Mark, I just got back from my endocrinology appointment when I saw the latest contest.
I’m no picture of health yet but things are looking a heck of a lot better than they did before I started on Primal Blueprint.
I’ll start at the beginning. Six months ago my type II Diabetes was completely out of control, I’ll admit I wasn’t taking the best care of myself -moving, starting up a new research lab, you know “life” had gotten in the way of finding time to eat right and exercise. On top of that I was taking medication for high blood pressure and a birth control pill that made me even more insulin resistant and making it so that none of my oral medications for the diabetes worked anymore. In short, I felt like crap and looked it too.
Read MoreI was always a little on the heavy side, ever since I had my tonsils and adenoids taken out in kindergarten. I would say 3rd grade was the last time I really felt “normal.” After that it was all down hill. I can remember my childhood being filled with snacks, cakes, and overall poor food habits. As I got into my teens and after graduating, that’s when I started really suffering the emotional consequences. By the time I was 18 I weighed 200 lbs, and being a teenager, that made life pretty much hell. My life was generally unhappy and not going the direction I’d always dreamed, unable to afford college and working at minimum wage jobs. Food was my comfort. It was so comforting I ended up at 250 lbs… at least that’s where I think I ended up. I stopped weighing myself after that.
Read MoreMy weight struggle began when I turned 21. I got really stressed out at my job, and in turn I became depressed and very anxious to the point that my Doctor put me off work. That was the beginning of my search to feel well again…so here’s my story.
In 2002 I was prescribed Antidepressants, which at the time I definitely needed because I was not in a good place. However, this increased my appetite like crazy and I really started gaining weight. I ballooned up to 87kg and I’m 5’6”, so my ideal weight is something like 60kg. I searched online for an answer and I came across Atkins, so I started it straight away. I was really successful with it and I lost a lot of weight. I got right down to 54kg so I was thin…great, ah not really. I didn’t emphasise health enough. Veggies weren’t a large part of my diet, but diet coke and artificially sweetened chocolate was. I kept the weight off for a wee while but I was still having anxiety and depression. So in my search to find a cure I did more research online and came to the conclusion that low carb was exacerbating the problem….
Read MoreIt?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!
I used to be a long distance runner and a vegetarian. I was the epitome of health, or so I thought. I even hired a nutritionist to help me with eating during marathon training. She had me eating mostly ?good carbs? which was whole wheat everything with some vegetables and protein thrown in for good measure. My protein intake at the time was less than 50 grams a day. Fat, you ask? No way. My fat intake was negligible. That coupled with Gu, Gatorade, Cytomax, and carbo loading for energy and recovery was a sure way to go into sugar overload- which is exactly what I did. I had no clue about the dangers of low protein and fat for endurance events. I was following the advice given to me by my educated running peers, my nutritionist, and my doctor.
I made it through training by the skin of my teeth and toed the starting line with a wicked upper respiratory infection. This was the single worst idea I?ve ever had in my life. This would be the pivotal decision that would change my life forever. I finished that marathon in 6 hours and 37 minutes with bathroom breaks every few miles because I had diarrhea from the powerful antibiotics I was taking. It was only force of will, stubbornness, and sheer stupidity that kept me going. Well, it wrecked me.
Read MoreThanks to active forum member and fellow Primal Blueprinter, DiabetesCanKissMyButt. Let it be an inspiration to anyone who is living a similar story.
Follow DiabetesCanKissMyButt as she journals her Primal progress in the forum boards.
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I used to be a long distance runner and a vegetarian. I was the epitome of health, or so I thought. I even hired a nutritionist to help me with eating during marathon training. She had me eating mostly “good carbs” which was whole wheat everything with some vegetables and protein thrown in for good measure. My protein intake at the time was less than 50 grams a day. Fat, you ask? No way. My fat intake was negligible. That coupled with Gu, Gatorade, Cytomax, and carbo loading for energy and recovery was a sure way to go into sugar overload- which is exactly what I did. I had no clue about the dangers of low protein and fat for endurance events. I was following the advice given to me by my educated running peers, my nutritionist, and my doctor.
Read MoreIt’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!
Hi Mark, I’ve been following your blog for a little over a month now, love it and looking forward to the book! My husband and I went paleo/primal on January 26 of this year on the advice of his sister, a pharmacist. In the first month, I dropped 10 pounds with no problem, down from starting weight of 168 to 158. (I’m 5’ 8” by the way.) As of March 1, I started working out doing three days of walking/running intervals and basic strength training on the other two days, with weekends off. Since then I’ve gained back four pounds and have been hovering there ever since. I may lose a pound one day, but gain it back the next, giving me a net overall loss of roughly six pounds.
I’ve been really good with the food. No problems getting enough protein, eating lots of raw & cooked veggies, no fruit, only olive, coconut oils to cook with and butter for fat and flavor. A typical day’s menu looks like this: 2-3 scrambled eggs, 1 cup mostly decaf coffee with coconut milk for breakfast; a salad with 4-5 oz. meat; homemade olive oil & vinegar dressing for lunch; a handful of almonds around 3; 4-5 oz. meat and raw or steamed veggies for dinner. I’ll admit I will have an occasional bowl of popcorn one night on the weekends, that is my one downfall.
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