6 and had meal 7 within a few hours. I should have ate a bit more substance throughout the day and put meal 6 where meal 7 was. Other than that, I really get the feeling that, as I said, my body is repairing and rebuiling. My caffeine intake is also high.
I'm going to hit the hay and encourage some additional anabolic processes.
Meal 1: 3 Oranges
Meal 2: 1/2 cup of Blueberries
Meal 3: Handfuls of Macadamia Nuts and 1 Cup of Raspberries
Meal 4: 2 Cups of Large Green grapes
Meal 5: 6 Bananas
Meal 6: 1/2 lb grass fed beef (pretty rare) 2 ears of corn
Meal 7: 3 Mashed bananas, 3 figs, handful of sun flower seeds
I'm going to hit the hay and encourage some additional anabolic processes.
Meal 1: 3 Oranges
Meal 2: 1/2 cup of Blueberries
Meal 3: Handfuls of Macadamia Nuts and 1 Cup of Raspberries
Meal 4: 2 Cups of Large Green grapes
Meal 5: 6 Bananas
Meal 6: 1/2 lb grass fed beef (pretty rare) 2 ears of corn
Meal 7: 3 Mashed bananas, 3 figs, handful of sun flower seeds
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Day 12 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Today was an ok day. I do have to say that I have been drinking wayyyy too much coffee. I think that is sapping the energy from me. Today I did hill sprints. I really had to drag myself out and it was a little painful to get moving. I'm up to 12, but on my way down the hill, I was walking just a little slower. And I gave myself about an extra 10 seconds after sprint 7 to wet my mouth and throat w/ some water. In any case, I pushed myself and gave it everything that I had.
Meal 1: 3 Oranges
Meal 2: 5 large mashed up bananas and 5 figs
Meal 3: 3 ears of corn
Meal 4: 4 Peaches
Meal 5: 2 Bananas and approx 1/2lb of grass fed beef
Meal 1: 3 Oranges
Meal 2: 5 large mashed up bananas and 5 figs
Meal 3: 3 ears of corn
Meal 4: 4 Peaches
Meal 5: 2 Bananas and approx 1/2lb of grass fed beef
Monday, June 16, 2008
Day 11 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Even after yesterday's little set back, I was down to 217 this morning. Upon waking, I was a little banged up but very quickly got my energy level back up after my breafast of Honeydew. The melon wasn't quite ripe, but the part that was was extremely delicious. I will have to hone my Paleolithic Diet skills to include testing melons for ripeness.
I still maintain that this is the best idea for eating that I have ever come across. My cravings for sweets and grains have been subtle at their strongest other than on Day 3.
Meal 1: 1 Honeydew Melon
Meal 2: 7 Bananas
Meal 3: 3 Peaches
Meal 4: Several handfuls baby carrots
meal 5: 4 Bananas and 2 heaping spoons of peanut butter (all natural)
Meal 6: 4 Liquified bananas after my work out
Meal 7: some edamame Sashimi, fluke, yellowtail, crab, shrimp (watch sodium content of fish)
Workout:
Superset 1:
Weighted Step Ups / Plyo-Push Ups / Squat Jumps
45 x 12 / 10 / 10
45 x 10 / 10 / 10
45 x 10 / 8 + 8 / 10
Superset 2:
Stab Ball Flies / Chest Press / Med Ball Push Ups / Lat Pull Down / Stab Ball xTension
35 x 15 / 35 x 15 / L/R 5 5 / 140 x 12 / 12
35 x 15 / 35 x 15 / L/R 2 1 / 120 x 9 / 12
Superset 3:
Military DBell Press / Lat Shoulder Raise
30 x 15 / 10 x 12
30 x 10 / 7.5 x 10
Superset 4:
Tricep Push Down / Straight Bar Curls
80 x 15 / 55 x 16
80 x 14 / 55 x 14
I still maintain that this is the best idea for eating that I have ever come across. My cravings for sweets and grains have been subtle at their strongest other than on Day 3.
Meal 1: 1 Honeydew Melon
Meal 2: 7 Bananas
Meal 3: 3 Peaches
Meal 4: Several handfuls baby carrots
meal 5: 4 Bananas and 2 heaping spoons of peanut butter (all natural)
Meal 6: 4 Liquified bananas after my work out
Meal 7: some edamame Sashimi, fluke, yellowtail, crab, shrimp (watch sodium content of fish)
Workout:
Superset 1:
Weighted Step Ups / Plyo-Push Ups / Squat Jumps
45 x 12 / 10 / 10
45 x 10 / 10 / 10
45 x 10 / 8 + 8 / 10
Superset 2:
Stab Ball Flies / Chest Press / Med Ball Push Ups / Lat Pull Down / Stab Ball xTension
35 x 15 / 35 x 15 / L/R 5 5 / 140 x 12 / 12
35 x 15 / 35 x 15 / L/R 2 1 / 120 x 9 / 12
Superset 3:
Military DBell Press / Lat Shoulder Raise
30 x 15 / 10 x 12
30 x 10 / 7.5 x 10
Superset 4:
Tricep Push Down / Straight Bar Curls
80 x 15 / 55 x 16
80 x 14 / 55 x 14
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Day 10 Of The Paleolithic Diet
The day started off pretty sluggish. I was out and up late again last night and tried a heavy B12 supplement. I woke up GROGGY as hell today. I started off good with 4 kiwis, but had to go out to my mom's house. This always spells trouble, and I should have been more prepared.
My mom's bf LOVEs to cook lots of food and desert. He's one of those Italian force feeders. In his mind, you can ALWAYS eat more. On my way over my mom called to make sure I was hungry. And I was. Not good.
When I got there, there were shrimp and grapes on the table. I ate a good portion of that, but when we sat down for dinner, all there was was pulled pork, hot dogs, ribs, and all kinds of potatoe salad. Not good. I ended up eating a pulled porch sandwhich on a kaiser roll.
You would think that after all this clean eating it would have felt great, but it really didn't. I didn't enjoy it that much knowing what I was putting into my body, and it didn't sit in my stomach well at all.
Then it got worse. It was my birthday a week ago and my mom was very proud of the giant ice cream cake that she made me. How the HELL do I say no to that?
So I had a lot of ice cream too. It was good, but again, did not sit well.
Then.....my gift from my mom's bf. Canolis. Yep. Canolis. I couldn't win today.
By the time I got to Whole Foods to do my shopping for the next couple days, I felt like shit. I need to get around these situations better. I was thinking that maybe a cheat day would be a good thing, but no. It really wasn't. I don't feel well at all, and I won't be doing that again.
People like to say....come on! Live a little! Have some! But you know what? I don't feel like I lived a little. I felt more alive before I ate it. And frankly, I feel like I just died a little.
I'm looking forward to being on track again and purging my system of all the crap that I just put back into it.
My mom's bf LOVEs to cook lots of food and desert. He's one of those Italian force feeders. In his mind, you can ALWAYS eat more. On my way over my mom called to make sure I was hungry. And I was. Not good.
When I got there, there were shrimp and grapes on the table. I ate a good portion of that, but when we sat down for dinner, all there was was pulled pork, hot dogs, ribs, and all kinds of potatoe salad. Not good. I ended up eating a pulled porch sandwhich on a kaiser roll.
You would think that after all this clean eating it would have felt great, but it really didn't. I didn't enjoy it that much knowing what I was putting into my body, and it didn't sit in my stomach well at all.
Then it got worse. It was my birthday a week ago and my mom was very proud of the giant ice cream cake that she made me. How the HELL do I say no to that?
So I had a lot of ice cream too. It was good, but again, did not sit well.
Then.....my gift from my mom's bf. Canolis. Yep. Canolis. I couldn't win today.
By the time I got to Whole Foods to do my shopping for the next couple days, I felt like shit. I need to get around these situations better. I was thinking that maybe a cheat day would be a good thing, but no. It really wasn't. I don't feel well at all, and I won't be doing that again.
People like to say....come on! Live a little! Have some! But you know what? I don't feel like I lived a little. I felt more alive before I ate it. And frankly, I feel like I just died a little.
I'm looking forward to being on track again and purging my system of all the crap that I just put back into it.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Day 9 Of The Paleolithic Diet
I went to bed late last night, around 3:30 am. My eyes opened on their own this morning around 9am. I'm light on sleep, and tried to get myself back to sleep, but I was wide awake. I guess that is all my body wanted for sleep, albeit I stayed a bit groggy for a while.
