Primal Journal: Lewis page

[Lewis]

Not sure what the commitment is. But I wanted to follow what I'm doing in Fitday for a week, something i usually only do on and off.

I'll commit to only drinking a moderate amount. I'll commit to practising Alexander Technique (or meditating)—the kind of thing I never get round to doing these days.

Extras: I usually take 1 tsp naturally fermented cod liver oil and some Naturalcalm each day.

Sunday 19 Jun 2011

Breakfast: ½ grapefruit, 3 egg vegetable frittata fried in goose grease, some baked sweet potato, cup of almond milk

Lunch: cup of broth, roast duck (about 6 oz.), boiled peas & parsnips with butter; fresh pineapple & clotted cream; 2 oz. Manchego cheese; glass of red wine

Dinner: dressed bistro salad, anchovies (small tin), yoghurt

Snacks: 1 cup of coffee with double cream

Calories: 2,242 (58% fat, 17% protein, 19% carbs, 6% alcohol)

That surprised me. I generally eat more than that, more like 2,600 kcal, but that was about all I wanted. Hits all the RDAs—except for potassium.

Exercise: walking with a weighted rucksack, some gardening, a few bodyweight exercises.

[Lewis]

Monday 20 Jun 2011

B: ½ grapefruit, 2 boiled eggs, asparagus with butter, 4 fl. oz. beet kvass

L: about 2 oz. cold roast duck, a large dressed salad, 2 oz. Gruyere cheese, a banana with double cream

D: 1 avocado, a kind of chilli made with beef and vegetables, yoghurt

S: 1 mug green tea, 2 cups herbal tea

Calories: 2262 (65% fat, 20% protein, 15% carbs, 0% alcohol)

Again not that much food—but I'm not hungry. One of those teas was lemongrass with yerba mate and mint—pretty good, actually. Hit the RDAs for most things—very slightly under on vitamin E, potassium, and thiamine.

Exercise: some walking and a short run. I'll try to get the AT in.

[Hedonist]

Welcome Lewis. You know how to eat!

[Lewis]

Welcome Lewis. You know how to eat!

Thanks.

[Lewis]

Tuesday 21 Jun 2011

B: ½ grapefruit, 2 eggs scrambled with 1 tbs butter, asparagus, fish eggs

L: tin of sardines, large dressed salad, 2 oz. Manchego cheese, cup of almond milk, 1 banana with cream

D: 1 tbs coconut oil, 1 avocado, 4.75 oz. pork chop, sauerkraut, 1 glass white wine (South Australian organic)

S: 1 mug green tea, 1 cup mint & nettle tea tea, 1 cup rosehip tea, 1 lime in water,

Calories: 2,405 (58% fat, 21% protein, 16% carbs, 5% alcohol)

I'd cooked some sweet potato, too, but I couldn't eat it. Wow, that Aussie wine tasted powerful. I guess it's all that sun. I just looked at the label and it says 14.5% alcohol by volume—sounds like some kind of record.

Exercise: plenty of walking again and some bodyweight exercises.

I did do the Alexander thing of lying in a semi-supine position for 20 minutes while deliberately releasing tension yesterday.

I was listening to an interesting podcast by a guy who teaches Alexander Technique and Feldenkrais Method today. I'm really interested in trying Feldenkrais now. They're quite similar, but whereas AT is more about a Zen-like non-doing—stripping away everything unnecessary and letting the thing do itself, Feldenkrais is more a "subtle doing". In AT you have to use your mind—be mindful—but Moshe Feldenkrais could help people who couldn't do that, perhaps because of injury. Apparently, there was a brilliant violinist in Israel whose career was playing in an orchestra. This man got caught in an ambush and really badly injured, but Moshe Fledenkrais was able to more or less rebuild his responses to the point where he could play in an orchestra again. This guy says the Feldenkrais Method, in the right hands, actually does what physical therapists aim to do but often don't. It sounds like one could learn a lot about movement by doing it.

[Lewis]

Wednesday 22 Jun 2011

B: 1 raw egg yolk, 1 fried egg, extra butter to about 1 tbs, sweet potato, 1 mango

L: about 2 oz. parma ham, large dressed salad, 1 oz. (pre-soaked) almonds, 1 peach with cream, 2 oz. Gruyere cheese, cup of coffee

D: 1 tbs coconut oil, 1 avocado, about 5 oz. wild red salmon, broccoli (with a knob of butter), 4 fl. oz. beet kvass, yoghurt (Greek-style sheep's yoghurt, as usual)

S: 3 cups herbal tea

Calories 2176 (61% fat, 18% protein, 22% carbs)

Over the RDA for all micronutrients. I could eat more, actually, but I don't feel hungry, so I probably shan't.

I probably shan't do much exercise today, but I always work a reasonable amount of walking into my day, so I shan't have done nothing. Perhaps I'll do some Tai Chi warm-up exercises for mobility, etc.

[Lewis]

Thursday 23 Jun 2011

B: fish eggs, 2 boiled eggs, broccoli, 1 tbs butter, 1 oz. (pre-soaked) Brazil nuts, 4 oz. raspberries

L: beef, dressed green salad, 3 tomatoes, Roquefort cheese, 1 large orange

D: 1 raw carrot, vegetable soup with 1 tbs of butter stirred in, 1 raw egg yolk, lamb's liver fried in coconut oil (rest up to 1 tbs coconut oil eaten off spoon), yoghurt, 1 banana, 1 oz. Gruyere cheese, 1 glass white wine

S: 1 mug green tea, 2 cups herbal tea

Calories: 2,264 (53% fat, 21% protein, 21% carbs, 6% alcohol)

What surprises me is that I actually had two spoons of concentrated fat with my dinner, yet my percentage of fat was lower than usual.