The Paleo Solution Part 9

2) Now, do a push-up! This should be significantly more challenging than the wall version but hopefully still doable for you. If not, you may need to spend your workout time mainly at the wall for now.

3) Slowly lower your torso back to the start position.

Hopefully the progression is obvious from here: By working your way to lower and lower objects you will be able increase your strength sufficiently to progress to a lower level. Eventually, you will be able to do a full push-up from the ground. It may take you week, a month, or a year-that will depend upon your situation-but you can make remarkable progress. The push-up not only works your arms, shoulders, and chest, but also the muscles of the back and stomach, as they stabilize your body during this movement.

Body Row The body row can be looked at a few different ways: The opposite of the push-up or a modified pull-up. Whatever the case, the body row will become one of your favorite movements. Really! You will need to buy a little gear for the body row. A set of gymnastics rings, blast straps, or TRX system will all work just fine. You can find links for that gear and other items at the end of the chapter and on the Robbwolf.com website. You might have a local playground with rings that you can use for body rows, be creative!

1) To perform the body row make sure your equipment is securely fastened to a mounting, as per manufacturer's instructions. Now, set the handles about armpit height. Make sure the handles are even in length so you do not end up with one ma.s.sively developed arm. Grasp the handles firmly with your feet directly under the rings. Make your body rigid by tightening your legs, stomach, and back.

2) Now, slowly and with complete control, lower yourself backward. Maintain one safe speed throughout the movement, avoiding the tendency to "dive bomb" at the end of the movement. Your arms will come completely straight, keep your gaze between your hands to maintain neutral neck position.

3) Reverse the movement by squeezing your shoulder blades together while bending at the elbows, pulling your chest up to the rings. This should look much like a pull-up with the difference being your feet are on the ground and the movement is happening in front of you instead of overhead. Can you do a few repet.i.tions at this position? If so, take a small step forward and see how this small change increases the difficulty of the movement.

Similar to the modifications with the push-up, the body row may be modified to meet almost anyone's needs. The final progression of this movement can be either a pull-up or a body row with your feet elevated on a box. We have used this same progression at NorCal Strength & Conditioning to help people in their sixties and seventies eventually attain their first pull-up ever. We have also used these movements in post operative rehab with people over 300 pounds. They are safe and effective if you tackle them with a bit of respect and common sense.

Get Dumb Let's look at two very simple movements you can do with a set of light dumbbells (DBs) and then we will look at a beginners program.

Press The DB press is simple and effective. You can perform this movement with a DB in each hand, or one hand at a time. To perform the press use a DB that seems too light in the beginning. It is best to establish flawless technique before progressing the weight.

1) Lift the DBs to your shoulders, making sure you have a secure grip, your gaze is directly forward, and your elbows are directly under the DB. Your feet should be between hip and shoulder width, your legs, b.u.t.t, stomach and back should be tight and steady.

2) Take a small breath in, hold it, and press the DBs overhead. Overhead should mean if we view you in profile, we can draw a line from the middle of the DB, down through your ears, shoulder, hip and ankle. The weight being held overhead should be held up like a column, straight up and down with no bending in any direction. At the top of the press your hands can rotate with the palms facing forward, forcing the heads of the DBs to lightly touch.

3) To return the DBs, allow gravity to pull the weights down, but use enough resistance to control the descent at a safe pace. The DBs will come to rest lightly on your shoulders with the palms facing each other (hammer grip again). Catch a few breaths and repeat. You should only hold your breath enough to stabilize your midsection, not enough to pa.s.s out! I suspect dropping a DB on your head or toe would really get your attention. Again, be safe and reasonable.

Dumbbell Row You may have noticed a theme emerging, as we had two calisthenics movements (push-up and body row), a push followed by a pull. Similarly, we will strive for balance in our use of weights. You will use one DB at a time for this movement, and I recommend using your weak arm first (if you are right-handed that means use your left hand first).

1) Let's a.s.sume you are left-handed and have the DB in your right hand. You will need to stand near a stable bench, table, or chair. You could simply use a wall but it is not quite as stable. With the DB in your right hand, take a fairly large step forward (similar to your lunge step you practiced earlier) and place your left hand on your chair or table. You should be leaning forward anywhere between your back being parallel to the floor to just slightly leaning forward. It is critical that your spine be straight and you do not hunch forward getting into, out of, or executing this movement. The DB should be hanging at your side with a tendency for the DB to rotate in.

