Reconnecting with Nature through Food and Movement.
Do you need to go “Primal” or “Paleo”? Is the Liver King right? Let's find out!
In last week's article, I shared with you why we are getting sicker and less resilient as a society.
The more we disconnect from nature, the bigger issues we will start facing.
And this is why in recent years we start seeing the birth of movements like “Paleo” or “Primal”: Some people understood the solution was to go back, back to basics and back to nature.
Our bodies are meant to move, after all we are still “animals”, and we would need movement to find and hunt food. So proper Movement needs to be a staple of good Health.
And of course what we eat to stay alive matters, making Nutrition also fundamental.
Let’s start breaking this down…
Movement.
I’ve been working in the Fitness industry for over a decade, and I’ve seen all kinds of trends. There will always be someone or something coming out saying they are the best.
Instead, I want to give you the principles I use to create an effective training routine. Principles over methods.
Let’s think back at our Primal days, we needed:
Endurance to hunt or gather for days.
Mobility to adapt to our environment.
Strength to build, lift, carry or fight.
That’s it, very simple. These are the qualities you want to build and maintain, even if you’re not going to hunt in the forest.
Endurance is linked to cardiovascular health, reducing the risk of blood pressure and heart related diseases.
Mobility improves joint health, injury prevention and improves quality of life as we age.
Strength will keep you functional and less prone to injuries, increasing longevity and metabolism.
But here’s the thing, you don’t need to either run a marathon or lift barbells at a powerlifting competition.
Actually, taking either to the extremes might have negative effects on your health. This is one case where being a Jack of all trades is a good thing.
So, how can we achieve enough Endurance, Mobility and Strength? Performing a sport or activity you enjoy will provide at least a good base for each, then it is up to you to recognise where you’re lacking and add some additional work.
Plus you will be more likely to stick to it if you enjoy it. I would personally pick a fighting sport, always a good skill to learn. And you will get a nice boost in Testosterone (and confidence).
You want a total of 150 minutes of moderate intensity each week, divided as you wish. Think of any activity that raises your heart rate up (horror movies don’t count!).
For Strength and Mobility, you can work on both with a well planned Resistance Training Plan. I’d recommend at least 2 sessions per week.
The training split and exercise selection will vary depending on your ability and how many days per week you can do it.
But make sure you follow the Natural/Functional compass: Does the movement I’m performing in the gym resemble a movement I’d be performing in nature?
Think about it this way, there are 4 fundamental movement patterns:
Upper body push.
Any movement where you push the resistance away from your body using your upper body, mainly chest, shoulders and triceps. Pushups, bench press, Dumbbell shoulder press…
Upper body pull.
Any movement where you pull the resistance towards your body using your upper body, mainly back, lats and biceps. Pullups, barbell rows, dumbbell rows…
Lower body push.
Any movement that resembles a squat, whether single or double legged. It will involve the majority of leg muscles. Squats, lunges, leg press…
Lower body pulls.
Mainly a hinge at the hips, involving the so-called Posterior Chain, glutes, hamstrings, lower back. Think of Deadlifts and its variations.
So make sure you get a good mix of these movements, picking the variation you can perform better and safely.
But also try to favour a more “natural” variation, for example a Pushup over a Seated Machine Chest Press. Use these principles to create clarity when making a decision.
And to get results from your Resistance Training, it is imperative to seek progression: You want to do more reps and heavier weights over time.
Closing off the Movement chapter, I gotta mention Walking. Probably underrated, but fortunately gaining traction in the past few years, mainly thanks to the use of smartwatches that track your steps.
If you didn’t know already, walking provides a host of health benefits. Which makes sense, as it’s our primary activity.
Back in the “Paleo” times, we would walk everywhere, and walk long distances.
It’s the simplest and safest (for most) activity we can do, meaning we can do a lot of it daily. Absolute no brainer.
Aim for around 10000 each day, and in this case more it is better. If you can add some weight to it, even better (you can look up the benefits of rucking online).
The way I do it is two “longer” walks in the AM and PM, and shorter walks through the day to give my eyes and brain some rest. I average 1000 steps every 10 minutes of walking.
Nutrition
This is a fun one to write about, as we’ve been able to create Nutrition Ideologies akin to religions:
Carnivore vs Vegans.
Keto vs CalorieCounting.
If it fits your macros vs Clean eating.
And while I am also biassed (we all are) because certain ways of eating work better for me, I will try to only share the principles with you. And then you will test on yourself, like I did for years, and decide how to do it.
1. Firstly, I believe we all should be able to fast, and we should practise from time to time.
Not being able to fast means your body is not able to access the energy stored in your body, which doesn’t make any sense from an evolutionary perspective.
And we have now scientific proof of the benefits of fasting, proving that it is indeed needed. No wonder many cultures and religions perform fasting regularly.
