Believe it or not, our DNA is almost exactly the same as that of our ancestors. While scientific advances in agriculture, medicine, and technology have protected man, to some degree, from dangers such as starvation, illness, and exposure, the fact remains that our cave-dwelling cousins were considerably healthier than we are. Our paleolithic ancestors did not suffer from heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, or obesity. In fact, a good deal of what we view as normal aging is a modern condition that is more akin to disease than any natural state of growing older. Our predecessors were incomparably better nourished than we are, and were incredibly physically fit. And certainly none of them ever craved a doughnut, let alone tasted one. In fact, the human preference for sweet tastes and fatty textures was developed in an environment where such treats were rare, and signaled dense, useful energy. This once-helpful adaptation is the downfall of many a dieter today. It's what makes it hard to resist fats and sweets, especially when they are all around us. We are not living as we were built to live. Our genes were forged in an environment where activity was mandatory—you were active or you starved or were eaten. This created strong selective pressure for genes encoding a smart, physically adept individual capable of very high activity levels. Humans are among the most active of species, and we carry energetically expensive brains to boot. Our energy expenditures rank high among all animals. At least they once did. The New Evolution Diet by Arthur De Vany, PhD is a roadmap back to the better health our ancestors once enjoyed. By eliminating modern foods, including carbohydrates, dairy, and all processed foods from our diets, we can undo much of the damage caused by our modern food environment. The plan is based on three simple principles: 1. Enjoy the pleasure of food and do not count or restrict calories. Eat three satisfying meals a day filled with non-starchy vegetables, fruits, and high-quality, lean proteins 2. Do not starve yourself, but do go hungry episodically, for brief periods, to promote a low fasting blood insulin level and increase metabolic fat-burning. 3. Exercise less, not more, but with more playfulness and intensity. The goal is to create a strong body with a high resting metabolism and a large physiologic capacity to move through life easily—not to burn calories. “There's a disconnect between how we were designed to live and the way we are now living. De Vany's plan is all about closing that gap. The New Evolution Diet lays out an approach to food and exercise that feels intuitive.” — The Daily Beast Arthur DeVany, PhD is a Professor Emeritus of Economics at The University of California, Irvine and is the author of more than 100 scientific publications. He is the founder of Evolutionary Fitness and has appeared on PBS, ABC radio, NPR, and in the London Times , the New York Times , and other national media as an expert on the paleo lifestyle, and speaks at universities and conferences on the topic. DeVany has appeared on Fox and Friends , Nightline , and NPR, among others. CHAPTER 1 My Journey It seems as though I have been researching this book all my life. I began lifting weights and taking an interest in diet at the age of 14. As I have heard many others say, it all began in a garage with a 90-£d weight set. My gains came quickly, so at 16 I joined a gym operated by John Farbotnik, a former Mr. America. John's gym was a hangout for Olympic athletes from the Pasadena Athletic Club, and I wanted to be around them. I weighed 196 £ds at age 16 (almost 60 years later I weigh about the same) and began lifting in the demanding Olympic style because it was more athletic than what I had been doing. I had hopes of playing professional baseball and felt that the speed and power I developed through weight training were what I needed to gain a competitive edge. It was a good move because few ballplayers then lifted, and it made me strong and quick. I signed a contract with the Hollywood Stars, a minor league team that was part of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, right out of high school. But my eyesight and ambitions got the better of my baseball career. I went on to UCLA, where I got my Ph.D. in economics. After a few years working in think tanks, I became an academic so I could follow my own research interests. I was primarily interested in studying what was not known in my field, which took me into the realm of complex systems, wild variations, and extreme events--the so-called black swans that author Nassim Nicholas Taleb writes about. This led me back to Hollywood, not to play baseball but to study the movie business and how it adapted to uncertainty. I didn't know it at the time, but this was excellent preparation for the study of metabolism. I wrote a book about the economics of Hollywood and settled into the University of California, Irvine Department of Economics and