Fitness, economics of the hunter-gatherers

So lately I've had a little more free time, enough even to get some free reading that isn't a good biochemistry journal paper on something related to beta-cell death (as per the direction of the Nutrition lab I'm working in). So, I caught wind of GoogleLabs--a digitized library of around 5 million books. Cool tool to map trends in writing and interest over the past couple hundred years, and then direct links to digitized books. I lingered for a little while, and something about a true book on hunter-gather epidemiology is in no way familiar to me. I've been following blindly(or close to it) a paleo diet for about 10 months now, and really am enjoying some cutting edge research supporting it as the closest replication of something typically in tune with ancestral diets, but I'd like to really cultivate a passion for sharing the benefits of the lifestyle choice. Perhaps giving me a more detailed relation between this diet and that of our distant ancestors to throw in with an elevator-pitch/pseudopersuasion given to friends? Anyways, found a little piece on hunter-gatherer fitness and genetics:



an interesting read with some pretty decent theory on government modeling, group-thought and the ends of the hunter-gatherer.



Yesterday's workout:
warmup: active stretches, squats, foam rollers, pushups
Bench Press 5x5, 1x2(225#)
overhead squat: 3x5, 2x3(ending at 190#)
weighted dips: 5x5(45, 55,65#)
cable flyes 5x10(for the old isolation itch)

Today's workout:

Push press 3x3x3x3x3x3(ending at 200#)
Split Jerk 1x1x1x1(ending at 225#)

3 RFT of:
10 cleans (from the deck, 135#)
20 KB swings(50#)
10 burpees

military press 4x5


First hard workout in about a week due to a slight cold. Hit a PR on the split jerk. Booyah

O-lifts, baby, o-lifts.

Been awhile since I've updated this, so I figured I'd start back with my past 2 workout's logs. I've gradually transitioned to an O-lift(olympic lift)- based scheme.

Wednesday

warmup: lunges, glute bridges, active stretching(lunges, side-squats, hamstring stretches) and some foam-roller exercises

Strength:
Push Press 3x3x3x3x3x3x3(increasing weight, ending at 215#)
Squat Cleans(from the deck) 3x3x3x3x3(all at 185#)

Metcon:
3 rounds for time of:
15 burpees
25 KB swings(50# kb)
500M row on a concept-II rower

This Morning
warmup: same as Wednesday's, with some pushups thrown in

Workout:
Bench Press 4x5(185#), 2x2-3(205#)
"Circuit" of:
Over-head squats 7,6,5,5,3(startings at 135#, ending at 185#)
Weighted dips 7,6,5,5,5(starting at 45#, ending at 75#)
Dumbell Bench Press 3x5(75# dbs)
Incline Bench Press 2x8(135 #)

Ended with a couple sets of clapping pushups.




Good week of workouts. After losing(WTF?) weight over Thanksgiving break after 3 pretty clean paleo, hypercaloric thanksgiving meals. Body weight is currently at 177lbs, so hitting 185lbs on the O-squat for 3 reps was an accomplishment.

Recently, PWO nutrition has been a can of Sardines, packed in water supplying 19g of protein and about 9g of fat(including lots of omega-3s). And then a follow up meal 1.5-2 hours later including something starchy (squash or sweet potatoes), some blueberries, and omega-3 eggs and bacon. I'll try to keep posting more regularly....

Yesterday, omega-3 compensation

After an 8 AM back workout(circuit, compound) I came home and cooked this up:

Flax meal crusted chicken tenders
Ground flaxseed meal
black pepper
coconut oil(for frying)

Served with yellow squash casserole:



The flax meal supplies a good bit of omega-3s to make up for the lack-there-of in the "all natural" chicken. Then, a healthy portion of fats from coconut oil.


After that, a friend and I decided to hike Abrams Falls. A 5 mile hike, with a waterfall you can jump off of(we did). On the way back we stopped at The Market in Maryville, TN. I can't emphasize enough how much I appreciate this farm. I buy all of my grass fed beef through this farm, and the quality is excellent. What's more they come down the street to me twice a week to sell at a farmer's market. At this stop at The Market on the way back from hiking, we decided to grab something to eat and they have a cafe. We both got "Scotty Dogs"(mine without a bun) which includes: 1/4 lb grassfed bison hot dog, coleslaw, chili, cheese, onions, and mustard. All for $4.50, which makes this unbeatable.


