A Cereal Addict Goes Primal
Many of you may relate to the story of Derek and his wife. It’s not a tale of dramatic weight loss, but a story of discovering an ideal body hiding within the body you’ve grown accustomed to.
If you have your own Primal Blueprint success story and you’d like to share it with me and the community please contact me here. Have a wonderful Friday, everyone, and thanks for reading!
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Hi Mark,
Love your website and all the success stories. Our story is a little less profound than some in regards to total weight lost, but eating Primal has significantly improved both my life and that of my wife’s.
I’m 38 years old and my wife is 36 years old. I’ve been athletic my entire life, nordic ski racing, bike racing, climbing, backcountry skiing, endurance running, etc, etc. My wife, since she has been married to me (10+ years), has been very active as well. With my athleticism, I always had a ferocious ability to consume food, with my staple being Frosted Shredded Wheat, home made bread, pasta, and a myriad of other wheat based foods. I’m 6 feet tall and have weighed 200lbs for the past 15 years. I could run a marathon off the couch or ride a century, endurance was my specialty. I was always really aerobically inclined and just assumed that 200lbs was my ideal weight. But then I saw a picture of myself one day, then my mother joked to my wife that I was “getting a gut”, then I hopped on the scale and it read 204lbs. That was the beginning of the end for me.
My wife, when I met her, was a “skinny fat” product of the standard American diet, weighing in at a paltry, protein deficient 105lbs at 5’3″ tall. Over the years, her activity level rose and she became quite athletic and a strong rock climber. During those years, her back went south and she suffered with sciatica and eventually had a microdiscectomy to correct a bulging disc. After surgery, and even before, her weight steadily crept up to an eventual 135lbs despite being very active. She too just considered that her homeostasis.
So last February I decided to measure what I ate for breakfast every day. I was shocked when I realized my morning bowl of Frosted Shredded Wheat with 1% milk was 900 calories! I have been a cereal addict my entire life. I could eat it three meals a day. So I started simple by eating 1/3rd less, then eventually 1/2 less of my cereal. I cut out the big cookie I had at lunch, then quit snacking throughout the day. Eventually my breakfast self-evolved into egg whites, 1 piece of toast, and some ham. Then it was usually flat bread, tuna or lean meat for lunch, and a light meat diet for dinner. I was burned out on back country skiing and skiing in general that winter, so I spent 3-5 days per week lifting. Needless to say, my weight plummeted by about 1lb per week or slightly more. I was pretty excited.
As time progressed, my diet continued to self evolve into a more Primal Blueprint diet. I stumbled across your website, and upon first read, I thought it was a little extreme. But after more and more reading of this site, and others like it, I decided to gradually eliminate all wheat and processed foods. The weight continued to come off, I felt very healthy, did far less “chronic cardio” and primarily lifted and did aerobic hiking/cycling about 4 hours per week total. Last spring I reached 175lbs (lost 25+ pounds) and have stayed there since, fluctuating by a few pounds lately due to increase muscle mass. I have absolutely no difficulty maintaining.
Besides the pleasant side effect of losing weight, the biggest improvement in my health has been no more acid reflux and no more exercise induced asthma. I used to have terrible acid reflux that would keep me up at night and plague me throughout the day. It is now ENTIRELY gone, but will come back in a hurry if I get tripped up in eating wheat to any extent. I also used to have terrible cold weather, exercise induced asthma leading to frequent winter pulmonary infections, a constant cough, wheezing, and the need to take Albuterol and inhaled corticosteroids, and often times antibiotics for mild pneumonia following otherwise benign chest infections.
My summary: Eating Primal and exercising “smarter” allowed me to be leaner, fitter, and stronger in everything I do, it has also rid me of asthma and acid reflux. The benefits of eating paleo are in no way subtle for me, they are night and day.
At the time I started changing my diet, my wife obviously did too. It was winter, and she doesn’t ski much, so she started doing P90X. Her weight plummeted as well, about 0.5lbs per week by simply eating less processed foods, counting calories, and doing strength training. Her goal was initially 120lbs, which she reached fairly easy in about four months, with a few plateaus along the way. She eventually phased out wheat almost entirely as well, only eating small amounts very infrequently. Over last summer, she reached 115bs, was very lean, looked great, and was an aerobic machine when we went hiking or biking. It was pretty amazing. I would be hiking my normal pace, which was usually quite a bit faster and out of her comfort zone, but last summer she was absolutely killing it. Always right behind me, charging away, even sometimes with a heavy pack on longer trips.
