Hey Cavemen and Caveladies (or Cavewomen?):

Welcome back to the Caveman blog.  Remember my goal with this program: the Caveman loves simplicity - if you don’t understand what I’m writing, it does me no good to write it.  One step at a time, keeping it as easy to understand as possible!

Since I tend to put a lot of emphasis on nutrition, it’s probably best that I actually start with nutrition.  Don’t get me wrong - I like exercise to be absolutely brutal.  Not passive, not a good time to chat with friends, and not a good time to text, watch stock, catch up on the news, etc.  There’s a reason it’s called WORKING OUT.

For now, let’s take a look at the basics of the Caveman Nutritional Philosophies. Remember, our focus is rapid and extreme body transformation, regardless of your current condition, gender, age, or goals.

First and foremost, is food selection.  What do we eat?

Simply put, if a caveman didn’t have it to eat, you don’t need to eat it.  This goes for anything that is refined, enriched, contains high fructose corn syrup, flour, etc.

So, what did the caveman eat and what will the new, current group of cavemen and caveladies eat?

-Protein: Fresh cuts of lean meat (chicken, lean cuts of beef, wild game, lots of fish, eggs)

-Carbohydrates: Whole Grains (brown and long grain rice, oats), Certain Fruits

-Certain Vegetables (lots of them).  Cavemen love green and white vegetables.

-Healthy Fats: Certain Nuts, Natural Oils (olive, fish, flax, etc)

We have numerous advantages over our ancient ancestors, as we have access to Kroger, HEB, Albertson’s, Piggly Wiggly, Franks, Brunos, Winn Dixie, etc.  We don’t have to hunt (but some people may find this much more enjoyable than grocery shopping).

We also have healthy and non-impactive ways to season our foods other than salt.

After food selection, we must focus on nutrient timing, or when we choose to eat certain types of foods.

Ultimately, this was probably the reason that the average caveman may have looked less than athletic.  With freezes, droughts, laziness and the lack of a decent firearm to kill potential dinners, the caveman had to eat what he could, when he could.  He couldn’t have the proper pre and post-workout meals.  Long periods of fasting leads to the body invoking the starvation reflex, which, more than likely, contributed to the Caveman’s lack of a desirable physique.

Here are the basic caveman nutritional rules (In future posts, I will give explanations for each of these principles):

-Every meal must be centered around and contain a source of lean protein

-No meal can contain both a source of carbohydrates (grains or fruit) and a source of fats (nuts, oils).  However, each meal should have one or the other along with a protein source.

-Vegetables can be eaten unlimited at any time, and are in a category by themselves.

How does the caveman determine when he should have a source of carbohydrates versus a source of fat?

There are two conditions that the body requires carbohydrates: for fuel or for replenishment.  After a fast (such as sleeping at night), the body requires carbohydrates to “break the fast” and to stop the catabolic (muscle tissue degrading) effects of sleeping.

The other times that carbohydrates are desirable are before and after strenuous exercise.

Now, as mentioned previously, the caveman’s undesirable physique could probably be attributed to a very slow metabolism.  Think about this, since there were no  cars and what “machines” or “tools” that were available were no where near as efficient as what we have available today, it’s probably safe to guess that the caveman had a much higher level of activity than people today do.  I mean, according to popular opinion, calories in versus calories out means less body fat, right?  So why do the images of these people that have been constructed by scientists show that the caveman appeared to not have very low levels of body fat, even though their activity levels were probably much higher than that of today’s humans?

First, the “calories in versus calories out” to get lean (and “lean” implies lower body fat, not low “WEIGHT”) is bullshit.  There, I said it.  You can be lean, or you can be a skinny fat person.  There are plenty of people with low body weights that don’t have desirable physiques, soft and “smooshy”.

The reason that the caveman had a less than desirable physique, even though he probably ate much healthier food choices than his relatives of today and more than likely burned more calories in a typical day than he consumed is because fat is a much denser source of calories.  The body will preserve fat if it fears that it is being starved.  Due to prolonged periods of not being able to eat (ice ages, lack of source, no HEB, etc), the caveman had induced periods of fasting.  In turn, the body, in an attempt to preserve itself, metabolized what muscle may have been available for energy and attempted to preserve fat for as long as possible to deal with these long periods of fasting.

So for those who are thinking they’re going to go on a diet of salad and do 1-2 hours of cardio per day to “change their body”, think again.  You will only become what I affectionately refer to as a “skinny fat person”.  Or, you’ll live up to my analogy of going from a “large pear” to a “smaller pear”.  Neither are desirable results and should not be the physique transformation you are looking for.

Nutritionally, the way you increase your metabolism is to eat regular meals, spaced out throughout the day (not eat less).

The final factor in Caveman Nutrition is this: How much should today’s caveman and cavewoman eat? This is the part that varies greatly based on a number of factors:

-The caveperson’s goal

-The caveperson’s current condition

-The caveperson’s activity level

-The caveperson’s gender

-The caveperson’s metabolic rate

Over the next few weeks, I’ll teach you how to judge the amount of food you need to be consuming.  No, I will not be delving into complicated formulas and calculating calories - CAVEMEN HATE MATH AND NUMBERS.  For now, take what I have given you and view your stomach as a fuel tank - you never want it to be completely empty, nor completely full; rather somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 of the way full.