Today:
Another 8 AM workout, chest(all supersets) followed by a brisk 2 mile run in my Runamocs. It was way too hot to run this morning. Anyways, in the works for lunch today is a possible Meatza. Grassfed ground beef, flax meal, then probably going to top it with tomatoes, zucchini, onions, yellow squash, and whatever else looks good. We'll see. I'll call it an "Omega-threetza"

Lunch
6 oz wild-caught salmon, cooked in butter
1 medium sweet potato mashed
1/2 cup full-fat cottage cheese

In the works:

Another crustless zucchini casserole, this time with a vidalia onion not shallot.


Runamocs
Got them in the mail yesterday. Lifted in them yesterday and this morning, and as goofy as I feel and look, I love them. Lightweight, and still provide excellent barefoot feel and flexibility even though I opted for the 5mm "trail" sole. Next week I'll test them on a trail run.

Carbs or fasting PWO.

For the past 6-7 months, I've been sticking to a mainly fasted post-workout scheme. As in, waiting at least an hour after a workout to eat anything. I stuck to this because of an interesting post over at Fitness Blackbook. I shifted from the mainstay of whey protein and about 30g sugar/fast digesting carbs immediately after a workout. I fell victim to the bodybuilding theory of this necessity. Which, now, seems stupid if you look at it physiologically.

After more research on what Rusty Moore over at FitnessBlackbook had to say about increased HGH production after exercise in a fasted state, I decided that muscle growth and recovery wasn't exactly compromised by not downing that post-workout shake with carbs and protein. And, energy during workout wasn't compromised. After these past 6-7 months, I'd have to say that fasted workouts are much more intense, recovery is the same, and growth and strength gain ultimately continued to rise. PR's were broken, especially in the back exercise and short term high intensity sprints department. It's simple, if you look at it holistically; insulin and growth hormone are antagonistic--a very Caveman way to look at nutrition. Why boost insulin to ultimately compromise fat-loss in lieu of higher production of glycogen.Cavemen hunted primarily on an empty stomach, due to necessity and expended resources because of limited preservation of food. Growth hormone increase due to fasts actually spares muscle wasting, i.e. catabolism.




At an evolutionary standpoint, and sticking to what distant ancestors were required to do, this method of post-workout nutrition really has given me the best results of any other method of exercise-related nutrition.

Yesterday's workout, today's food,

Shoulder/Compound Day:
4 sets each of supersets, 30 seconds between superset:
-6 Thrusters (135 lbs.)/ 20 kettlebell swings (50lbs.)
-6 single arm Kettlebell clean jerks(50 lbs., both arms)/ 8 sumo highpulls(115 lbs.)
-10 side shrugs, shrug bar (205 lbs.)/ 8 behind the back smith machine shrugs (225 lbs.)
-12 Lateral flyes (20 lbs.)/ 10 bent over rear delt flyes (20lbs.)/ 6 standing over head barbell press(135 lbs/115 lbs.)


Most are compound and involve a lot of core stability, explosiveness. With a few isolation flyes at the end to get a little pump.


Brunch:
Mixed greens with homemade Balsamic vinegairette( 3:1, olive oil: balsamic vinegar. Minced Shallots in it as well)


Crustless Zucchini Casserole:

3 Zucchinis
2/3 lbs Grassfed Ground Beef
1 Shallot
8-10 oz mozarella cheese
4 eggs(660mg omega-3s per egg)

Zucchini and shallots were chopped and sauteed in butter, ground beef browned, added to the eggs and cheese and poured in casserole dish. Baked in oven for 25 minutes at 350. I got this recipe from my parents, who grow zucchini and yellow squash during the summer time. I just altered it from the traditional lining of the casserole dish with crescent roll dough, to just going without it.
Delicious.