2) Take a small breath in, brace your stomach, hips, and back, and row the DB up, initiating the movement by pulling your shoulder blade back. Simultaneous to this movement, begin bending the elbow and rotate the hand slightly outward. The "up" part of the movement is finished when you cannot raise the DB any further. Keep the back flat and facing the ground with your stomach and back tight and protecting your spine.

3) Lower the DB under control, taking a few easy breaths at the bottom of the movement when your right arm is extended. When you are ready to stand up you can set the DB down and stand up or walk the back foot forward, switch hands, and perform rows on the opposite arm. Remember! If you have the DB in your right hand, the left foot is forward and vice versa.

Program Modifications: A Little Change Will Do You Good Most people report that they do not exercise because of boredom. Physical discomfort and inconvenience are certainly factors, but the most common reason for abandoning a program is boredom. I hope the program laid out here will be fun and challenging, while taking up little of your time and avoiding boredom because of the variety. It may not provide much joy to know this, but when you are just starting out with exercise, everything works! Progress is quick and steady, the land of instant gratification. You just need to stick to it-don't do too much today, and do try to do just a little bit more tomorrow. Consistency, safety, and fun are the things to focus on. You will be amazed what a little consistency with your exercise will do when coupled with your nutrition and lifestyle changes.

I'm going to make a few a.s.sumptions here. They involve the notion that you have a certain amount of apt.i.tude and competency with your movements. I'm a.s.suming you know how to squat, lunge, body-row, push-up, DB press, and DB row. If you are comfortable with some of those movements, stick with those. If you are not comfortable with any of the movements, you are going to do a lot of walking!

Seriously though, you need to have a few different movements that you feel pretty confident in to change the basic program. I have worked with some very broken people who could walk, push up against a tall object (in our gym it's usually a gymnastics pommel-horse), and body-row. In the beginning our "warm-up" is simply doing a round or two of our chosen activity. If you have a kitchen timer or stop watch, that will help track progress.

Day One: Circuit Workout Walk 200400 meters. If you have no idea how far that is, walk one to two minutes out and then take the same amount of time walking back. Pick a landmark for this distance so you can track progress. Make it a brisk pace but within your means.

When you get back to your starting point, rest one minute. Then do five to ten perfect squats. (remember to use your chair or box for safety, if necessary). Rest one minute. Then do five to ten push-ups. Rest one minute. Do five to ten body rows. Rest one minute. Walk your same course again. You are done with day one.

How did you feel during the workout? Were you short of breath, dizzy, or very tired? If so, you might have gone a little too hard. The next day how do you feel? A little sore? Beat to heck? This will tell us how good your recovery is. We are shooting for a "little" sore. You know you did something because you can feel the muscles in your legs, arms, back, and chest, but you are not regretting your birth.

Day Two: Intervals Walk, swim, or ride a bike. Shoot for ten to thirty minutes of continuous movement, but with the following twist: After you have warmed up at an easy pace for about five minutes, push your pace a little harder. It should be within your means, but sufficiently hard that you are looking forward to a break after ten to thirty seconds of work. After your first interval, ease back to a much slower pace. You may then cruise at this slower pace for thirty seconds to two minutes before kicking your pace up again. There is no perfect pace here; just push a little harder, then go a little easier. Try to keep moving forward.

If you are walking or riding a bike, you need to think about how far out you are going because you will need to turn around and come back! Remember, I am a.s.suming you have done next to nothing for a very long time. If this is far too easy for you, jump to the Intermediate section. So, make a mental note of how far you went and how long it took you to cover that distance. You can keep a log of your efforts or simply write them on an index card taped to the refrigerator.

Day Three Today is a bit of a rest day. Be active, but unstructured. Try to fit in some stretching. If you want to sign up for a yoga cla.s.s or get a beginner yoga DVD, perfect. You are likely to be a bit tight and sore from your unaccustomed activities, but you should not feel "broken." If you do, you are pushing too hard and are likely to quit because feeling like you were pistol whipped gets old quickly. Ramp-up slowly and you will stick with it.

