Feathers and Bones - Orannhawk's Journal page

[Orannhawk]

I suppose the best way to start my first journal entry is to begin with the statement of 'coming full circle'. I grew up in a predominantly primal household, with 95% of our protein coming from wild game and fish. It's taken me years to develop a taste for beef. My earliest memories of steak dinners were that of total disgust and then reporting to my Papaw that 'they' (my parents) were starving me. Needless to say, he went straight into our house to demand answers, only to find my Mom cooking steaks. Once he quit laughing, he took me back to his house, where the two of us feasted on fried squirrel and hot-water cornbread and a big pot of thick black coffee, made even thicker with his heavy-handed addition of white sugar. He started me on coffee when I was still in grade school and at that time it was a great treat for me ... not so much for my parents, as their wild child on caffeine and sugar was a not exactly a treat !
The entire family hunted so our freezers were full with venison, pig, quail, turkey, etc ... and it was commonplace for me to come home with a squirrel or two, or an armadillo during the non-deer season months. Our veggies were from our garden and my Mother seldom bought boxed or canned foods.

It was rare that we bought hamburgers, and somehow that event most often coincided with the infrequent telecast of The Wizard of Oz. Interesting how my childhood angst with those damned flying monkeys and hamburger buns relate.
I have vivid memories of my grandmother stacking slices of white bread on my plate at family dinners. To her, sliced white bread had no equal. I found it deplorable and carefully placed the bread in my lap, and when she wasn't looking, I snuck outside and fed the gummy slices to the chickens. (I still feel badly for those chickens, they didn't deserve that !)

The SAD eventually made its way into my life and burgers, nachos, and beer became prevalent partners in the food chain that was choking the life out of me. I've always had an intense interest in healthy eating, but I often got side-tracked with whatever the current nutrition theories held (bizarre diets included). At one point when the unbearable stomach cramps and all too frequent races to the bathroom became too much to deal with, I stopped eating meat ... and became an overnight vegetarian. Within a few months, I was a vegan and for two months, I went totally raw. I was certain that I had developed an allergy to meat. The stomach problems did not end with the meat abstinence, it continued with a vengeance and at the time I had no clue why.
And then there was the FACT that all I wanted was some fresh venison, or buffalo or even some chicken. I WANTED, I NEEDED MEAT ! Even during the couple of years that I was a vegg-head, I was still hunting. Strangely enough, my outspoken father never said anything to me about my avoiding meat, perhaps it was because I had not quit hunting, so I guess he figured there was hope there after all !

It's been a year since I had extensive testing and had to give up all gluten and dairy, as well as a long listing of allergen reactive foods. Truthfully I don't miss the gluten, but cheese is another thing entirely. Prior to that I eliminated fast foods, sugar, all sodas, and almost all processed foods. I readily admit to still buying some canned foods, but it is limited to things like Hearts of Palm and Water Chestnuts that I love in a salad.
I have developed a taste for beef (grass-fed), although I still contend that it tastes rather gamey and I do admit to calling my son from the grocery store to ask him about what the cut is. It's daunting to relate to meat that isn't cut in the way that I skin and process a deer. Inside tender, backstrap, hams ... that I understand !

So most recently, I was attempting the 5-6 mini meals per day, including 2-3 egg white protein shakes, to reduce the body fat % and build more lean muscle. I'm at the gym 3 days a week for weights, alternating with HIIT style cardio on the other 3 days and one day off. The multi-meals were not working for me, even keeping the portions small, it was overwhelming. I was routinely adding in coconut oil or hemp hearts to the shakes, and that in itself was good, but then I didn't want to eat anything for quite a while.
Two weeks ago I injured my foot, so while I waited for the swelling and bruising to subside enough that my chiro could work on it, I had several days when I had enough pain that eating multiple times throughout the day was just out of the question. And as bad as my foot felt, my stomach actually felt better with the few meals I did have. Nice meaty meals at that ! (Insert lightbulb here)
I did miss 2 days at the gym and I did skip some parts of my LBW, calf raises were not a possibility even this week. Thankfully, no issues with the leg press, since the pressure wasn't on the toes. Cardio on my spinner was a bit strange, with one foot balanced on the frame and one in the pedal ... ah, but strange can make for a nice respite from monotony.
Lunges and squats by next week, since all the bones are moving back into their proper alignment now with the adjustments. I'm in my second week of the increased weight on the leg press and feeling good about that, as well as slightly amused at the gasps from some of the older women in the gym, when they are sweating bullets over their 40 lb. push and I'm contently focused on my 370 lb. stack.
Now to get the weights up on my UBW's !

