Hello! My name is Rachel, and I have been primal since February ’10. I have fought with my weight all my life. I was a very chubby kid and have been on pretty much any diet you can name. I used conventional wisdom/calorie restriction/chronic cardio to shed about 35 lbs but still I had many digestive issues, headaches, my hair falling out, etc. Now all those things are in the past and I have been free from chronic stomach pains and headaches for months. I feel lean everyday, and I am enjoying eating REAL food without having to count calories or feel like Im being restricted.
So a bit about my life. I live in San Diego and I have the privilege of living by the beach, which is amazing for primal living. I have an amazing fiance who is also on the Primal bandwagon and 3 dogs who we share our lives with (Recon, our Coy-dog pictured with me above). . I studied Judo for 9 years and currently hold a 2nd degree black belt, although I have taken a break from martial arts due to lack of time, id love to get back into it soon. I love hiking, mountain biking, adventure racing, swimming, exploring, pretty much anything outside, which will all be pictured here as much as I can. Thanks all for reading.
Natural Selection 
“dreams someday of owning her own primal vacation business in Costa Rica”
Hold that thought… down the road as in maybe 5 years or so I would seriously consider investing in the biz…. literally!!
Feel free to e-mail me for your current thoughts. I am in ZERO position now…. but even in 2-3 years I will be 🙂
Hit me up! PrimalToad1@gmail.com
Hey it’s me again,
I believe I accidently deleted the last e-mail you sent me. I believe you replied on Monday and by accident it has been deleted 😦 Sorry!
Feel free to shoot me the same one…
And, one thing that is important for your blog. I tried to subscribe via a google reader but I just get a bunch of gibberish. If you click on it yourself you will know what I mean.
I can help you with that if you want.
Talk to you soon!
-Todd
Hey Athena
I stumbled upon your blog via your picture in a Grok shirt on the Flickr page – whew! Anyways, we have a lot of the same interests and I just downloaded The Primal Blueprint book to my Kindle this morning and am looking forward to reading it. I have been reading the blog for awhile now and really want to start putting some concepts into play. Glad I ran across your site and will check in for updates on living your primal life! PS: Would love to do the primal life vacation business in Costa Rica so will get in touch about it if I win the lottery 😉
nice!! its a great read, also a good one is “Good Calories, Bad Calories” by Gary Taubes, im makin my way through that one right now and its awesome 🙂 grok on!!
You gave to be one of the prettiest women I have ever seen + you are smart and primal. Your fiance is a lucky lucky man 🙂
You are so sweet! Thank you so much!
I love checking in to see how you are doing. I am on the same path so it is fun to hear other’s stories.
You are so photogenic! You really should give us a photo in every post. It really adds to your blog rather than just text. A little extra work but your readers would really appreciate it!
Thanks so much! And will do 🙂 Pictures it is! Thanks for reading!
Hi,
I stumbled across your blog while reading success stories on MDA. Because it’s undated, I’m not certain what your progress has been thus far.
I need the prospective of a woman on primal living. I hope you don’t mind indulging me with a few answers- What’s worked for you for losing weight?, what has been a stalling point?, and how much weight have you lost in 6+ months?
When working out- what changes have you noticed- more/less endurance, changes in muscular response, etc?
Sorry, I’ve been debating this for a while… been trying to “Eat Clean” and it’s just too much of a PITA. I think the freedom of primal living (and the capability to IF and not worry about it) is supremely appealing.
Thanks for your time! Grok On!
Michelle
Sure! There arent many women on the primal lifestyle. Acutally Ill devote a post soon to primal women and we can talk about issues that specifically effect us. Here are some answers for you:
Whats worked for you for losing weight?
Keeping my carbs under 50g caused me to lose weight super fast but I thought I was getting a bit too thin and was losing muscle so I upped my carbs to 70-100g and it seems to be my sweet-spot where I can lose fat and still have tons of energy to build muscle and have great workouts.
What has been a stalling point?
Ive noticed when I start to eat a lot of dairy (heavy cream, yogurt) I feel bloated and my weightloss stalls. When I cut it out, I am much leaner and feel just generally better. I replaced all dairy with coconut milk, but I still enjoy raw cheese (this doesnt affect me as bad as yogurt and milk)
How much weight have you lost in 6+ months?
According to the doctors scale Ive lost around 11lbs. I feel pretty good where I am at. My concentration now is more on building strength rather than losing fat. The last few lbs of fat I have I am comfortable with, I like curves!!
When working out- what changes have you noticed?
I took a 4month break from CW ‘working out’. I just ran on the beach 1x a week and did some light lifting of rocks and climbing. I just went back to working out (lifting weights at the gym) and I have actually gained strength from taking the 4 month break and just working out primally 1x a week. I think as long as you push yourself and eat right you dont even need to work out 4x a week to see results (2x a week would likely be all you need to make fast progress). I have MUCH more endurance and my reflexes and flexibility feels awesome. I am going to start barefoot running. I really want to run a race barefoot.
I hope this helps! Thanks for reading!
Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions, I do appreciate it. I think I’ll give this a whack and see how it goes.
Take care!
