Survival of the Fittest. Literally.
So much of human history (and prehistory) saw
men and women working for their survival—liter-
ally working with their hands, feet, arms, and all
requisite muscles and energy systems to obtain
food, shelter, and security. In that regard, true
physical “fitness” was an absolute necessity for
survival. Walking, foraging, crawling, twisting,
climbing, squatting, throwing and carrying were
the basic movements that helped shape human
evolution for millions of years. Being unable to
sprint or climb meant going hungry or getting eaten
yourself and the end of the line for your genes. A
typical “work” day for Grok was perhaps stalking a
wild boar for an hour or two, giving chase through
the brush, eventually thrusting with a spear, butch-
ering it, then hauling it back to camp slung over
his back. Translated into today’s terms that would
be: a little light jogging, a bit of trail running with
some short sprinting, a few lunge-thrusts, some
sledge-hammers, a dead-lift and a fireman’s carry
back to camp.
Talk about a perfect total body workout! Yet after
it was all done, you can bet Grok rested. He was
probably not going to waste any more precious time
or energy doing superfluous “extra credit” training.
In fact, hunter-gatherer societies today, as fit and
lean as they are, spend a great deal more time
resting or engaged in leisure play than the typical
American (see page 55 of The Primal Blueprint). I
like the way they think, so I have incorporated that
concept (lots of rest and play) into PBF.The interesting thing about Grok was that he didn’t
actually train by our definition. I really doubt he got
up in the morning and headed out for a morning
jog, or a round of circuit training at the stone pile.
Of course, there were races and sporting events
and hunting challenges—and plenty of warfare—
but it’s doubtful our early ancestors viewed physi-
cal fitness the way we do today, as an elective
activity to be consciously cultivated in the absence
of any real survival requirements. They “just did it”
because it was a part of the natural survival pro-
cess. And yet the records seem to indicate that
they were supremely fit and exceptionally healthy
by almost all modern standards. Strong, fast, lean,
powerful, with significant aerobic (endurance) ca-
pacity and low body fat. Their genes—that human
DNA recipe that molded such awesome fitness—17