Intelligently losing 20lbs and gaining muscle on her already small frame was impressive, but this wasn’t the most significant gain for her from eating paleo. We have been trying to conceive for the past four years with absolutely no success, none at all. About mid summer last year is when she eliminated wheat/grains almost entirely from her diet and had reached a comfortable set point in her weight, and was doing mostly strength training with some light cardio. This last September, she announced to me that she was pregnant. There’s no proof, but it seems suspicious that we had no luck with this at all until she started eating Primal and eliminated wheat. Perhaps it’s just coincidental, but I don’t think so.
During her first trimester she had significant nausea and vomiting and a highly erratic palate for foods. During that time, she pretty much ate whatever she could, which often times was processed foods, lots of sugars, etc. But it was that, or eat nothing at all. We didn’t worry about it in the slightest. She is now in her second trimester and back to mostly eating Primal, getting her carb cravings from potatoes and fruits. She looks great and mostly feels great. The funny observation about her “diet” is that of her coworkers. They are all convinced she should discuss her “diet” with her doctor, because apparently, eating whole foods isn’t healthy. Hahahhaha! I love the logic of the ill informed.
My wife’s summary: Eating primal and exercising “smarter” has allowed my wife to become a lean, fit, healthy woman, and we think, was a significant adjunct in her being able to get pregnant.
We are looking forward to busting myths that having a child means you have to eat processed foods and live in the drive through window. I’m sure we’ll both be just as fit at forty as we are now. Maybe more so.
Best regards,
-Derek
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Posted By: Mark Sisson
Cutting back and eventually giving up cereal was my first primal step too! You two sound like you feel great!
Yep, I didn’t conceive for 1.5 years, then, poof, 2 months after eliminating grains and chronic running I was pregnant. I know, it could be lots of things but it all seems too coincidental to me.
Congratulations on the baby on the way! First trimester was bad for me too, I was so sick I could barely eat anything, so not to worry. I even lost weight but quickly gained it in the 3rd trimester.
You guys looked younger now in the new pictures.
My husband also went grain-free(we’re also dairy and soy-free) and the weight started falling. He’s healthy and buff and looks hot! He’s forty and he gets mistaken to be in his early 20s all the time
I’m glad my daughter will grow up not eating GMO and processed foods. She eats stuff that other kids won’t eat too. She loves broccoli and brussel sprouts. Fish too! She’s more open to trying things and for a 3 yr old, that’s quite an accomplishment!
Thank you for sharing your story Derek and congratulations!! A similar thing happened with me. My husband and I tried for 4 years to get pregnant. We just figured if it was meant to be then it will happen when the time was right. Ironically the time was right after I’d been eating primal for a few months!! I’m happy to say I’m now 8 months pregnant and it’s been a wonderful experience!!
Congrats on your new found health, vitality and the upcoming baby!
I have 2 year old twins and we’ve been raising them (mostly) Primal for all of their lives. I say mostly because once they enter preschool, it’s hard to keep things away from them when all the other kids are eating them. However, we have NEVER been through a drive thru or given them processed foods. It is hard, I’m not going to lie, it takes planning and dedication, but you are already capable of doing that for yourself, so it will be much easier.
Their first solid foods were chicken and avocado, to the utter shock/dismay of their doctor. For snacks they are addicted to coconut nut balls (recipe on MDA under cocoa and coconut snacks, I leave the cocoa and coffee out!) and dried seaweed. They call it “green cookies.” They have coconut milk almost every day. They only know what we tell them and show them. Good luck and again, congratulations to the both of you!
My acid reflux was cured when I gave up wheat too. Used to be horrendous, gulping acid back down my throat 24 hrs a day. It wasn’t due to reduction of carbs as someone suggested above, as I switched to gluten free carbs at that point.
I don’t have any problem believing that going off wheat helped your wife to conceive. One of the symptoms I had from gluten intolerance was irregular cycles, often annovulatory. I had hormone tests and an ultrasound to try to figure out the cause. Makes sense if your body is struggling to cope with regular exposure to something basically toxic, plus reduction in nutrient uptake due to gut damage, the body might decide it’s not a good time to get pregnant.
