I just wanted to post up a quick mid-month update for March.
I am currently still happy with my decision to move my gym membership from Life Time Fitness to the Zoo Health Club. The Zoo gym has all of the resources that I need from a local gym without paying for additional features that I do not use. I have decided to switch weeks between home gym workouts and Zoo gym workouts. Switching up gym location each week has helped to prevent boredom/adaptation.
I stuck to my nutrition rules on 5th/6th weekend but I slipped in a Snickers Ice Cream bar and a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream on Sunday the 13th. The Snicker's was fucking delicious and the B&J was skrumptdidduliumptious! No regrets. I had one (ok...2) slip(s), but I am owning that decision made at that time and moving forward. Honestly, sticking to "the program" as strictly as I have been for several months now is so completely different than how I have ate for the majority of my life that I would consider one ice cream treat per month as an allowable "cheat" and not something that is going to send me to an early grave. Yes, it is definitely not Paleo nor Primal and would be highly discouraged in most nutritional guides, but I have to allow for one treat per month in my personal diet rulebook to maintain sanity. Limiting = Can Live With, but Not Allowed = Drive Rich Crazy. Those that follow Martin already know of his Cheesecake Mastery skills. One of my nicknames in college was Cookie after the Cookie Monster because of my go-to munchie item being any form of cookie. So, the legend of Cookie continues...
This month I started only weighing myself once per week on Saturday mornings. My weekly weights have been as follows: 2011-03-05@ 167.2 lbs and 2011-03-12 @ 166.8 lbs. According to the scales calculations via bio-impedance, my body fat has dropped slightly and muscle mass has increased slightly. According to my HowMyClothesFit meter and my HowILookInTheMirror scale, I see slight to moderate improvement in comparable historic metrics.
That's all for the updates for now. My next scheduled publish will be for the March Update Report including updates to measurements, labs, workout info, and picture comparisons to be published on or shortly after April 1, 2011.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Monday, February 28, 2011
Progress Update: 2011-03-01
First update, I fell off the bandwagon on everything! Just kidding, but I did have some strays off course.
Adherence to plan and adjustments:
Around the beginning of February, I had some problems staying away from a few things like Pizza and Ben & Jerry's. I didn't go completely crazy, but I did fall victim to the temptations a couple of times. This did not result in any significant fat gain, but it did stall any fat loss for a few weeks. So, basically, by Feb 15th I was still at about the same status as Jan 15th without any measurable changes.
Other than the few nutritional strays, I have stuck to my plan pretty well. Starting Monday Feb 28 I will be switching things up a bit. The 8/16 fast every weekday was a bit tiring on me, so I am going to decrease that to M/W/F. I will have a breakfast of eggs and some meat on Tuesday and Thursdays. I will be keeping Saturday and Sunday the same except that I will be limiting Saturday to only one feast/re-feed meal and eat more paleo for the rest of the day.
I have changed my gym membership from Life Time Fitness to Zoo Gym. Life Time is nice, but it's just more than I need and can be way too crowded at many hours. I am really diggin the equipment at the Zoo Gym and the location is better for me. I will be doing strength/resistance training on M/W/F with pushing on Monday, Pulling on Tuesday, and Balance/Flexibility/Stabilization on Fridays. Tuesday and Thursday will be some sort of interval training style workout. Saturday is for play and Sunday is for rest.
No picture updates this time. I will do a photo update on the first of next month.
Adherence to plan and adjustments:
Around the beginning of February, I had some problems staying away from a few things like Pizza and Ben & Jerry's. I didn't go completely crazy, but I did fall victim to the temptations a couple of times. This did not result in any significant fat gain, but it did stall any fat loss for a few weeks. So, basically, by Feb 15th I was still at about the same status as Jan 15th without any measurable changes.
Other than the few nutritional strays, I have stuck to my plan pretty well. Starting Monday Feb 28 I will be switching things up a bit. The 8/16 fast every weekday was a bit tiring on me, so I am going to decrease that to M/W/F. I will have a breakfast of eggs and some meat on Tuesday and Thursdays. I will be keeping Saturday and Sunday the same except that I will be limiting Saturday to only one feast/re-feed meal and eat more paleo for the rest of the day.
