I Love a Rebellion !

[Orannhawk]

Absolutely love the Rules of the Rebellion !

So, the basic intro ... Grew up primarily primal, then ate too many plates of nachos and drank way too much beer, worked out hard and heavy then moved and had no gym or resources at the time, knew better than to eat fast food and did it anyway, started having serious stomach pain and digestive issues every time I ate, headaches, every fracking week, issues upon issues ... and decided that meat was the culprit and went vegetarian. Oh ... and I'm Native American and I also grew up hunting and fishing ... so that was rebellion in reverse ! Even that was a picture in contradictions, as I continued to hunt to keep fresh meat in the freezer and I wasn't even eating it !
Quickly realized that eliminating meat was not the answer, when the gut pain continued. Finally after an overabundance of stupidity ... I got my butt back into a gym. That first year was pretty much a waste, the gym was slick and shiny and full of hi-tech equipment, complete with row upon row of ellipticals, bikes and treadmills ... each with their own television attached and headphones, just in case you didn't want to watch one of the multiple giant screen tv's or listen to whatever crap was blaring over their Bose sound system. I was eating fair at that point, but still in a lot of pain.

Jump ahead to full blood workups, disclosure that I had to eliminate all gluten, all dairy, nightshades, and 20+ other foods and seasonings from my diet. I was already off sugar by that time, as well as processed foods and using only Stevia for the occasional cup of black coffee ... and I will admit, I did try a few of the gluten-free foods and then came to the realization that I didn't want or need replacements of things that had made me sick.
So, I came back to where I came from ... and now I embrace the fact that I am Paleo/Primal ... no more gut pain, virtually no headaches (and the rare few have been when I dislocated cervical vertebra) and I am stronger than ever.

I quit driving an hour (one way) to the fancy gym and joined one locally that is totally old school. No music, no treadmills, no AC, no frills, but kettlebells and bats and free weights everywhere ! Rings, ropes, hammers, bells and bars ! The machine equipment is standard, hack squat, leg press sleds, low seated rows, wide grip & close grip pulls, etc.
My overall strength has exploded here ... on leg press before, I could handle 90lbs on one leg presses, 130 full press ... and now I am doing 270 lbs. on one leggers, and 410 on the full press and ready to push that up. I'm doing a lot of Zercher squats, goblet squats, low bar deadlifts, incline bench press, rows, kettlebells .... 3 days a week, off days are bodyweight moves ( squats, wall push-ups, etc) and currently some heavy lifting with some massive rock work in my yard.

But ... even with the strength gains and I know I have gained muscle (obviously) ... the fat was simply not going away. When I saw the link to this site on a post on Mark's Daily Apple, I knew after reading the rules and the success stories, that I had found a missing element to my lifestyle. I also realized that I am seriously not eating enough, especially where protein is concerned, so I am working to change this around.

I had also been using a pre-workout drink (Arginine, Creatine mix) and a friend shared with me yesterday that I need to wean myself away from that now, especially since one of my goals is to lean out as well as build muscle. Accountability time for me !

[The Purple Diane]

Welcome! It's great to have you here. Please be sure to let us know how you do.

[Orannhawk]

Thank you !