When we talk about “getting enough electrolytes,” we usually mean the big three: sodium, potassium, and magnesium. There are many others, including calcium, chloride, and bicarbonate, but the big three are the ones targeted by supplement and sports nutrition companies.
In part, that’s because sodium especially, but also potassium and magnesium, are lost through sweat. Athletes need to replenish these electrolytes during and after hard workouts or endurance outings in order to maintain optimal hydration and performance. Sodium and potassium work together to manage fluid balance throughout the body and facilitate muscle contractions and nerve firing. Magnesium is critical for cellular energy production and the transport of sodium and potassium across cell membranes.
I’m not going to go into a lot of detail about the other functions of electrolytes in the body since Mark recently covered the topic in his Electrolytes 101 post. Suffice it to say that if you don’t maintain the proper levels of electrolytes, you’re in a world of hurt.
Read MorePotentially controversial statement alert: burgers are the most perfect food.
Hear me out.
Burgers are delicious. They are portable. As meat goes, ground beef is relatively affordable. It takes less than 10 minutes to cook a burger on the stovetop or grill. Kids and adults like them equally.
Most of all, they are endlessly adaptable. Burgers are the vanilla ice cream of main dishes: great on their own and also a perfect canvas upon which to build your culinary masterpiece.
The problem is, since burgers are ubiquitous in the fast food world, they sometimes garner an unfair reputation for being unhealthy. Not so! Sure, a drive-thru burger isn’t the world’s healthiest food. Nor is it the worst by a long shot. In any case, there are ways to take a basic burger and build a healthier meal.
It’s time burgers ascend to their rightful place in the food hierarchy—at the top, obviously. First, though, let’s give them a little glow up to make sure they are as nourishing as possible.
Read MoreSoon after starting a carnivore diet, you may be wondering what to eat to keep things interesting. With an eating style that’s so restrictive, it’s easy to get bored quickly. That’s where sauces, dressings, and marinades come in. If you’re pure carnivore, those are out, but a lot of people are adopting a Carniflex style of eating so that they can add flavor and variety to their meals. It’s been the Primal philosophy all along that you’ll stick with a healthy habit if 1. it doesn’t feel too restrictive, and 2. you can keep things exciting! Primal Health Coach Brian has been eating a Carniflex style diet for some time now, and he’s here to share his tips and tricks to avoid getting stuck in a rut. One of his favorite hacks is to use ground beef for the convenience and versatility it offers. He came up with four different Carniflex ground beef bowls that he makes in just minutes for a quick breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Why Use Ground Beef on a Carnivore or Carniflex Diet? Ground beef has a lot of appeal to carnivore dieters for its: Ease of preparation. Ground beef cooks in minutes, and it’s as simple as browning it in a pan. No fancy techniques required. Versatility. You can experiment with mixing a lot of things like organ meats, sauces, marinades, collagen, herbs… the possibilities are endless. Cost effectiveness. Carnivore can be expensive, if you’re reaching for a ribeye or three every day. But ground beef is cheaper and just as satisfying. Carnivore Diet Cost: Steak vs. Ground Beef Ground beef is a lot less expensive than steak. If you watch for sales, you can easily find grass-fed ground beef, fresh or frozen, for around $5 a pound. You might find bulk or conventional ground beef cheaper, and you might find it more expensive, too. At the time this article was published, you can expect to pay around $5 a pound. A lot of carnivore diet beginners go the “Costco ribeye” approach where conventional (not organic or grass-fed) ribeyes are aorund $15/pound. To give you an idea of the cost of enhancements: About $0.70 for a serving of Primal Kitchen® collagen peptides Roughly $0.60 for 2 servings of Primal Kitchen® sauce $0.50 for 2 pasture raised eggs 1 oz of liver – maybe $0.50 for an oz if buying from high quality source, but you might find it much cheaper So, you’re looking at around $7-8 for a 1 pound meal. https://youtu.be/L0f5uoZar78 On the Carnivore Diet, You Don’t Just Eat Muscle Meat Muscle meat is nutritious, but has a very limited nutritional profile. You can incorporate a broader range of nutrients by using organ meats, like heart, liver, tripe, etc. A lot of people consider collagen an organ meat and include collagen protein as a way to round out amino acids in your meal. If organs make you squeamish, you can sneak them into ground beef bowls like these, or chop them finely and add … Continue reading “4 Budget Carniflex Recipes: Cost-effective Ground Beef Bowls for the Carnivore Diet”
