Health and fitness has been something that I’ve been involved in for nearly my entire life. Whether that was participating in sports as a child, a highschooler, lifting and doing person training in college, or getting into more primal living in my 30’s and beyond, health and fitness is something that has always been a passion of mine. Through the years my knowledge has grown and changed. I’ve gone 360 degrees on certain things and back again.
One thing that has made a huge difference in my life and that I believe has helped me to compete with younger athletes in their prime is the inclusion of organ meats in my diet. It’s only been a few years now but I believe it’s truly been key to being able to keep up year to year and keep a healthy level of athleticism.
Granted there’s been other things. For example walking and running barefoot, even in snow and such, obvious I build up to that and you should use caution but it’s done wonders for ankle mobility and general mobility. Things like including kombucha, kefir, and other fermented foods in my diets, cleared up many gut issues that I’d been having for life. Eating more meat and especially eating nose to tail. I’ve learned that organ meats are the best foods on the planet and that muscle meat, while good, doesn’t have nearly the nutrients that organ meats do.
And there’s been plenty of other things. I do less gym lifting and more athletic or even gymnastics type work. Of course I still squat, overhead press, deadlift, and variations of Olympic lifts but beyond that have been doing more “dynamic movements”. So a lot of things have contributed a lot to my life and kept me going as the years pile up. We’ll see what the next decade holds.
But back to organ meats.
The Most Nutrient Dense Food On The Planet
Why am I such a big fan of organ meats? Well, truth be told books have been written on the subject. Here’s a good introductory podcast on it. But put simply they are the most nutrient dense foods in existence. Lately I’ve been talking about how you should eat for micronutrient focus and not macronutrient focus. Meaning instead of just focusing on making sure you’re getting enough protein, carbs, and fats instead make sure you’re getting all the micronutrients that you need. Things like vitamin A, zinc, and the like. And the real versions not the synthesized pill or supplement versions.
I’m not saying neurotically count them all, that’d be insane. But rather eat nutrient dense foods that give you the biggest chance of getting everything that you need. And you do this while keeping an eye on macro nutrition and calorie count. It’s not that those things don’t matter rather that the focus should be on micro above the rest. And the best way to do that is eat a variety of nutrient dense foods. Fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, eating nose to tail which means the organs and muscle meats as well as making broths of the bones and sinews. Egg yolks and whole real milk, raw honey, and many other things.
Focusing on eating these things and hitting your macros and/or calorie count with these things is the wisest way I think, if you’re focused on dieting or building muscle. If you just want to live a long and healthy life then just focus on eating these things. Also these nutrient dense foods have just as much impact on mental health as they do on physical. I’m not saying they’re a cure all but they’re the closest thing you’re going to get and a great place to start.
But here’s the problem.
Organ meats, along with other healthy meats like game meats, can be very hard to find.
So Where To Find Them?
There was once a time when you’d just head down to your local butcher and ask for them. There was also a time when they’d give them for free. However, now, not only do they not sell them for free, but often they don’t have them. They get the meat shipped to them or they only process certain parts there. So if you have a local butcher that has organ meats then you have a gold mine and should take full advantage of that. However if you do not, there are alternatives.
I’ve lived many places in my life. Big cities and out in the country. I prefer out in the country, but one advantage that big cities have is they have many places to shop. For example in the States you’ll have many different what they call “ethnic” shops. So for example one place I lived have a market that had many different foods from Asian countries and another “Mediterranean” store not that far away. At these places I was able to find many things I’d never find anywhere else. For example lamb testicles, intestines for sausage casings, cow hooves, and the like. If you live in the Western world look for an “ethnic” shop close to you, they’re some of the only places left with true good food.
Another is farmer’s markets. Or you could also go to local farms. Ask them, say “Hey, look. What do you do with all the organ meats that people don’t want? Is there a way I can buy them off you?” work out a deal with them. Farmers markets probably won’t have everything you’re looking for but can be a good place to get leads. Ask around, Weston A. Price has chapters across the states where you can network with people who eat like this. Find sources. With a little work you can get what you want and trust me that it’s worth it.
As for game meats, meaning meat from hunted animals, which is some of the cleanest meat that you can get, then you’ll either want to hunt yourself or know a hunter. Hunting isn’t cheap anymore. At least in the states you have to have land to hunt. There is public hunting land but its so overhunted that your ROI on time invested won’t always be that great. You’ll go days without seeing an animal and have to get way far out into it to get anything. Knowing a hunter is about the best thing, though they make take the organs if they’re aware of what good for them.
But ask around. You never know who might hunt, where you can hunt, or maybe there’s a place close to you that’d work. Again ask around and you can start finding out.
Prepare To Feel Different
Prepare to feel different when eating this way. Prepare to have more stamina, virility, clearer thinking, and just overall better functioning. This effects everything from your head to your toes, even what goes on inside your head. With health becoming more and more of a premium anything you can do to keep and stay healthy is good to know. And there’s no better place to start than with including some organ meats in your diet.
If anything I said here interests you I’d highly recommend you check out The Ultimate Alpha Collection which is a compilation of 16 of my books for the price of 5. It covers everything from being a man to making money to getting the right mindset to getting girls to fighting and more and is a resource no man should be without. Pick up your copy today!
-Charles Sledge