I have changed my gym membership from Life Time Fitness to Zoo Gym. Life Time is nice, but it's just more than I need and can be way too crowded at many hours. I am really diggin the equipment at the Zoo Gym and the location is better for me. I will be doing strength/resistance training on M/W/F with pushing on Monday, Pulling on Tuesday, and Balance/Flexibility/Stabilization on Fridays. Tuesday and Thursday will be some sort of interval training style workout. Saturday is for play and Sunday is for rest.
No picture updates this time. I will do a photo update on the first of next month.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Are you getting your cartenoids?
I found this very interesting.
http://donmatesz.blogspot.com/2011/01/study-people-prefer-carotene-complexion.html
http://donmatesz.blogspot.com/2011/01/study-people-prefer-carotene-complexion.html
Monday, January 3, 2011
Progress Update - 01/03/2011
Introduction
Today's post is the update to my previous post, Progress Information, with my current stats and comparison photos as of today, 01/03/2011. I had blood tests performed at CVS Minute Clinic this morning at 9 am in a 12-hr fasted state. After the blood tests, I had a light breakfast of eggs, bacon, swiss cheese, and water at Lifetime Fitness while reading and waiting for my fitness tests there. I was very pleased with some of the results, but I see that I made little or no progress in others. So with the good and bad news, I have more data and more theories to test.
Data Update
Data Analysis
I will start at the top and work my way down the table. First, over the past 6 months, my total weight loss is now 25 lbs. I know the caliper method is more accurate, so I am going by those measurements. I just use the scale measurements for easy daily/weekly tracking of movement. I surpassed my goal of 15% to 14.2% which makes me very proud! Body fat percentage is one on my major goals so this result is inspiring to continue as I have been doing.
Exercise max reps have all approximately doubled. I consider this acceptable for the amount of work that I have put in since Aug 1st.
My fasting glucose increased from 69 to 83, but 80 is optimal so I don't see any problem with this result. HbA1C results were the same at 5.6% which is a little high, but OK. Total cholesterol dropped from 237 to 200. I am happy with this drop but I am not that worried about trying to lower it any further. All other lipid panel results stayed the same and are acceptable to me.
My Max VO2 increased slightly, but I was hoping for a little more. This is something I want to work on. Bicep strength showed only a small increase and that surprised me. I did not expect my sit and reach to increase very much since I have always been generally flexible and did not focus on flexibility over the past 6 months. This test's results did not have a calculation of "Overall Fitness". Even though my data age increased by 1 year, my BodyAge remained at 30. I do not know exactly how calculate this, but I will take it as at east definitely not negative results. Actual measurements from the 3 point skin-fold method were listed on the results printout this time, so I have added those fields.
So, in summary, the numbers that should be low have stayed the same or dropped and the numbers that should be high have stayed the same or increased. I accept this as evidence of overall positive progress over the past 6 months and look forward to even better results at the end oh the next 3 months with my new methods under test.
Photo Comparisons
More Updates To Come
My next partial progress update will be on 02/01/2011 with more strength and training data.
Today's post is the update to my previous post, Progress Information, with my current stats and comparison photos as of today, 01/03/2011. I had blood tests performed at CVS Minute Clinic this morning at 9 am in a 12-hr fasted state. After the blood tests, I had a light breakfast of eggs, bacon, swiss cheese, and water at Lifetime Fitness while reading and waiting for my fitness tests there. I was very pleased with some of the results, but I see that I made little or no progress in others. So with the good and bad news, I have more data and more theories to test.
