anivair's blog

Not true, I can do a pull up (but only one or two tops). But whenever you talk about them, most people will say something like that. And since there's nothing else worth reading today thanks to the SOPA and PIPA blackouts (which always combines in my mind to sopapilla) I'll tell you why.

It's because you're only DOING half a pull up. Or less.

How do you work a pull up? Probably, you grab that bar and you pull as hard as you can and you make it up a few inches and you do it again the next day.

There is really no such thing as a before and after shot of fitness. It's a process. There's plenty of before and all you can really say of the other side is "nowish". That side is always a work in progress.

That said, here's a picture of myself and my fiance on top and a picture of myself and my lovely wife on the bottom (I hope they don't meet). The bottom is after a year of paleo and working out. I think it's a pretty huge improvement. Easier to see since I'm wearing the same sweater and in the same location in both pictures. I like to call this one, "Paleo works, bitches".

A friend asked me how I became a druid yesterday. I think I have a bit about it on my FAQ but I never really told the full story, did I? I guess that's because it's not the most dramatic tale ever, but I'll go ahead and tell it.

For those of you who don't know, I do NaNoWriMo (pronounced either na-no-ree-mo, or na-no-rai-mo, depending on who you are) every year. I've done it every year since 2002. And every year, without fail, I do very well for about 2 days and then i start to slip.

Why? Well, November is my birthday. It's thanksgiving. It's a lot of stuff. And to be honest, plowing through that much writing is hard. Really really hard.

I've heard questions on paleo and Thanksgiving so I just want to say something.

Don't pretend like it's complicated.

It's not. Thanksgiving is mostly about turkey, which is clearly paleo. Want more? Have green beans and roasted veggies and sweet potatoes (skip the marshmallows, please. you'll be doing a great service not only to your body but to good taste everywhere). No, pumpkin pie is not paleo, but yes, you CAN make a paleo version if you want. You can even make paleo stuffing if you put your mind to it, but why are you thinking this hard?

A lot of people have been going paleo lately, saying that I was inspiring them or that their doctor told them to do something drastic and they chose this or (in one case) just cause. It's pretty amazing stuff to hear and it proves, if nothing else, that people are actually reading the stuff I write, which is nice.

And some of those people need and want some pointers or tips and I'm happy to provide. And some of those people hit roadblocks or speed bumps or encounter obstacles and I'm also happy to help them through it.

I'm on a roll today, so I thought I'd take a moment to talk about voting and insult your intelligence.

Not you, specifically. You're reading my blog and therefore you already have a leg up on the competition. I'm speaking fo the royal you. I could use the collective we here just as easily.

A lot of people in the paleo community (which I know most of you are not in) talk about how to make the lifestyle survive. they ask if the paleo name tag is too much baggage, because of a lot of reasons.

For example, as I addressed in my last post, lots of people assume that paleo man lived a short brutish terrible life (as if we were constantly miserable and on the verge of death as a species for hundreds of thousands of years or something). These people think they know a great deal about primative man and they make assumptions based on that.

Often, when I tell someone I eat paleo (after they say "huh?" and then I explain what it is) they hit me with a barrage of well meaning "facts" that they no doubt think I am ignorant of as to why I'm a complete buffoon. As kind of them as that is, I'm going to lay a few of those out here so that I don't have to keep going over and over this stuff with every friend I have. So without further ado, I bring you ...

Stuff you think about the paleo diet that is entirely untrue

Okay, on YouTube but isn't that like the modern equivalent?

For those of you who have still not come out to join us for a MovNat session, here's a quick video to demonstrate some of the stuff that goes on.