What I love about the Paleolithic Diet is that I don't have to make myself do anything that I don't want to do. You are only supposed to eat when you are hungry on the Paleolithic Diet so I don't have to force myself to immediately cook up egg whites and oat meal and force it down against my will as soon as I get up. As a matter of fact, I don't ever have to eat egg whites and oatmeal ever again and can still reach my fitness goals!!!
I just get up and go about my business and eat when I am hungry. And the greatest thing, is that I'm eating sweet fruit, so its refreshing and enjoyable!
Another awesome feature of the Paleolithic Diet that I really enjoy, is the fact that you are supposed to eat until satiated. I'm simply not hungry after I'm done eating. And if I get hungry soon, I just grab more fruit.
The Paleolithic Diet really is working out well for me.
****workout
Today I hit 11 sprints on that monster of a hill. I rested once for about 5-10 seconds between cycles 8 and 9. Other than that, straight through like an animal. Yes, I am a fucking ANIMAL! ROOOAARRRRR!!!!!!!
The key now will be to refuel sufficiently. Sugar is essential to recovery. Fortunately, the Paleolithic Diet allows for PLENTY!!!
Meal 1: 3 Mangoes
Meal 2: 7 Bananas
Meal 3: 5 Kiwis
Meal 4: 2 cups baby carrots
What I love about the Paleolithic Diet is that I don't have to make myself do anything that I don't want to do. You are only supposed to eat when you are hungry on the Paleolithic Diet so I don't have to force myself to immediately cook up egg whites and oat meal and force it down against my will as soon as I get up. As a matter of fact, I don't ever have to eat egg whites and oatmeal ever again and can still reach my fitness goals!!!
I just get up and go about my business and eat when I am hungry. And the greatest thing, is that I'm eating sweet fruit, so its refreshing and enjoyable!
Another awesome feature of the Paleolithic Diet that I really enjoy, is the fact that you are supposed to eat until satiated. I'm simply not hungry after I'm done eating. And if I get hungry soon, I just grab more fruit.
The Paleolithic Diet really is working out well for me.
****workout
Today I hit 11 sprints on that monster of a hill. I rested once for about 5-10 seconds between cycles 8 and 9. Other than that, straight through like an animal. Yes, I am a fucking ANIMAL! ROOOAARRRRR!!!!!!!
The key now will be to refuel sufficiently. Sugar is essential to recovery. Fortunately, the Paleolithic Diet allows for PLENTY!!!
Meal 1: 3 Mangoes
Meal 2: 7 Bananas
Meal 3: 5 Kiwis
Meal 4: 2 cups baby carrots
Friday, June 13, 2008
An Attitude Of Gratitude
One of the fundamentals for decoding our own psychological Matrix in order to press onward and upward to success and fulfillment is Gratitude. This can be a hard concept to grasp when experiencing something overwhelming or when first trying to make a major change in your life. But it is a spritual axiom that energy produces more of its kind. In other words, positive thoughts create more positive thoughts. And negative thoughts, produce more negative thoughts. Furthermore, our thoughts actually manifest themselves in our reality.
So whether you are in a good or foul mood for any number of reasons, it is a great exercise to regularly make a list of the things you are grateful for. Doing so can strengthen an already positive frame, as well as provide the catalyst for turning a sour state of mind sweet.
Think about it. None of us are perfect. We all have days where something is really bothering us or something is going wrong. The way we react to those conditions is going to determine how we deal with them and move on. And different people react differently. But have you ever known someone who is just able to accept things for what they are and "see the bright side?" Those people don't stay in a negative state for very long do they? I know people who don't quite get there at all, or very rarely.
But sometimes, we are tempted to dwell in negativity. And my response to that, is to be grateful for the good that we see. A physical and mental exercise for honoring and appreciating what ever good we can find is a great step in the right direction. And a great exercise for maintaining wellness.
But gratitude isn't just about remembering the good. Real gratitude is being grateful for the bad. I know that might sound counter intuitive but the fact is that we all have challenges and demons. Adversity, bad luck, poor genetics, wrong place at the wrong time, loss, failure, all have their place in the world. And we all either already have, or will experience some form of something we don't want or feel we didn't deserve.
But our true personal power will come down to the ability to extract the value and the lesson from those circumstances. Then it can no longer own us. We then own it.
So I encourage you to start a gratitude list. Whether you write it every morning, add to it on occassion, read it daily, or save the exercise for a time when you really need a mental and/or spiritual uplift, it will prove to be a valuabe tool to help keep you on the right track.
Here's my list for today, right now:
I'm grateful for:
being able to hear the birds, my fully functional body, the pain and disappointments that I've gotten over, food, knowledge, my real friends, the times I've found out the hard way that someone wasn't my friend, that I can support myself, the roof over my head, my vison, my health, hard lessons, hard work, my intellect, all the opportunity I see, people who have passed hard lessons onto me, empathy, the kiwi I just ate, my bed, music, art, my trip to France, A/C, what I learned from getting robbed, hard jobs I've had, that I didn't fit in, my ability to stand on my own for what I know is right, my Life
So whether you are in a good or foul mood for any number of reasons, it is a great exercise to regularly make a list of the things you are grateful for. Doing so can strengthen an already positive frame, as well as provide the catalyst for turning a sour state of mind sweet.
Think about it. None of us are perfect. We all have days where something is really bothering us or something is going wrong. The way we react to those conditions is going to determine how we deal with them and move on. And different people react differently. But have you ever known someone who is just able to accept things for what they are and "see the bright side?" Those people don't stay in a negative state for very long do they? I know people who don't quite get there at all, or very rarely.
But sometimes, we are tempted to dwell in negativity. And my response to that, is to be grateful for the good that we see. A physical and mental exercise for honoring and appreciating what ever good we can find is a great step in the right direction. And a great exercise for maintaining wellness.
But gratitude isn't just about remembering the good. Real gratitude is being grateful for the bad. I know that might sound counter intuitive but the fact is that we all have challenges and demons. Adversity, bad luck, poor genetics, wrong place at the wrong time, loss, failure, all have their place in the world. And we all either already have, or will experience some form of something we don't want or feel we didn't deserve.
But our true personal power will come down to the ability to extract the value and the lesson from those circumstances. Then it can no longer own us. We then own it.
So I encourage you to start a gratitude list. Whether you write it every morning, add to it on occassion, read it daily, or save the exercise for a time when you really need a mental and/or spiritual uplift, it will prove to be a valuabe tool to help keep you on the right track.
Here's my list for today, right now:
I'm grateful for:
being able to hear the birds, my fully functional body, the pain and disappointments that I've gotten over, food, knowledge, my real friends, the times I've found out the hard way that someone wasn't my friend, that I can support myself, the roof over my head, my vison, my health, hard lessons, hard work, my intellect, all the opportunity I see, people who have passed hard lessons onto me, empathy, the kiwi I just ate, my bed, music, art, my trip to France, A/C, what I learned from getting robbed, hard jobs I've had, that I didn't fit in, my ability to stand on my own for what I know is right, my Life
Day 8 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Last night I went to bed around 11 and my eyes opened on their own today around 7:30. It is continuing to get easier and easier to get up and I am clearer every morning. My energy level is good and my mood is moderate. I'm currently drinking my first cup of coffee and feeling ok.
After my work out last night, I'm in pretty good shape today. No soreness or excessive fatigue as of yet......
*****Time elaspe****
It's late now, about 3am. I let myself go for too long without food and stopped at 7/11 with my buddy at around midnight while walking from Tia's to Lucky's. I had 4 bananas. Then we stopped for sushi a few hours later in china town.
I did hill sprints today. I'm upto 10 now. I was drained from all the caffeine today so I took about a 30 min nap. It was a struggle to get up and work out, but I'm glad I did. I maintain that I was stonger today than I was on Wednesday. Also, my friend noticed immediately that I had lost a lot of weight since he saw me last Saturday.
I was awake much longer today than usual so I ate more meals. I need to be careful not to go for too long w/o food, and be sure not to eat too little. I'm going to sleep good tonight, I am exhausted. I was out having a good time with my best friend though so it was worth it.
