Mark's Daily Apple

How to Take a Better Bath

The act of taking a bath doesn’t necessarily need gussying up. Simply submerging your body in hot water and rubbing yourself with an emulsifying agent will get you clean enough, with the potentially added benefits of wicking away stress and inducing relaxation. But in this age of high-tech shower heads and limited free time, the utilitarian shower has won out over the bath. You don’t have to wait for the tub to fill, you’re not stewing in your own juices, and the added pressure of the shower helps blast dirt, skin cells, and natural oils from your body. The bath just can’t compete with the shower for its cleaning prowess.

Who takes baths for cleanliness, though? Let’s face it: a bath is about relaxation. It’s about treating yourself, soothing sore muscles, catching up on a good book, and letting go and forgetting about the madness of what just transpired that day. It’s a mini-vacation. And there may even be some health benefits. Like anything with those qualities, it can probably be improved upon, or “hacked,” if you will. If we care about our health – and how much we enjoy the little things that make life worth living – we owe it to ourselves to take a better bath.

Here’s how to do it:

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Posted By: Mark Sisson

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Dear Mark: A Few Questions About Protein Powder Marketing Claims

I get a lot of protein powder-related questions. Some are requests to try or advertise a new product. Others are queries regarding all the different marketing claims. Is whey protein concentrate really better, more “immune-boosting,” and more complete than whey protein isolate? Who wins in a head to head deathmatch – isolate or concentrate? Should you be worrying about the grass-fededness (yep, that’s a word) of your whey protein? And is beef protein isolate better than everything else? It certainly appears to be the most paleo of the bunch, being made from, well, beef.

For today’s edition of Dear Mark, we’re going to sift through the marketing fluff and get to the meat of the matter. Let’s go:

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Posted By: Mark Sisson

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Weekend Link Love

My good friend Robb Wolf just released a new Paleo Dining Out Guide, and he’s got a special offer just for you guys. When you checkout, enter the code PRIMAL for a $2 discount to bring the total to $5.99. Not bad for a comprehensive guide to staying true and eating well when out and about written by the Wolf man himself, eh?

Research of the Week

Landing on the forefoot when you run (you know, the way people intuitively land when running without shoes) exerts less stress on the knee than landing on the heel (you know, the way most people land when running in shoes), according to a new study.

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Posted By: Mark Sisson

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Guacamole-Stuffed Southwest Burgers

Burgers and avocados are a natural pairing, but instead of piling slices of avocado on top, why not stuff guacamole inside? The inspiration for this simple but genius recipe came from the Civilized Caveman, who adds sun dried tomatoes to his avocado-stuffed burgers.

In the version here, burgers with a Southwest vibe are stuffed with lime-spiked guacamole. The combination of spicy seasonings and refreshing avocado is hard to beat. Yes, of course you could just serve guacamole on the side with regular burgers, but it’s not the same. When the guacamole is stuffed inside the burger, something magical happens. The meat and avocado become one.

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Posted By: Worker Bee

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I Am Now the “Healthy Guy”

Dear Mark,

I was never concerned with my health, my weight or my looks. I joined the Marine Corps in 1998 weighing 190 pounds and left boot camp at 165 pounds. I quickly gained back about 15 pounds and sat at 185 throughout most of my Marine Corps career. During this time, I exercised a lot but didn’t really restrict my diet very much. I had a high body fat percentage even though I was making weight requirements. When I injured my knee and could no longer keep the Marine Corps PT pace I began to gain weight. I left the Marine Corps in January of 2002 weighing 200 pounds. I quickly began eating junk that I had not allowed myself while in the service. By the time my wife and I moved back home to Mississippi in 2003, I was weighing around 250 pounds. I got a job working in corrections when we moved back. The hours, stress, and lack of time to exercise caused my weight to bloom to an all-time high of 315 pounds. I wore a size 48 pants and a size 3XL shirt. I spent 8 years in corrections. Six of those years were in a supervisory role. My blood pressure was regularly at 190 over 95.

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Posted By: Mark Sisson

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