Data Update
| 7/1/2010 | 8/1/2010 | 1/3/2011 | |
| Measurements | |||
| Weight | 195 lbs | 185 lbs | 170 lbs |
| Body Fat (Scale) | 22.4% | 20.8% | 18.9% |
| Body Fat (Calipers) | 17.3% | 14.2% | |
| Exercise Max | |||
| Chin Ups | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| Pull Ups | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Standard Push Ups | 10 | 25 | 41 |
| Diamond Push Ups | 4 | 10 | 22 |
| CVS Minute Clinic | |||
| Fasting Glucose | 69 | 83 | |
| A1C | 5.6% | 5.6% | |
| Total Cholesterol | 237 | 200 | |
| LDL | unable to calculate | 145 | |
| HDL | 45 | 45 | |
| Triglycerides | < 50 | < 50 | |
| TC/HDL Ratio | 5.3 | 5.3 | |
| Blood Pressure | 121/86 | 118/80 | |
| Waist | 36 | 35 | |
| Framingham Risk | 3% | 1% | |
| 10-yr Heart Disease | Moderate Risk | Low Risk | |
| Lifetime Fitness | |||
| Max VO2 | 36.5 | 37.8 | |
| Bicep Strength | 89 | 91 | |
| Sit and Reach | 15 | 15.5 | |
| Overall Fitness | 55.6% | Not Calculated | |
| Age | 32 | 33 | |
| BodyAge | 30 | 30 | |
| 3 Site Skin-fold | |||
| Chest | 14 | ||
| Abdomen | 20 | ||
| Thigh | 12 |
Data Analysis
I will start at the top and work my way down the table. First, over the past 6 months, my total weight loss is now 25 lbs. I know the caliper method is more accurate, so I am going by those measurements. I just use the scale measurements for easy daily/weekly tracking of movement. I surpassed my goal of 15% to 14.2% which makes me very proud! Body fat percentage is one on my major goals so this result is inspiring to continue as I have been doing.
Exercise max reps have all approximately doubled. I consider this acceptable for the amount of work that I have put in since Aug 1st.
My fasting glucose increased from 69 to 83, but 80 is optimal so I don't see any problem with this result. HbA1C results were the same at 5.6% which is a little high, but OK. Total cholesterol dropped from 237 to 200. I am happy with this drop but I am not that worried about trying to lower it any further. All other lipid panel results stayed the same and are acceptable to me.
My Max VO2 increased slightly, but I was hoping for a little more. This is something I want to work on. Bicep strength showed only a small increase and that surprised me. I did not expect my sit and reach to increase very much since I have always been generally flexible and did not focus on flexibility over the past 6 months. This test's results did not have a calculation of "Overall Fitness". Even though my data age increased by 1 year, my BodyAge remained at 30. I do not know exactly how calculate this, but I will take it as at east definitely not negative results. Actual measurements from the 3 point skin-fold method were listed on the results printout this time, so I have added those fields.
So, in summary, the numbers that should be low have stayed the same or dropped and the numbers that should be high have stayed the same or increased. I accept this as evidence of overall positive progress over the past 6 months and look forward to even better results at the end oh the next 3 months with my new methods under test.
Photo Comparisons
More Updates To Come
My next partial progress update will be on 02/01/2011 with more strength and training data.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Progress Information
First, background information:
This is my first post to show my progress so far. I will also explain my plans for the next phase to begin on January 1, 2011. So far this year, in 2010, I have followed 2 different programs and I have had positive results with both. They were very different in most ways and produced very different results.
Winter 2009/2010
When I first decided to try something to lose some weight and get in better shape, I ordered the P90X workout program. This was in December of 2009. In the first round, I only made it to the 60-day mark at the end of January. I was very much out of shape and I just got worn out. Also, I did not make very significant changes to my diet, which was full of refined carbohydrates and industrial oils.
Spring 2010
Around March, I tried it again, but also ended at the 60-day mark due to being physically, mentally, and emotionally drained. This time I did take out many of the bad items from my diet, but I was substituting with meal replacement bars made with soy and many "heart-healthy whole grains" while cutting down on "artery-clogging saturated fat".
I do not mean to say anything bad about the P90X program. I do believe that it can get you ripped. However, to really get the most out of it, you need to already be at a decent level of fitness. I was not very strong at the time and did not have a lot of endurance, so it whipped me like a rented mule.
I had made diet changes according to what seemed to be the most widely-accepted advice, and I did notice that I felt a little better, but I wasn't seeing changes anywhere near like the progress photos advertised for the program. Now, I am not so naive to believe that the advertised results will be seen by everyone, but I thought I had given it my everything and my results were not as close as I felt they should have been given the amount of work and time I had put in over the 60 days so far.
Summer 2010
In July, I decided to give it another go. Below are my beginning photos for July 1, 2010. This is with no real exercise and back to the Standard American Diet since giving up on the second P90X round about 3 months prior. My approximate weight was 195 lbs.
I tried P90X again and I was seeing similar results as before. This time, after 30 days, I was already feeling like I could not make it through 60 days of it, much less the full 90 days. I had been following Sean Croxton of Underground Wellness for some time, and I was beginning to implement his suggestions on diet. I noticed better changes this time, but the workout schedule was still just too brutal for me.