Meal 1: 4 Peaches
Meal 2: 4 Bananas and 2 scoops all natural peanut butter
Meal 3: approx 7oz of Raw salmon
Meal 4: 1 Cantaloupe
Meal 5: 4 Bananas
Meal 6: approx 1/2lb of Bison and 1 ear of corn
Meal 7: 4 Bananas
Meal 8: (approx 1 hr later) Sashimi, Fluke, Yellow tail, and eel (the eel is grilled, also has some kind of sauce on it, very small quantity)
After my work out last night, I'm in pretty good shape today. No soreness or excessive fatigue as of yet......
*****Time elaspe****
It's late now, about 3am. I let myself go for too long without food and stopped at 7/11 with my buddy at around midnight while walking from Tia's to Lucky's. I had 4 bananas. Then we stopped for sushi a few hours later in china town.
I did hill sprints today. I'm upto 10 now. I was drained from all the caffeine today so I took about a 30 min nap. It was a struggle to get up and work out, but I'm glad I did. I maintain that I was stonger today than I was on Wednesday. Also, my friend noticed immediately that I had lost a lot of weight since he saw me last Saturday.
I was awake much longer today than usual so I ate more meals. I need to be careful not to go for too long w/o food, and be sure not to eat too little. I'm going to sleep good tonight, I am exhausted. I was out having a good time with my best friend though so it was worth it.
Meal 1: 4 Peaches
Meal 2: 4 Bananas and 2 scoops all natural peanut butter
Meal 3: approx 7oz of Raw salmon
Meal 4: 1 Cantaloupe
Meal 5: 4 Bananas
Meal 6: approx 1/2lb of Bison and 1 ear of corn
Meal 7: 4 Bananas
Meal 8: (approx 1 hr later) Sashimi, Fluke, Yellow tail, and eel (the eel is grilled, also has some kind of sauce on it, very small quantity)
Thursday, June 12, 2008
From Pain To Change
From Pain To Change
Fire! Fire! You can hear the scream coming from the next room as you come up out of a deep sleep. You jump out of bed and sprint to the kitchen to find a raging fire on the stove. What do you do? Would you yawn and go back to bed? Of course not! I'm hoping you would call the fire department, grab a fire extinguisher, or get the hell out of there. Regardless of the action that you take, you would take action. To not do anything and ignore that alarm, wouldn't make the fire go away. It would only give the fire more time to burn everything in site. And what if you just saw a little smoke? Would you let that fester until it became a raging fire? I wouldn't think so.
I've heard it said that the best catalyst for making a change is pain. And in my experience, this is true. If you aren't aware of a problem, you have no idea what to change, or how to go about making that change. But if you can just “feel” that something is wrong, that is an alarm going off letting you know that it is time for some self-exploration and to get to work on finding the source and making the change.
Sometimes the alarm sounds like the blaring call of a passing opportunity or as subtle as a waft of smoke in the distance calling you toward your true burning desire for purpose. In any case, the signal often comes in the form of an uneasy and unsettling sensation that something is amiss and needs action from you in order to be corrected.
But the longer that alarm goes off without you taking any action the worse the pain will become. So pain really isn't necessarily always a bad thing. It can serve as an alarm or a smoke signal, letting us know that it is time for change, or that we could be doing better for ourselves. Yet when many of us feel internal pain, or a sense of unease, we often fail to take action. I have some thoughts on why that is in another article that you can find here.
As an extreme example, I'll tell you a bit of my story. In my twenties I managed to get myself into a position where I couldn't stand going to work. I had worked for only three different companies in that period of time. The first company for 3 years, the second company for 4 years, and the third company for just a few months.
There would be brief periods where I would be excited about my job and work hard, but inevitably, long periods of time would come about where I felt tremendously unfulfilled. I had a metaphorical headache from banging my head against a wall. And no matter how many forms of motivation, affirmations, and self talk I tried, it was a battle that just could not be won. What was worse, was that it appeared that so many other people seemed to just be ok with the cubicle ridden lifestyle. So in addition to feeling unfulfilled, bored, and frustrated, I felt like a total outcast.
In the good spirit of trying to be fair to my surroundings and take responsibility for myself, I would constantly tell myself that it wasn't the job, it was me that was mis-aligned. So I stayed in my first two positions for considerably long periods of time trying to figure out how to be of better service to my customers, how to sell more, and how to provide more “value.”
What I didn't realize was that while I was on the right track looking inward at how I could make the situation better, I actually was not the right person for those situations. That became abundantly clear to me when I started my third job working for a web security company where I had an incredible manager who I got along with, fantastic co-workers, and was selling a phenomenal product. The problem was that I just was NOT happy.
And it wasn't my manager, the people I worked with, or what I was selling. It was the lifestyle that I was leading. I couldn't stand the fact that I was showing up where someone else said I had to show up, when they said to show up, and then left when they said I could leave. My income was limited by the plans put in place, and I even had to wear a head set while on the phone that felt like a real life plug in into the Matrix.
And worst of all, I felt like I had no PURPOSE!
It finally hit me that that was what had been plaguing me. My completely mundane and boring existence as a cog in the corporate wheel was killing me. Second by second the life was draining out of me, transmutating into money, and dripping into the bank account of the executives and owners of the company that I was working for. And I wasn't doing anything about it. All that time, the feelings of inadequacy, failure, and frustration, was my unconscious setting off blaring alarms that I was in the wrong place and living a life that was not in alignment with the Universe's best intentions for me.
The moment that I realized this brought with it a pang of such a sharp and stinging realization that I resolved to find my purpose and begin to live it. And that night when I got home, as a ceremonious reminder to myself, I wrote this incantation:
5/31/2008
“The time has come for a major change. I have reached the end of the path for this chapter of my life. It has come down to do or die. I can no longer endure the insulting and humiliating misery of perpetuating someone else's reality. I will no longer accept for myself the life of servitude that I have been living. My mission is to serve a higher purpose. Not some trivial corporate entity. I was put on this planet to make a difference, to carry a message. I will succeed in that mission, no matter what it takes.”
So I set out on a mission to identify my “Higher Purpose” and start living it. And once I made that decision I started to find tremendous resources and people who inspired and guided me toward this major part of my personal Transformation.
The point of this story is that for a long time I had a nagging suspicion that something wasn't right in my life. That I was doing something that just was not congruent with who I am. When the pain got great enough, I started to move. And as soon as I started to take action, I built a burning desire to change my life and my circumstances. Had I not made any moves toward change, I would still be living the same un-fulfilling and meaningless life that I was living before.
I happened to focus on career in this post, but this principle can apply to any part of life. Are you ignoring signs that any part of your life isn't really what you want? Maybe in your relationships or family life? Is there a dream that you may have given up on or a passion that you feel called to follow, but you just haven't gotten yourself to pursue it? It's worth thinking about.
So as you continue or begin your journey of personal Transformation, learn to pay attention to the signs. Are there any alarms going off in your mind? Is the Universe sending you smoke signals from off in the distance? If so, the time is now to put out the fire and make the changes necessary to start building the life that you truly desire.
Fire! Fire! You can hear the scream coming from the next room as you come up out of a deep sleep. You jump out of bed and sprint to the kitchen to find a raging fire on the stove. What do you do? Would you yawn and go back to bed? Of course not! I'm hoping you would call the fire department, grab a fire extinguisher, or get the hell out of there. Regardless of the action that you take, you would take action. To not do anything and ignore that alarm, wouldn't make the fire go away. It would only give the fire more time to burn everything in site. And what if you just saw a little smoke? Would you let that fester until it became a raging fire? I wouldn't think so.
I've heard it said that the best catalyst for making a change is pain. And in my experience, this is true. If you aren't aware of a problem, you have no idea what to change, or how to go about making that change. But if you can just “feel” that something is wrong, that is an alarm going off letting you know that it is time for some self-exploration and to get to work on finding the source and making the change.
Sometimes the alarm sounds like the blaring call of a passing opportunity or as subtle as a waft of smoke in the distance calling you toward your true burning desire for purpose. In any case, the signal often comes in the form of an uneasy and unsettling sensation that something is amiss and needs action from you in order to be corrected.
