A Beer Drinker’s Primal Story
It’s Friday, everyone! And that means another Primal Blueprint Real Life Story from a Mark’s Daily Apple reader. If you have your own success story and would like to share it with me and the Mark’s Daily Apple community please contact me here. I’ll continue to publish these each Friday as long as they keep coming in. Thank you for reading!
When I was a kid, I was husky – that is what my mom told me. I was always a little chunkier than my siblings and most of my friends growing up in the 60’s. Because of that, I always had to watch my weight and what I ate. Gaining weight has always been easy for me.
Over the last 30 or so years, I have been a somewhat health conscious adult and lived largely by convention wisdom (CW) guidelines. I have always been physically active, fit, and pretty healthy. I rode a motocross bike up until I was 35 and played roller hockey to age 49. I rode mountain bikes, played racquetball, skied, learned to snowboard when I was 43, and would run 3-5 miles, 2-3 days a week. My dad ran the Boston marathon in his 50’s, so I guess he imparted a strong sense of fitness on to me. Keeping my weight down was always a challenge and something I worked at.
My weight stayed fairly constant, between 165 and 175 lbs, during that time. (I am 5’ 9”) My diet was pretty good I thought, eating bread without butter, potatoes without sour cream, oatmeal without sugar, cereal with low-fat milk; whole grain was king, fat was evil. I owned a bread machine and made my own whole wheat breads and pizza crusts. I was lucky not to have any medical issues, life was good.
I also have always been a beer lover and 20 years ago I started home brewing beer. Beer, after all, is low-fat, so no worries. I drink one or two beers a day during the week and twice that on weekends (if I am good.) I became a connoisseur and love to try all the different beers of the world. I get to travel worldwide with my job and I always seek out beers I have never tried before while out of the country.
After turning 45 or so, I started getting severe heart burn. My doctor put me on meds (of course) but I didn’t tolerate them, giving me the runs. I switched to OTC Pepcid type and that worked somewhat. I also at that point started to slow down a bit – less running, less hockey, less energy. And big surprise, my weight started to climb. When I turned 50, December 2009, my weight was the highest ever at 182 lbs. Not too terrible, but heading in the wrong direction and I didn’t feel like I was able to control it as I could in the past. I had to work really hard just to stay level, but I was running out of gas. Quitting hockey didn’t help. I was 50 and getting fatter. I had to make a change.
Here I am on the right at age 49, and with the rest of my family and playing bocce, Ocean City, NJ summer 2009.
In March 2010, I decided to try a low-carb diet, Atkins style, which I tried before in my 40’s with pretty good results, but never able to stick with it. Soon after starting, I was searching the internet for the carb content of certain foods and somehow came across marksdailyapple.com. The content was unbelievable, and I soaked it up. It all made so much sense to me. I knew Atkins was on the right track, but the Primal Blueprint was the course correction I needed. I became hooked on the information and to the community support, especially the success stories. I love MDA because everything you need is on the site. I eventually bought two PB books, more out of sheer gratitude towards Mark, than pure necessity. I also like the fact that Mark personally answered my emails, not once but twice. And he posts lists of other great websites that are, in reality, his competitors (18 Underrated Blogs…). Who else does that?
The idea that this is a lifestyle clicked with me. Atkins was a short term diet and the results don’t last once off it. (Duh!) People often ask me about the differences between Primal and Atkins. With Atkins, you don’t fundamentally change your eating habits; you substitute low-carb products for what you normally eat. Low-carb bread, low-carb ice cream, low-carb snack bars etc, all loaded with fake factory ingredients and sugar alcohols. Over time, you drift back to the real crap and end up back at the beginning. With Primal, you learn to eat real food and you learn to like real food. You learn why the crap food is crap and you lose your taste for it. You make a real fundamental change and you understand why.
When I started Primal, I decided to see if it would work while maintaining my beer drinking/brewing hobby. After all, I really like beer and couldn’t see giving it up permanently, and besides, there was that 80/20 principle. I guess you could say I wanted my beer and drink it too. So I dove into the Primal Blueprint diet and was pretty strict, except for the beer, which I knew would add an average of 40 grams of carbs a day.
For exercise, I started hitting the weights 2 or 3 times per week and doing sprints or HIIT on most Sundays. Over the past two years, I learned a lot about fitness. My lifts have progressed and are now mainly from the large compound muscle groups, squats, deadlifts, bench press, military press, rows, pull/chin-ups, and dips. I use an upper/lower split routine giving my muscles 5-7 days rest between workouts per the book Beyond Brawn (which was linked from LeanGains which was linked from MDA). Last year I got a pair of Saucony Hattori running shoes which at 4.4 oz, are great. I got my 100 meter down to 15 seconds and I am now able to do 19 dips and 10 full pull-ups.
