They don’t make good workout partners, but these beasts are delicious! Learn all you need to know about being the world’s keystone predator.

As a red-blooded alpha human, are you missing a trick by only eating proteins from herbivorous (vegetarian) animals? Tuna and salmon are some of the most common protein sources you’ll find on an athlete’s dinner plate. That’s largely because the flesh of these predators has more protein and omega-3s than almost any other fish in the ocean.

However, does the same logic hold true for the rest of the animals at the top of the food chain? Be warned, some of this information might be hard to digest, but the rewards may help separate the winners from the losers. Get ready to broaden your taste buds, if you dare.

Alligators And Crocodiles

The undisputed kings of the waterways have made a few meals of humans, but it doesn’t have to be a one-sided affair. As little as 100 g of alligator meat has 232 calories, but packs an astounding 46 g of protein.

Its cousin, the crocodile, might be larger, but isn’t quite as impressive with 100 g fielding 29 g of protein and 186 calories. Both are excellent low-fat, high-protein options for an athlete looking to drop body fat or preparing for a weigh-in.

All you have to do is get used to the taste, which is commonly described as fishy-chicken. Use it in any recipe that calls for veal, seafood or chicken, such as the one here.

Snappy Stew PDF (55 KB)

Sharks

Shark fin soup may have contributed to the demise of our oceans’ top predators, but they have been able to bite back. Research at the University of Miami discovered that shark meat has high concentrations of BMMA, a neurotoxin linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Lou Gehrig Disease.

What’s more, 100 g of shark meat has just 21 g of protein, so it’s certainly not a nutritional juggernaut, but it does have 980 mg of omega-3 fatty acids. Fish shops can be tricky and try to sell it under different names such as flake, lemon fish, or ocean fillet, so make sure you ask exactly what it is before you tuck in because it could cost you in the long run.

Octopus And Squid

Cast your mind not to the 50-foot giant squid, but to their smaller, less threatening cousins. If you need oomph for a grueling workout, then snack on this often-forgotten protein source. Just 100 g will give you 30 g of protein and six times the RDA of vitamin B12, well known for its energy-releasing qualities.

“It’s also very rich in antioxidant selenium which will mop up the free radical damage incurred during training,” says sports nutritionist Matt Lovell. It is slightly high in salt and just 100 g will take up 32 percent of your cholesterol allowance, so stick to having it once or twice per week. It’s usually served battered and fried but there is a healthier way to eat it using the recipe here.

*Warning: Overcook it and it’ll taste like a giant squid would: a tire!

Cracking Calamari PDF (66 KB)

Wild Boar

While boars technically are omnivores (eat both meat and vegetables), they deserve a mention thanks to their predatory nature, especially toward anyone who stands in their path. But do they stack up nutritionally?

Well, boar has just 160 calories per 100 grams and 28 g of protein, so it’s lower in calories and fat than its tamer counterparts.

By its nature, it will be completely organic, but can be tougher than pork. Your best bet is to cook it in stews or buy it in a sausage format for your next BBQ.

Just remember to cook them thoroughly as they are, after all, wild beasts that haven’t had a farmer to mommy their health.

Snakes

Snake meat might be the kind of meal you save for the time when you’re in survival mode, putting those Bear Grylls shows into practice. However, while it’s seen as a last-resort food to the West, it’s common fare in the East, where its medicinal qualities are used to treat everything from cancer to impotence.

Snake has approximately 93 calories per 100 grams—half that of chicken—even though it’s reported to taste the same. However, to prepare it, you have to go through the risky operation of first catching a snake, avoiding the fangs, filleting it, then battering and deep-frying it.

But just imagine the calorie-burning effects involved—they’re far greater than the test it takes to pull up at the drive through down at your local KFC!

Food #1 that HARMS your brain:  Fructose

In a 2012 UCLA study published in the Journal of Physiology, researchers found that a diet high in fructose over time can damage your memory and learning ability.

Beyond the harm to your brain, it’s well known in the research world that a high fructose diet can also cause insulin resistance in your body over time, and possibly lead to type-2 diabetes and extra body fat.  If that’s not enough, a high fructose diet also detrimentally affects your triglyceride levels in your blood as well as small dense LDL particles that cause plaque in your arteries.

So what we have here is high-fructose intake = impaired memory and learning in your brain, increased risk of diabetes, and increased risk of heart disease. Oh, and we forgot to mention extra belly fat too…  Yum – who wants another can of soda pop or a large bowl of corn syrup sweetened ice cream!

The average person eating a modern western diet of processed food consumes a LARGE quantity of fructose without even thinking about it from all of the soft drinks (high fructose corn syrup typically), sweetened juice drinks, orange juice, processed junk foods such as cakes and candies, as well as the HFCS that’s added to store-bought salad dressings, breads and cereals, and even condiments like ketchup.