Day Four and Beyond: Circuit Day This is a repeat of day one, but with the following change: If you felt "great" after your first day workout, shoot for ten reps on each exercise. If you are at that level already, do the same thing again, but take only fifty seconds between your exercises. Each time you do this workout, take ten seconds off your rest intervals until you have thirty seconds rest. When you reach that point, add a second full round. Walk, squat, push-up, and body-row. Each time you repeat the workout, decrease your rest by five seconds. When you reach fifteen seconds of rest and two full rounds, it's time to add a third round.

Now, each time you do this workout, decrease your rest by five seconds until you are doing three consecutive rounds. Once you can do three consecutive rounds, start making your squats, push-ups, and body rows harder. Get a lower box for the squats, until you are performing a full-depth, perfect squat in your workout. Push-ups will progress to lower boxes, eventually to your knees on the ground, and then full push-ups on the ground. Body rows will simply involve walking your feet forward. Once your body is at a forty-five-degree angle, you are doing about 50 percent of a real pull-up! This easy ramp-up will give you great results both in performance and in improving your body composition (you will look better naked).

If you were wrecked from day one, just repeat what you did and maintain the same rest intervals. Once you complete this workout without feeling like a punching bag, you can slowly step down your rest intervals. If ten seconds is too much of a step down, do it in five-second increments. Keep in mind, your feet need to stay in the same spot initially so you don't increase the loading prematurely. I want you to build your capacity at the easier positions, and then progress the loading. Once you are down to thirty-second rest intervals, follow the progressions outlined above.

Day Five and Beyond: Intervals This is similar to day two, but with the following twists: If you are already up to thirty minutes of activity, I want you to try to cover more distance in that same time. Remember, you are warming up by doing five minutes of easy activity and then stepping up the pace with intervals that are challenging but fun. I would like to see you cover more ground in less time for several weeks before we start kicking up the total time on this activity. I recommend this because people are usually time crunched. If you have a lenient schedule and feel strong on this activity, you can also add one or two minutes per session until you are doing forty-five to sixty minutes of continuous intervals. I am a.s.suming you are still "walking" at this stage. If you are in fact walking, this means slower and faster walking (intervals). If you are biking, rowing, or swimming, think about your pace being described as slow or fast "walking." You will have a chance to sprint once you progress to the intermediate level.

If you started with ten to fifteen minutes of activity total, simply add one to two minutes of activity. Make a note of your increased distance so you can keep track of your progress. Each day you do this workout, add time until you are at thirty minutes. Then try to cover that distance faster. When you can shave two to five minutes off your time, start adding distance. In this way you can build up to forty-five to sixty minutes of continuous activity.

Day Six This is your optional rest day. I recommend you do a little activity, such as some yoga or light stretching, but just go by feel. In a given week you will do at least one stretching/recovery day, but the second day is optional.

Day 7-Circuit Day 8-Intervals Day 9-Recovery This basic template will serve you very well. You will improve your strength, endurance, mobility, and overall health. If you are following the Paleo Solution nutrition Rx, you should lose fat, gain muscle, and feel great. The combination of smart training and sound evolutionary eating will reverse insulin resistance and decrease inflammation. You will look and feel years younger while decreasing your likelihood of cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative disease such as Parkinson's, and Alzheimer's, all while making your f.a.n.n.y look amazing!

With diligent work, this Lifeline program will allow you to reach pretty impressive fitness levels. You will be able to transition from walking to running at some point, and you will be capable of full push-ups from the ground and body rows that are almost parallel to the ground. At this point you effectively graduate from the Lifeline program to what my good friend, Dave Werner (who owns the outstanding gym, Level 4 Training, in Seattle, WA) would consider a "healthy beginner."

Now, you may have worked very hard to reach this point, and I fully applaud your hard work, but it's important to realize that you are just getting going. Remember how strong, fit, and capable our hunter-gatherer ancestors were? Remember how our genetics are wired for us to be just as athletic? The reality is this is a never-ending process, and we should all be a bit grateful for that. We have a lifetime of growth and opportunity ahead of us, and that should be pretty exciting.

