Finally, I Am Me

Last September marked the one year anniversary of the beginning of my Primal Journey. It’s been a life changing year for me and my family. I finally feel ready to tell my story. So here we go…

I can honestly, whole-heartedly say that my whole life, I felt like I was way off course. I am smart, athletic, was always successful in school, came from a good family, knew my career choice (teacher) at a young age and was passionate about everything I did. Despite my “normal” life, I struggled deeply with anxiety as long as I can remember. I never felt normal, or like I could handle anything. The slightest bit of stress sent me into a life or death reaction. I honestly thought I was crazy, but I knew deep down that this wasn’t how I was supposed to be living my life. This wasn’t ok. I knew that for sure.

Posted By: Mark Sisson

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We Are Talking About a Drastic Increase in Quality of Life!

Thanks to MDA, my husband Jesse and I are reformed from our carboholic ways. To give you an idea of the magnitude of our addiction to carbs, this is what would happen during our normal weekly grocery shopping trip: We would hit the bakery section first. They had those huge fluffy loaves of French bread. Warm. We would get two. We would tear off chunks of the bread and eat a whole loaf as we walked through the grocery store. The other one, we would turn into garlic bread to go with our spaghetti for dinner that night. And that was after having a whole grain English muffin or oatmeal for breakfast (because at least the whole grains and oats were good for you, right??)

Posted By: Mark Sisson

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Primal Persistence: Staying the Course Through Life’s Ups and Downs

Hi, I’m Rio. I’m 29 years old and I’ve been Primal since October 2011. I’d like to say that since then I’ve lost 25 kgs (55 lbs) and have a visible 6-pack. However, that for me is not the case. My story is still successful, but it is more a story of persistence.

I’ll start with the usual. I’ve been overweight my whole life even though I was an active child/teenager/young adult. Mum used to put “healthy” food on the table with a few treats on the weekend, but I was still painted with the “big girl” label. Unfortunately, the healthy food consisted of bread, pasta, potatoes and grain-based snacks. I started Weight Watchers when I was 12 years old. I was 72 kilos (158 lbs). Since then I feel like my life has been a perpetual cycle of “feeling naughty” and depriving myself. I have tried the weird and wacky diets (such as the soup diet) and more depressingly the CW “eat healthy and exercise” diet. I worked my butt off at the gym, ate low fat, and calorie-counted to within an inch of my life, and still I never saw the numbers I hoped for. I gave up time and time again, only getting heavier at the end of every attempt. I felt like a failure. At the end of 2010 I was 87 kgs (191 lbs) (I’m only 156 cm (5′ 1″)) and felt huge. I was also due to get married in April 2011. I always thought that my wedding would be the time when I would finally lose the weight and I thought up until now that my early attempts hadn’t worked because I didn’t have the ultimate motivation. I so wanted to be a thin and beautiful bride, so I hopped on the “eat right and exercise wagon” again, and again I was disappointed and devastated…I was, after all my efforts, going to be a chubby bride. My wedding was a wonderful day, because I married the love of my life, but I’ll always look back with a tinge of regret over my size.

Posted By: Mark Sisson

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From Sugar-Burner to Fat-Burner: A Transformation Story

Mark,

As a chiropractor, I thought I’d been taught everything I needed to know about nutrition. The “studies” prove it, right? Whole grains are king, aren’t they? My vegan nutrition professor who was so incredibly thin couldn’t be wrong. I have a strong background in nutrition, yet as I aged, I felt crappier every year.

After my doctorate program was over, I was left with the gifts of bad eating habits: “healthy” carb-up and caffeine-up through exams, regular sickness, chronic fatigue, migraines and mental fog that made working out like I used to almost impossible. It was a worse version of what I remember feeling as a teenager on the tennis court. Horrible low blood sugar after the first set, poor focus, SUGAR BURNER! Yikes! And I had a doctor for a dad who I still argue with over the new rules that you promote. (His belly and visceral fat has been an issue since he was 40 on his Mediterranean diet).

Posted By: Mark Sisson

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A Doctor Finds Primal Balance

Dear Mark,

I’m a physician and budding blogger, and I’ve been a fan of MDA for a few years now. You are my blog-crush, always combining the perfect blend of serious scientific information with colloquial content. Primal living is about much more than just what we eat and how we exercise, and your posts always reflect that!

My story begins around the time I found your site and your book, The Primal Blueprint. A bit of background: I’m a very tall (over six feet) woman who was raised on Conventional Wisdom and the Standard American Diet, replete with Oreos for breakfast, bologna sandwiches for lunch, and spaghetti for dinner with Cheetos and Hostess snack cakes thrown in between! In high school, I was heavily recruited for athletics due to my height but was never courageous or confident enough to learn how to play sports. I focused more on my schoolwork and music studies, and I couldn’t have cared less about what was going on with my body. This all changed when I met my husband in my freshman year of college: a very tall and athletic rock climber who inspired me to exercise and learn more about health and fitness. My newfound love of fitness grew through our climbing adventures around the world, and it eventually prompted me to pursue a career as a physician.

Posted By: Mark Sisson

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