Primal Blueprint

Z34Driver

A coworker and good friend was the catalyst for me as well. He has lost over 70lbs on Primal. My girlfriend also started doing this with me, although she didn't really need to lose any weight as she is 5'1 and a little over 100lbs. We started out trying to do it for just 30 days, and as this is day 31, we do not plan on stopping any time soon.

Z34Driver

So, just to update, first weigh in at my sister's place this weekend, on day 32 of doing this, I'm already 29lbs down...which is ridiculous considering the small amount of exercise I have been doing.

sfearl1

What's your body type? Are you retaining muscle mass?

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Scott

Z34Driver

I am 6'4", I would consider my body type average/athletic if that makes any sense. I played baseball and basketball through high school, weighed around 220 most of the time in college, more of a lean build. I did work out and eat a very high protein diet at one point, was 240 in good muscular shape. At this point, it's been almost 2 years since any real physical activity, so I'm not sure how much muscle mass I would have had to retain. I can post pics if you guys want to see a shirtless dude on here...

Huck

I know I need to do something. I'm not overweight, but I'm on my way. I've always been built pretty thin (average of 6'2", 180lbs) and now I'm actually developing fat everywhere. Not cool. I weight like 205 right now, slowly going up. I'll have to check this out.


Sent from my iPhizzle using magic and new fangled science stuff

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Cmike2780

Eat less calories than you burn=weight loss. Simple as that. What you eat determines how healthy you are. These types of diets are great, but you need to keep it healthy and balanced....above all, exercise as much as you can or you'll gain that weight back pretty fast.

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[09][MB][6-Spd MT][Touring][Stillen Gen III][K&N][Borla CBE][Evo-R]

shadoquad

I agree that exercise is more important than diet, but both are important. I know because I do neither, and I'm over three bills at this point.

But, I wanted to say that if you do a diet and exercise path, you shouldn't tie your results strictly to weight. Adding exercise may increase your muscle mass, and muscle outweighs fat. Plus, as you become more fit, it will take more effort to shed pounds. So what tends to happen is that people plateau with the weight. They reach a point and stop losing, and they get frustrated. But this plateau involves gaining muscle if you're still really pushing yourself with the cardio.

I say all this because I just finished a major effort to setup a workout room in my house. I now have my cardio equipment facing a huge television right outside my bedroom. I have to walk past it now every day. Nightly exercise is about to happen.

Z34Driver

Yes, both exercise and diet are important. Trust me, I'm no fad diet-er. This is the only time in my life that I have made major restrictions to my diet. If you guys want to read more you can go to Mark's Daily Apple . com. I didn't want to post a link because I'm not sure about the rules.

However, since this is the first time I have restricted my diet, I wanted to see the results of that alone. I honestly didn't think I would make it to day 30, which was the original goal, but now that I have, I am really motivated to see the benefits of exercising along with this new diet / lifestyle. At this point, I have had one session of sprinting and throwing a frisbee in a field with a friend. That is all the exercise I have done. However, this diet / lifestyle considers things like doing 30 minutes of housework enough exercise for the day, so there have been at least 2 car washes that I have considered work outs as well. I work from home, so I walk from my office/room to the kitchen to get coffee and cook my eggs/bacon in the morning, and I take the dog out periodically throughout the day. When go to the grocery store, I park as far away from the door as possible, mainly because I don't want the Z to get scratched or ding'ed, but this is also considered exercise for the plan.

The main reason I did not purchase a scale on my own during this initial process was because I did not want to become discouraged or dependent upon the numbers for results. I took a picture every day for the first 7 days, and after just 3 days I could see results. After just 2 weeks my clothes were bigger, and my azz actually fit in the Z's stock base seat comfortably. I then started pictures on every Friday or Saturday, and the results are clear. About day 25, I could fit back into my size 36W shorts from American Eagle. I could not find a single pair of shorts that fit me in the entire mall the last time I searched, at least any that I liked the style of. The last pair of jeans I bought, were from Levi, and they were a size 44W, back in January of this year...

Z34Driver

Also, the way this diet works is more about changing your metabolism. As I understand it, when you eat Primal, your body converts to running off of animal fat for energy, (after the first 3 days, I was very tired, but this quickly went away) instead of the high amounts of carbs that it once used. This includes the animal fat you eat, along with the fat on your body when you need energy. I have not counted a single calorie or been concerned with fat grams, only watched to keep carb intake between for the day in the 50-75 gram range, which is supposed to be the sweet spot for losing an average of 1-2lbs a week, effortlessly, and kept a close eye on sugar as well...

shadoquad

Yes, this is the exact philosophy behind the Atkins Diet and a few others. Getting your body into that mode drops pounds quickly.