Today's meals have been simple, but primal and I realize now that I am coming full circle. Leftover roast chicken and avocado for breakfast, boiled eggs and bacon in romaine leaves for lunch, and yes Papaw, I'm having a steak and fresh asparagus for my dinner ... heehee, buffalo tomorrow !

[Orannhawk]

Totally intrigued today to realize how relaxed I am, having successfully escaped the mind set of eating every three hours. I slept better last night than I have in months, lazing in bed till 9 am.
Walked into the kitchen to find frozen chicken set out to thaw, so much for my planned buffalo today. Looks like my son is cooking tonight, so I'm not complaining. Working on the grocery list for the week, so I started the morning with an egg white shake with fresh ginger, blueberries and coconut oil. It was yummy, but truthfully not very filling even with the coconut oil added in. Ended up with the last of the steak from last night, 3 boiled eggs and a handful of watercress less than an hour and a half after the shake ... and now I feel fracking awesome again.
Not sure what I will have with the chicken tonight, most likely squash and onions. Having a great time reading through the recipes ... and so excited to be eating normal again ! Definitely making some meatballs this week.

I get a lot of emails from different bodybuilders/trainers online, seems every month there is a 'new and improved' way to reduce body fat, build muscle, be healthier ... and every one of them will promote the other to sell the 'new' diet/training plan, adding in (of course) their own free reports. Occasionally they do post some good workout options, so I've kept the email up on a few of them, however I find it interesting that none of them are following a primal or paleo lifestyle. But there again, they are marketing more to the general population of SAD.

[Twibble]

*waves*

Hiya!

Ran off for the weekend, but now I'm back.

If you're looking for a trainer who gets the Primal thing, you might check with CrossFit and see if there's a local gym where you're at.

[Orannhawk]

I think the closest are in Austin, not too far from me, but farther than I want to drive to go workout every week. Checking the website to see about working this into my workouts ! Thanks Twibble !

[Twibble]

What I'm doing right now is a book called Convict Conditioning. Bodyweight calisthenics made to increase functional strength. I'm still on level 1, but I can actually see definition in my arms, which is something new for me. I've heard good things about it at the higher levels as well (search the forums if you're interested, there's a thread going somewhere).

There's also stuff like this: Al Kavadlo – We're Working Out! » Zero Equipment Workouts that you might look into. I'm not sure what level you're at fitness-wise.

[Orannhawk]

Strange day ... Jim Morrison's voice running through my head ....
I had this sense of deep gut excitement pre-weekend, I think the majority of it stemmed from memories of my Dad, and the usual assortment of lovely meaty things that would have been on the grill this weekend. BBQ was a fine art for him, from the huge barrel pits that he welded in his shop, to the attention he gave to the meats and the extra treats that were always present when there were guests (especially if they weren't familiar with local flavors !).
I got up this morning thinking of one of those tasty morsels ... the crispy texture on the outside of the braid, the rich succulent flavor. When I was little, the name of this delicacy was more than a mouthful for me to pronounce. By the time I knew how to say it correctly, the old way of saying it was deeply ingrained. I have fond memories of the grin on the butcher's face when I told him I wanted some "Maregut" .... translated to marrow gut.
This was one of my Dad's favorite treats to put on the pit, along with a nice marbled brisket, chicken, homemade venison sausage, a few nice venison roasts ... and later, smoking some venison jerky to perfection.

I had planned to go out to the cemetery today, but as I stated before, it was a strange day. I sat with my thoughts today, remembering him, lacing up my shoes this morning my eyes were drawn to the small details that were added onto the tattoo on my leg, inked in a month after he left, the cattle brand he used on everything he owned (and then some) the same one he had transferred into my ownership months before he went to be with the Old Ones and the 817 ... a dual purpose number, for PC 817, the sub-chaser he served on in the Pacific fleet in WWII and interestingly enough, my birthday.
I stayed home and did ceremony.

Meals were good today, after a few missteps ... Started the day with boiled eggs and leftover chicken, grilled onions and tea.
Lunch was mix of leftover pork chop, chicken and a mixed greens salad with cucumber and fresh organic lemon juice.
Tonight I decided to cook the spaghetti squash to have with a steak. I had a beautiful pile of spaghetti squash on the plate, drizzled with a little olive oil. My son came in about the time I was shaking a liberal amount of black pepper all over the squash ... and as I went to pick up a strand to taste, he pulled the plate away and announced that I couldn't eat it.