Read MoreHi folks, in today’s Ask a Health Coach, Erin will be answering a few more of your carb-related questions, from knowing which ones to include in your total macro intakes to strategies for managing the aftermath of a carb binge. We love getting your questions, so be sure to post them in the Mark’s Daily Apple Facebook group or in the comments below. Stephanie asked: When counting carbs, which carbs are counted? Does this include fruits and vegetables too? I realize that all grains and starches should be counted, but does this also include “moderated” foods such as bananas and sweet potatoes? Any advice is appreciated! As a culture, we’re obsessed with carbs. We’re so totally in love with demonizing, scrutinizing, anddissecting the nuances of carbohydrates. The total carbs, subtracting sugar alcohols and fiber, staking a claim on which carbs are good and which are bad. The whole thing’s gotten really out of hand and way too fussy if you ask me. I work with a lot of clients who exhibit symptoms of being carbophobic, swearing that low-carb is the answer to all their struggles. Even if you’ve successfully removed the word “diet” from your vocabulary (congratulations, by the way), I find that people absolutely love to have rules around what they should and shouldn’t be eating. Why Are We So Obsessed with Carbs? Ever heard of decision fatigue? It’s based on the idea that when making a multitude of decisions (especially in rapid succession), our ability to make additional decisions gets worse. And since we make more than 200 food choices per day, it’s easy to see why having rules takes the edge off. Types of food decisions you might recognize: Should I eat breakfast or fast? How much creamer takes me out of ketosis? Should I even have coffee? What about lunch? How many carbs does this have? Is wine okay? And that doesn’t even include the decisions make when dining out, assuming we get to do that more regularly moving forward. The conversations we have in our heads are overwhelming to say the least. Why? Because our minds prefer things that don’t require a lot of thought. And deciding what we should eat — or how many carbs we should have — is just one more thing to tack onto our to-do lists. Martin Binks, PhD and Director of the Nutrition Metabolic Health Initiative at Texas Tech says, “It’s easier to make a yes or no choice. It’s simpler and less stressful to make binary decisions rather than get into nuanced ones,” adding that “food rules can simplify things.” The more variables there are, the harder it is for our brains to make a decision, which at least partially explains our obsession with food rules. Sure, some structure and guidance is helpful — like knowing which foods agree with your body and which ones make you feel foggy and fatigued. But it’s important to learn how to be flexible and eat mindfully to keep your emotional … Continue reading “Ask a Health Coach: More of Your Carb Questions Answered”
Read MoreThe keto diet has a reputation for being strict and regimented. Some guidelines you do have to follow, particularly concerning carbohydrate intake. However, just as a Primal diet allows plenty of room for personalization based on food preferences, goals, activity level, and more, keto diets can actually be quite flexible. In fact, once you’ve successfully made the transition to keto, I think you should make adjustments to ensure your diet feels sustainable and works for your life. That said, all of the suggestions below are totally optional. They aren’t inherently better than whatever you’re doing now. If you’re happy with your current diet, there’s no need to change it. I know, though, that many of us in the MDA community are questioners or enthusiastic self-experimenters, always up for trying something new and looking for ways to tweak and optimize our diets and lifestyles. I’m all for self-experimenting and developing your personal expression of keto, one that you find easiest and most enjoyable. So, without further ado, here are nine things you can do to personalize your keto diet. 9 Ideas for Creating a Custom Keto Diet 1. Increase Carbohydrate Intake The Keto Reset recommends a carb intake of about 50 grams per day (total, not net) for most people, perhaps down to 30 grams for folks who are sedentary or insulin resistant. Other keto protocols recommend capping carb intake at 20 grams or less. That’s tough to do unless you’re sticking to a fairly limited range of foods. A small handful of macadamia nuts or blueberries represents a quarter of your daily carb allowance if you’re trying to stay under 20 grams. One big-ass salad can put you near or even over your limit. Some people need to keep carbs that low for medical reasons. There’s no need for the rest of us to be that restrictive, especially not if it makes your diet difficult and unenjoyable. Even 50 grams may be overly conservative for some people. Athletes and other very active folks can probably go above 50 grams per day and still stay in ketosis, especially if they time their carb intake around training. 2. Decrease Carbohydrate Intake In the Keto Reset community, I see fewer people overeating carbs than restricting carbs unnecessarily. Still, there are a few reasons someone might want to consider decreasing their carb intake: To increase ketone levels for specific medical purposes (on the advice of a doctor or nutritionist) or as a self-experiment Still experiencing unwanted sugar cravings Dealing with insulin resistance or poor glycemic control Trending toward a carnivore or carniflex approach 3. Increase Protein Intake Just a few years ago, the prevailing wisdom was that protein intake should be kept to low-to-moderate levels on a keto diet. Now, a growing number of folks who identify as keto are eating meat-centric or entirely carnivorous diets. Anecdotally, many people feel better, experience greater satiety, and have an easier time losing weight when they increase their protein intake (if they were on the lower end … Continue reading “9 Ways to Customize Your Keto Diet”