But the longer that alarm goes off without you taking any action the worse the pain will become. So pain really isn't necessarily always a bad thing. It can serve as an alarm or a smoke signal, letting us know that it is time for change, or that we could be doing better for ourselves. Yet when many of us feel internal pain, or a sense of unease, we often fail to take action. I have some thoughts on why that is in another article that you can find here.
As an extreme example, I'll tell you a bit of my story. In my twenties I managed to get myself into a position where I couldn't stand going to work. I had worked for only three different companies in that period of time. The first company for 3 years, the second company for 4 years, and the third company for just a few months.
There would be brief periods where I would be excited about my job and work hard, but inevitably, long periods of time would come about where I felt tremendously unfulfilled. I had a metaphorical headache from banging my head against a wall. And no matter how many forms of motivation, affirmations, and self talk I tried, it was a battle that just could not be won. What was worse, was that it appeared that so many other people seemed to just be ok with the cubicle ridden lifestyle. So in addition to feeling unfulfilled, bored, and frustrated, I felt like a total outcast.
In the good spirit of trying to be fair to my surroundings and take responsibility for myself, I would constantly tell myself that it wasn't the job, it was me that was mis-aligned. So I stayed in my first two positions for considerably long periods of time trying to figure out how to be of better service to my customers, how to sell more, and how to provide more “value.”
What I didn't realize was that while I was on the right track looking inward at how I could make the situation better, I actually was not the right person for those situations. That became abundantly clear to me when I started my third job working for a web security company where I had an incredible manager who I got along with, fantastic co-workers, and was selling a phenomenal product. The problem was that I just was NOT happy.
And it wasn't my manager, the people I worked with, or what I was selling. It was the lifestyle that I was leading. I couldn't stand the fact that I was showing up where someone else said I had to show up, when they said to show up, and then left when they said I could leave. My income was limited by the plans put in place, and I even had to wear a head set while on the phone that felt like a real life plug in into the Matrix.
And worst of all, I felt like I had no PURPOSE!
It finally hit me that that was what had been plaguing me. My completely mundane and boring existence as a cog in the corporate wheel was killing me. Second by second the life was draining out of me, transmutating into money, and dripping into the bank account of the executives and owners of the company that I was working for. And I wasn't doing anything about it. All that time, the feelings of inadequacy, failure, and frustration, was my unconscious setting off blaring alarms that I was in the wrong place and living a life that was not in alignment with the Universe's best intentions for me.
The moment that I realized this brought with it a pang of such a sharp and stinging realization that I resolved to find my purpose and begin to live it. And that night when I got home, as a ceremonious reminder to myself, I wrote this incantation:
5/31/2008
“The time has come for a major change. I have reached the end of the path for this chapter of my life. It has come down to do or die. I can no longer endure the insulting and humiliating misery of perpetuating someone else's reality. I will no longer accept for myself the life of servitude that I have been living. My mission is to serve a higher purpose. Not some trivial corporate entity. I was put on this planet to make a difference, to carry a message. I will succeed in that mission, no matter what it takes.”
So I set out on a mission to identify my “Higher Purpose” and start living it. And once I made that decision I started to find tremendous resources and people who inspired and guided me toward this major part of my personal Transformation.
The point of this story is that for a long time I had a nagging suspicion that something wasn't right in my life. That I was doing something that just was not congruent with who I am. When the pain got great enough, I started to move. And as soon as I started to take action, I built a burning desire to change my life and my circumstances. Had I not made any moves toward change, I would still be living the same un-fulfilling and meaningless life that I was living before.
I happened to focus on career in this post, but this principle can apply to any part of life. Are you ignoring signs that any part of your life isn't really what you want? Maybe in your relationships or family life? Is there a dream that you may have given up on or a passion that you feel called to follow, but you just haven't gotten yourself to pursue it? It's worth thinking about.
So as you continue or begin your journey of personal Transformation, learn to pay attention to the signs. Are there any alarms going off in your mind? Is the Universe sending you smoke signals from off in the distance? If so, the time is now to put out the fire and make the changes necessary to start building the life that you truly desire.
Day 7 of The Paleolithic Diet
I woke up today feeling fairly clean and energized. Slightly more than yesterday. By the time I got to the office, I had quite a bit of energy. But don't get me wrong, my stance on the cubicle farm remains the same. It will be interesting to see if I really feel like working out later today.
I've noticed the past couple of days that I have had what seem to be the symptoms of a looming sore throat. Its just that sort of sticky, itchy/scratchy type feeling. My guess is that this is another detox symptom. I'm also suddenly really tired right now as well. Maybe the gym won't be such a good idea tonight......
*time passing*
Nope....I went to the gym anyway.....and it was a GREAT idea! I felt really good. Today I did some weight training. The intensity was about 80% all the way through and I was able to maintain that level. Here's the details:
3 Supersets Of
Step Ups with 45lb plates in each hand Set 1: 12 reps each leg Set 2: 10 Reps Set 3: 8 Reps
Plyometric Push Ups Set 1: 10 Set 2: 12 Set 3: 8, then till 20 regular
2 Supersets Of (all exercises all the way through, without rest)
Stability Ball Flies, then Chest Presses with 35lb Dumbbells, then one arm Bosu Ball Push ups
Set 1: 12/12/2(ea arm) Set 2: 15/12/1.5(2 on left arm, 1 on right, then failure)
Lat Pull Down, then Stability Ball Lat Extension
Set 1: 140x12 and 12 Reps Stability Ball Lat Extension
Set 2: 120x8 Drop Set to 100x4 and 10 Reps on stability Ball
2 Supersets of
Sated Dumbbell Military Press / Lateral Raises
Set 1: 30lbs x 15 / 10lbs x 10
Set 2: 30lbs x 10 / 7.5lbs x 8
2 Supersets Of
Tricep Pushdowns / Straight Bar Curls
Set 1: 40lbs x 15 / 55lbs x15
Set 2: 40lbs x 12 / 55lbs x 12
I have to say that I am continuing to feel stronger, cleaner, clearer, and better, each and every day.
(Times not recorded as I am in the habit of only eating when hungry)
Meal 1: 4 Kiwis and 3 dried figs
Meal 2: 4 Bananas 2 Scoops all Natural PB
Meal 3: 1 Canteloupe, 3 figs
Meal 4: 3 Bananas (about an hour after the canteloupe)
Meal 5: 2 Bananas and grapes (grazing pre work out)
Meal 6: 1/2 lb Grass/Grain fed Bison, 1 brocolli crown
I've noticed the past couple of days that I have had what seem to be the symptoms of a looming sore throat. Its just that sort of sticky, itchy/scratchy type feeling. My guess is that this is another detox symptom. I'm also suddenly really tired right now as well. Maybe the gym won't be such a good idea tonight......
*time passing*
Nope....I went to the gym anyway.....and it was a GREAT idea! I felt really good. Today I did some weight training. The intensity was about 80% all the way through and I was able to maintain that level. Here's the details:
3 Supersets Of
Step Ups with 45lb plates in each hand Set 1: 12 reps each leg Set 2: 10 Reps Set 3: 8 Reps
Plyometric Push Ups Set 1: 10 Set 2: 12 Set 3: 8, then till 20 regular
2 Supersets Of (all exercises all the way through, without rest)
Stability Ball Flies, then Chest Presses with 35lb Dumbbells, then one arm Bosu Ball Push ups
Set 1: 12/12/2(ea arm) Set 2: 15/12/1.5(2 on left arm, 1 on right, then failure)
Lat Pull Down, then Stability Ball Lat Extension
Set 1: 140x12 and 12 Reps Stability Ball Lat Extension
Set 2: 120x8 Drop Set to 100x4 and 10 Reps on stability Ball
2 Supersets of
Sated Dumbbell Military Press / Lateral Raises
Set 1: 30lbs x 15 / 10lbs x 10
Set 2: 30lbs x 10 / 7.5lbs x 8
2 Supersets Of
Tricep Pushdowns / Straight Bar Curls
Set 1: 40lbs x 15 / 55lbs x15
Set 2: 40lbs x 12 / 55lbs x 12
I have to say that I am continuing to feel stronger, cleaner, clearer, and better, each and every day.