When choosing what foods to eat, the rule is simple: The closer to its natural form, the better.
An apple is better than apple juice.
A boiled potato is better than chips.
A steak is better than a burger.
This exists on a spectrum, meaning it’s not black or white.
If you make the apple juice yourself it will be better than the one you buy in the store.
Think about it as Better vs Worse rather than Good vs Bad.
2. We want to choose foods based on their nutritional value and density.
If you follow Macros, both potatoes and rice are Carbs sources.
But, potatoes have so many more nutrients compared to rice, making it a better choice.
Organ meat has better nutrients than muscle meat. Watch lions eat, and you will see how they eat organs first and leave the muscle meat for the hyenas and condors.
Fruit is generally more nutritious than vegetables. Humans would rather eat a juicy mango then ruminate on grass. For a long time I had this idea of eating for “volume”, therefore stuffing myself with vegetables was a great idea to stay full with little calories. But then I discovered fasting on my journey to healing my gut, and discovered how many vegetables can actually irritate the gut. Therefore, when it comes to food, less is better.
We need enough calories to support our activity level. And while you could perform certain calculations based on age and weight, then count calories for a while…I’ll give you an easier way: - Weigh yourself.
Take some pics.
Measure your waist.
Now eat regularly for two weeks, as similar as possible to your usual, but:
Same foods.
Same quantity.
Same number of meals.
If at the end of the two weeks you lost 1kg/2.2lb or less, it means you were in a calorie deficit, and you can keep going if your goal is to lose body fat.
And when weight loss stops for two weeks in a row, you simply adjust by decreasing the quantity of food.
If your weight stays the same, it means you were on a calorie balance. Increase food if you want to gain weight, decrease if you want to lose.
And repeat every two weeks, adjusting if needed.
If your weight went up, you were in a calorie surplus and therefore you will adjust depending on your goal.
Cooking your own food will give you control both on ingredients and quantity, making it one of the most effective health hacks available.
3. Eating according to the circadian rhythm, seasons and geographical position.
From a “primitive” perspective, eating is the reward of an action like hunting or gathering. Therefore before the act of eating there would be some activity involved. Nowadays we just eat at regular intervals:
Breakfast at 7am.
Lunch at 1pm.
Dinner at 6pm.
But this doesn’t have any physiological explanation, it’s a man made schedule.
Circadian rhythms are the physical, mental, and behavioural changes an organism experiences over a 24-hour cycle.
Light and dark have the biggest influence on circadian rhythms, but food intake, stress, physical activity, social environment, and temperature also affect them.
We sleep at night, as it’s supposed to be. But we eat all day, without questioning. Something I discover through fasting is that both my body and mind will perform better during a fast.
Which makes sense, as my body is not busy digesting food.
During the day we are more likely in a Sympathetic state, the so-called “Fight or Flight”. We are busy doing things.
Digestion of food however requires you to be in the Parasympathetic state of the Nervous System, which is also called “Rest and Digest”.
Therefore, eating in the middle of a busy day can do two things:
Slow you down.
Impair digestion.
Not ideal, right?
I therefore recommend eating your food at the end of your working day, when you have the chance to relax.
And if you can share the meal with someone, even better, as social interactions, especially talking, can increase the activity of the Vagus Nerve and help you get Parasympathetic.
And you want to have at least 2-3 hours between the meal and bedtime, allowing for digestion before completely shutting off, as it might interfere with sleep.
Let’s get into the importance of eating seasonal food and according to geographical position.
First of all, you will get fresher products, meaning higher nutrients.
But now think about these two examples I noticed in my home country, Italy:
Oranges grow right before winter, and with their high content of Vitamin C, they prepare you for the cold.
Watermelons grow during the hottest part of summer, providing hydration when the soil is at its driest.
But you can also look at other examples, like Eskimos living on fatty fish in a land where fruits and vegetables are not available for months. There’s an order to it all.
And even though you can buy a mango in London, doesn’t mean we should or that is good for you. To keep it simple, think of it this way:
Cold weather calls for higher fats and protein.
Warmer weather for higher carbs, low fat and moderate protein.
And to keep it even more simple, just think of what is naturally produced in the country you're in.
Conclusion.
The premise that going back to the “Paleo” way of eating does make sense for many reasons, but mostly because it actually makes sense physiologically.
Of course there are many benefits to evolution, but deviating from our natural way isn’t one.
And because of today’s confusion on what’s healthy or not, having a simple framework like this can be really helpful.
As we navigate our journey back to nature, let's also remember that true health and vitality emerge from a place of self-awareness and intuition.
By listening to the wisdom of our bodies and aligning our lifestyle choices with the rhythms of nature, we can reclaim our vitality and reconnect with the earth in profound and meaningful ways.
(Unlike the Liver King, that lier!)