From listening to Sean's radio shows, watching his videos, and reading his blogs, I was introduced to a numerous variety of interesting people with a vast array of knowledge. I started studying people like Paul Chek, Mark Sisson, Dr. Michael R. Eades, Chris Masterjohn, Robb Wolfe, Dr. Stephan Guyenet, Richard Nikoley, and MANY more. As I began introducing the advice from these resources, I started feeling much better.
Aug 2010
Now we are up to August 1, 2010. This was the first time a had real tests and measurements done for a set of beginning data. Below are my stats and photos:
July Aug
Dec 2010
From August 1st up until today, December 23rd, I have had a transition from eating 50/50 paleo to 80/20 paleo, but still including cheese and eggs (some paleo people don't consider eggs part of paleo). By around November 1st, I had eliminated all wheat except for my cheat Saturdays. From Richard Nikoley's blog, FreeTheAnimal.com, I was introduced to Martin Berkhan, the creator of LeanGains. Beginning around December 1st, I started following the LeanGains recommendations for 8/16 intermittent fasting.
Now we have arrived to today, December, 23, 2010. I am feeling better than I have in at least 10 years. I'm estimating my current body fat percentage is getting close to 15% compared to my previous measurement of 17%. My strength gains have been noticeably significant but I have not been tracking strength with data. I plan to start tracking workout and strength data for a better idea of my actual gains.
Next, plans for the next phase:
The next phase will still be based on the Primal Blueprint lifestyle and will continue to take the majority of its nutrient ratios and food items from an evolutionary-based mindset while following an intermittent fasting schedule from LeanGains. I have found this combination to work very well for me. It just feels RIGHT.
Some supplements and workouts suggested in The 4-Hour Body will be used from it's sections on gaining strength. I know people have a wide variety of opinions on Tim Ferriss. After reading his book, I find it to be an interesting collection ideas and personally-tested theories. I like personally-tested theories. Most of the information in this book was not new to me, but I did like how it brought many of the different ideas together.
Contrary to Tim's suggestions, strength training workouts will be performed fasted first thing in the morning on weekdays. I have seen a lot of information on fasted training from a variety of sources that intrigue me, so I want to test it out on myself. I will take some suggested supplements from both Martin and Tim along with cold water prior to fasted training, but no food and nothing with a significant caloric value. Meth or crank dope can double your single rep max and has zero calories. Put COPS on on high volume in the background and triple results can be seen! Kidding...I will be just using 10g BCAA's, Creatine, and NO-Xplode.
Nutrition
Weekdays: I will be using his 8/16 intermittent fasting during the weekdays.
Saturday: Each Saturday will be my feast day followed according to the suggestions from LeanGains and The 4-Hour Body.
Sunday: My Sundays' meals will consist of only coffee with cream and cinnamon in the morning followed by a reasonable-sized lunch with my parents. I can easily consume 1000-1500 calories of good quality food from this single meal, so I will not putting myself in any danger of not enough calories for the day.
Workouts
I recently ran across a website with a workout plan to get up to 100 consecutive push ups in 6 weeks or less, depending on your starting point. According to my initial test results, I am supposed to start at week 3. So, I will start week 3 of the routine on week 1 of my overall program. This will put me completing week 6 of the 100 push up workout program at the end of my first month. If all goes well, my push ups count will have increased from 40 to 100 in one month. That sounds like a huge task, but I'm willing to give it a shot.
Stay tuned for the next progress stats and photos coming Jan 3, 2011!
Update: Progress Update now published here.
This is my first post to show my progress so far. I will also explain my plans for the next phase to begin on January 1, 2011. So far this year, in 2010, I have followed 2 different programs and I have had positive results with both. They were very different in most ways and produced very different results.
Winter 2009/2010
When I first decided to try something to lose some weight and get in better shape, I ordered the P90X workout program. This was in December of 2009. In the first round, I only made it to the 60-day mark at the end of January. I was very much out of shape and I just got worn out. Also, I did not make very significant changes to my diet, which was full of refined carbohydrates and industrial oils.
Spring 2010
Around March, I tried it again, but also ended at the 60-day mark due to being physically, mentally, and emotionally drained. This time I did take out many of the bad items from my diet, but I was substituting with meal replacement bars made with soy and many "heart-healthy whole grains" while cutting down on "artery-clogging saturated fat".