When I had to eliminate gluten, I reset all the spices in the cabinet so I would not have to worry about checking the labels on everything ... except, a few days ago, he bought a new black pepper seasoned with Worcestershire. And the label was turned the other way and it was on my shelf ... and it contained barley and that was the one I had picked up and heavy-handed over the squash.
We had talked about it when he brought it home, how my Dad would have loved it ... and I suppose my son was lost in thought about him too, and didn't think about where he was setting the container. I'm thankful he caught it, it would have made me pretty sick. He steamed zucchini and put the new pepper on the second shelf for me.

I did allow myself a little treat today (no 'Maregut' sadly) a nice small bowl of fresh blackberries .... I sprinkled a little stevia on top and then grabbed the coconut oil and drizzled a little over it. WOW WOW WOW ... just that little bit of coconut and this was amazing !

Off to refine the grocery list again, I keep reading recipes on here and finding more things to try. I think I will step into the meat market/BBQ place this week and see if they have any 'Maregut' to throw on the pit next weekend. Grins ... it's right next door to my gym and known nationwide for the BBQ too. Yummmmm

[Orannhawk]

What I'm doing right now is a book called Convict Conditioning. Bodyweight calisthenics made to increase functional strength. I'm still on level 1, but I can actually see definition in my arms, which is something new for me. I've heard good things about it at the higher levels as well (search the forums if you're interested, there's a thread going somewhere).

There's also stuff like this: Al Kavadlo – We're Working Out! » Zero Equipment Workouts that you might look into. I'm not sure what level you're at fitness-wise.

Ooooh thanks Twibble ... I will check this out !
I've been working out for several years, the gym I go to is old style, no fancy equipment, no AC or music, just lots of weights, kettlebells, bats, ropes, benches, sleds, etc. I love the weights and I just got a spinner bike to use on off days for HIIT style training and I have P90X ... which kicks my butt bad. Eventually I will get to the point where I won't need to duct tape the boobage down, but right now I am taking a break from the 'lets jump up and down till we knock ourselves out' workouts.
I like the idea of functional strength training ! Trainer at the gym switches things up for me pretty often, always adding in more weight, which I love, but I need to peel off some body fat so more of the muscle is showing ! He is good about asking me what all I want to be working on, and then fine tuning it to things I am doing outside of the gym.

[Orannhawk]

Really need to be asleep ... Trying to retrain the brain to go to bed earlier, obviously the brain is not listening.
Did the food thing today, restocked essential things, more coconut oil, meats, eggs, sunflower sprouts, meat, avocado, bacon, bacon, bacon, meat, organic lemons (have to try that recipe with the lemons !) more meat ..... and some TP of course.
Meals today went great ... started out breakfast with boiled eggs and avocado, lunch - leftover chicken, small chunk of raw cabbage, and the rest of the breakfast avocado. Dinner - browned some ground beef, threw in onions, 4 baby carrots sliced up, half a box of mushrooms and a handful of green beans out of the garden ... totally yummy. Plenty of ground meat left to throw together with eggs or something tomorrow.

Visited with my Mom this afternoon and told her that I had switched from the 5-6 meal routine to Primal. She didn't say much at first, just listened to me, then she grinned and said "well, that's how you were brought up for the most part anyway !" Then she asked me if I remembered when I was in grade school and the mid-morning snack break that we had in the school ... every year she had teachers reporting to her that I would give away my milk at snack time and lunch time.
Then she laughed and reminded me that my snacks were primal even back then ... when the other kids were eating potato chips or twinkies, I had venison jerky or dried sausage that I helped to make, or leftover venison steak or quail, and occasionally pickled okra that she put up every year.

It feels soooooo good to be back. I can't change the fact that I went through phases of eating ignorance, and when things began to unravel for me nutritionally and with my weight, that I did grasp at what was purported to be the next miracle in health and weight loss ... but .... I can change the now as well as the future, to eat naturally, to remain Primal and be healthy, fit and totally fracking happy about it all !

I honestly did not realize how STRESSED I was feeling about the former meal plan - until I got away from it. My attitude about food and meals is so relaxed and easy now .... it's like my entire body just breathed one continuous sigh of relief.

So, with that, I'm taking my happy azz to bed ...

[Twibble]

Yay!

We're starting the 30-day menu from Everyday Paleo (the book from the blog) today. It's so nice to not have to figure out what we're going to eat for dinner...

[geostump]

If you check out CrossFit, they usually post the WOD's they do and you can do them on your own. I workout with a guy on occassion that is studying to be a CrossFit trainer and OMG that shit is awesome! You truly feel amazing and sore at the same time.

I miss venison jerky.