(Times not recorded as I am in the habit of only eating when hungry)
Meal 1: 4 Kiwis and 3 dried figs
Meal 2: 4 Bananas 2 Scoops all Natural PB
Meal 3: 1 Canteloupe, 3 figs
Meal 4: 3 Bananas (about an hour after the canteloupe)
Meal 5: 2 Bananas and grapes (grazing pre work out)
Meal 6: 1/2 lb Grass/Grain fed Bison, 1 brocolli crown
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Dead Before Retirement
I've thought about the real time investment that I'm making into working in an office, for some jerk offs who don't care if I live or die. Yeah, I really do feel that way about the guys who run my company. If you are in my boat, working 40 hours a week and commuting, we are throwing away MASSIVE quantities of our life down the drain for the furthering of someone else's agenda. Let's do some quick math.
Assuming we work 40 hours per week, and spend 10 hours per week commuting, this is the break down of the time investment that we make over the course of our lives to our “careers.”
50 Hours per week X 50 weeks in a year = 2,500 hours per year
2,500 hours per year / 24 hours in a day = 104 days per year
104 days per year X 45 years = 4,680 Days
4,680 days / 365 days in a year = 12.8 years
That's 12.8 years of our lives dedicated to the profits of other people who don't have our best interests in mind!
Assuming that we are only awake for 16 hours of the day, let's see how much time we loose assuming a 16 hour day.
2,500 hours per year / 16 hours in a day = 156.25 days per year
156.25 days per year X 45 years = 7,031 Days
7,031 Days / 365 Days in a year = 19 years
In this scenario, if we live to be 75, we'll have only lived 56 years of our lives doing what we want for ourselves. Essentially, we'll be dead 9 years before our retirements.
Well I say FUCK THAT! Plans are underway to Escape The Matrix. I suggest you formulate yours as well.
Assuming we work 40 hours per week, and spend 10 hours per week commuting, this is the break down of the time investment that we make over the course of our lives to our “careers.”
50 Hours per week X 50 weeks in a year = 2,500 hours per year
2,500 hours per year / 24 hours in a day = 104 days per year
104 days per year X 45 years = 4,680 Days
4,680 days / 365 days in a year = 12.8 years
That's 12.8 years of our lives dedicated to the profits of other people who don't have our best interests in mind!
Assuming that we are only awake for 16 hours of the day, let's see how much time we loose assuming a 16 hour day.
2,500 hours per year / 16 hours in a day = 156.25 days per year
156.25 days per year X 45 years = 7,031 Days
7,031 Days / 365 Days in a year = 19 years
In this scenario, if we live to be 75, we'll have only lived 56 years of our lives doing what we want for ourselves. Essentially, we'll be dead 9 years before our retirements.
Well I say FUCK THAT! Plans are underway to Escape The Matrix. I suggest you formulate yours as well.
Observing Ego
One of the most important tools we have for decoding the matrix and living consciously is our own intellectual ability to observe reality for what it is. Contrary to how this sounds, you don't need to be a genius or incredibly intelligent to do this. All you need is to be willing to observe, accept, and take action within the reality that actually exists. Not the reality that we have been trained to believe in.
I have heard it said that an upwards of 95% of our behaviors and thoughts are auto-responses that we have learned through conditioning. 95%!!!!!! No wonder so many of us are walking through the world like robots! Well the time has come to SNAP OUT OF IT!
Of course, this may not be something that can happen over night for us. It sure isn't happening that way for me. But Sigmund Fred wrote on an incredible topic that I heard about through another favorite thinker of mine named Dr. Paul Dobranski. This topic is the idea of the “Observing Ego.” Essentially, Observing Ego is the mechanism through which you can monitor yourself in real time. This is an essential part of making changes to your thoughts, your behaviors, and ultimately, your life.
The idea is that we have an inherent mechanism through we which we can view our behaviors, thoughts, emotions, and actions in real time as they are manifesting. Furthermore, we can become aware of why these forces are coming into effect, and make proactive changes as necessary to avoid negative consequences, or turn situations into positive learning experiences. Its as if there is an actual second person who is viewing us from above through an objective prism and giving us direct feedback about the reality of the situation.
For example, let's take a scenario where a man in a bar is talking to a woman that he wants to get to know. She is somewhat skeptical of him and somewhat aloof. As he tries to win her attention and affection, he is leaning into her and beginning to speak loud and fast with his eye brows raised. If he has never been made aware of this behavior and has not developed the ability to self-monitor, he will likely continue to spiral downward into this trap until the woman has gone from quickly waning interest to downright discomfort and dislike.
However, if he is aware that this behavior has been a problem for him in the past and he has developed the ability to self monitor, he can actually catch himself in the midst of this behavior and make a change in real time.
What's more, is that Observing Ego will allow this man to see why his behavior is changing. He can instantaneously realize that the reason he is behaving this way is because he is emotionally attached to the outcome of his interaction with this woman. His behaviors are a natural expression of his state of mind. He can then make a voluntary decision to change his mindset on the fly, and his behavior patterns will follow immediately. This could have a material effect on the entire situation. One could also argue that this could play out in a major way over the course of the rest of his life, and hers, and any resulting children and grandchildren should the interaction last until death do they part.
What is important to take note of, is the fact that Observing Ego must be developed through practice. There are several great exercises that I've developed here on this website that you can use for exactly this. The primary goal is to first become aware of your faults and typical behavior patterns. These can be best discovered through the active use of a personal inventory that investigates our sources of anger, fear, and sexual conduct. The same type of inventory can also be applied to other behaviors such as poor eating, gambling, binge drinking, or other unhealthy and damaging behaviors.
***Important note: These tools are not appropriate on their own for individuals with actual chemical dependencies including alcoholism or drug addiction, eating disorders, chronic gambling or sex addictions, or any other mental illness. If you suspect that you or someone you love is suffering from one of these chronic medical conditions, leave this site immediately and seek professional medical attention right away.
Once the typical reactions have been identified and talked through with an objective party such as a friend or spiritual advisor, they can be indexed in the mind. Through careful attentional and consistent vigilance, these behaviors and thoughts will begin to become apparent to you as they arise. You can then recognize them for what they are, tie them back to their source, and create new thoughts and behaviors in real time.
Here is an example:
A man of short stature often finds himself more easily angered by other men who are larger in size. He doesn't actually realize this, but does get himself into occasional unnecessary confrontations that cause him grief. He also tends to experience slight changes in his personality that are obvious to those around him when someone bigger than him is dominating a conversation or making suggestions that others are willing to follow. Many times he is hard pressed to come to agreements and is flippant and rude, even though he values compromise and harmony in most situations.
Upon examination of his resentments and fears regarding previous experiences, he realizes that he is still angry at people and circumstances from his younger years that are no longer relevant. In particular there may have been specific situation where he was the target of abuse or taken advantage of because of his smaller size. He then realizes that these feelings are very similar to the feelings that he has towards people who he is often confrontational with presently as an adult. Seeing the link it becomes obvious to him that his behaviors are not those that he necessarily wishes to emulate, but that they are automatic reactions to his fear that previous circumstances will re-materialize. And because of his mind set, they often do. This keeps his own cycle of resentment and fear alive and well without him even knowing that there is a way to break that cycle and become free of these delusions.
But now that he is aware of the part that he plays in these situations, as well as the causes behind his actions, he is more conscious of his behavior. Over time, he develops the ability to pick up on the feelings and sensations that well up inside of him when a larger man is in his presence. He then checks those feelings before they manifest as actions. As a result, he makes different choices in his interactions with people and gets different results. Over time his resentments and fears become obsolete and useless to him, and he continues to develop his ability to self monitor and choose his own thoughts and actions. This has ripple effects through his whole life where he is open to connection with entire groups of people and individuals that he would previously have cut off from his reality.
And this is the essence of Observing Ego.
1. becoming aware of one's own thoughts and actions through a personal inventory
2. taking responsibility to understand these thoughts and actions and resolve to change
3. catching oneself in the act of thinking and/or reacting
4. comprehending the source and utility of such thoughts and actions
5. rendering these outdated mechanisms useless through positive choices in thought and action.
Part of what makes Observing Ego so powerful is that it is a purely intellectual and observational mechanism that is detached from emotion. Therefore it allows for a completely objective view of any situation or state independent of emotional energy that usually clouds reasoning and judgment. However, Observing Ego can only function to the level of maturity to which is has been practiced. If the emotional intensity of a situation is far beyond the levels to which the Observing Ego has been developed, it won't be a surprise if the individual is unable to self monitor and reacts emotionally. However, if consistently worked at, Observing Ego can reach a level where it can match almost any emotional state.
