Some Tips For Primal Everyday Living
Posted on 24 August 2009
If you have followed any of the stuff on Marks Daily Apple you will surely know about the Primal Lifestyle which is basically lots of fresh foods, play and evolutionary movement. His book and blog are awesome and featured on the right of the page. Anyhow as a Primal follower I have picked up a few tips in the last few months on how to make living the primal way that little bit easier……
Fill The Fridge
Make sure your fridge is packed full of good stuff, loads of lean meats, fruit and vegetables this will make sure that not only you but those around you have no good reason not to eat fresh healthy food. For instance at the moment my fridge has some of the following in it:
- Fresh Melon – ready to chop up
- Some seared Tuna
- Kefir
- Unpasturised cheese from the local market
- Blueberries
- Bag of Apples
- Carrots
- Fresh Salad
- Eggs
- Tomatoes
- Jug of water with sliced up lemon inside
If you check out the stuff above its full of fresh foods which allow for great meals or snacks whenever you want. Notice the lack of; Soft Drinks, Sugary yoghurts, and processed foods in general. Your fridge should always have adequate amounts of fresh and wholesome food stocked up this will save you money and time when it comes to preparing meals!
The Art of Sprinting
One of the best things you could add to any workout routine is a sprint workout. At first it will seem weird but once you have a sprint workout nailed there is no better quick and simple routine you could find. Spend some time warming up then hit 5-7 sets of sprints up which should take you no longer than 10 minutes. Sprinting will improve your:
- Hormonal Profile
- Athletic Ability
- Overall body tone and strength
Making it probably the most efficient thing you could do to maintain a healthy body. Just remember to start slow if you haven’t had a sprint session before thoroughly warm up your knees and upper body before flying into some all out bursts!
Eat Out Right
Its so important to eat out with friends and family. Unfortunately not every restaurant makes it easy to eat Primally but its always doable. If you remember a few rules of thumb like avoiding starchy foods and sticking to lean meats and salad vegetables things become a little easier. Let’s have a Look at some types of restaurant:
- Italien – They often do great seafood or meat (carne) served with vegetables
- Asian – Steer towards meat and rice dishes just go easy on the rice
- French – Usually offer great salads
The longer you eat a more Primal diet the easier things get as you will learn what to order and you will start to crave real food making the choice of a steak over a pasta an easy one.
Spend Time On Your Feet
Keeping active all the time is hugely important tot he human body. Sometimes it can be hard to exercise regularly but so long as you keep active and on your feet your doing well. Try and make a point of parking your car further away from your destination or getting off the bus one stop early, little tips like these are great at sneaking in exercise.
~ Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity ~
Also promote activities try and arrange sports with friends or go for long walks to unwind and get some movement into your life. Its also important to make sure you stay on your feet a couple of hours per day. Too many people wake up, drive to the office, drive home and hardly spend anytime moving all day. If you have a sedentary job then go for a walk at lunch time or after dinner it will make a huge difference to your overall well being.
Learn an Imrpov Workout
Its always good to have an improvised workout on hand which you can do anytime and anywhere, whether your stuck in a hotel room or have 5 minutes to kill each morning its great to throw in a quick body weight workout. There are so many variations you can do but what is important is that you have a few that your familiar with and can do whenever you feel like. Its also a great idea to carry some sports kit with you when traveling around, If you pack some trainers, gym shorts and a few old t-shirts you know your prepared plus they will serve as motivation to get a workout done. When on the road I always grab my Nike Free’s and a few other bits and bobs which fold up into a small ball allowing me to travel light…..
Relax When You Can
Today’s environment is overwhelming even for the toughest of us, therefore it is important to have an arsenal of relaxation techniques under your belt to quiet down….. One of my favorites is 10-15 minutes of diaphragmatic breathing it can turn off the fight or flight response and leave you feeling calm and relaxed, to me its most important to do either at the beginning of the day to set a calm and relaxed tone. Or upon returning from work or at the end of a day before eating or going to bed.
