Primal Primer 9 (Nutrition)
Past primordial hunters valued and revered animal fats. Large herbivores such as mammoths, bisons, or deer’s fat resources ranged from 10-30% of total body mass (concentrated and highly valued in the brain, marrow, and internal organs). Not coincidentally, animals tend to have higher fat stores in winter, indicating this source was even more important and valued for surviving and navigating new horizons of harsh winters during our epic expansion out from East Africa 40,000 years ago.
Fat Played A Crucial Role In The Development And Survival Of Early Humans
- Calorie Dense – Fat provides more than twice the energy per gram compared to carbohydrate and protein.
- Brain Development – The human brain is highly energy demanding (consuming 20% of the body’s energy while only being 2% of mass). Animal sources of fat are rich in omega-3 fatty acids which support growth and maintenance of large and complex human brains.
- Cognitive Function – DHA (docoshexaenoic acid) may have been and still is potentially a key factor in our cognitive leaps seen in Homo sapiens compared to other hominin species.
- Social & Cultural Development – Pursuit of fatty animals encouraged the development of complex hunting strategies and tools, fostering cooperation and communication among early humans.
- Cooking & Diet – Ability to cook food (specifically fat-rich meat) made it easier to digest and extract energy which could have influenced social behaviors related to food sharing and preparation
- Thermoregulation & Insulation – In colder climates accumulating body fat provided insulation aiding in maintaining body heat to survive and explore harsh environments of the northern new lands.
- Fertility – Fat storage is essential for reproductive health; supporting menstruation, pregnancy, and lactation.
How many grams of fat do you fuel with regularly? In general, macro’s are critical levers to understand when pursuing muscle mass, losing fat, or seeking peak performance states. Understanding your fat macro nutrient composition is highly personable and dependent on one’s goals.
~Cave Implementation~
Consume healthy sources of fat and understand what your macros are to establish general baselines for fueling. Using any diet tracking app, establish a 3-5 days index. Modern diet tracking apps will provide a basic breakdown of macronutrients (constituent fueling blocks) whereby one can accurately adjust fueling protocol in alignment with goals. Return to using nutrition apps quarterly or bi-annually to re-establish intuitions and mental tracking accuracy (numbers to leave numbers).
Increased natural and healthy fat consumption resulting from our transition to apex hunters was and is a significant driver in brain, social, and physical development. These leaps and bounds from nutritional optimization undoubtably led to sapien dominion over competitive species and environmental conditions of antiquity.
Past Primordial Hunters Valued And Revered Animal Fats; Honor These Instincts Today.