It should also be noted that a person can have a highly operational and effective Observing Ego in some areas of their life, and virtually no ability to self monitor and make changes in other areas. Some examples of this would be a highly successful and in shape business man who can't hold a healthy relationship despite his own perceived desire for one, the loving and understanding wife and mother who wants to loose weight but continues to eat unhealthy, or the considerate and relationship oriented athlete who fails to sufficiently control his finances.
For purposes of breaking this concept down and writing this article, I have given Observing Ego a relatively academic and mechanical feel. However, when practiced thoroughly it becomes a working part of the mind that functions almost on auto-pilot. For many people, this faculty has been in place for a long time and developed naturally, and they are not even aware of its existence. With much practice, this same can be true for those who decide to develop it consciously.
What's more, is that Observing Ego can be applied to ANY behavior at all. Here's a few examples: bickering, over eating, drinking, smoking, sex, approval seeking, going to work every day, road rage, shop lifting, obsessive exercise, shopping...the list goes on and on and on.
For anyone who desires to make changes in their life as a whole or in specific areas, Observing Ego is an incredibly effective and powerful tool to learn and master.
I have heard it said that an upwards of 95% of our behaviors and thoughts are auto-responses that we have learned through conditioning. 95%!!!!!! No wonder so many of us are walking through the world like robots! Well the time has come to SNAP OUT OF IT!
Of course, this may not be something that can happen over night for us. It sure isn't happening that way for me. But Sigmund Fred wrote on an incredible topic that I heard about through another favorite thinker of mine named Dr. Paul Dobranski. This topic is the idea of the “Observing Ego.” Essentially, Observing Ego is the mechanism through which you can monitor yourself in real time. This is an essential part of making changes to your thoughts, your behaviors, and ultimately, your life.
The idea is that we have an inherent mechanism through we which we can view our behaviors, thoughts, emotions, and actions in real time as they are manifesting. Furthermore, we can become aware of why these forces are coming into effect, and make proactive changes as necessary to avoid negative consequences, or turn situations into positive learning experiences. Its as if there is an actual second person who is viewing us from above through an objective prism and giving us direct feedback about the reality of the situation.
For example, let's take a scenario where a man in a bar is talking to a woman that he wants to get to know. She is somewhat skeptical of him and somewhat aloof. As he tries to win her attention and affection, he is leaning into her and beginning to speak loud and fast with his eye brows raised. If he has never been made aware of this behavior and has not developed the ability to self-monitor, he will likely continue to spiral downward into this trap until the woman has gone from quickly waning interest to downright discomfort and dislike.
However, if he is aware that this behavior has been a problem for him in the past and he has developed the ability to self monitor, he can actually catch himself in the midst of this behavior and make a change in real time.
What's more, is that Observing Ego will allow this man to see why his behavior is changing. He can instantaneously realize that the reason he is behaving this way is because he is emotionally attached to the outcome of his interaction with this woman. His behaviors are a natural expression of his state of mind. He can then make a voluntary decision to change his mindset on the fly, and his behavior patterns will follow immediately. This could have a material effect on the entire situation. One could also argue that this could play out in a major way over the course of the rest of his life, and hers, and any resulting children and grandchildren should the interaction last until death do they part.
What is important to take note of, is the fact that Observing Ego must be developed through practice. There are several great exercises that I've developed here on this website that you can use for exactly this. The primary goal is to first become aware of your faults and typical behavior patterns. These can be best discovered through the active use of a personal inventory that investigates our sources of anger, fear, and sexual conduct. The same type of inventory can also be applied to other behaviors such as poor eating, gambling, binge drinking, or other unhealthy and damaging behaviors.
***Important note: These tools are not appropriate on their own for individuals with actual chemical dependencies including alcoholism or drug addiction, eating disorders, chronic gambling or sex addictions, or any other mental illness. If you suspect that you or someone you love is suffering from one of these chronic medical conditions, leave this site immediately and seek professional medical attention right away.
Once the typical reactions have been identified and talked through with an objective party such as a friend or spiritual advisor, they can be indexed in the mind. Through careful attentional and consistent vigilance, these behaviors and thoughts will begin to become apparent to you as they arise. You can then recognize them for what they are, tie them back to their source, and create new thoughts and behaviors in real time.
Here is an example:
A man of short stature often finds himself more easily angered by other men who are larger in size. He doesn't actually realize this, but does get himself into occasional unnecessary confrontations that cause him grief. He also tends to experience slight changes in his personality that are obvious to those around him when someone bigger than him is dominating a conversation or making suggestions that others are willing to follow. Many times he is hard pressed to come to agreements and is flippant and rude, even though he values compromise and harmony in most situations.
Upon examination of his resentments and fears regarding previous experiences, he realizes that he is still angry at people and circumstances from his younger years that are no longer relevant. In particular there may have been specific situation where he was the target of abuse or taken advantage of because of his smaller size. He then realizes that these feelings are very similar to the feelings that he has towards people who he is often confrontational with presently as an adult. Seeing the link it becomes obvious to him that his behaviors are not those that he necessarily wishes to emulate, but that they are automatic reactions to his fear that previous circumstances will re-materialize. And because of his mind set, they often do. This keeps his own cycle of resentment and fear alive and well without him even knowing that there is a way to break that cycle and become free of these delusions.
But now that he is aware of the part that he plays in these situations, as well as the causes behind his actions, he is more conscious of his behavior. Over time, he develops the ability to pick up on the feelings and sensations that well up inside of him when a larger man is in his presence. He then checks those feelings before they manifest as actions. As a result, he makes different choices in his interactions with people and gets different results. Over time his resentments and fears become obsolete and useless to him, and he continues to develop his ability to self monitor and choose his own thoughts and actions. This has ripple effects through his whole life where he is open to connection with entire groups of people and individuals that he would previously have cut off from his reality.
And this is the essence of Observing Ego.
1. becoming aware of one's own thoughts and actions through a personal inventory
2. taking responsibility to understand these thoughts and actions and resolve to change
3. catching oneself in the act of thinking and/or reacting
4. comprehending the source and utility of such thoughts and actions
5. rendering these outdated mechanisms useless through positive choices in thought and action.
Part of what makes Observing Ego so powerful is that it is a purely intellectual and observational mechanism that is detached from emotion. Therefore it allows for a completely objective view of any situation or state independent of emotional energy that usually clouds reasoning and judgment. However, Observing Ego can only function to the level of maturity to which is has been practiced. If the emotional intensity of a situation is far beyond the levels to which the Observing Ego has been developed, it won't be a surprise if the individual is unable to self monitor and reacts emotionally. However, if consistently worked at, Observing Ego can reach a level where it can match almost any emotional state.
It should also be noted that a person can have a highly operational and effective Observing Ego in some areas of their life, and virtually no ability to self monitor and make changes in other areas. Some examples of this would be a highly successful and in shape business man who can't hold a healthy relationship despite his own perceived desire for one, the loving and understanding wife and mother who wants to loose weight but continues to eat unhealthy, or the considerate and relationship oriented athlete who fails to sufficiently control his finances.
For purposes of breaking this concept down and writing this article, I have given Observing Ego a relatively academic and mechanical feel. However, when practiced thoroughly it becomes a working part of the mind that functions almost on auto-pilot. For many people, this faculty has been in place for a long time and developed naturally, and they are not even aware of its existence. With much practice, this same can be true for those who decide to develop it consciously.
What's more, is that Observing Ego can be applied to ANY behavior at all. Here's a few examples: bickering, over eating, drinking, smoking, sex, approval seeking, going to work every day, road rage, shop lifting, obsessive exercise, shopping...the list goes on and on and on.
For anyone who desires to make changes in their life as a whole or in specific areas, Observing Ego is an incredibly effective and powerful tool to learn and master.
Day 6 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Waking up was a little easier today. I noticed that I have been going to be earlier, between 10 and 11. I woke up at 8am this morning. I probably needed extra rest from the work out with my trainer yesterday. It's getting a little more difficult to record everything I eat as I am doing a bit more grazing. Especially later in the day today.