I do not mean to say anything bad about the P90X program. I do believe that it can get you ripped. However, to really get the most out of it, you need to already be at a decent level of fitness. I was not very strong at the time and did not have a lot of endurance, so it whipped me like a rented mule.
I had made diet changes according to what seemed to be the most widely-accepted advice, and I did notice that I felt a little better, but I wasn't seeing changes anywhere near like the progress photos advertised for the program. Now, I am not so naive to believe that the advertised results will be seen by everyone, but I thought I had given it my everything and my results were not as close as I felt they should have been given the amount of work and time I had put in over the 60 days so far.
Summer 2010
In July, I decided to give it another go. Below are my beginning photos for July 1, 2010. This is with no real exercise and back to the Standard American Diet since giving up on the second P90X round about 3 months prior. My approximate weight was 195 lbs.
I tried P90X again and I was seeing similar results as before. This time, after 30 days, I was already feeling like I could not make it through 60 days of it, much less the full 90 days. I had been following Sean Croxton of Underground Wellness for some time, and I was beginning to implement his suggestions on diet. I noticed better changes this time, but the workout schedule was still just too brutal for me.
From listening to Sean's radio shows, watching his videos, and reading his blogs, I was introduced to a numerous variety of interesting people with a vast array of knowledge. I started studying people like Paul Chek, Mark Sisson, Dr. Michael R. Eades, Chris Masterjohn, Robb Wolfe, Dr. Stephan Guyenet, Richard Nikoley, and MANY more. As I began introducing the advice from these resources, I started feeling much better.
Aug 2010
Now we are up to August 1, 2010. This was the first time a had real tests and measurements done for a set of beginning data. Below are my stats and photos:
| 7/1/2010 | 8/1/2010 | |||||
| Measurements | ||||||
| Weight | 195 | 185 | ||||
| Body Fat (Scale) | 22.4% | 20.8% | ||||
| Body Fat (Calipers) | n/a | 17.3% | ||||
| Exercise Max | ||||||
| Chin Ups | 0 | 4 | ||||
| Pull Ups | 0 | 2 | ||||
| Standard Push Ups | 10 | 25 | ||||
| Diamond Push Ups | 4 | 10 | ||||
| CVS Minute Clinic | ||||||
| Fasting Glucose | 69 | |||||
| A1C | 5.6% | |||||
| Total Cholesterol | 237 | |||||
| LDL | unable to calculate | |||||
| HDL | 45 | |||||
| Triglucerides | < 50 | |||||
| TC/HDL Ratio | 5.3 | |||||
| Blood Pressure | 121/86 | |||||
| Waist | 36 | |||||
| Framingham Risk | 3% | |||||
| 10-yr Heart Disease | Moderate Risk | |||||
| Lifetime Fitness | ||||||
| Max VO2 | 36.5 | |||||
| Bicep Strength | 89 | |||||
| Sit and Reach | 15 | |||||
| Overall Fitness | 55.6% | |||||
| Age | 32 | |||||
| BodyAge | 30 |
July Aug
From August 1st up until today, December 23rd, I have had a transition from eating 50/50 paleo to 80/20 paleo, but still including cheese and eggs (some paleo people don't consider eggs part of paleo). By around November 1st, I had eliminated all wheat except for my cheat Saturdays. From Richard Nikoley's blog, FreeTheAnimal.com, I was introduced to Martin Berkhan, the creator of LeanGains. Beginning around December 1st, I started following the LeanGains recommendations for 8/16 intermittent fasting.
Now we have arrived to today, December, 23, 2010. I am feeling better than I have in at least 10 years. I'm estimating my current body fat percentage is getting close to 15% compared to my previous measurement of 17%. My strength gains have been noticeably significant but I have not been tracking strength with data. I plan to start tracking workout and strength data for a better idea of my actual gains.
Next, plans for the next phase:
The next phase will still be based on the Primal Blueprint lifestyle and will continue to take the majority of its nutrient ratios and food items from an evolutionary-based mindset while following an intermittent fasting schedule from LeanGains. I have found this combination to work very well for me. It just feels RIGHT.