Hi Athena,
I just found your blog tonight and am loving it.. i’m reading “back” all your posts. You’re absolutely beautiful! 🙂 I’ve been dealing with a tonne of gastro issues, food allergies, etc. and think that going primal is the way for me to feel better! I’ve been looking for women’s “Primal” blogs and they’re few and far between. I absolutely *LOVE* that you post what you eat every day.. this is so helpfuly for me as i’m very new to eating this way. I have a few ?’s for you if you don’t mind…
1. How long does coconut milk stay fresh for in the fridge?
2. Do you have any other uses for coconut milk?
3. Did you have any concerns re: health when you started eating ‘primal’? I see you eat eggs/beef almost daily, and we’re always told to do the *exact* opposite, so i’m still trying to wrap my head around that. Any advice for newbies?
Thanks so much! 🙂
~Carla~
1) My coconut milk stays good for about a week in the fridge. After that it gets a bit crusty. I normally go through a can a week so it works out.
2) I use coconut sometimes in cooking stir frys or ill throw a bit into a post-workout protien shake after I lift. I also use it in any situation that would require cream if i dont have it handy or if im staying away from dairy. I cant eat more than a few tbsp or i get the laxitive effect. Just a warning, i once went too overboard! whoops!!
3) I did have concerns but they started melting away after I just felt better than Ive ever had. I take breaks from eggs in the mornings just so i dont get egg sensitive, and I try to very my beef intake. I noticed If i eat too much red meat in a short amount of time (like 1/2lb every single day for 10days) then I start to get too much iron in my blood and I get leg and foot cramps. I just avoid red meat for a few days and the cramps go away. I think it really varies from person to person and you just gotta experiment with it. If it makes you feel better, pre-primal I had high blood pressure and low B12 levels. Now my BP is very normal and all my bloodwork came back excellent after 7 months of eating this way. Trust your body and it will tell you what works for it.
Stay in touch and thanks for reading! Dont hesistate to ask if you have any more questions! 🙂
Thanks for the warning on the coconut.. LOL!!! And thanks for the tips on red meat, etc.. much appreciated! I’ve had carbs (grains) cut out for the last couple of weeks and am starting to feel pretty damn good! It’s SOO nice!
Hey Athena-
It’s the first week and I’m tempted to go back to the previous way of eating: whole wheat, lean meats, and lots of salads… not much fruit because of sugar… because I feel like crap these days.
What do you eat on a daily basis? What does your menu and quantity look like? Did you go through hard moments and what was the cause of them??
I’d love to hear your experiences because I really want to keep going because people keep saying how good they feel… and I wonder if its possible to do this as an outdoor educator who spends a lot of time in the field, backpacking, etc.!!
Thanks for sharing- !
Dont go back! Here are the answers to your question
My daily meal looks like:
B: 3 eggs, 2 strips bacon + coffee w/ coconut milk
L: I fast typically but sometimes ill have a big salad
D: 1lb of some sort of ground meat with sauteed veggies in coconut oil. However if its a heavy workout day then ill have a yam with lots of butter
If Im still hungry ill snack on apples with nuts or berries with coconut milk.
Hard moments. I go through them all the time. As a law student I am *very* limited on time, especially during finals. This is when I find myself straying and stressed and craving bad food. Especially since I used to be a huge baker, I loved making homemade bread. So as a treat I still bake my own bread when there is a get together but I dont have it as part of my daily diet because i know I dont feel good when I eat it. Hard moments will happen regardless of how you eat but I know I feel better about myself, and my head is much clearer when I eat paleo.
I think as an outdoor educator its definitely possible, its just a matter of seeing what works for you. Eat a bigger breakfast when you wake up and then you can spend all day in the field and just have a big meal when you get back. Perhaps pack some nuts and dried blueberries (my fav hiking snack) to keep you satisfied while your hiking around. Definitely don’t quit. Ive never been as happy or as healthy as I have been on paleo, its just changing your mindset which can be difficult but worth it. If you have any other questions dont hesitate on contacting me.
Thanks so much for your words of encouragement! I’ve been about 95 percent primal, save for that 1/2 a pint of ice cream in the middle of the month 😉 But that’s okay! lol.
I have gotten past that ‘carb flu’ and I feel great. I don’t binge on carbs and my sugar intake is super low, too.
I’m going to try it while back country skiing for 3 weeks, but due to group meals may have to compromise a little for 3 weeks– I cringe at the thought!
I’m looking forward to the holidays on this lifestyle; it seems easier to get through the once dreaded social events filled with ‘fattening’ foods and vast amounts of sugar. Now fattening foods are divine! lol.
Where are you?
Hey there! found your blog from Mark Sissons, I’ve been off and on paleo for awhile but I did have an eating disorder that I’ve just gotten control over so its been hard to stay strict paleo and now I have weight I really feel I should lose, but trying to recover from bulimia was tricky because I’m more overweight than under, yet trying to not deprive myself because it ended in binges..
So I’m always looking for inspiration and you definitely piqued my interest, I love BJJ and its a relative of Judo so yup! and I practice muay thai now, more girls need to get involved! Also I live in LA moving down south not quite to SD more like Mission Viejo, for school and to be closer to my husband as well.Oh and I love your dog! shepherd mix is my guess, always had love for the GSD. Great name too. Anyways really looking forward to your post and would love to see how you eat since yes you look great!
-Amanda