I am actually in the mood for some exercise at this point. I'm not sure how good of an idea that is, given the fact that I'm hungry, but I just feel compelled to go do some hill sprints. Currently it's about 8 PM and my last meal was Meal 5. I'll be back in a few to let you know how the hill sprints were......
.....Whew! OK....that was awesome!
For whatever reason, the fact that I was hungry didn't really matter. Not that I want to start making a habit of working out when hungry, but I felt fine. Actually, I was better than fine!
Today's hill sprints, were incredible! I was up today from Monday, doing a total of 8 today as oppossed to a total of 6 on Monday. What a jump! First of all, I usually only do one lap around the track for a warm up and I feel kind of heavy at the end of that. Well today I kept running at a decent clip past where I usually stop and it didn't even occur to me to stop and stretch out, so right off the bat, I was in a different zone where I was feeling pretty full of energy. So I did a two lap warm up today.
When I started the sprints, the first one didn't really leave me winded. The second and third were pretty easy as well. I noticed that I wasn't really starting to slow down until about the 5th sprint. Also, I am realizing that the sensation of being winded is much different than before. I feel it much more in my chest and throat like I did when I was younger and I'm still able to push my limbs hard in the midst of that. Last week, I had more of a nautious, almost panicy feeling in addition to the heart pounding, and my legs felt more like lead. As I sit here typing post workout, I feel much lighter, and cleaner burning than I have felt in years.
I believe the difference is likely attributable to a few different things:
1. I'm not using ephedra any more. Ephedra is known to cause high blood pressure. When my trainer took my blood pressure about three weeks ago, it was 145/88. He was trying not to look concerned. It was the next morning that I realized I needed to drop the ephedra. My nauseated fatigue was clearly related to my high blood pressure. Since I've been off that stuff, my BP has dropped considerably to 135/80. I still have a ways to go. My guess is that it has dropped even more since I started this new diet last Friday. Especially considering my physical progress.
2. All the natural food I'm eating is leaving my body with the time and energy to detox. This new way of eating is definitely clearing my system of toxins and allowing my body to function much better. Energy production and oxygen distribution and absorption isn't as hindered as it was before. I choose my words carefully so as not to give the impression that it isn't hindered at all. My body most likely has just begun the cleaning out process, and I am hopefull that my results will continue to improve drastically over the foreseeable future.
Meal 1: 1 Cantaloupe
Meal 2: 4 Bananas
Meal 3: 5 Kiwi
Meal 4: Grapes (grazing)
Meal 5: Grapes (another grazing period)
Meal 6: 1 Broccolli Crown and approx 1/2lb of grass fed beef
I am actually in the mood for some exercise at this point. I'm not sure how good of an idea that is, given the fact that I'm hungry, but I just feel compelled to go do some hill sprints. Currently it's about 8 PM and my last meal was Meal 5. I'll be back in a few to let you know how the hill sprints were......
.....Whew! OK....that was awesome!
For whatever reason, the fact that I was hungry didn't really matter. Not that I want to start making a habit of working out when hungry, but I felt fine. Actually, I was better than fine!
Today's hill sprints, were incredible! I was up today from Monday, doing a total of 8 today as oppossed to a total of 6 on Monday. What a jump! First of all, I usually only do one lap around the track for a warm up and I feel kind of heavy at the end of that. Well today I kept running at a decent clip past where I usually stop and it didn't even occur to me to stop and stretch out, so right off the bat, I was in a different zone where I was feeling pretty full of energy. So I did a two lap warm up today.
When I started the sprints, the first one didn't really leave me winded. The second and third were pretty easy as well. I noticed that I wasn't really starting to slow down until about the 5th sprint. Also, I am realizing that the sensation of being winded is much different than before. I feel it much more in my chest and throat like I did when I was younger and I'm still able to push my limbs hard in the midst of that. Last week, I had more of a nautious, almost panicy feeling in addition to the heart pounding, and my legs felt more like lead. As I sit here typing post workout, I feel much lighter, and cleaner burning than I have felt in years.
I believe the difference is likely attributable to a few different things:
1. I'm not using ephedra any more. Ephedra is known to cause high blood pressure. When my trainer took my blood pressure about three weeks ago, it was 145/88. He was trying not to look concerned. It was the next morning that I realized I needed to drop the ephedra. My nauseated fatigue was clearly related to my high blood pressure. Since I've been off that stuff, my BP has dropped considerably to 135/80. I still have a ways to go. My guess is that it has dropped even more since I started this new diet last Friday. Especially considering my physical progress.
2. All the natural food I'm eating is leaving my body with the time and energy to detox. This new way of eating is definitely clearing my system of toxins and allowing my body to function much better. Energy production and oxygen distribution and absorption isn't as hindered as it was before. I choose my words carefully so as not to give the impression that it isn't hindered at all. My body most likely has just begun the cleaning out process, and I am hopefull that my results will continue to improve drastically over the foreseeable future.
Meal 1: 1 Cantaloupe
Meal 2: 4 Bananas
Meal 3: 5 Kiwi
Meal 4: Grapes (grazing)
Meal 5: Grapes (another grazing period)
Meal 6: 1 Broccolli Crown and approx 1/2lb of grass fed beef
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Day 5 Of The Paleolithic Diet
Not in the greatest of moods this day. Not sure if I am still realing from AMP weekend and my distaste for my situation over all. Was experiencing some light headedness. My bowels made it clear in the morning that they were working to purge my body of toxins. I kept drinking lots of water but I also drink LOTS of coffee. Not sure if that is hindering my ability to clear out.
I was up one pound to 22o.
I was much stronger during my work out with my trainer today. I worked out between meals 4 and 5. He started out going a little easy on me because of my recent blood pressure issues. But he quickly realized that I was feeling much better. I was stonger and had more endurance. He really started to work me. I'm nowhere near the level of conditioning that I want to be at, but I am improving.
All in all, I am VERY happy with this diet so far. I feel cleaner, lighter, and healthier.
Meal 1: 4 Kiwi (during the car ride into work)
Meal 2: 4 Peaches
Meal 3: (too long after meal 2) I was starving: 7 Bananas, 4 figs, and two HEAPING spoonfulls of all natural Whole Foods Peanut Butter
Meal 4: 3 Golden Delicious Apples
Meal 5: Approx. 1/2 lb of grass fed beef, ground and cooked in patties, very rare, and DELICIOUS Also had a head of brocolli (not so delicious)
I was up one pound to 22o.
I was much stronger during my work out with my trainer today. I worked out between meals 4 and 5. He started out going a little easy on me because of my recent blood pressure issues. But he quickly realized that I was feeling much better. I was stonger and had more endurance. He really started to work me. I'm nowhere near the level of conditioning that I want to be at, but I am improving.
All in all, I am VERY happy with this diet so far. I feel cleaner, lighter, and healthier.
Meal 1: 4 Kiwi (during the car ride into work)
Meal 2: 4 Peaches
Meal 3: (too long after meal 2) I was starving: 7 Bananas, 4 figs, and two HEAPING spoonfulls of all natural Whole Foods Peanut Butter
Meal 4: 3 Golden Delicious Apples
Meal 5: Approx. 1/2 lb of grass fed beef, ground and cooked in patties, very rare, and DELICIOUS Also had a head of brocolli (not so delicious)
Monday, June 9, 2008
Day 4 Of The Paleolithic Diet
This post is actually for Monday June 9th of 2008
I woke up very very distressed and depressed. It took a while to get emotionally stable, I couldn't stop crying. Probably residual from the weekend. In a miserable mood most of the day. Not sure if it was part of the detox or just what happened the prior day.
At any rate, feeling physically clean and healthy.I weighed myself and was shocked to see that I dropped down to 219, from 226 on Friday morning. My guess is that my body went through a major fluid and toxin flush because I suddenly stopped eating and drinking so many chemicals and processed garbage.All things considered, I am very satiated by what I'm eating.
My mood improved slowly as the day wore on. A lot of caffeine assisstance. The day ended great after dinner with my good friend Allen tossing around the football and talking business.
Meal 1: 4 Kiwi
Meal 2: Can't remember
Meal 3: 4 Bananas, 5 Figs
Meal 4: Can't remeber
Meal 5: Sashimi and non-salted edamame (steamed) Tuna, Salmon, Yellow Tail, Fluke
I woke up very very distressed and depressed. It took a while to get emotionally stable, I couldn't stop crying. Probably residual from the weekend. In a miserable mood most of the day. Not sure if it was part of the detox or just what happened the prior day.
