09/08/2025
Just a gentle reminder that in Wyoming in November we are doing a 3-day Tai Chi conference to certify new instructors. Register at [email protected]
With that out of the way you probably want to read what follows here and share it with folks that you know because the information is critical.
A very interesting new study just came out.
It involved patients with sarcopenia, which means they had low muscle mass, who were going in for liver surgery. A very serious procedure. One group of the patients underwent a prehab program; instead of trying to recover afterwards they pre-recovered for several weeks beforehand. For six weeks, they walked seven days a week and lifted weights twice a week. They also got nutritional consulting and took amino acid supplements.
The other group, the control group, did nothing. They just waited for their surgery to happen and then got surgery. Then the authors compared the complication rate for each group.
Almost 50% of the control group had postoperative complications.
Just 10% of the prehab group had complications. They had much better results.
Prehab is still a novel concept in the conventional medical world. You know this because right now as I am writing this it keeps autocorrecting to "rehab." It does not even know the word prehab. And yet, of course, here in the Primal world and other adjacent communities like CrossFit, bodybuilders, and athletes, we have always talked about pre-rehabilitation. We have talked about getting ahead of problems before they occur.
Because what is funny is if you look at this so-called prehab program, it looks very similar to what anyone should be doing on a regular basis just to be healthy. You are walking every day. You are lifting heavy things twice a week. You are eating plenty of protein and you are eating a nutrient-dense diet. That is the bare minimum. That is what we are expected to be doing. That is what our genes expect from us.
And it turns out that that is so shockingly physiologically normal and so in line with what our bodies expect from us that you can take a bunch of unhealthy people who need serious liver surgery and have very little muscle on their bodies, do a basic program for six weeks, and almost eliminate their risk of serious complications from high-risk surgery. That is how fundamental it is. That is how quickly we can make a difference in our lives—or in the lives of those around us who might not have all the knowledge we do—just by making a few minor changes to our diet and exercise.
Living this way makes you more robust in the face of anything that might affect you. These were liver patients. They didn't "train" their livers. They trained their bodies, and everything got better.
I'm sure this isn't a surprise to you, but share your reaction and this post!
