Review – The Primal Blueprint

Long time readers of 60 in 3 know that I greatly enjoy Mark Sisson’s articles over at Mark’s Daily Apple.  I may not always agree with him, but his posts are thought provoking, educational and informative.  So I was quite happy to hear that Mark was taking his primal blueprint for health and putting it into a book form titled appropriately enough, The Primal Blueprint.

Style

As usual, Mark’s writing is great.  The chapters are well laid out and include multiple examples which are easy to understand.  While there are some high end biology, genetics and nutrition discussions, all of them are well explained.  In other words, this isn’t just a book for fitness enthusiasts, it’s also accessible for people who are just now getting into a healthier mindset.  That said, even the best written book is useless if the content is bad, so let’s examine what the primal blueprint is all about.

Overall

Mark believes, as do I, that people need to get back to their roots.  Health wise, he sees our primitive ancestors as leading extremely healthy lifestyles from a variety of aspects.  His model, a caveman named Grok, does everything right and treats his body well.  By comparison, Mark uses chapter two of the book to show us a modern family by the name of Korg, Grok backwards, and how the modern lifestyle is extremely unhealthy.  So far so good, I like this philosophy, but is there something actionable in the book?  The answer is absolutely.

The primal blueprint is a set of rules for how to live a healthier lifestyle by emulating our ancestors.  This blueprint is laid out in chapter one and each rule is further detailed in subsequent chapters.  I’m going to list the rules out here and give a brief opinion on each.  For more information on them, visit Mark’s site or buy the book.

The Primal Blueprint Rules

1. Eat Lots of Plants, Animals and Insects – I like this rule, yes, even the insects part.  Too many of us limit our diets to just a few specific ingredients.  In the US, a majority of food seems to be beef, chicken, potatoes, wheat and corn.  That’s a bad thing and health conscious individuals will attempt to change this.
2. Avoid Poisonous Things – Well, that’s a no brainer, right?  Seems smart to avoid drinking that drain cleaner.  Except Mark isn’t just talking about obvious poisons.  He’s referring to all the modern crap that people put into their systems.  That means excess carbs, preservatives, processed sugars, caffeine and a variety of others.  I’m not sure I agree with Mark’s policies on whole wheat foods, but otherwise I think he’s spot on.
3. Move Frequently At A Slow Pace – Mark’s recommended physical activity is slow and moderate paced movement.  Things like walking, biking and hiking.  Can’t argue with him on this one, except that Mark argues against prolonged cardio like jogging and makes some very convincing arguments against it.
4. Lift Heavy Things – Makes sense.  Challenge your muscles and build a better body.  This one I agree with and I like Mark’s emphasis on natural, compound exercises like squats and lunges.  The primal blueprint recommends explosive, all out efforts rather than slow and gradual by the way, something I’m not sure I agree with.  However, that’s a minor quibble.
5. Run Really Fast Once In A While - Rather than prolonged cardio, Mark believes in the occasional all out effort.  Sprints are a great example of this.
6. Get Adequate Sleep – No argument here.  This is one of the basic rules of healthy living.
7. Play - Again, no argument.  If you can combine physical activity with fun, you’re doing great.
8. Get Plenty of Sunlight – Just not too much!
9. Avoid Stupid Mistakes – Which basically translates to “don’t walk into traffic”.  Not sure how Mark reconciles this with his snowboarding but hey, it’s definitely a good rule to follow.
10. Use Your Brain – Great last rule to finish with.  Fitness isn’t just about the body.  We need to pay attention to the most important muscle of all, their brains.  Use it or lose it folks!

Is the Primal Blueprint Worth Reading?

Absolutely.  Even if you disagree with some of what Mark says you’re still going to find a lot of worthwhile information here.  Plus the Korg chapter alone is worth the price of the book because it shows us just how unhealthy our modern lives have become.  However, there’s a more important question here.

Is the Primal Blueprint Worth Following?

That is, is this a healthy way to live?  For the most part, I think so.  I agree with Mark on 80% of what he says.  Still, there’s a lot that seems off to me.  Whole wheat is bad?  Jogging is bad?  Cavemen are healthier than modern men?  Mm…  Still, I’m an open minded person and I feel odd rejecting this idea out of hand.  After all, there’s a lot here that makes sense.  So

The 60 in 3 Primal Blueprint Challenge

For the next couple of months, June and July, I’ve decided to adopt the Primal Blueprint in its entirety and see what kind of a difference it makes in my life.  That means the following:

• No more jogging.  Trading this in for occasional sprints and more hiking and walking.
• Eliminate those poisons.  No more breads, pastas, rice, caffeine, sugar and the rest.  Yes, even whole wheat.
• Add a bit more protein to my diet.  Yes, that means eating more meat.  I’ve already found a local farmers market vendor who has great organic beef, chicken and venison plus another vendor who sells fresh fish.
• Focus on vegetables, fruits and nuts for my other nutritional requirements.
• Change my weight lifting routine to be a bit faster in line with Mark’s recommendations.

I’ll blog about my progress here in a series called The Primal Blueprint.  At the end of July, we’ll see how I feel.  That’s when I can tell you if the Primal Blueprint makes for a good lifestyle and not just a great book.

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Mark’s site can be found here: Mark’s Daily Apple

Mark’s book can be found here: The Primal Blueprint: Reprogram Your Genes for Effortless Weight Loss, Vibrant Health, and Boundless Energy