Congrats to you both on your success and your little one!
Congrats on healthier lifestyles and your pregnancy! There is definitely a connection between a primal/paleo way of eating and increased fertility. Mark has well documented how this way of eating normalizes hormone levels, and of course, this helps with fertility. Increasing good fats also contributes to proper hormone production and longer luteal phases. As a nutrition counselor specializing in fertility, I work with a lot of women who are hoping to conceive, and always recommend some variation of a primal lifestyle with certain supplements. So far, I have not worked with a single woman who wasn’t able to conceive this way, even some in mid-40s or with documented fertility “problems.”
Congratulations, what a great story! I had a similar reaction from coworkers and found it so ironic that no one would suggest you consult your doctor to take a trip through a drive thru or order a pizza. But people think you need a professional to hold your hand if you want to eat healthier! Best of luck on the pregnancy!
Congratulations on your wonderful pregnancy and the “new” lifestyle choice! Inspiring story,thank-you
Congrats on the great health improvements. Much of what you have seen, I have seen as well. Terrible daily acid problems completely gone within 24 hours, and now gone for 18 months. I was just looking at my container of Tums at work, wondering I should give them away.
Use them for calcium supplementation, LOL! I wish my mother would change her habits – she’s 71 and has suffered from reflux for a year or so. Her favorite thing to eat is pastries. And she is as stubborn as a mule…
Wow, I saw myself in this post. Some people have ice cream – for me it’s a bowl of cereal late at night that does the trick. When you realize how many calories there are in the average cereal it makes you put the box down fast.
Isn’t it amazing how you think you are healthy and your normal weight and build is the best you can hope to be. Then you start eating primal and you see what YOUR NORMAL was really meant to be!
The wife probably had PCOS until she went primal and was able to conceive.
awesome..been there..keep it going…
CONGRATS on all your accomplishments – and not to get all broken-record-y – but please investigate all the medical procedures (vit k, vaccines, shots) that the hospital will try to perform on your little new one and make sure YOU are comfortable with them –
PLEASE REMEMBER YOU CAN REFUSE ANY AND ALL OF THEM until you have been fully informed! (sometimes they will try to tell you you can’t…)
good luck!
I will totally agree with your assertion that living a Primal lifestyle increases fertility (either that, or we’re genetic freaks). When my husband and I got married, we decided we weren’t going to “try” for a baby, but we would let nature take its course instead of obsessing over preventative measures or timing, etc. of our *ahem* activities. We had both been Primal for some time.
Five weeks later, I announced the conception of our daughter to my husband!
I would also like to share that our midwife made me go in for a test to look for gestational diabetes, the idea of which was to chug a 50mg glucose solution, wait an hour, and draw blood to see if it had any deleterious effects. I never found out the exact test results, but boy, did I feel like crap the rest of the afternoon!!
Congrats on your success and the little one! Its amazing what side BENEFITS come from living a primal lifestyle. Grok on!
Congratulations on changing your lives and the new baby on the way. What a great gift to your baby to raise him/her primal. It’s so much harder to change their ways when they are older.
Congrats on the pregnancy, and a great story. My son and his wife also conceived, after three years of trying, within a month or two of switching to a not-totally paleo diet, but more of a WAPF-real foods sort of diet. My 16-month-old grandson is the joy of my life! His favorite real food, when he began supplementing his mom’s breast milk with real food, was pureed liver and banana.
He’s never been fed any commericial “baby foods”, just real foods. He even loves steak, which his parents – in a true primal fashion – pre-chew for him, since he has no molars yet.
Congratulations!
Hire a doula!!
(consider a homebirth–it’s so Grok.)
I love that story and I love this website. I get constant inspiration to keep doing what I’m doing, despite all the naysayers.
Great success story Mark! Congrats to both of you on the coming baby!
In regards to GERD: I tend to favor the theory that grains (and sugar and unfermented, pasturized dairy, along with other factors, like prolonged stress, not enough sleep, etc) are the culprit in cases of GERD, not “acidic” foods such as tomatoes and oranges.
