Sunday 24 March 2013

Primal Dog 1.0

This is my heart dog, Tam. 
Hes a 8.5 year Old English Mastiff. He weighs a lean & muscular 170lbs (12stones)  photo Bigbone3.jpg I started feeding him Primal when he was about a year old (before that he was on a high quality dog food called Orijen) 
Within a few months we saw marked improvements in overall health, coat etc even though he had seemed perfectly healthy before hand. 
I think people dont always realize how much healthier we and our companions can be when we think were already healthy. 
So many things that just seem normal maybe arnt but because they creep up on us gradually we just attribute to regular aging & wear & tear or simply don't notice them at all. 

A few months ago we had to take Tam to the vets as he had sprained his hock (note to anyone thinking of getting a mastiff.. They are not an agile breed LOL) 
Now keep in mind that mastiffs have an expected life expectancy of between 8-10 years. The Vet thought he was about 4 years old.....& was shocked that not only was he past 8, but he had no signs of the osteoarthritis & joint issues that are prevalent in the larger breeds and practically a given once they are older. 
 In fact, aside from injury's sustained as a direct result of gravity vs. 170lbs of bullheadedness, Tams never had to visit the vet for any health issues. 

& Yes.. that is a whole cow leg bone......

Saturday 23 March 2013

It starts here.

You may be wondering, whats a "Primal Dog and whats that got to do with this blog?

A long time ago I started researching dogs health in relation to food & nutrition, what I found was scary and that information led me to  feeding my dogs a Primal diet (Sometimes referred to as BARF aka Bones and raw food) 


On seeing the obvious health benefits this provided I thought.. if Animals  do better being fed what nature intended they eat, and not some processed dried crap out of a bag...  how much sense does it make that  maybe some of the same ideas might also apply to humans?. after all despite the increased Government/Doctor induced  guidelines on  "healthy eating" and emphasis on lots of "heart healthy whole grains, low fat everything and imitation sweeteners. you've got to admit  that people are getting fatter, sicker and more stressed. 
People spend hours every day running on a treadmill and wondering why they cant loose the weight. Foods that claim to be healthy "diet" foods leave them hungry and craving more. 
Heavy work loads lead to stress and exhaustion. 

The Conventional line of thinking obviously isent working.  

And what do they call the process of doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results?... Thats right... insanity....

So I thought.....
Life should be about being able to enjoy your time here.
Life should mean eating things that make you happy and make you feel healthy and alive.... (Not to mention full!)
Life should be full of joy and time to play.

So a year ago I changed the way I eat to what some call a Primal Way of Eating.
In simple terms I cut out grains, processed foods and anything that wouldn't have been available 100 years ago.

I eat High Fat/Moderate Protein/Low Carb delicious whole food.
I source all my meat from local sources that pasture their animals and treat them humanely.
I dont count calories and I don't do cardio..(In fact I bloody hate running.. Unless there's a  pissed off Grizzly charging me,, Im not running!)
I don't exercise any more than I used to.

Ive  gotten rid of the chronic inflammation issues i had been having with my shoulder and some other issues. I have more energy & I just feel better in general. And ive lost over 50 lbs in the last year.. without even trying. 
So this blog is my attempt at creating a space to chronicle my journey and  encourage me to continue making positive changes to create  a more relaxed and healthy life for myself, my Dear Husband and my 2 dogs who I will introduce later.