What is primal fitness?
What really is primal fitness, primal nutrition…?
Recently the primal way of eating and exercising is getting more and more popular. Many people believe that it’s the best way we can live and take care of our bodies. The thing is that we know very little about how the primal man actually lived. We know that our ancestors were hunters and gatherers. We also know that they didn’t live very long. Probably due to the harsh living conditions.
We believe that they ate quite healthy. That could be true because everything they ate was naturally grown and they ate it raw, but I don’t believe that the ancient man had a very comprehensive diet. There was no agriculture and no markets where to buy groceries at that time. They ate what they could find or hunt and probably quite often they weren’t able to provide a very healthy meal that contained all the necessary nutrients.
We can try, but we won’t be able to replicate the way our ancestors lived and we don’t need to. Our ancestors were lucky if they lived to their forties. You have to understand that we are very privileged - we live in a highly developed world. We have a unique opportunity that our ancestors hadn’t – we can combine the power of modern medicine and science with the primal knowledge of our ancestors to live a full life. If only people could have the sense to recognize the necessity of physical activities and healthy, naturally grown food in their life, the modern society would have a lot more physically and mentally healthy people.
The problem with the “primal way of exercising” is that there is very little quality information to be found. Everyone understands this term differently. For many primal exercising is about lifting free weights and doing pull-ups in a gym, for others it’s about barefoot running, climbing trees and lifting logs.
What is primal fitness for me?
Some of you may have already seen my video that I submitted for the Primal Blueprint Fitness competition. In this video you can see me rushing through woods, carrying logs etc. That’s actually the way I train, but you need to understand that it’s just one part of my actual weekly training schedule and it’s definitely not the kind of training beginners should be doing. It’s a high intensity workout that requires specific skills and good physical condition. It’s a great workout, but it’s definitely more suitable for experienced fitness enthusiasts and athletes.
I don’t divide my exercises or workouts in primal and not-primal. I don’t see the point of doing that. Everything I do I would call practical/functional fitness. Under this term goes a lot of stuff from bodyweight exercises and primal training. It’s very hard to say what is primal and what’s not. I believe if a particular exercise feels natural to your body (without movement restrictions and artificial support) it can be considered primal/natural or functional. Pull-up and push-up exercises are also natural. Is crawling, running, swimming or lifting heavy things natural? Of course. Does crawling in a forest make the process more natural than crawling on the floor in a gym? Not so much, except that being outdoors in fresh air is more fun and better for health than being indoors.
For some people the primal way of training seem dangerous. But in reality – which sport isn’t? Practicing primal fitness is as dangerous as any sport. The risk you take depends on the motivational factors you have. If training your body is just a hobby you do for fun you won’t push yourself as hard as you would if you were a professional athlete. In the end the only one who can protect you is you. As long as you take small steps and train for health reasons only – everything should be ok. But if you want to prove yourself and push beyond your limits, you need to realize the risks you are taking and be ready to face the consequences. I’m very competitive from nature and that is why I sometimes tend to do things that are a little on the risky side. You may think that it’s foolish to jump down a tree or balance on a slippery log, however, I’m very aware of the risks I’m taking and I know my limits very well. If you do too – primal training will be all but dangerous to you.
Why do I do it?
The science and understanding of safe and functional body development has come a long way. The modern fitness industry is starting to slowly realize that lifting dumbbells is not enough to obtain a healthy, functional and powerful body. However, I can honestly say that randomly rushing through woods, lifting logs and climbing trees all the time isn’t the best way to develop your body either. So then there’s the question - why do I do it?
Firstly we need to clear two things. Firstly, despite the fact that I’m not following a strictly designed workout plan, none of my workouts are random. I always try to get a well rounded workout and progress gradually. Secondly – primal training is just one of my five or four weekly workouts. Training in forest is my hobby. I really enjoy it. I don’t look at it as a workout – it’s more like a way to test my abilities, enjoy nature and relax. All the “real” work is done in other training routines.
Bodyweight exercises, pilates, martial arts etc. I do the rest of my workouts because it helps me to develop a strong and functional body in a safe way. I do it because I want to live a healthy life, not because I enjoy doing pull-ups or squats. Of course I don’t hate it either. It feels good to achieve the goals I set for myself – like the one hand push-up or pistol squat.
Training in natural settings is much more versatile than training in a gym. I like it because it makes me stronger and well rounded. Doing the same exercises in the same gym over and over again can make me dull very quickly. Working out in natural settings never gets me bored because there are just so many things to take in.
Of course it’s not fun and games all the time. Some training elements can be harsh to your body. For example I love to run barefoot and I also choose to climb trees with my shoes off. The bark can be very rough and sometimes I scratch my foot soles. If it happens I take a break and heal my wounds until I climb again. My foot soles have gotten rough in time so lately I can really enjoy climbing trees barefoot.
Should you do it?
If you are the least bit interested in it - give it a try. This way of training is very adaptive. Everyone of any fitness level and experience can enjoy it. Beginners can start with basic, low intensity movements and gradually progress. There are no limitations, the progression is endless. You aren’t restricted by exercises, set time periods or repetitions.
You can always run faster, walk longer, jump higher and lift heavier. If lifting weights seem boring and you want to experience total physical independence natural/primal/functional way of training is the way to go.
If you still doubt the effectiveness of the primal way of training you can take a look at the physiques of people living in the underdeveloped regions of world like Africa. Men of the native tribes in Africa look slim and athletic and they have achieved that without any fancy fitness routines. The only reason the modern fitness industry exists in the first place is because the lifestyle of the modern man becomes more and more sedentary. That’s the way it is and that’s the way it will be.
However, the way our ancestors lived wasn’t something you would relate to fitness lifestyle - it was pure survival. They did it because it was the only way to be alive, not because they enjoyed it. The thing you should learn from them the most is that it’s better to train your body with different methods little by little than doing only one thing all the time. This way you will avoid overtraining, develop a versatile body and make training more fun.
Conclusion
Everything comes down to personal preferences. If you enjoy doing something and you feel that it’s good for you, then keep on doing that. Something that suits me might not be suitable for you and vice versa. Everyone does and preaches what they believe in. There are many great and experienced guys who tell very different things and although completely different – it all makes sense. The thing is that there is no such thing as the “one and only right way”. For every person and for every goal there is a different path. Someone likes MovNat, others like Crossfit, but someone else thinks that weightlifting is the answer to all questions. And I or anybody else can’t say that he is right and he is wrong.
In this website I write about basic things that will work for anybody as well as things that feel right for me, but it doesn’t certainly mean that you will feel the same way about it. I encourage you to take in account what I’m saying and what others are telling and make your own decisions and find the way that works for you with the method of trial and error like I have.
