From Evolution to Evolutionary Diet

The Paleo approach to eating is based on the idea that human DNA has evolved over time and adapted itself to a time when food was scarce.  Only in the agricultural age about 10,000 years ago was grains introduced as a staple in human diets.  Only the relatively recent industrial revolution did sugar and wheat become abundant.

To appreciate a sense of time and processes necessary for our universe, the following video might be helpful.




Victor

How Much Sleep Do You Need?

If you were put in a room without clocks and just told to sleep however much you needed at the end of a day, how many hours do you think you sleep?

a. 6 hours or less
b. Between 6 and 7 hours
c. Between 7 and 8 hours
d. Between 8 and 9 hours
e. More than 9 hours?

In one study, 95% slept between 7 and 8 hours a day.   Another 2.5% slept more than 8 hours.  That leaves just 2.5% who need less than 7 hours a day to feel rested when not tied to an alarm clock.  2 people out of 100.  Let that sink in for a second.  What are the chances you are on of those two?

How about creative people?  The famous study of violinists by Anders Ericsson in 1993 showed top performers slept an average of 8.6 hours a day and included a habit of napping during the day which accumulated to an additional 3 hours of siesta per week.  It appears that high performers incorporate habits of working and playing hard.  Sounds primal to me.

I believe that an adequate sleep cycle maximizes the body's healing and regenerative pathways and is critical for maintaining optimal health.  I fitted thick, black curtains in my bedroom to create a dark ambiance.  It aids in facilitating a deep sleep.

Victor



For further reading:
http://www.polarunlimited.com/2010/09/the-way-were-working-isnt-working-summary/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-schwartz/sleep_b_832353.html
http://blogs.hbr.org/your-health-at-work/2011/01/sleep-deprivations-true-workpl.html

Please Support my Ride to Conquer Cancer!

As part of my goals to continue giving back to the community, I am participating in the 2011 Ride to Conquer Cancer! 

The ride is set for June where several thousand participants will take two days to ride from Vancouver, Canada to Seattle, USA.  All monies which I raise for the ride goes to the BC Cancer Foundation to support cancer research. I do not benefit a cent from the pledges that are raised.

Here is a short video from 2009 to give you an idea of what its like:



If you have found this blog to be helpful, would you please give a donation towards cancer research?  You can donate by going to this link My Personal Ride to Conquer Cancer Donation Page.

Click on this green box:

This will take you to a donation page where you can input whatever amount you wish.  This will also generate a charitable tax donation receipt for tax purposes.

If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment or email me.


Healthfully yours,
Victor

Chuck Roast Beef for New Year's Day

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Got an organic beef chuck roast this afternoon from Choices at 57th Ave in Vancouver.  I'm planning to slow roast it tomorrow on low temperature.

After washing it, it was coated generously with olive oil. I made small cuts and stuffed it with whole cloves of garlic.  Next came Montreal steak spice, black pepper, cinnamon and cumin.  Lastly, added fresh mint.  Its marinating in the fridge until morning.  When I wake up, the plan is to pop it in the oven and start the first meal in the New Year with a nice beef roast. 

I'll take pictures of the finished roast tomorrow and update the post.

UPDATE: January 1, 2011.

Woke up at 6:30 a.m. and put the roast in the oven at an indicated 185*F. Consumer ovens are notoriously inaccurate and the setting on the dial has no bearing on the actual cooking temperature in the oven.  Basically, it was just warm, and I went back to sleep.   Cooking a roast for many hours on low heat naturally preserves the tenderness in the meat without drying it out. It permits less expensive cuts of meat to taste succulent and have that melt-in-your-mouth type texture.

At 9:15 a.m., I turned up the heat indicated by the dial to 225*F.  This is necessary to crisp the outside of the roast.  The following pictures were taken at the stove top around 11a.m. when we started eating the meat.

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The crispy outside was full of spices and had a great bite to it.  The inside middle was tender, moist and succulent.  Some parts of the roast had connective tissue which was too chewy.  We left those aside.

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Sliced chuck roast on a serving plate is shown in the picture above.

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We dipped the beef into pan drippings before partaking of the organic roast.  The beef melted in our mouths. It was a good Primal way to start the new year.

Happy New Year!

Victor

Victor's Blood Test Results (2010)

Here are the results of my blood test which was taken on December 20, 2010.  For readers in British Columbia, it was LifeLabs who did the test and the results were obtained the next day through www.myehealth.ca. The following figures represent approximately one calender year of eating a Paleo\Primal diet with about 80% compliance.

Test Results

                                               SI            USA

Hemoglobin A1C =     6.1%

Glucose Fasting =    5.2 mmol       94 mg/dl

Total Cholesterol = 5.23 mmol      202 mg/dl

LDL Cholesterol =   2.94 mmol      114 mg/dl

HDL Cholesterol =   1.88 mmol       73 mg/dl

Triglycerides =     0.91 mmol       81 mg/dl

Chol/HDL (Risk Ratio) = 2.78       

Resting Heart Rate (RHR) = 49 bpm

Blood Pressure =    110/75

Exercise Regimen
As part of my profile, it is important to note that I am 5'6", about 143 lbs. and not on any medication.  I workout with a kickboxing class twice a week, do weight resistance exercise regularly and cycle from my home to my office downtown 2 or 3 times a week as circumstances permit.  This is a round trip commute of 40 km (25 miles) with hills.  My torso currently looks like this.

Industry Guidelines
If you compare these blood test figures to the American Heart Association or the Mayo Clinic's guidelines, they represent a relatively healthy lipid profile for a person with no known blocked arteries or ischemic heart disease.  An aggressive doctor following the recommendations of Merck Frosst might prescribe statins to chase a magic cholesterol number.  However, as we have already discussed previously, cholesterol is less important a predictor of coronary heart disease than post-prandial blood sugar levels as measured by HbA1c.

The one result I have flagged in yellow is an HbA1c of 6.1%.  This means that the average blood sugar over the last 90 days was high. According to Ned Koch's formula, this means my average blood sugar level was 7.1 mmol/L or 128 mg/dl.  As I wrote this post, I tested my post-prandial blood glucose exactly 2 hours after eating a dim sum lunch - hardly primal I know - and it was 6.9 mmol (124 mg/dl).  This post-prandial reading  does not indicate a pre-diabetic or diabetic condition as far as I know.  What is going on?  

If my high HbA1cs was due to pigging out on refined carbohydrates, I would expect my LDL-C and Triglycerides to be higher.  On the other hand, does my exercise regimen and intermittent fasting lower the LDL-C and triglyceride readings even though I am eating too much refined carbs?  

At this point I only have questions, not answers.  Am I even asking the right questions?

So I started researching blood sugar in athletes.  Read up on my findings in the next post HbA1c and Athletes.

Victor

Success Story of the Day (Tara)

Meet Tara.  This is what she looked like before.  5'9" and over 230 lbs.

This is Tara now.  Mother of twins and studying to become a Certified Personal Trainer.  She is still 5'9" but at 153 lbs.  Read about her experience and how she changed here at MarksDailyApple.com.

The journey of 10,000 steps begins with the first.  Life's results are the outcome of a million small choices we make each day.  Its a balance between curiosity, long-term quality of life and immediate gratification.  All we can ever do, is make the choice of the moment.

Victor

Paleo in 3 Easy Videos