Read MoreDear Mark, A friend of mine just found out that I’ve been eating a keto diet for the past few months, and they told me I should stop right away and get my selenium levels checked. They said I could be at risk of a heart attack because of keto. Now I’m freaking out a bit. Help? Don’t freak out. Let’s look at the evidence. First Off, What is Selenium, and Why Do We Need It? Selenium is an essential trace element that we get from our diets. Enzymes called selenoproteins play a variety of important roles throughout the body. Notably, selenoproteins in the thyroid gland facilitate the conversion of T4 to T3. Selenoproteins require adequate selenium intake. Selenium deficiencies can be very serious. Selenoproteins act as antioxidants. Without enough selenium—or really, selenoproteins—to offer protection, heart muscle cells can sustain free radical damage. This is the case with Keshan disease, a potentially fatal cardiomyopathy (disease of the heart muscle). Keshan is a region in China where the soil is depleted of selenium. As a result, residents were suffering high rates of heart disease before a supplementation program was introduced. Selenium deficiencies can also lead to male infertility because a selenoprotein known as GPx4 protects spermatozoa from oxidative stress. However, your friend might want to know that aside from severe deficiencies, the jury is still out on the role of selenium in cardiovascular disease. Some, but not all, observational studies have found that low selenium is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Others have found that high selenium may also be a problem. Selenium supplementation doesn’t appear to prevent heart disease, but clinical trials have mostly been carried out in adult males who already get enough selenium from their diets. In any case, selenium deficiencies are rare except in certain parts of the world where the soil is significantly depleted. Most adults in the U.S. get at least twice the recommended daily intake. So already, your friend’s basic premise seems shaky, but let’s do our due diligence here and ask whether following a keto diet puts you at greater risk. Is There Any Evidence that Keto Causes Selenium Deficiency? Yes, specifically among children who were prescribed a therapeutic ketogenic diet to treat intractable epilepsy. As of 2020, there were at least 66 documented cases of selenium deficiency among children on a therapeutic ketogenic diet. Three deaths were attributed to cardiomyopathies associated with low selenium. A fourth child died after experiencing QT prolongation (abnormal heartbeat, essentially). However, QT prolongation can be triggered by acidosis, so selenium might not have been the culprit here. It’s unclear exactly how prevalent selenium deficiency is among pediatric epilepsy patients on keto. One study of 110 kids found that nearly half of them had low selenium. None of them showed evidence of cardiomyopathies as a result. Another study followed 91 children who were following a variant of the keto diet and receiving vitamin and mineral supplementation, including selenium, for 12 months. Selenium levels decreased over time, with … Continue reading “Dear Mark: Keto and Selenium Deficiencies – Something to Fear?”
Read MoreShort answer: Yes. Anyone can go keto, including vegans. It might be a lot harder to stay vegan, but they can certainly go keto. Nothing stopping them. The more the merrier.
Jokes aside. Can someone go keto while remaining vegan?
That’s a tougher problem. Not intractable. But real tough.
Why is it so hard?
Read MoreIt’s a story I hear over and over again: A woman is cruising along, feeling like she has her diet and workout routine pretty well dialed in. Then, some time in her 40s, her body composition suddenly starts changing, sometimes rapidly, despite no apparent differences in her food intake or exercise.
Women’s bodies often go through profound transformations in their 40s, mostly due to hormonal shifts associated with perimenopause. Most women start noticing symptoms of perimenopause in their mid-40s, although they can begin as early as mid-30s for some, or as late as mid-50s. This phase may last anywhere from four years to more than a decade (!) before women experience menopause, defined as no menstrual period for 12 months, and transition into postmenopause. In addition to changes in body composition—different fat storage patterns, weight gain, even changes in muscle mass and bone density—many women experience brain fog, low mood, fatigue, hot flashes, and low libido.
Perimenopause can leave women feeling bewildered and like they no longer have control over their bodies. When they try to figure out how to respond, they quickly discover that there’s very little research targeting middle-aged women, especially in the nutrition realm. Premenopausal and postmenopausal women are represented well enough. Those of us in the middle? Not so much.