Note that many sports drinks, even though marketed as “healthy”, can have large amounts of corn syrup or even crystalline fructose as their main sweetener.  These sports drinks can be equally as bad as a soda for your body and your brain.  Don’t be fooled by the clever marketing showing pictures of pro athletes guzzling this stuff.

Also note that agave syrup (aka, agave nectar) which is marketed as a “healthy” sweetener as well, is one of the most concentrated forms of processed fructose in sweeteners as well.  I personally stay away from agave sweeteners as much as possible unless the amounts are very small.

All of these fructose-laden foods and drinks are easy to avoid though if you choose to eat consciously… for example, make homemade salad dressings from your favorite olive oil and vinegar with added spices, or choose to drink unsweetened iced tea with lemon instead of sweetened drinks or juices.  If you use a lot of ketchup, try to reduce the quantity by mixing with mustard or hot sauce, which typically don’t contain HFCS sweetener in any significant quantities.

Last thing to note about fructose… Yes, natural whole fruits do contain fructose, but generally contain MUCH smaller quantities of fructose than you would consume in a sweetened juice drink, soft drink or sweetened junk foods.  Also, the phytonutrients, antioxidants, and fiber that’s contained in most whole fruits counteracts any negative effects of fructose.  I personally try to keep fruit intake to no more than 1-2 pieces a day due to the sugar and fructose content of larger amounts of fruit.

Here’s a trick:  Did you know that limes and lemons contain virtually zero fructose, and only 3-4 grams of total carbs in a whole lemon or lime, whereas a typical orange contains 6 grams of fructose and 25 grams of total sugar per fruit.  I squeeze lemons and limes daily into either water or teas for a healthy flavorful drink. Fresh lemon juice has even been shown to control blood sugar response from a meal…another bonus!
Other Foods that HARM Your Brain:

You probably already know some of the harmful health effects of these foods, but long term effects on your brain are yet another…

Trans fats — strongly inflammatory in your entire body including damage to cell membranes throughout your body.  Avoid hydrogenated oils in processed foods and deep fried foods.

Mercury — studies show that mercury from pollution (coal burning plants are the biggest source of mercury pollution to air and water) and from fish that are high on the food chain such as tuna, shark, swordfish, tilefish, etc can possibly cause long term negative effects on your brain.  Limit these types of fish to a couple times a month and focus more on fish such as salmon, trout, and many other types of smaller fish to reduce your mercury load.

Wheat-based foods — In the groundbreaking book, Wheat Belly, Dr William Davis makes a very convincing argument that wheat has addictive properties in the brain.  Wheat contains compounds termed “exorphins” that have an effect in your brain similar to opiate drugs.  This explains why people have such a hard time giving up their beloved breads, cereals, pasta, and muffins because these foods are mildly addictive.

I know personally from past experience that if I have have a pasta dinner, I’ll go back for seconds and thirds as I just can’t seem to stop eating the stuff.  And then hours after dinner, I’ll get cravings for more carb-based foods or sweets.  But if I pass on the pasta and just have meat, veggies, and salad, I find myself totally satisfied after dinner with no cravings later at night.
The good news is…

There are plenty of superfoods, herbs, and spices that can protect your brain and your other organs too!

In fact, did you know that turmeric is one of the highest antioxidant spices that also exhibits brain-protecting effects? In India, where curry containing turmeric and other spices is eaten daily, rates of Alzheimers disease is among the lowest in the world, proving some of the brain-protecting effects of turmeric.

In addition, the powerful DHA and EPA omega-3 fats in fish oil has been proven in countless studies to protect your brain from damage over the years.

By Jim Laird

Life is nothing but a series of patterns. When you do the same thing every day for enough years, these patterns show themselves, and your sphere of influence begins to make more sense. In the fitness industry, this manifests itself in the mistakes you see people making, because few mistakes are made in isolation. When you see one client headed down a shaky path, chances are she’s not alone.

I make my living helping women look and feel better. When they come to me, they’ve reached a point where they know they need help. And when I ask them what they’ve done to themselves to necessitate my intervention, similar threads emerge. In other words, every single one of them says the same damned thing:

“My diet isn’t bad. I’m a very healthy eater. In fact, I think I eat way too much!”

Commonalities

There’s something else connecting all these women: They all eat the same crap day after day. One of the first things I do when I work with new clients is ask them to bring me a list of the foods they’re eating. Invariably, their daily menu will consist of crackers, yogurt, peanut butter, and celery sticks—and that’s before I actually start digging.

I’ll eventually get most of the women I work with to confess to bingeing on foods like ice cream at least every four or five days. We’re not talking about a small dish of the stuff, either. These women seemingly eat gallons of it, and they can’t understand why they can’t stop.