The ingestion of grains, so the theory goes, throws off the very acidic nature of the stomach, actually making it’s contents more basic. In order for the body to trigger a dump of the chyme (what that bolus of food is called once it enters your stomach), as well as a flood of the appropriate digestive enzymes, it must reach a certain level of acidity. But grains, being very difficult to digest, and very basic (opposite of acidic,) stay in the stomach for a while, not really reaching the appropriate level of acidity, particularly for those sensitive to grains. During that time, the grains start to ferment in the stomach, causing you to burp up stomach content, hence GERD.
The really fun part is after the grain-containing chyme does finally dump into the stomach. Remember those enzymes I mentioned earlier?–because the chyme was never acidic enough to trigger the flood of digestive enzymes, there is nothing present to make this acidic chyme basic again (which it must be to appropriately absorb through the intestinal lining and into the body.) The body must find a way to make the chyme basic enough to be absorbed. The body, having many back ups for terrible situations, takes calcium, a relatively abundant, negatively charged ion (basic) from the body and sends it to the chyme so that it will be basic enough to be absorbed by the small intestines, into the body (this is why TUMS contain calcium.)
Unfermented, pasturized dairy has a similar but less profound effect. This, in combination with the fact that the calcium in milk is not particularly bioavailable to humans is why milk is such a lousy source of calcium (some would argue it leads to a net loss of calcium from the body.)
Of course, this throws off the PH balance of the entire body, leading to (at least in theory) diseases that the body could normally fend off, as well as fun conditions like osteoprosis.
“Acidic” fruits and veggies do not cause GERD. I eat a bundle of them every day and never have a problem (as I’m sure is true of most Groks out there.) As was pointed out by Dana, these foods (in fact, ALL foods) are LESS acidic than your stomach lining, so the idea that they cause GERD (which we should think of as a symptom, not a disease) is ill informed.
Of course, if you have ulcers from GERD, it’s probably a good idea to avoid acidic fruits until the ulcers heal up. But, and I think everyone here can agree, the first step is to do what Mark and his wife did–go Primal and cut out the grains!
I always love to read these stories, but this one had a great surprise at the end. Woo hoo! Congratulations on your health and best wishes to you and your growing family
Excellent testimonial! I also have no doubt that the conception is at least partly due to changing your diets.
I also support the idea of primalizing your whole family’s diet. I’ve got three kids, have nursed all of them at least 2 years (well, the 15-month-old is still going strong), and simply start them on solids from our plates: meats, eggs (watch out for allergies with this one — save the whites for closer to 1 year old), cooked veggie, some cheese, some fruit.
Baby food tastes awful and is a waste of money — and pureeing stuff for them is a waste of time. We just wait until ours can sit up, have a few teeth, and reach for food with bright, happy, eyes, and they do great learning to feed themselves. (I cut food in tiny bites and mash hard stuff with my fork.) Our first baby literally didn’t eat more than a tablespoon or two of solid food until she was 8 months old (exclusively breastfeeding the whole time), but she was the picture of health and gained weight right on schedule. The others really didn’t try eating until 6-7 months either, and sometimes not even every day. You can be much more relaxed about this than the standard advice would lead you to believe.
Our current baby eats sauerkraut, liver pate, chopped tomatoes, and all kinds of other things other people wouldn’t dream of handing a baby (or perhaps eating themselves!). Our older kids are also strong, healthy, athletic, and adventurous eaters to boot. Sure, they love bread and candy (and I’d like to know how other people minimize this stuff as their kids get older and eat away from home more!), but they also love the healthy food we eat at home (soups with our own bone broth and tossed salads are always popular), so they are in good shape.
my staple being Frosted Shredded Wheat, home made bread, pasta, and a myriad of other wheat based foods
Too much of anything is not good. Nothing wrong with those foods, just limit the amount. Common sense.
Congratulations on the diet success and the new primal baby on the way. It put a smile on my face to think that a child will grow up to understand food (reality) as it truly is instead of growing up and believe lies. This is how a primal generation is started.
Wow!! Congratulations to the both of you!!
Looking good! So inspiring for others trying to do the same thing. Primal baby!!! Love it.
Peaks are Pheifferhorn, Devil’s Castle, and the approach to King’s Peak.
I can eat whatever I want with no acid reflux, but a few days of grains will make the reflux return. I don’t drink much alcohol, but I can now enjoy a glass of wine without having to pre-post medicate with Pepcid.
Weighing 25 pounds less makes mountain biking uphill much easier too;)
great story. but why so much “lean meat?”
please let go of the fear for SFA.
regards,