Some supplements and workouts suggested in The 4-Hour Body will be used from it's sections on gaining strength. I know people have a wide variety of opinions on Tim Ferriss. After reading his book, I find it to be an interesting collection ideas and personally-tested theories. I like personally-tested theories. Most of the information in this book was not new to me, but I did like how it brought many of the different ideas together.
Contrary to Tim's suggestions, strength training workouts will be performed fasted first thing in the morning on weekdays. I have seen a lot of information on fasted training from a variety of sources that intrigue me, so I want to test it out on myself. I will take some suggested supplements from both Martin and Tim along with cold water prior to fasted training, but no food and nothing with a significant caloric value. Meth or crank dope can double your single rep max and has zero calories. Put COPS on on high volume in the background and triple results can be seen! Kidding...I will be just using 10g BCAA's, Creatine, and NO-Xplode.
Nutrition
Weekdays: I will be using his 8/16 intermittent fasting during the weekdays.
Saturday: Each Saturday will be my feast day followed according to the suggestions from LeanGains and The 4-Hour Body.
Sunday: My Sundays' meals will consist of only coffee with cream and cinnamon in the morning followed by a reasonable-sized lunch with my parents. I can easily consume 1000-1500 calories of good quality food from this single meal, so I will not putting myself in any danger of not enough calories for the day.
Sunday will serve as a semi-fasting day of only one meal. The lack of evening meals on Sunday will give and extended fasting period from Sunday's lunch to Monday's normal breakfast at noon. I have heard many suggested benefits of weekly 24-hour fasting, one of which being cellular protein cycling via autophagy. To put it in a simple way, this tells the cells it's trash day and the truck is coming, so set out your waste now for pickup.
Of course, water should be consumed during this 24-hour fast. Water to be applied as needed; don't drink X glasses of water a day thinking it is helping to flush out the system. It seems logical to me that kidneys can only filter out a limited amount of waste so an increase in water only helps until you hit the point where there is more water than the kidneys need. Also, I would think that the body is pretty good at monitoring this balance level. So, I will just be drinking if I'm thirsty and not forcing myself to drink any certain amount.
Of course, water should be consumed during this 24-hour fast. Water to be applied as needed; don't drink X glasses of water a day thinking it is helping to flush out the system. It seems logical to me that kidneys can only filter out a limited amount of waste so an increase in water only helps until you hit the point where there is more water than the kidneys need. Also, I would think that the body is pretty good at monitoring this balance level. So, I will just be drinking if I'm thirsty and not forcing myself to drink any certain amount.
This weekly cycle will be followed from Jan 1, 2011 to April 1, 2011. I will update with progress stats and photos once per month on the 1st.
Workouts
I recently ran across a website with a workout plan to get up to 100 consecutive push ups in 6 weeks or less, depending on your starting point. According to my initial test results, I am supposed to start at week 3. So, I will start week 3 of the routine on week 1 of my overall program. This will put me completing week 6 of the 100 push up workout program at the end of my first month. If all goes well, my push ups count will have increased from 40 to 100 in one month. That sounds like a huge task, but I'm willing to give it a shot.
Stay tuned for the next progress stats and photos coming Jan 3, 2011!
Update: Progress Update now published here.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Young female chimpanzees treat sticks as dolls: Growing evidence of biological basis for gender-specific play in humans
I was referred to this article by @evolvify tweet today.
First, I want to say that I think this was a very interesting theory and observations.
A quote at the end of the article sparked a thought:
"One of the things that makes our finding fascinating is that there is little evidence of anything comparable in other chimpanzee communities, which raises the possibility that the chimpanzees are copying a local behavioral tradition. So this may be a lovely case of biological and social influences being intertwined."
So, follow me here for a minute...
They are suggesting that the doll-like activities of young female chimps may not be a chimp thing, but is actually the chimps imitating human behavior. If that is true, then the question of why it is only the young female and not young male, mature female, or mature male chimps that exhibit this behavior still exists.
In order for this scenario to be true, you would have young female chimps specifically imitating the behavior of young female humans, which brings up some interesting thoughts.
This requires that the chimps understand male/female difference. Of course, like all animals, this understanding and recognition exists amongst other chimps but this takes that understanding and recognition ability to another level in that they also are able to recognize that difference in other species and determine the sex of a member of another species on observation. The same goes for an understanding and recognition of age/maturity in other species.