It's important to be a little Zen about this process. Have a plan and a few goals that involve performance improvements, but keep your focus on today. Tackle the tasks and challenges at hand, keep it fun, and, please, don't make this drudgery! Many people feel overwhelmed in the beginning, but this is because they allow their minds to drift to the future. You cannot control the outcome-just your focus in this moment. Using the process of self-awareness and presence, you can accomplish amazing things, while also being happier in the only time you ever will really have: right now.

Keeping all that in mind, let's look at how to change your training before you fully enter the Healthy Beginner program.

Increase the Reps It should be pretty obvious that you can begin adding push-ups and squats and body rows to your circuits. Progressing from three rounds of walking plus ten squats, ten push-ups, ten body rows (thirty total for each movement) to three rounds of running plus fifty squats, fifty push-ups, fifty body rows (150 total for each movement!) is an impressive fete. It represents a simple progression that can keep most people challenged, literally for months or years.

Increase the Intensity Let's a.s.sume you are competent at ten repet.i.tions of your exercises in the three-rounds format. What if you just did one round, but as fast as you could? The intensity would increase dramatically, as would the hormonal response to the effort. For example, instead of walking, squatting, and doing push-ups and body rows with a break between each exercise, you perform them all back-to-back and then rest. The goal is to get adequate rest between every set so that you can tackle each effort with some chutzpah! This could be five minutes, or even longer. Keep in mind, this recommendation is for folks who are able to run, do full push-ups, and body rows and complete the three-round circuit. You can obviously increase the repet.i.tions in this format as well, and this is actually a great way to get stronger at a particular element.

Ladders A ladder is a slick way of packing a lot of training into a brief period of time. I was first exposed to this concept by Pavel Tsatsouline, author of the excellent book Power to the People. Let's use the squat, body row, and push-up for this example.

Here is how the ladder works: Do one squat, then one push-up, then one body-row. Then do two of each movement. Then three of each movement. Keep adding one repet.i.tion of each movement until you feel very challenged by a given set. Maybe you work up to six or seven repet.i.tions in a round and you barely finish your push-ups or body rows. When this happens, simply start over at one. You could pick a set number of cycles to go through, like working your way up to five repet.i.tions three times or do as many rounds as you can in ten minutes.

These are just hypothetical examples, but ladders usually take on this wavelike characteristic based on your motivation and fatigue. How hard should you push? Hard enough to feel challenged, but not so hard that you cannot move the next day. Ladders pack a lot of work in a brief period of time, so ease into them. You could use a day of ladders in place of your circuit-training days. You can also use alternate movements such as the walking lunge (a step with each leg counts as one rep), DB press, or DB bent row.

If you are particularly strong on one movement, you can keep it on its own schedule. Most people will be able to do far more squats than push-ups or body rows. You could easily keep your squats one ladder, working up as high as ten repet.i.tions in a round, while your push-up/body row efforts stay in the three-to-six range. This is all highly subjective, but it should provide a few ideas to get you going.

Wheel It!

This next activity will either make you popular or infamous with your neighbors! Get a st.u.r.dy wheelbarrow. Load a few rocks, cement bags, or other heavy items in it. Pick up the handles, and take a stroll. Children and small animals make pretty good ballast and have the added training stimulus of being an unstable ride due to the tendency for kids and critters to worm about. The downside, however, is that your ballast may simply jump out and run away. Use your best judgment here.

Although this type of activity does smack of yard work, it can be fun and remarkably challenging. Go for distance and see if you can get a little farther each time. When you are feeling sa.s.sy, add another rock or small child to increase the load.

I am often quizzed by my clients, "What muscles does this activity work?" My response is always to put them to the task, and then ask them what muscles are being worked. A good workout will make you an instant expert in applied anatomy, and pushing a wheelbarrow works most of the muscles from your earlobes to your toenails.

Bag It!

Get a backpack or weight vest and load it with ten to twenty pounds of weight. Walk out your door, preferably in a park or someplace with uneven ground, and just go. You can shoot for time or distance, but the main thing is to keep it fun and just move. If you are still significantly overweight, you may not need the additional weight. Yet again, use your best judgment here. An increase of ten to twenty pounds of body weight can make brisk walking as demanding as running. If you are ramping up and need a little more challenge, this is simple, fun, and effective.