I don't know if it's healthy or sustainable in the long term. It worked for me once, but it didn't last. Same with carb counting, tbh.

Z34Driver

From what I have experienced, this could easily be maintained long term. I have heard of other diets like Atkins, but Primal seems to be more of a total package. However, I haven't had any intense workouts yet...Really I guess it just depends on what you want out of it. My goal here was to try something that I thought I could not do for 30 days, and the results have been great, and I feel great compared to how I did before. Once you reach your target weight, you can maintain it by living in the 150-200g of carbs per day range....

Other workings of my lifestyle give me a voracious appetite appetite when I get off of work, without fail...which is another reason I thought this change would not work for me...I was def. too lazy to prepare anything.

However, if I can get by on 2 eggs, 3 pieces of bacon, a salad with some chicken, and two pieces of Cauliflower pizza, after work for a whole day, and be fully satisfied all day, even after work, I think there is something to be said about that. Mainly because my caloric intake was probably somewhere around 5-5500 calories per day range before this change.

Cmike2780

I'm not trying to put down your results OP. I commend you on taking the first step by making an effort. It's not an easy thing and it will test your self control. The think I would just caution you with the high amount of saturated fat and cholesterol associated with eating stuff like bacon. At the end of the day, it still comes down to calories, plain and simple. If you burn more than you take in, you lose weight. Carbs pack a lot of calories, so one of the effects of going with any low carb diet, is a drop in caloric intake. I know because I've done it. It does work in dropping pounds, but after getting blood work done, my cholesterol levels were just as high and I needed to take in more of the missing essential vitamins. You basically have to persuade yourself in to liking more fruits, vegetables, lean meats, high protein and whole grains. Portion control is also a key factor.

Diet and exercise are both equally important....and both are equally challenging to stay on track with. One of the best things you can do is join a gym. Places like Planet Fitness is like $10 a month. Home gyms don't work. It's about motivation...and being around other people trying just as hard is motivating in itself. I'm not saying it's not effective or impossible if you put in the amount of time at home, but for most people there are just too many distractions. Just remember that hot chicks love working out. If that isn't motivation enough to go, I don't know what is. I'm truly saying all this stuff to encourage you guys. I'm 5'8 and was over 210 lbs at one point. That was about two years ago and now I'm about 175lbs. I still want to be a bit leaner, but I gotta say I feel and look a lot better than I did 2 years ago. It took a lot of hard work and it's one of the hardest thing I've ever done, but I don't regret a minute of it.

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[09][MB][6-Spd MT][Touring][Stillen Gen III][K&N][Borla CBE][Evo-R]

Z34Driver

Yeah, I'm definitely adding a lot more exercise starting today. I do incorporate lots of greens, veggies, some fruit and nuts in my diet on most days. I don't always have bacon for breakfast, but if it's available I usually do. This is just the breakfast that I stole from my friend, as he lost 70lbs eating it every day, and it's really easy to make.

I have not checked my bloodwork though. I will say after gaining the weight that I basically just lost, I went to the doc. This was the first and only time that my blood pressure has not been right in the 120 / 80 range, it was really high for me this time, I think like 150 / 138 or something like that. Which scared me because of my family history.

I'm just not certain that I'm burning more calories than I'm taking in, considering I have only really exercised 1 time in this 32 day period. Many days I do not even leave my apartment, so the only physical activity is literally walking from room to room throughout the day, and the small dog walks periodically. I also have no clue how many calories are burned daily, walking from room to room...so I very well could be...

shadoquad

This is going to work better. Gyms dissuade me from exercise unless they are extremely convenient (at work or at home). They're full of dirty people. The plan I've hatched will work because I am properly using distraction. The television with netflix ensures that I will be glued to something while exercising. The time will pass enjoyably. It is literally on my way to bed. It will be impossible to ignore. And it is not in a room where I regularly put laundry or whatnot to clutter things up.

Men like working out around women, women do not like working out around men lol.

Beautiful women don't drive me to exercise at gyms. They're pretty repulsed by me. Even if I lost 100 lbs at this point, they would still be disgusted by me. I know, I've been there before.

Z34Driver

Recommended exercise chart for Primal Blueprint



Food pyramid