Fat Tuesday: My first grass-fed steak...

So last night was Fat Tuesday... for us Catholics that means Lent is just a day away and the time of fasting and sacrifice begins.  So what do we do?  We get fat on tuesday! :D   For this day, I treated myself to a big fat medium rare grass-fed steak, covered in a cabernet reduction and a side of sauteed goodness.

And here's the sauteed goodness.  Shrimp, grass-fed beef sausage (german style), 2 gloves of garlic (sliced), onions, bacon (diced), and some spinach leaves added right at the end to coat in all that bacony, garlicy, sausage goodness.

Then washed it all down with a glass of red wine.  Definitely a meal worthy of Fat Tuesday!

Primal Dinner! Fun with sweet potatoes and poblano peppers

Had a pretty awesome dinner tonight.. really had no idea what to make and had a bunch of random veggies and some leftovers... i knew i wanted sweet potatoes, but that was about the extent of it..   Here's what I ended up with:

 Roast zucchini, mashed sweet potatoes, and stuffed poblano peppers

Decided to finish off the peppers with a few globs of fresh mozzarella.

Pepper stuffing was a mixture of sauteed onions, garlic, green onions, cabbage, asparagus, red peppers, chicken, and wild salmon.  Was really good.  Mashed sweet taters are the norm.. butter, milk, sea salt, and pepper.

For dessert we had sliced bananas and sweet potatoes fried in coconut oil and sprinkled with cocoa powder, cinnamon, and a dash of salt.   Good stuff, and without any added sugar :D  Jenna was in love with them lol

Primal Footwear: Vibram Five Fingers Pt 2

Well,  I pulled the trigger on the VFF shoes.  I went with the KomodoSport model.  This model not only has the top strap, but also a Velcro strap around the back of the heel, so it really helps with people like me who have narrow heels, to get a more secure fit in the shoe.   For me it was between the komodosport and the Bikila.  After trying both on, the back heel strap won out and I walked out of Backwoods Adventures with my new pair of Vibrams :D

Here's some shots with the Ininji toe socks on

Tonight was my first workout with them on, and I must say it was pretty sweet.  I never felt so securely planted to the gym floor while doing my heavy lifting.  I did squats, Incline bench press, pullups, and a few other light exercises just to get a feel for the shoes.

I'll definitely be heeding the warning about easing into them.  After my hour of wearing them at the gym (about 40 minutes of actual workout) my knees were starting to get sore in a spot they never have before, just below the joint where the tendon connects down.  These shoes put you back into your natural posture that the typical padded cushy soles have changed.. so it takes some adjustment by the body.  At the time of typing this the soreness has gone away, so it was nothing serious.  I'll be ready to do some light "move slowly" activity tomorrow.  Probably taking the dog for a walk to my favorite fields where there's some old soccer goals i can climb around on :D

Primal Footwear: Vibram Five Fingers

I've been working out barefoot/socks a lot lately.  Especially on my leg and back days when I'm needing the most stability and driving force with my feet for exercises like squats, deadlifts, etc.  I feel a lot better and i've noticed my calves and feet getting stronger since i've done this.   The only issue here is, if any of the gym staff notice it, they get on me about it because they require shoes while in the weight room.  So I've resorted to keeping my laces loose and kicking them off on my sets and then putting them back on.  Needless to say, this gets really annoying and wastes time.

The last week or so, I've been hearing a lot about Vibram Five Fingers shoes.  These shoes are pretty awesome, and designed to simulate being barefoot while still giving you a little bit of protection.  Plus the gym staff couldn't say anything to me about not having shoes on.  Right now i'm leaning towards the KomodoSport model, which was new in 2011 and seem to offer the best of all the features I would need.

Here's the link to them:  http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-Komodo-Sport-Mens.htm

I've been watching a bunch of youtube video reviews on the different models.  If anyone reading has any input on these drop a comment.  I'd love to find a store to try some on at, but I may  just have to guess on size and order online.

Primal fuel: Eggplant pizzas!

This was another recipe i nabbed from http://www.marksdailyapple.com/10-primal-meals-in-15-minutes-or-less

Primal enchiladas.  Topped the eggplant slices with organic marinara sauce, pulled chicken, crispy bacon (nitrate free), garlic, fresh mozerella gobs, chopped artichoke hearts, sauteed kale, and onions. Here they are before going into the oven:

Here they are done and on my plate.  They were awesome!  I recommend letting them cool about 10 minutes, they taste a lot better after cooling a little.