My diet is pretty simple. For breakfast it’s a shake with whey protein, a raw egg, greek yogurt, cottage cheese, flax meal, some berries or pumpkin and fish oil. Lunch is usually a Big Ass Salad with whatever leftovers I have from dinner, some cheese, peppers, carrots, oil, and vinegar. Dinner is meat or fish, some veggies and a salad, and of course, a beer. We usually try to cook extra meat for the next day’s salad. Dark chocolate is my dessert, and nuts, coconut, jerky, or cheese make a great snack. I also have a great recipe for pumpkin bars that are good for traveling or as another snack. Planning ahead is absolutely the key for diet adherence.
The first few months following the Primal Blueprint did not produce much in the way of weight loss. I was probably gaining muscle at the same rate as the fat loss. I had to tell myself to “stay with the program,” knowing it was the right thing to do. Finally after two months, the scale started to move. I lost 22 pounds on the scale in the first 16 months to what I consider my “ideal” body weight. This is the weight I easily maintain. This is not the fastest change, but it was relatively easy compared to other diets I have tried. The beer may have slowed down progress, but that’s OK, it’s my cheat. Besides, what’s the big rush? As long as I am on the right path, heading in the right direction, why make it harder than it is.
So here I am at age 52, two years Primal, and at my lowest weight since I can remember. My heartburn is gone, my eczema is much better, and just got a new 15 year term life policy with a super-preferred rating. My blood pressure is typically 110/70 with a resting heart rate under 60. Not a huge transformation, but I feel like I am in the best shape of my recent life with much more energy. I find that the longer I have been Primal, the easier it is to stay with it. Plus, while I have cut down on beer a little in exchange for red wine, I have not given it up.
I wonder how bad beer really is. It is slightly sprouted (malted) and fermented and does not contain the barley germ, husk, or bran… Maybe a blog post, Mark?
I am still currently active with hobbies and sports including biking, cross-country skiing, downhill skiing and snowboarding, volleyball, golf, and I’m thinking about playing roller hockey again.
I am very passionate about this lifestyle and I tell anyone who will listen to me about it. Many of my friends and coworkers have gone Primal with great success. My wife started eating this way at dinner time initially and has eventually become more Primal over the last two years. She too has had success with weight loss.
Finding MDA was like finding a magic chalice on the beach. My wish for great health has come true. Thank you, Mark Sisson.
Grab a Copy of The Primal Blueprint 21-Day Total Body Transformation and Start Getting Primal Today!
Posted By: Mark Sisson
Great Story! I’m a professional brewer who maintains a Primal Lifestyle. It can be done!
Congrats on the 16-month Total Body Transformation! How many times have we all read, thought or said, in reference to finding MDA, “It all made so much sense to me”?
My husband and I are 2011 primal converts, and at 53, we can relate to your story. I bought all of Mark’s books as guides, to support the cause, and as propaganda tools. I leave them in a stack in the dining room and visitors have a tendency to pick them up idly, then sit down and start reading (and I live in 99.9% French-speaking region of Québec!). So far we’ve made five converts and I can’t wait to hear about their success. I hope it matches yours!
I have a question for you – where in QC can you find grass fed or pastures meat or eggs? I’m dying to know!
As a big believer in the primal lifestyle and a homebrewer/beer lover, this was a great read and I think it will help me get back on the horse with the primal lifestyle.
I recently had too much going on (buying a house, getting married, job change, etc) and I had to let something go, and it was nutrition (I still don’t eat a ton of grains but I felt much better when Primal). Now that things are getting settled I’m ready to recommit (with my 20% beer of course)
In case anyone is in Devon’s situation and finds that there is too much else going on to focus on what you eat, I just read a very good post on the Michael Eades blog (from 2009):
http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/lipid-hypothesis/why-is-low-carb-is-harder-the-second-time-around-part-ii/
It’s not really about the ‘second time round’ at all (unlike what the title in the web link suggests), but instead, it points out some points from psychology literature on why we can lose track of nutrition and some tricks to avoid doing this, even when things are stressful/busy.
Amazing!…
Congrats on your health and success. It’s always fascinating to hear how people stumbled into a primal lifestyle. I usually cringe when someone asks, “It’s like Atkins, right?” Your story can be a good bridge in explaining how to crossover.
Thanks for all of your comments, it has been a wonderful journey so far.
Here is my recipe for pumpkin bars:
1 egg + 1/3 cup egg whites (2 eggs)
1 cup cottage cheese
2 tbsp honey (optional)
1 tbsp vanilla
Blend above, eggs first
Add 1 at a time in mixer:
(2) 15 oz cans pumpkin (unsweetened)
Add the rest and mix:
1 cup whey protein
½ cup flax meal
½ cup shredded coconut
1 cup almond meal
2 tbsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ginger
¼ tsp all spice
¼ tsp pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp salt (optional)
1/8 tsp Stevia (or Splenda to taste) (optional)
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
Stir in by hand:
1 cup (toasted) walnuts
½ cup (toasted) pecans
Cook 1 hr and 45 min at 325 degrees in 9×12 pan
Cool over night covered w/ foil
Makes 16-20 bars
Wow, great read! I feel the same way about having found a true treasure in a sea of less-than-amazing Google search results.
