Every Paleo kitchen needs the following items to give an extra helping hand.

1. Crock Pot

How else are you going to create that lovely batch of bone broth to heal your gut? Crock Pots are definitely making a come back in the kitchen especially with those eating Paleo. We consume large chunks of meat and slurp up bone broths but you can cook other items in there as well.

I personally own the Hamilton Beach 6-Quart.  It's programmable and comes with a meat thermometer (which I rarely use)

2. Cast Iron Skillet

A well seasoned Iron Skillet is probably the most essential item used in the kitchen, at least for me. I cook pretty much everything in it. I tossed out my various teflon, calphalon, whatever other kind of -on coated cooking materials in favor of stainless and cast iron. It takes a little skill and care to get used to cooking on cast iron but is well worth it for the flavor imbued and the avoidance of harmful chemicals flaking off into your food. You also get the added bonus of adding iron to your meals.

I prefer Lodge as that was what we always used in my time as a Boy Scout.  I now own and use for everything, the Deep 10.25" variety.

Stone Mountain is located in Roaring Gap, NC and well worth the trip if you're ever near the area.  My friend Jeff and his son were talking about getting into hiking and mentioned the area so I took them up on the offer for a Sunday trek into the woods.  The map indicated a strenuous hike however I think it depends on how you travel on the loop.  I let Jeff decide how he wanted to travel and I think it was a good decision.

From the parking area you immediately follow a trail that branches left and right.  Left leads up to the summit in a rather quick fashion with a load of stairs and probably where the strenuous portion comes into play.  We chose right and followed a beautiful clear stream.  We had a lot of rain recently but even so the water was crystal clear and the area is well known for trout fishing.  I can see why.  After about a half mile or so of a gently rolling trail, it opens to a vista of the mountain itself at the Hutchinson Homestead.  This place would definitely take you back in time.

I wanted to start doing more day trips but I didn't have a suitable bag and the Atmos 50 was a bit large for a 5-10 mile day. I did use it for such when I first got it just to test out the load and see how things worked before I took in on a weekend trip but, I didn't want to look like a total dork carrying around a large pack for some water and a lunch. So, the hunt for a daypack began.

I started out looking at CamelBak's gear. I am usually drawn to visual appeal from the onset and then begin looking at features. I think a similar thing occurs when looking for a mate in life. It's not so much that you need something that looks good but it's nice to have something you're proud of wearing around. Functionality is a key component though and I don't dismiss it. In fact, after my eyeball appeal is over, if something doesn’t offer functionality then I will discard and start the hunt all over. So, the CamelBak's has the visual appeal and most had the functionality however I was having a hard time finding the size, price, functionality options that I wanted in one bag. I began looking at Black Diamond equipment as well and they had awesome functionality and great pricing but the visual appeal was lacking for me. So I went back to what I trusted, Osprey, and I liked what I saw.

I just recently finished with Body By Science.  This is my latest research into high intensity interval training (HIIT) routines as that is where I am headed mostly in my workout regime right now. I wanted to find a little more science behind why it works and why I should do this compared to the typical weight or resistance training.

The book was recommended by Nora Gedguadas in her book Primal Body Primal Mind.  I read the reviews on Amazon and apparently mostly meat heads were giving it lower ratings due to the fact that it doesn't just give simple instructions on routines.  I do agree that the subtitle is a bit misleading in that it states "A Research based program for strength training, body building, and complete fitness in 12 minutes a week".  However, what it does offer is a much more in-depth study of HIIT, the research behind it, and why it works.