At any rate, feeling physically clean and healthy.I weighed myself and was shocked to see that I dropped down to 219, from 226 on Friday morning. My guess is that my body went through a major fluid and toxin flush because I suddenly stopped eating and drinking so many chemicals and processed garbage.All things considered, I am very satiated by what I'm eating.
My mood improved slowly as the day wore on. A lot of caffeine assisstance. The day ended great after dinner with my good friend Allen tossing around the football and talking business.
Meal 1: 4 Kiwi
Meal 2: Can't remember
Meal 3: 4 Bananas, 5 Figs
Meal 4: Can't remeber
Meal 5: Sashimi and non-salted edamame (steamed) Tuna, Salmon, Yellow Tail, Fluke
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Welcome To My World
I don't know about you, but I'm tired of living in the Matrix. It came to my attention recently that I am a regular guy who doesn't know SHIT! Yeah, it was a new realization for me. It kind of stings every time it hits me at a new level, but dammit freedom feels good so I'm down for the pain.
Over the last couple years I started realizing that my understanding of reality in so many areas is just TWISTED. Based on what I was taught, what I chose to ignore, and what I allowed the media to feed me, I have had a lot of beliefs that were just not based in reality. My understanding of relationships, women, health and fitness, my identity and psychology, life purpose, and even the need for a career have been wacked!
The result? A life that I designed unconsciously. Sound familiar?
Well, I've been seeing the Matrix bit by bit over the last few years so as I'm decoding what I'm able to slowly over time, I'm going to keep a running tab on what I find. I'm also going to dig back in my memory a ways and pull out some old writing and realizations that I've had. But trust me, I'm not doing it alone. I'm just posting what I've learned from spiritual leaders, friends, and my own experience. I ain't no guru. I'm just a guy who needs to learn a lot of hard lessons, probably a lot like you. So hopefully you can learn something from this blog.
If you are a seeker and looking for purpose, clarity, and wellness that is grounded in reality, we are in the same boat. So enjoy my blog, and jump in head first down the rabbit hole with me and my friends. We need all the help we can get to Decode The Matrix!!!!!
Over the last couple years I started realizing that my understanding of reality in so many areas is just TWISTED. Based on what I was taught, what I chose to ignore, and what I allowed the media to feed me, I have had a lot of beliefs that were just not based in reality. My understanding of relationships, women, health and fitness, my identity and psychology, life purpose, and even the need for a career have been wacked!
The result? A life that I designed unconsciously. Sound familiar?
Well, I've been seeing the Matrix bit by bit over the last few years so as I'm decoding what I'm able to slowly over time, I'm going to keep a running tab on what I find. I'm also going to dig back in my memory a ways and pull out some old writing and realizations that I've had. But trust me, I'm not doing it alone. I'm just posting what I've learned from spiritual leaders, friends, and my own experience. I ain't no guru. I'm just a guy who needs to learn a lot of hard lessons, probably a lot like you. So hopefully you can learn something from this blog.
If you are a seeker and looking for purpose, clarity, and wellness that is grounded in reality, we are in the same boat. So enjoy my blog, and jump in head first down the rabbit hole with me and my friends. We need all the help we can get to Decode The Matrix!!!!!
Intro To My Paleolithic Diet Experiment
I have been studying nutrition and working out for a good number of years. Over that period of time I met hundreds of people with thousands of ideas. I've read hundreds of articles and dozens of books, visited plenty of websites and gone through more than my share of programs. I've even designed my own personal programs for myself based on all the "knowledge" that I've acquired from countless sources. I've also put countless numbers of supplements, powders, drinks, and God only knows who's science project creations into my system to get lean and build muscle. At the end of all of it, I was left feeling drained with high blood pressure (145/90), a mediocre body (20% body fat), and declining health and habits.
Finally, out of the blue, I made a new friend, Adam Farrah, who with just a few words made sense of the mass of mumbo jumbo and health industry voodoo that I had floating around in my head. He cleared away years of subjection to marketing and money making schemes, well meaning parents who knew nothing of nutrition, and government agendas to keep us sick.
He said to me, "You need to escape the health and diet Matrix." I thought I knew everything and almost cut him off to give him my take on things. Instead I let him talk. He said, "Think about who we evolved from. What did they have available to eat?"
In that moment EVERYTHING clicked. Our ancestors didn't have powders, dairy, fast food, pizza, legumes, hormone fed chicken, pesticides, steroids, grains, bread, cheese.....yogurt.......low fat, non fat, Dr. Atkins, low carb, high carb....rice....NONE of that!
They had whole, fresh fruits, vegetables, and live animal meat. That was it. They had to struggle to get it! And they were the species to whether the storms of prehistoric hell-ish living conditions and eventually give birth to our generation.
Yet we eat NOTHING like they did. In fact, we do the opposite! We are turning a finely tuned and biologically harmonious species into a gluttonous, sugar fix addicted, lard consuming, chemically additive mongering, pharmaceutical dependent disgrace with the way we eat! I came to this realization nearly instataneously.
And from there, Adam explained to me what the raw vegan and Paleolithic diets were and how they could change my life. Once it's all boiled down, what I follow now is a mostly raw Paleolithic Diet. I essentially eat whole raw fruit all day, with some whole raw veggies, and also eat portions of raw sashimi (fish) or grass fed, hormone, drug free meat at night. I slighly cook the meat but eat it very very rare.
What I have learned since then has been some of the most magnificently enlightening and life changing information I've ever come across. This is the SIMPLEST, easiest, and most enjoyable way of eating I have ever experienced. I have put it into practice and been documenting my journey. You can follow me day by day through my blog, amidst my other musings, and observe what I eat, how my work outs changed, and how my health and well being improved dramatically over a very short period of time.
I'll explain more about what the Paleolithic Diet is in forthcoming posts. You can also count on me to start exposing the truth about our widely accepted eating habits, beliefs about exercise, and unnecessary pharmaceutical dependence.
Finally, out of the blue, I made a new friend, Adam Farrah, who with just a few words made sense of the mass of mumbo jumbo and health industry voodoo that I had floating around in my head. He cleared away years of subjection to marketing and money making schemes, well meaning parents who knew nothing of nutrition, and government agendas to keep us sick.
He said to me, "You need to escape the health and diet Matrix." I thought I knew everything and almost cut him off to give him my take on things. Instead I let him talk. He said, "Think about who we evolved from. What did they have available to eat?"
In that moment EVERYTHING clicked. Our ancestors didn't have powders, dairy, fast food, pizza, legumes, hormone fed chicken, pesticides, steroids, grains, bread, cheese.....yogurt.......low fat, non fat, Dr. Atkins, low carb, high carb....rice....NONE of that!
They had whole, fresh fruits, vegetables, and live animal meat. That was it. They had to struggle to get it! And they were the species to whether the storms of prehistoric hell-ish living conditions and eventually give birth to our generation.
Yet we eat NOTHING like they did. In fact, we do the opposite! We are turning a finely tuned and biologically harmonious species into a gluttonous, sugar fix addicted, lard consuming, chemically additive mongering, pharmaceutical dependent disgrace with the way we eat! I came to this realization nearly instataneously.
And from there, Adam explained to me what the raw vegan and Paleolithic diets were and how they could change my life. Once it's all boiled down, what I follow now is a mostly raw Paleolithic Diet. I essentially eat whole raw fruit all day, with some whole raw veggies, and also eat portions of raw sashimi (fish) or grass fed, hormone, drug free meat at night. I slighly cook the meat but eat it very very rare.
What I have learned since then has been some of the most magnificently enlightening and life changing information I've ever come across. This is the SIMPLEST, easiest, and most enjoyable way of eating I have ever experienced. I have put it into practice and been documenting my journey. You can follow me day by day through my blog, amidst my other musings, and observe what I eat, how my work outs changed, and how my health and well being improved dramatically over a very short period of time.
I'll explain more about what the Paleolithic Diet is in forthcoming posts. You can also count on me to start exposing the truth about our widely accepted eating habits, beliefs about exercise, and unnecessary pharmaceutical dependence.
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