I restate that, for this theory to be true, the young female chimps are specifically imitating their "equal" in the human species. They are not imitating mature female humans or even young male humans so they have both age/maturity and sex correct. They would have to see the young female humans as "like them" and choose them as their closest link to another species because of the shared sex and age/maturity (relative age, not exact age of course).
Personally, I do not have any objections to this theory. It seems very plausible.
Let me know your thoughts...
They are suggesting that the doll-like activities of young female chimps may not be a chimp thing, but is actually the chimps imitating human behavior. If that is true, then the question of why it is only the young female and not young male, mature female, or mature male chimps that exhibit this behavior still exists.
In order for this scenario to be true, you would have young female chimps specifically imitating the behavior of young female humans, which brings up some interesting thoughts.
This requires that the chimps understand male/female difference. Of course, like all animals, this understanding and recognition exists amongst other chimps but this takes that understanding and recognition ability to another level in that they also are able to recognize that difference in other species and determine the sex of a member of another species on observation. The same goes for an understanding and recognition of age/maturity in other species.
I restate that, for this theory to be true, the young female chimps are specifically imitating their "equal" in the human species. They are not imitating mature female humans or even young male humans so they have both age/maturity and sex correct. They would have to see the young female humans as "like them" and choose them as their closest link to another species because of the shared sex and age/maturity (relative age, not exact age of course).
Personally, I do not have any objections to this theory. It seems very plausible.
Let me know your thoughts...
Friday, December 10, 2010
When taking your health in your own hands goes right
While having my morning coffee, I found an interesting article on CNN.
FAIR WARNING: You may not want to read this while eating if you are sensitive to "icky stuff".
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/12/09/worms.health/index.html
Points I took from this story in no particular order:
#BeginRant
As a response to "the patient's" story, one of the head honchos of a university said "We don't make medical recommendations based on a single case report." Der...everyone, meet Captain Obvious. Wouldn't you want to investigate this case? I completely agree that you should not jump to conclusions based on a single case, but isn't it worthy of noting the experimental treatment's success? I would definitely like to see proper studies to test out the possible usage of this treatment as an option. Option being the key word because it may help in some cases and cause harm in others. Wouldn't you like to know these things?
Then, Sir Superiority states, "It's ridiculous and incredibly inappropriate." Hum...A patient goes to doctor after doctor after doctor for years upon end and none of them can give him the slightest bit of help, so he takes matters into his own hands and finds something that not only helps him deal with the symptoms, but actually shows to have reduced the signs of the disease. Let us visit our good friend Webster for a moment...
Ridiculous: arousing or deserving ridicule : extremely silly or unreasonable : absurd, preposterous
Inappropriate: not appropriate : unsuitable
So, what Senor Superiority here is saying is that educating yourself and searching for a cure to your disease on your own after doing what your doctor tells you to do does not produce any results is deserving of ridicule, extremely silly and incredibly unsuitable. Damn, that was harsh!
#EndRant
Having let all that out, I must also make the point that I do not have some all-encompassing distrust or angst against all doctors or researchers. Many of them have their heart in the right place and have a humble attitude about medicine and treating/healing disease. The honorable P'ng Loke is a shining example of this lack of ego and open-mindedness that I am alluding to. It is those with the attitude of Dr. Stephen Hanauer that inhibit the progress of medical research.
If a patient wants to take a chance on an unproven treatment, they should be able to release the doctors of liability and go for it. I would think that fits under what we mean when we say this is a free country. You are free to cause harm to yourself by taking an unapproved treatment if you so choose as long as you release all those involved from any liability.
This is another rant for another day, but I'm guessing that one of the reasons this is not possible is some asshole lawyer would attempt to sue one of the people involved if things had unfavorable results in spite of the release of liability. Even if the lawyer was unsuccessful, just battling the case would cost the accused significant money. So, many would still be afraid to help the patient out no matter what legal protection was offered to them.
If a lawyer doesn't get them, someone in the press will spew venom at them attempting to make a story for themselves. I just see many people being afraid to "stand up to the system" and take such a huge gamble with their reputation. For these people, their reputation is their means of income and that is the last thing that they would risk. So, they just say, "Sorry, but I'll have to pass on that..."