Primal fuel: Enchiladas!

This meal was awesome!  Primal/Paleo compliant enchiladas, mmmm so good.

The tortilla shells were replaced with thin crepes made from organic cream and eggwhites (fresh from the farm).  Filling was grass-fed ground beef, onions and garlic fried up in coconut oil.  Sauce was made from olive oil, butter, tomato sauce, water, chili powder, cocoa powder, garlic powder, paprika, and a tiny bit of cornstarch (1 tsp just to help thicken).  Topped it with cheese (didn't get this from the farm) and onions.

Full recipe taken from http://www.marksdailyapple.com/10-primal-meals-in-15-minutes-or-less

Lunch Time!

Rotisserie chicken with sauteed kale and cabbage, and a little bit of chinese hotsauce in a lettuce wrap.  That's some kale and cabbage on the side too.  

Really good and easy lunch.  Nothing too inspiring, but it was my first time eating kale and I love it!

RAWR!!

Quick intro post...

About 5 years ago I had reached the rock bottom of my physical fitness and general health.  I was 250 lbs, 42" waist and got winded going up a flight of stairs to pee during a quick break from World of Warcraft.  It was a sad sight for sure, and my friend and I decided it was time to change.  We went into super workout mode, burning fat and building muscle.  We got into body building routines, hitting 5 day splits, with lots and lots of cardio.  We ate low fat, high carb diets preached by conventional wisdom.  Once i had lost the fat  (down  to 195lbs) I started crushing as much food as i could, eating every 3 hours.  I was doing even more weights and cardio, and bulked up to a muscular 220 lbs.  Put on a -little- bit of body fat with that bulk, but I probably needed it.  The one thing I could never get rid of was the remnants of my man-boobs and a little bit of love handle on my back. 

After 4 years of maintaining such a grueling routine, my body started to wear down.  I was tired all the time, I was always suffering pains and minor injuries, lived on caffeine, and eventually hit the burnout and gave up on eating healthy and doing so much exercise.  I kept with the weight lifting, but reduced the volume quite a bit.  Did just enough to maintain my size while getting stronger. Meanwhile, my diet went to shambles and I was crushing fast food, frozen dinners, pizza, pepsi, etc...

I had crawled my way up to 234 lbs and my waist had grown up to a button popping 39 inches.   My gut was hanging over, face was getting fat, clothes didn't fit anymore, and I just felt like SHIT!  It was time for a change.   My mom mentioned to me something new she was starting called Primal Blueprint.  When she first told me about it, I thought it sounded ridiculous... the diet, the exercise, etc... just sounded lazy and off-the-wall.  I decided to read into the stuff on marksdailyapple.com just to get a little more info, mostly just so i could point out to my mom what was wrong with the plan.  

What I ended up discovering was quite the contrary.. it was a catalyst that would start to change my life, and the information I was taking in just -made sense-.  It tied in with many things I was confused about or just accepted as truth because its what conventional wisdom has always said.  I was addicted to the information.  I started reading every blog post, freebie PDF, user comments, and success stories that I could get my eyes on.  It presented factual information I had heard before but was very skeptical about.  It gave me further information to validate those things, such as the cholesterol myth, grass fed beed/dairy, big pharma and government pushing the BS on us all.. The facts at the site opened my eyes to what I think deep down I kinda knew, but couldn't accept because it went in the face of everything we are all told from birth.  I knew then I was destined to go Primal.

 I started my Primal Blueprint lifestyle 22 days ago.  In those 22 days i've cut a solid inch off my waist and dropped 12 pounds in almost effortless fashion.   Working out on the Primal Blueprint Fitness plan is so easy compared to conventional wisdom's plans.  You don't have to slave at the gym, and kill  yourself day in and day out.  PB lets you actually enjoy your life and get better results!  It seriously feels like I'm cheating its so easy LOL.  Not only has it made me more fit and better looking, it has opened me up to a plethora of new menus to eat!   Without all the staple processed grain, vegetable oils, and sugar products, you have to get creative and explore new options.  I'm soooo thankful I did because since i've been trying all kinds of new foods that even my picky girlfriend enjoys. :D

I plan on posting my progress, exercise plans, fun things I do on my "play" days (yes PB fitness has 4 play days built in!), as well as pictures of all the new foods we're cooking and enjoying :D

BEAST MODE!!!! RAWR!!!!