Listening to good music is a great tool for relaxation, putting on some classical music or chilled out Jazz really makes for a relaxing evening along with a good book and cup of tea. Some other good techniques are learning to meditate even if its just 5 minutes a day it will have a profound effect. I also find its good to distance myself from technology for a few hours a day- getting away from the laptop, TV, and phone is something so important and leaves us with time to spend with our friends and family rather than being sucked into a virtual world.
It is also very important to spend some of your time with like minded people who hold an interest in what excites you, this will not only help stimulate your passions but make everything seem that little bit brighter. So in a nutshell some of my tips for Primal Living;
- Fill your fridge with healthy food
- Use Sprints as a regular workout
- Learn how to eat out wisely
- Spend time on your feet, walk when you can
- Improvise workouts with body-weight and nature
- Have several relaxation techniques
- Spend time with like minded individuals
It would be cool if anyone else has some tips to share on living a healthy lifestyle, maybe tips they have picked up over the years or small day to day tricks that make it that little bit easier…..
Comment by Michael - The Fat Loss Authority
24 August 2009
Pretty much covers it all I’d say.
It makes things a lot easier spending time with individuals who share your passion.
Mike
Comment by Greg at Live Fit
24 August 2009
I reserve my lunch breaks for workouts. Nothing rechrges my day like a quick 30 minute run or weight session. And it leaves time for family at home.
Comment by Dusan Vlahovic
24 August 2009
I’m going back to basics, in terms of food, exercise (i just bought a jump rope) and more. And i feel great!.
Comment by Grok
24 August 2009
The best part about primal living, is that it is easy (once you figure things out).
You just have to de-program your mind to simplify things. More is not usually better.
Comment by Allyson
24 August 2009
Excellent! I’ve been slowly integrating primal work into my health blog. It’s wonderful!
Allyson
Comment by mattigee
24 August 2009
Great post (as always) with a tiny bit of planning you can control your environment and your lifestyle.
Taking the stairs is also an excellent way of doing some impromptu excerise.
(one pedantic point, the image you used is by a famous grafitti artist called Banksy you should prob ref him in the caption)
Comment by Rob
24 August 2009
“Primal eating” is something that i learned from renowned nutritionist Dr Ann DeWees Allen. It’s something we’ve drifted away from in society. It’s a great way to stay healthy and fit.
Comment by Rafi Bar-Lev
25 August 2009
I don’t consider myself a follower of the “primal lifestyle” but I definitely agree with a lot of ideas that the concept has…great post Chris!
-Rafi
Comment by Kirill Volkov
25 August 2009
I believe it’s better to keep apples and tomatoes outside the fridge. Good post!
Comment by Vic Magary - GymJunkies
25 August 2009
Great list! Not just for physical health but also mental health.
Comment by Liam | EverythingZing
25 August 2009
Yep, sprint training is the way forward for a leaner, stronger physique. I’m just getting back into it and feeling the benefits.
P.S – tried the 15 mins Push Ups, Pull Ups Chris… I’ve got some work to do before I divulge my results!
@ Liam: Looks much easier on paper doesn’t it. A great workout though and you will notice your progression will be very fast if you keep at it regularly….
Comment by Marisa
28 August 2009
I was wondering why you have had little to no mention of swimming as a form of cardio, or water training for strength. Surely our ancestors had to swim at times?
Water activity is low-impact (no-impact) for those for whom sprinting is too intense. There are several types of water weights out there right now, some that weigh your body down so you work harder, some that are buoyant so you have to work to push them under the water. You can even get a good workout from just using two cheap foam Noodles for resistance.
Looking forward to some sort of swimming or water-based post soon.
Comment by Elliot Wilson
7 September 2009
How often do you sprint Chris, and do you play any other sports on a regular basis? I’ve never really done much sprinting and have just tried to organise a fortnightly basketball scrimage with friends. Perhaps in the inbetween weeks I should get some grass between my toes and see how fast I can go at the local field.