It is important to note that you can subst.i.tute either of the above activities for your interval days. Keep it fun, but do keep some kind of progression in mind. Pick a distance and see how long it takes you to reach that mark. Try to go faster until you have cut 510 percent off your time. Then set a longer goal.

Bring a Friend I'm going to share a sneaky way to ensure your success. Find someone to train with. I'd recommend a friend, coworker, or neighbor you get along well with. Family members can be . . . resistant. If you can rope a spouse or sibling into working out with you, good on ya, but a lot of people find family members to be tough to convince. Do not let your success hinge on the group of people in your life least likely to affect change. You will be able to find coaches, gyms, and online support at the Robbwolf.com website, but make a real effort to get a training buddy and keep each other accountable. You each need to state a few goals, be they performance oriented (I want to run a mile nonstop. I want to do twenty perfect push-ups) or aesthetics oriented (I want to fit into my favorite pair of jeans again). Goal setting, accountability, and community are critical to your success.

Get Dumber! The Healthy Beginner Program As part of your Healthy Beginner program, I'd like you to start lifting more weights. The easiest, safest tool we can use for this is the lowly dumbbell. If you recall, the most important element to your fitness is strength, with a close second being flexibility/mobility. The DB is the perfect tool, as it allows us to perform a limitless number of movements using increasing loads and a full range of movement. Remember, start light, use good judgment, and focus on perfect form.

Squats and Lunges Since you are familiar with these movements by this point, it should be easy to incorporate DBs into these outstanding lower-body movements. To load the squat, simply lift a pair of light DBs to your shoulders and perform your normal squat. Remember to stay "tight" by flexing the muscles of your stomach, back, and legs when performing the movement. Breathe at the top of the squat and brace your midsection while performing the movement.

For the lunge, simply hold your DBs at your sides, keep your torso upright, and gaze straight ahead. All the cues from the basic lunge still apply: keep the knee tracking with the toe, make sure to step wide enough to maintain a stable base.

Bring Out Yer Dead!

One of the most basic of human movements, picking something up off the ground, has become a bit of a controversy in rehabilitation circles. Some claim the dead lift is dangerous and can hurt the back. Well, it can, but these same folks neglect to mention that the movement was once called the "health lift," and it was thought to be critical for long-term health and wellness. What has happened is people in rehabilitation and training have gotten lazy and a bit uncreative. Instead of teaching the proper use of this amazing athletic tool, we leave people-who might have been injured in the past working or doing other activities-to figure this stuff out on their own. Everything in life boils down to a risk/reward equation, and despite what the naysayers may claim, the dead lift offers far too much benefit to throw it on the sc.r.a.p heap of training history.

1) Here is how we will tackle the dead lift using DBs: If a pair of DBs are on the deck, approach them so that each DB is outside your feet and directly under your arms.

2) Take a little breath in, hold it, and bend forward, allowing your bottom to track backward and your knees to bend but not move forward. Unlike a squat, which tends to work the muscles of the frontal thighs, the dead lift, when properly performed, will work the muscles of your b.u.t.t and hamstrings. If viewed from the side, your shoulders should be slightly in front of the DBs and your entire back is flat and strong.

3) You now push your weight through your heels, keeping the DB's close to your legs, perhaps even touching lightly. You will continue this movement until you are fully upright, with your gaze straight ahead.

4) To return the DBs to the deck, take a few breaths, hold a bit of air to stabilize your body, and push your bottom back, allowing your hips and the knees to bend but not track forward. If you have tight hamstrings or hips, you may find this movement challenging. If you do not have a perfect, full-depth squat, you may need to save the dead lift for another day. As I mentioned earlier, and as I will mention again, seeking a qualified coach or trainer can really simplify and accelerate the learning process.

Swing The swing is a fantastic movement for developing the legs, b.u.t.t, and midsection. If you perform a high number of reps in the movement, it can really get your attention due to its full-body nature.

1) Start with a very light DB, holding the handle in both hands as pictured. Depending on the size of the DB and your hands, you may find it easier to simply grab the top of the DB. Keep your torso erect, weight in your heels, feet about shoulder width.

2) Push your bottom back allowing the DB to swing back slightly.

3) Now, "jump" the hips forward, causing the DB to swing up to your navel or chest. The arms should merely guide the DB-they should not be the prime movers.