I got to hand it to these folks; the honesty of every one of these success stories is unbridled and unrivaled. I feel like the vast majority of success stories from other diets or products have nothing on these. Fridays rock.
Wow you look great. I am especially envious of your BP. I am 48 and have been primal pretty much 95/5 for about 1.5 years and have lost weight 178 to 161 lbs and cannot get my bp below 125-139/90
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Have you tried eliminating caffeine?
You look fantastic! I agree that it’s good to balance the amount of effort with the resulting benefits so that it’s an enjoyable journey all around. It’s better to have the journey take longer and be enjoyable than to have it be difficult, frustrating, and hard to stick with. Well, that’s my opinion anyhow.
Another beer lover and homebrewer here. Locally brewed beer in growlers are insanely affordable at $5 to 8 around here (Indy). The beer is a part of my 20%. It is working so far, since going primal on March 1, 2012 I have lost about 9 pounds, feel much better, and my allergy symptoms have drastically been reduced. Thanks everyone for your input that I might be able to have my beer and primal too.
Yes, Mark, a post on beer would be great.
I’m stoked you found a way to keep beer in your lifestyle. Life is too short to go without the things that you love.
Agree with you about Atkins diet. Although I love Atkins because it helped me lose weight in 2004 AND it taught me i can go without bread(and fruit for short time). Also Atkins eventually got me here to Primal/Paleo. Where it is ok to give up grains/legumes permanently and eat ‘real’ instead of using low carb products” . Without Atkins/low carb i don’t think i would have gotten here.
Awesome story! I’m genuinely happy for you that you’ve been able to continue with your passion for beer brewing. Before PB, I was an avid yeast-bread baker.. experimenting with long fermentation techniques, shaping and scoring methods, sourdough, etc. It was my primary source of stress relief.
Then I discovered that all the joint pain I’d been feeling for the past 3-4 years (sometimes leaving me bedridden.. at age 26) was a gluten intolerance. So yeah, dealing with the loss of my identity as a bread baker has been the hardest part of this journey for me, and I’m still not fully there. But a pain free life is worth it.
Anyway, that had nothing to do with you except to remind you to really enjoy that beer! Have one for me.
Also, you know you’re doing something right if you’re 52 and a 26 year old thinks you’re smokin hot. Rock on!
Mmm, beer… I have been working on swapping beer for red wine (no hard swap mosty of the time!) but there are plenty of social situations when everyone is drinking pints of beer and to ask for red wine instead makes you look odd. And we all know about the necessity of sharing mind-altering substances as an important part of social bonding with our fellows… so how bad is beer?
Congrats on your success. I agree wholeheartedly that Mark and MDA are a class act!
Wow. Great story. Love it.
Add me to the list of people who just bought the book to support Mark. This website is fantastic. Thank you Mark!!
Dude you look great!! Awesome story!
Great story! Love your attitude about the beer and the speed of your weight loss – having good health is a means, not necessarily an end in itself. I live primally because I think about food less, “diet” less, exercise smarter (and less), and as a result have more energy and vitality to be active with my family, friends, church, etc. Also, since my diet is so routinely rock-solid-nutritious, a beer or desert with friends is no big deal at all. Thanks for sharing your story!
Great article, thx for the share. I also love beer but have been trying to substitute beer intake with (home brewed) red wine and some scotch on occasion.
I would also really like to hear Mark’s take on brewsky!
I also love craft beer and drink it a lot. I know it’s probably not the best thing. However, if you are not eating any other grains, legumes or sugar, you are still probably way ahead of the standard American diet.
Nice story, and really nice pictures
I love the 80/20 spirit, and the questioning about beer. Congrats sir!
Congrats man! I also am a primal eater who likes his craft beer and is planning on working in the craft beer industry once I graduate school this May. Mark I am wondering if you could write a post about beer within the primal diet and its effects? Thanks.
Great story. If a blog post about beer comes up I’d like thoughts on hard cider, mead, and fruit wine. I’m a home brewer myself and count those as part of my “20″ but have been curious of other people’s experiences and thoughts.
I would have hoped mead was OK if you make it with just honey and ferment it to dryness?
Awesome job, dude. I just started so we’ll see how it goes (I’m 43).
Hey, I love pumpkin and bars–recipe post, please???
You look awesome and am sure you are feeling even better!!!
I posted it early, see top of page two’s comments
Wow – very inspirational !! I especially love seeing great results with people over 40
Very inspirational! I also have a food hobby–I have become nearly obsessed with learning how the how to and the actual making and baking of sourdough bread. It has been therapy to me. I hate to give it up entirely, so have been baking and giving away the baked goods. We eat a little of it here and there.
You look so ripped! The best part about your success is that you didn’t have to give up something you love to get good results.
I often feel feel apologetic for my inclusion of sugar alcohols. I guess that can be my 80/20.
I include some sugar alcohol as well(Xylitol)and dairy sometimes too. So I would say I am 90/10 Primal
Great story! I, too, love beer. A beer post would be great!!
I’d like to know how bad beer is too…it’s a necessity in our house