Read MoreHey folks! Erin is here for another round of Ask a Health Coach. If you’re sleep-compromised, stressed out about carbs, or you’re a chronic snooze button pusher, today’s post is for you. Keep your questions coming in the Mark’s Daily Apple Facebook Group or share them down in the comments section. Alicia asked: “I’ve been trying to get up early to exercise, but I always end up hitting the snooze button and falling back asleep. Got any tricks to get myself up on time?” I love that you’re setting goals for yourself. It proves that you don’t have to wait until New Year’s or (another) Monday to make a change in your life. But I get it. Any routine that’s different from your normal one can be a challenge to start, let alone stick with. The good news is, this is kinda my specialty. I love teaching my clients to nurture their own personal accountability. When you’re responsible for your own actions — and the outcomes of those actions, it puts you in the driver’s seat. You’re in control when it comes to what you’re doing and not doing. It also sends a positive message to yourself that you’re worth it and that this change is important enough for you to make it a priority. On the flip side, when you just toss a plan out there, cross your fingers, and hope for the best with a lukewarm attitude (and zero consequences), you’re pretty much setting yourself up to fail. The first rule of accountability? Getting clear on your goals and the reasons why you want to achieve those goals. For your situation, I’d start by asking: What time am I waking up? What kind of exercise will I be doing? What type of equipment or gear will I need? Where will I be doing it? How long will I be exercising? Why does this matter to me? What will happen if I don’t break my snooze button habit? Why is all of this important? Because there’s a big difference between people who set goals and those who actually succeed at them. There’s a great piece of research that shows that having a concrete plan makes you three times more likely to achieve your goals. In the study, 248 participants who wanted to build better exercise habits were divided into three groups. One group was asked to track their workouts, one group received motivational information about exercising, and the third group was asked to formulate a plan for when and where they would work out. More specifically, they were asked to complete the following sentence: During the next week, I will partake in at least 20 minutes of vigorous exercise on (day) at (time) in (place). For you, that might look like: I will partake in at least 20 minutes of vigorous exercise on weekdays at 5:15am in my bedroom. Or dial it in even more by saying: I will partake in 20 minutes of weightlifting on weekdays at 5:15am … Continue reading “Ask a Health Coach: Sleep, Stress, and the Snooze Button”
Read MoreBefore I had kids, I thought I’d be that mom who cooks and bakes endlessly with her kids. After all, I enjoy being in the kitchen, so why wouldn’t I want my sweet offspring by my side as I lovingly prepare meals for the family. Ah, to be that young and idealistic again. Every year we get busier and more pressed for time, and—in my experience, at least—cooking with your kids makes everything take three to eleven times longer. Gone are my ideas of being Betty-Crocker-meets-Mary-Poppins in the kitchen. I have new priorities now: I need to be time-efficient. I want to feed myself and my kids nutritious foods. I refuse to prepare separate meals or snacks for kids and adults. My kids should learn their way around the kitchen, which means giving them age-appropriate tasks. Most days we manage dinner together, but the rest of the day is a whirlwind. Snacking is something of a contentious topic in the ancestral community. Sincere kudos if your family can stick to set meal times with perhaps one planned snack interlude. Realistically, though, snacking happens here. Rather than fight it, I try to have quick, healthy options that check my four boxes above. These are some of my top picks. Add yours in the comments section. Instantly download your free Guide to Cooking Fats and Oils Dips & Spreads Veggies with ranch dressing. Use raw vegetables like celery, carrots, snap peas, broccoli, cauliflower, and mini sweet bell peppers, or leftover roasted asparagus or Brussels sprouts. To make a thicker dip, mix the ranch with sour cream to get the consistency you want. Frozen chicken skewers (I get mine at Costco) dipped in barbecue sauce or a quick peanut sauce. This one uses tahini, or you can use almond butter instead. Guacamole with raw vegetables or pork rinds. To uplevel the experience, try this recipe for Bacon Guacamole with Cheddar Chips. Apples, pears, or celery with nut butter. Hummus with veggies. Classic hummus is easy to make or buy pre-made if you eat chickpeas, but you can also make delicious legume-free versions like this Roasted Cauliflower & Macadamia Nut Hummus. How kids can help: Wash and cut raw vegetables and fruit with supervision and depending on age. Pour dipping sauces into ramekins. Smash avocados for guacamole. Run the food processor for hummus. Arrange the food on plates. Stuff You Can Eat with Toothpicks Cubed melon wrapped in prosciutto. Caprese skewers: cherry tomato + pearl mozzarella + basil leaf. Optional Italian or balsamic dressing to dip. Meatballs, like these kid-approved Teriyaki Meatballs. Steak “salad” bites. Leftover cubed steak topped with a few leaves of baby spinach and cheddar or blue cheese. Dip in BBQ sauce or dressing of choice. For the grown-ups, add Quick Pickled Onions. How kids can help: Cube melon or steak. Wrap prosciutto around melon. Assist with cooking meatballs. The steps are easy enough for even young kids, supervised. Assemble the skewers. Pour dipping sauces into ramekins. Charcuterie Plates Charcuterie plates … Continue reading “Keto and Primal Snacks for Busy Mom Life”
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