4) Do not interrupt its downward swing. Instead, allow your hips to swing back to "catch" the fall of the DB. This should involve very little movement on the part of both your hips and the DB. You should be able to store the energy of one swing and feed it into the next. Keep the amplitude (the size of your front and back swing) small until you are comfortable with the movement. If you perform the movement correctly, you should feel it in your b.u.t.t and hamstrings, with no discomfort to the back.

As you gain proficiency in the movement, you can push your bottom back a little more, allowing your torso to lean a little forward. This allows you to generate more power and, thus, propel the DB higher on subsequent swings.

Once you are comfortable swinging the DB to eyebrow height (you should be able to see in front of you when the DB reaches its max height), you can start adding weight to your swings. Progress slowly and carefully! Your first round of swings may make your next visit to the privy quite interesting! Sore hamstrings and bottom can make a trip to the toilet a "Zen-like experience"!

Push Press The push press is a dynamic cousin of the press and one of my favorite movements.

1) Start the same way you would for a press: feet under your hips, DBs at your shoulders, firm grip on the DBs, and your body braced for movement.

2) Now, bend your knees just a little, as if you were getting ready to jump. When you bend your knees, it is critical that you keep your torso completely upright and your gaze straight ahead.

3) Reverse the movement as if you were jumping and use the strength of your legs to drive the DBs off your shoulders and press them overhead. This is an explosive, but controlled, movement. Drive the DBs upward but slow them as you reach full extension of your shoulders and elbows overhead.

4) Pause a moment, and then lower the DBs under control. Once they are safely at your shoulders, you may bend the knees again and perform another push press. I actually breathe while moving if I perform the push press for high reps. Inhale on the down, exhale on the up. If your loading is sufficiently light, you will be able to do this as well, but if it is heavy or you are unsure of the movement, it is best to take a small breath in before you dip and hold the breath lightly until you return to your shoulders.

Ball Slams This is a relatively inexpensive piece of gear that is actually fun. It's funny but most of our quiet, meek females expose their angry side when they start messing with the ball slam! The first few reps they still look dainty and demure, but by the fifth or sixth repet.i.tion the woman has transformed into some kind of killing machine savaging the poor ball! You may think I'm making this up, I'm not.

The ball slam is a full-body movement but you will mainly feel it in your b.u.t.t and legs. It has a sneaky way of working your abs and shoulders also, but you will know that once you have played with it.

1)Approach the ball with your feet about shoulder width and the ball between your feet and about the middle of your instep. Reach down and grab the ball with your chin down, back flat, and weight in your heels.

2-4)Lift the ball by straightening the legs, pulling the ball into your body such that the ball rockets from floor to overhead in one smooth movement.

5-6)Now, keeping your weight in your heels, reverse the movement by tightening your whole body and slamming the ball back into the ground! Be ready, you need to follow the ball down and catch it on the bounce. Keep perfect alignment of your spine the whole way and let your hips "jump" the ball overhead and slam it down.

Important NOTE: Make sure you are using a ball like the kind recommended from the gear list. If you use a ball that has a lot of rebound, your first throw may be a trip to the hospital. The ball I'm recommending has little if any bounce. Be sure of what you are using, you will make this mistake only once!

Stepping Up the Healthy Beginner Program Whether you are starting as what I consider a "healthy beginner" or you have battled to get to this place, it's time to step up your training. But how do you incorporate these new movements? Slowly and carefully. What I want you to do is pick one of the above new movements and practice it for five to ten minutes at the beginning of your workout. Practice ball slams, DB dead lifts, or a push press before you do your main workout. Now, when I say practice, that's what I mean! You need to pay attention to form, feel where your body is, and have your workout partner or partners critique your form while you critique theirs. Again, this is a great time to have a coach or trainer make sure you are on task here. For practice, do a few reps to see how the movement feels. Rest, make adjustments, and move forward. When you feel like you have mastery of a movement, start incorporating it into your training. When you have the DB dead lift mastered, switch it in for your air squat. When you have the push press, subst.i.tute it for the press or push-up.

Let's look at an example day to get you going.