Remember, the body is a very adaptive organism, so it is imperative that we do everything we can to keep it sensitive to the nutrients that we are providing, while not allowing it to lower the metabolism in effect for preservation.  Understand, the body lowers the metabolism as a defense mechanism!  If it senses that less food is available (and it makes this determination based on what it is being fed), then it will reduce the metabolism.  That is why in the coming days I will explain why it is important to manipulate macro-nutrient (protein/carbohydrates/fat) intake day to day and week to week.

I think that’s enough to chew on, for now.  I’ll be adding a lot as we go, so stop back by regularly and stay caught up!

Until next time,

Boyd Myers
Master Fitness Trainer, Performance Nutrition Expert
210.391.1454

Hey everyone, welcome to the Caveman Blog!

I’ve been working on a lot of things over the last few months: my online personal training service, expanding my personal training studio and a few other projects. Right now is the perfect time to introduce you to my “Caveman Program”.

Most people look at a lifestyle change (and a subsequent physique transformation) as a daunting and overwhelming task. Reading through the accumulated resources that we have available (magazines, books, internet message boards, etc) is tedious and a bit nerve-racking in itself, because as soon as you “learn” something, the information is completely contradicted in the next article you read.

Losing fat and drastically changing the body is not an easy task whatsoever. In theory, it is a simple thing. Make no mistake – there IS a lot of science behind the process. Every exercise you do and every bite of food you take should have a distinct purpose. However, unless you just like to know “how” things work, you need not bog yourself down with these details to will lead to “paralysis by analysis” and eventual discouragement (leading to not reaching your goals).

With that being said, my personal training service is built on “doing it” AND “understanding it”. I’ll get you where you want to be and help you understand, to any level of detail you may be interested in, why we’re doing what. However, after training hundreds of clients over the years, I realize that many people just want to get from point A to point B and know how to sustain the results while continually making progress once they have completed their personal training program with me. Obviously, the more simple I keep things, the more progress they are able to make in the long term, even long after they have stopped using my services. Hence, the creation of my “Caveman Program“.

Don’t confuse this with anything else you’ve read or done before. I could tell you how easy it is and how you will obtain the greatest results anyone has every obtained on any exercise program or diet. Exercise OR diet – which is the Caveman approach? Neither. Or, maybe both, and a bit more. I prefer to think of it as a lifestyle.

No matter what your goals are, the first thing you have to do is understand one simple thing: “Why am I not already there?” Is it because you eat junk food? Is it because you’re unable to stay consistent? Is it because you’re too busy to do what you need to do? Ask yourself why you aren’t where you need to be and face it head on. While there are many programs, books, DVD’s, and websites out there that tell you that you only need to eat this, take this or do that, this is not one of those.

Regardless of who you are, the greatest exercise program and nutritional strategy will not work if you are not willing to address your personal faults and do what is necessary to fix those issues.

This program is NOT for every person that is looking for a quick fix. I’m not going to push any crazy supplements on people. No miracle fat loss pills. No 15 minute workouts. This is about correcting bad habits, putting forth effort, working hard and being accountable. Everything has a purpose, even the name of the program.

There’s a difference between this program and our ancestors from thousands of years ago. First and foremost, through science, we know that the caveman was actually not in physically appealing shape, mainly, because they went against many of the principles that I preach and require clients to practice (had I been around, I would’ve kept the caveman in much better shape). The caveman, due to circumstance, had imposed fasting (as they obtained food by hunting and gathering, and these things are greatly restricted by conditions such as inclement weather). Of course, the caveman didn’t have the modern gyms and fitness centers that we have now. Believe it or not, this isn’t as important as one may think, as training in itself, in a primitive style (the simple lifting of objects) is the most effective style of exercise ever created. The over-complication of program design, crazy machines and ridiculous exercise gadgets has turned the science behind exercise into a joke and had limited more people than it has empowered. Think I’m wrong? Walk into any gym in your town right now – tell me how many people are actually in shape. You’ll see that very few people even look like they workout. I think that’s kind of funny, as there are several franchises, such as Planet Fitness, that sale the “no intimidation zone” as part of their sales pitch. Trust me, the condition and shape at your average gym or fitness center is typically no better than you’ll find at your local bar or coffee shop.

We have a couple of advantages that the caveman simply did not have:
-Availability of food. We control when we eat and what. The latter, for many people, is a concern that will be addressed. I will be educating you on WHAT to choose and HOW to choose it.

-We have more than trees and rocks to lift.

No matter your fitness goals, if followed, this will be the most effective fitness program you will ever follow. It is not a one size fits all program. It isn’t casual. It isn’t as simple as doing one thing or the other. It will not work well with Nutri-systems or Weight Watchers. The program is scalable and is designed for all fitness levels and fitness goals. Whether your goal is to look better in a bathing suit, lose fat and transform your body, compete in a fitness competition, get ready for the beach or a wedding, or to simply improve performance in day to day tasks, this will be the only program you will ever need.

What makes me so sure? Well, I’m fortunate enough to have my own group of test subjects (clients) and their results are anything but typical.

In the coming weeks, I’ll be writing much more and also posting a few video blogs about the Caveman Program. I’m also working on a website dedicated strictly to the program. And yes, the book is coming as well.

There’s so much to discuss and so many aspects of the program that I will be discussing, but I wanted to take a second (or over 1000 words, sorry) to get the idea out there. Get ready – the Caveman Program isn’t for everyone. It’s only for those that are completely serious and committed to obtaining the body of their dreams.

Boyd Myers