In conclusion, if you are having problems and being bounced around between different doctors because none can help you with their limited toolbox of approved treatments from their governing authorities, you have found the end of the beaten path. Now, you can either stop and give up, or you can get out your machete and begin your journey of education and experimentation through the wilderness, but be extremely careful and watch your back. Don't expect very much help, but be forever gracious to those that do choose to help.
If you are successful, congratulations and best wishes for continued health and happiness. If you are not, at least you didn't give up and maybe you were able to help someone else out as a result of your journey.
You never know what you will find on the other side of the mountain where no one from your village has ever visited to report back from. Personally, I would rather take the chance of encountering unfriendlies on the other side and deal with that situation if it arises than give up, sit down, and wait to die.
FAIR WARNING: You may not want to read this while eating if you are sensitive to "icky stuff".
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/12/09/worms.health/index.html
Points I took from this story in no particular order:
- It amazes me how long people will keep going to doctors for help when they continue to not deliver results.
- Why do many doctors act like they have ALL the knowledge possible? Is their ego that strong that they truly believe that if someone has not gone though the same education and training that they went through, then they do not have the ability to perform studies using the scientific method to test their theories?
- Is this a case of "We didn't think of it so it must be wrong!"?
#BeginRant
As a response to "the patient's" story, one of the head honchos of a university said "We don't make medical recommendations based on a single case report." Der...everyone, meet Captain Obvious. Wouldn't you want to investigate this case? I completely agree that you should not jump to conclusions based on a single case, but isn't it worthy of noting the experimental treatment's success? I would definitely like to see proper studies to test out the possible usage of this treatment as an option. Option being the key word because it may help in some cases and cause harm in others. Wouldn't you like to know these things?
Then, Sir Superiority states, "It's ridiculous and incredibly inappropriate." Hum...A patient goes to doctor after doctor after doctor for years upon end and none of them can give him the slightest bit of help, so he takes matters into his own hands and finds something that not only helps him deal with the symptoms, but actually shows to have reduced the signs of the disease. Let us visit our good friend Webster for a moment...
Ridiculous: arousing or deserving ridicule : extremely silly or unreasonable : absurd, preposterous
Inappropriate: not appropriate : unsuitable
So, what Senor Superiority here is saying is that educating yourself and searching for a cure to your disease on your own after doing what your doctor tells you to do does not produce any results is deserving of ridicule, extremely silly and incredibly unsuitable. Damn, that was harsh!
#EndRant
Having let all that out, I must also make the point that I do not have some all-encompassing distrust or angst against all doctors or researchers. Many of them have their heart in the right place and have a humble attitude about medicine and treating/healing disease. The honorable P'ng Loke is a shining example of this lack of ego and open-mindedness that I am alluding to. It is those with the attitude of Dr. Stephen Hanauer that inhibit the progress of medical research.
If a patient wants to take a chance on an unproven treatment, they should be able to release the doctors of liability and go for it. I would think that fits under what we mean when we say this is a free country. You are free to cause harm to yourself by taking an unapproved treatment if you so choose as long as you release all those involved from any liability.
This is another rant for another day, but I'm guessing that one of the reasons this is not possible is some asshole lawyer would attempt to sue one of the people involved if things had unfavorable results in spite of the release of liability. Even if the lawyer was unsuccessful, just battling the case would cost the accused significant money. So, many would still be afraid to help the patient out no matter what legal protection was offered to them.
If a lawyer doesn't get them, someone in the press will spew venom at them attempting to make a story for themselves. I just see many people being afraid to "stand up to the system" and take such a huge gamble with their reputation. For these people, their reputation is their means of income and that is the last thing that they would risk. So, they just say, "Sorry, but I'll have to pass on that..."
In conclusion, if you are having problems and being bounced around between different doctors because none can help you with their limited toolbox of approved treatments from their governing authorities, you have found the end of the beaten path. Now, you can either stop and give up, or you can get out your machete and begin your journey of education and experimentation through the wilderness, but be extremely careful and watch your back. Don't expect very much help, but be forever gracious to those that do choose to help.
If you are successful, congratulations and best wishes for continued health and happiness. If you are not, at least you didn't give up and maybe you were able to help someone else out as a result of your journey.
You never know what you will find on the other side of the mountain where no one from your village has ever visited to report back from. Personally, I would rather take the chance of encountering unfriendlies on the other side and deal with that situation if it arises than give up, sit down, and wait to die.
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