Circuit Training Let's say you are still playing with the ball slam but have "mastered" the push press and the DB deadlift. You might do a light jog for a warm-up and then throw the slam ball a few times, checking you position before lifting the ball off the ground, overhead, and upon release of the ball. Your training partner provides feedback and you do the same.

Now that the preliminaries are out of the way, it's time to have fun! You have a "200 meter" run that you have been using for your circuit days. It is actually a distance that you can run at a brisk pace in about one minute. You are doing this circuit with no breaks, just trying to complete the whole thing as quickly as you can, resting when necessary. You set your stop watch and you are off!

When you come in from your run, instead of squats, you begin with the DB dead lift. You are using a new rep scheme you thought of and do twenty DB dead lifts, then twenty body rows with your feet stepped forward such that your body is at a forty-five-degree angle with the ground. You need to break up the body rows. You do twelve, rest a moment, then six, rest a moment, and then finish the last two reps. You commit to yourself that the next time you do this workout, you will go something like twelve and eight reps! You then grab your DBs, get in perfect position, and perform all twenty DB push presses unbroken. You make a mental note that you will do the workout with DBs that are slightly heavier next time and then head back out on the run.

The 200 meter course you once had to walk, you are now able to run, even after the work you just did! You come in and do fifteen of each exercise, dead lift, body row, and push press, then head out for the run, and return and do ten of each exercise. After you finish your last repet.i.tion on push press, you push "stop" on your stopwatch. You note your time and how you performed the movements in your training journal. You also note the changes you want to make to your next efforts before doing a long cool-down walk and stretch.

Advanced Workouts If you are a serious athlete who is oriented toward endurance athletics, I strongly recommend The Paleo Diet for Athletes by Joe Friel and Prof. Loren Cordain. I would also recommend Joe's other books in the Training Bible series. If you are a power-oriented athlete or simply a fitness enthusiast who is looking to optimize performance, health, and longevity, keep your eyes open for the forthcoming work Fight Prep, written by IFC Lightweight Champion Glen Cordoza and me. This book will provide advanced programming and nutritional strategies to maximize muscle gain, strength, and power.

In addition to this, I highly recommend you look at the following resources to expand your training: Olympic Weightlifting: A Complete Guide for Athletes and Coaches by Greg Everett Catalystathletics.com Coachrut.blogspot.com Movnat.com Gymnasticsbody.com You can find additional resources at Robbwolf.com Hey Robb How should I eat to optimize my exercise results?

That is a fantastic question, but the answer is by necessity a little slippery. The reason why is pre- or post-workout fueling is fairly individualistic. Are you overweight? Lean and trying to gain muscle? A serious endurance athlete?

I'm a.s.suming you are either a beginner and/or are getting back into shape, so fat loss and health are your primary concerns. Looking at the fueling question from this perspective, here is my "ideal" situation for you: You work out in the AM before breakfast. If fat loss is your primary concern I'd make most of your meals protein, veggies, and fat (this may require that you modify the thirty-day meal plan that will be presented later in the book). Why do I make this recommendation? Because this approach will help you to lose fat and reverse inflammation remarkably quickly. Training on an empty stomach turns on some interesting genetic machinery that is important not only in fat loss but also longevity.

What if I feel shaky or lethargic during a workout?

Well, you may just need a little time to adapt, but you could have a little protein and fat (a small piece of chicken and a handful of nuts) before you train. This will work well, just not as well as the fasted training. Play with this and you will find an approach that works for you. As you become fit, your ability to train on empty will likely go up.

What if I cannot work out in the AM?

Obviously you need to work within the constraints of your schedule, but I find AM workouts to be particularly productive for fat loss. Just do the best you can, as it's more important to be consistent than stress over the details.

What if I'm a top-of-the-food-chain athlete who is lean and strong? How do I eat?

Again, this is somewhat specific to you and your goals, but you likely need more carbohydrate to support your high-intensity training. The best way to handle this is to make your post-workout meals protein and carbs. A few good examples of this include pork loin and sweet potato, salmon and blueberries, or London broil and water melon. Now you'd like to know how much protein and carbs to eat, yes? Two to six ounces of protein and twenty to seventy-five grams of carbohydrate brackets the needs of most athletes.

TEN.