I know the reason, though. It’s a very simple one:

Most women consume a diet of low-density food that’s low in fat and high in carbohydrates, causing their bodies to desperately crave fats and sugar. That’s what your diet of pretzels and peanut butter is doing to your body.

Undernourishment

What’s happening here is that your body isn’t getting what it needs on a regular basis, so it starts craving what it’s not getting. This is the part you need to learn if you ever want to be successful. Not eating enough for long periods of time will cause your body to slow down and become more efficient. This is because your body doesn’t care what it looks like. It cares only about survival.

When you deprive yourself for several days, then binge eat, you’re turning your body into a fat storing machine, because this brand of “nutrition” slows your metabolism to a crawl. You’re essentially turning your Ferrari into a Prius, whereby your body becomes too efficient and learns to survive on the least amount of resources possible. Simply put, most women aren’t eating enough food to hit their basic minimum requirements for the energy they need to expend each day.

And yet, everyone still does the same thing.

The Solution

Fortunately, there’s an easy fix for most people. All it requires is a touch of discipline, and a large measure of common sense. For most of my clients, the problem is solved by gradually adding fat and protein to every meal. At the same time, we pull out almost all of their simple sugary starches. Eventually—and sometimes immediately—we use The Carb Nite Solution to turbocharge metabolic repair.

This simple step is usually all it takes. Most women, when starting The Carb Nite Solution and stopping this madness, see rapid results. They’re able to eat more food, and those cravings disappear.

What’s the first step, then? With most clients, I take the counterintuitive approach of telling them to simply start eating as much as they can. This entails throwing in a couple of eggs, a piece of bacon here and there, and some salmon and broccoli. The idea, here, is taking someone who’s metabolically deranged—and trust me, this probably applies to you—and making repairs to their metabolism by making sure they’re no longer undernourished.

Your body needs fat for a wide range of functions, including—and especially-hormone production. If you’re cutting fat out of your diet, you’re going to crave a lot more sugar. Your body will want to manufacture things, and it’s going to want sugar for this purpose. When you can’t produce the hormones you need—serotonin and melatonin, among others—everything’s going to be off, including your moods and your ability to sleep.

Digestive Support

Once we’ve made the appropriate dietary adjustments, the next step involves asking clients how they feel. Most times, when there’s a problem, it pertains to digestion. Most women aren’t accustomed to the volume of fat and protein they need, because they haven’t been eating it, so they’ll need some help.

For example, when you don’t eat a lot of meat—or you’ve stopped altogether for a period of time—you’re at risk for a zinc deficiency. That’s what happens when, like most women I start working with, your diet consists of 70 percent starches. Since zinc is necessary for the production of stomach acid, some women aren’t properly prepared for what happens when fat and protein are added back into their diet—and they’ll run into problems like constipation and diarrhea.

When these issues arise, we’ll add some digestive enzymes or digestive support—typically something containing HCL and/or ox bile for acid support—to their regimen. If you act on my suggestions and find you’re really in bad shape digestively, you may need to seek out a functional medicine physician. When you think about it, however, that’s a very small and temporary price to pay to stop being metabolically deranged.

You Might Be Training Too Hard

We’ve seen women drop a full clothing size in as little as four weeks through a combination of a real food approach and basic exercise—which may be as simplistic as walking. I don’t advocate beginning this sort of metabolic repair with hard exercise, because hard exercise can actually make losing fat harder by overwhelming an already metabolically damaged body.

The rationale here is simple. If your body’s metabolically damaged, and you’re not processing blood sugar properly and not breaking down fat for energy, training hard is like driving a car that’s out of tune. If your car has bad brakes and a bad transmission, but you try to take it up to 100 miles per hour on the highway, what’s likely to happen? You’re going to compound the damage.

Your body works the same way. It’s far more effective to allow the nutritional changes to sink in, letting your body recharge and put its resources into healing itself, as opposed to simply producing more cortisol.

Breaking it Down

Just eat real food. You need to be consuming stuff like bacon, eggs, salmon, grass-fed beef, and chicken, and you need to be avoiding refined sugars. Your diet shouldn’t consist of snack foods. They’re not meals. Get away from pretzels, crackers, popcorn, celery sticks, and peanut butter. Stop being afraid to eat foods that have fat in them, and stop avoiding animal products.

Your best bet? Try The Carb Nite Solution, where you’ll be eating meat, vegetables, and fish, followed by a solid carb-laden meal every week. This alone will have you showing huge improvements in the way you feel, the way you look, and your overall health. And once you’re no longer metabolically deranged, you’ll see a huge difference in the way you’re capable of exercising, too.