Implementing the Paleo Solution: It's Easy, Really I'm not sure how to introduce the following section, as it might contain the most important information you have ever heard. It might save or radically improve your life or the life of someone you know and care about. It is so d.a.m.n simple, yet idiots and geniuses alike consistently miss the punch line. You see, the entire book up to this point could be considered a waste of time, as you really do not need to know why this stuff works to reap all the benefits. The information in this book, on my blog, and in the recommended reading is quite contrarian to the views of health and nutrition that are promoted by the government and media. I may make some money from this book, but even if it becomes a best seller, it's peanuts compared to the money to be made from pharmaceuticals. It's tough to patent an idea like: "Use the best that modern technology has to offer and then couple it with Paleo nutrition and lifestyle. Live long and prosper!" Lucky for Pfizer and Merck, their products are a lot easier to patent.

So, yes, this book has quite a lot of information to help answer the endless questions generated by this Paleo view of health, but it really boils down to the doing. In the ten years of helping folks with their nutrition and fitness, I have observed that people fall into one of the following categories: 1. About 50 percent of the folks I work with "get" how to eat Paleo immediately. The Paleo concepts make sense, they modify their cooking seamlessly, and they never look back. They live a Paretto kind of life in which they adhere to things about 80 percent and actually get about 95 percent of the benefit Paleo has to offer. Folks with serious health problems (myself included) follow a tighter plan because they find the increased diligence to be worth the results in how they look, feel, and perform. This is a simple ROI (return on investment) a.n.a.lysis, and a little common sense and the observational abilities of slime mold can tell you where on this spectrum you need to be (fully compliant, or a dabbler). G.o.d bless this 50 percent because I really earn my money on the other 50 percent!

2. About 25 percent of folks fall in the DUMBB category (Dude, yoU Must Be Balanced!). These folks argue every d.a.m.n point of minutia and claim that we need to be "balanced." Should we ignore the fact that these "experts in balance" have no exact definition of what "balance" means, or any explanation of why they are still sick and overweight? They have enough excuses to win a congressional filibuster. But at the end of the day, it's all fluff. Eventually I wear these people down and get them to simply try things for a month. They tend to battle and find ways to slow the process. (Shouldn't I have a bound food log? Or maybe an online food log to doc.u.ment my meal? Or maybe if I wear pink leotards it will make my a.s.s look smaller and I won't need a food log.) These folks need some hand-holding in the kitchen, supermarket, work, school, and social functions. And we need to keep them accountable, lest they wander off and become vegan or something goofy like that. But they eventually stick with the program and see significant results and success. When this happens, these folks become OMGWTHSTHUAP (Oh my G.o.d will they shut the h.e.l.l-up about Paleo!) As hard as it was to get them on board, they are so ecstatic about their success, they become annoying even to my trainers and me. Just the cost of success I guess!

3. The final 25% (I'll keep their acronym to myself-it's not very nice) battle the process the whole way. They have baggage that is apparently more fun than success and progress. It's Mommy issues, Daddy issues, self-esteem issues. It's a fear of change, and it all plays out the same way. They want attention, they do not comply, they fail to make progress. I want to lobotomize myself with a pencil. I try to help these people, but I'm no therapist, and I don't want to be. I understand many of the mechanisms on a social, biochemical, and even an evolutionary level, but at some point, you've got to realize that you can't save everyone. If you insist on being helpless, your needs will exceed my abilities to help you, and I will move on to the other 75 percent who want to succeed. The only difference between this group and the previous group is these people will not even try this for a month. They are a month away from transforming their lives and from success, but they just won't do it.

All We Are Saying... Is Give Paleo a Chance So, I want to make this as easy as possible. I want it to work for you and your goals. To this end, I've laid out a tiered plan that will allow you a level of buy-in that works for you. But I'm really going to hard sell, as if your life depends on it. Just for a month. I want you to understand how powerful this Paleo concept can be in our life. Do you have a serious autoimmune condition, cardiovascular disease, or depression? Well, you need tight compliance guidelines if you want to be healthy. Always been lean and strong and generally can eat anything and still remain pretty healthy? Cool, I hate you (just kidding!), but you will benefit from a Paleo approach to eating. You will likely have a bit more lat.i.tude with your eating and lifestyle than someone who is sick, but you will still reap significant benefits.