Any carnivores in here?

[c.a.f.]

I consider myself a carnivore for the past 2 months. I eat nothing but red meat (cooked with a bit of salt), or some fish if I feel like it. It's called carnivore or zero carb diet. This is the ideal diet, it has transformed me into something I could not imagine 2 months ago. My mental health has improved drastically (I was in a depression), and my body has lost a lot of it's extra fat that it was storing thanks to all the carbs I was eating.

 

I am wondering if anyone else has any experience with this type of diet, or even a related diet such as keto? From what I gather, carbs are pretty bad for us, and we should all as a general rule try to eat less carbs than more.

[basil67]

Nothing but red meat or fish? Mate, have you heard of scurvy?

[grays]

I lost 90 pounds 6 years ago on zero carb and keto. I didn't actually manage a full zero carb, but I lost the first 40 pounds eating only bacon, fatty hamburger, and two slices of cheddar per day. So I was eating approximately 1.5 grams of carb/day. And I felt great, tons of energy, practically euphoric mood.

 

It takes a long time to get scurvy, and my impression is that a lemon or lime squeezed into your water every once in a while is all that you need.

[c.a.f.]

Nothing but red meat or fish? Mate, have you heard of scurvy?

 

There have been studies which show that a zerocarb carnivore diet is sufficient to prevent scurvy. Apparently if you don't eat carbs you don't really need vitamin C.

 

 

I lost 90 pounds 6 years ago on zero carb and keto. I didn't actually manage a full zero carb, but I lost the first 40 pounds eating only bacon, fatty hamburger, and two slices of cheddar per day. So I was eating approximately 1.5 grams of carb/day. And I felt great, tons of energy, practically euphoric mood.

 

It takes a long time to get scurvy, and my impression is that a lemon or lime squeezed into your water every once in a while is all that you need.

 

May I ask why you didn't go full zero carb? 1.5g is basically nothing bro, you were almost there! It was from the cheese I'm guessing?

[grays]

I'm a woman. And there just wasn't any reason to. I felt great and was losing weight. When I went keto, I addeed more carbs, usually eating between 7 and 12 per day, but at that point was eating one meal a day. Now I'm doing more fasting, which has been great. I go 48 hours or more without food at least once a week, longest being 72 so far, but hoping to go longer and longer.

[sophia990]

Try these tasty and healthy recipes instead of red meat.

[c.a.f.]

I'm a woman. And there just wasn't any reason to. I felt great and was losing weight. When I went keto, I addeed more carbs, usually eating between 7 and 12 per day, but at that point was eating one meal a day. Now I'm doing more fasting, which has been great. I go 48 hours or more without food at least once a week, longest being 72 so far, but hoping to go longer and longer.

 

So right now you're on keto still, with scattered fasting? For how long have you maintained this? And have you gotten any blood work done?

 

Try these tasty and healthy recipes instead of red meat.

 

What's wrong with red meat

[amaysngrace]

Didn't Atkins die of heart disease?

[c.a.f.]

Didn't Atkins die of heart disease?

 

Atkins is different -- you eat vegetables (with carbs), and use things like oil and even some grains, which is all something that the carnivore diet completely eliminates. An acceptable beverage for Atkins is a diet soda -- something you would never see a carnivore drink. Atkins also sells things like chocolate covered peanuts and other such confections.

 

I recommend trying to eat carnivore for only a month, and see how you feel, but I am not a doctor and I am only speaking from personal experience.

[amaysngrace]

I recommend trying to eat carnivore for only a month, and see how you feel, but I am not a doctor and I am only speaking from personal experience.

 

I'm a vegan. I get compliments all the time on how healthy I look.

 

Besides, when I look at beef I see a cow so I couldn't do it for one meal let alone one month. But I'm glad it's working for you!

[c.a.f.]

I'm a vegan. I get compliments all the time on how healthy I look.

 

Besides, when I look at beef I see a cow so I couldn't do it for one meal let alone one month. But I'm glad it's working for you!

 

Me too, I initially lost a bunch of weight and am now working on bulking up. I really feel a lot better mentally too, not just physically.

 

I like the appeal of the carnivore diet because the meals are so simple. Put a steak or some ground beef in a pan, sprinkle some salt, away you go. I love the simplicity of cooking as well as when shopping.

 

I understand why people decide to eat vegan, but it just isn't for me. I find that there is just too much time involved in planning meals and making them. Carnivore appeals to me because it is something quick and easy (plus steaks are delicious, it's not like I'm cooking tofu )

[amaysngrace]

How do you plan to transition off though? Or are you going to eat this way forever?

 

And do you take supplements for the vitamins your body is lacking?

[c.a.f.]

How do you plan to transition off though? Or are you going to eat this way forever?

 

And do you take supplements for the vitamins your body is lacking?

 

 

I initially did it to test for food sensitivities, to find out which food my body deals with okay and which it doesn't. So the plan was to do it for a month and start introducing foods after that to see how it goes. But I loved it so I am going to continue for at least 90 days, perhaps longer. It's been that positive for me.

 

As for the vitamins, I'm not really concerned, really only vitamin C is what people harp about but it's not really necessary if you don't eat any carbs (plus there are certain organ meats that contain some vitamins if I feel like I need some).

[Els]

This is insane. Personally I love meat, but you're setting yourself up for plenty of health issues down the road. There is good reason why all of our direct ancestors are omnivores - the human body is not equipped for pure carnivorism. Vegetables and fruits have plenty of health benefits beyond just "vitamin C" - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3649719/

[c.a.f.]

This is insane. Personally I love meat, but you're setting yourself up for plenty of health issues down the road. There is good reason why all of our direct ancestors are omnivores - the human body is not equipped for pure carnivorism. Vegetables and fruits have plenty of health benefits beyond just "vitamin C" - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3649719/

 

I don't necessarily agree. Humans can certainly survive on a diet of meat, look at the Inuit peoples for example who live in the arctic and eat nothing but animal foods like seal, fish, walrus, etc.

 

When you begin eating in this way, there in an adjustment period where your body makes changes to accommodate. Your stomach flora changes to be more efficient with how it processes the food you eat, and causes it to search out the fat from your food to make energy, known as ketosis. Your brain, being mostly fat itself, appears to prefer getting energy in this way from ketones (but I'm not a scientist so I don't really understand the entire study): https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2874681/

 

 

Eating a low-carb high-fat diet has been shown to reduce inflammation in test subjects compared to those who ate a diet of 50+% carbs: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3845365/

 

 

In a short-term study, this kind of diet appears to improve the situation of adults with type-2 diabetes: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15767618

 

There isn't a lot of information out there, but there is a case to be made for the health improvements and mental clarity that occurs when one is following this diet. As for getting enough vitamins and such, it's recommended to eat grass-fed beef which provides more nutrients than grain-fed cows.

[hippychick3]

I eat a high-carb low fat vegan diet and healed myself from an autoimmune disease. I have no more inflammation, low blood pressure, low cholesterol levels, and no signs of any disease in my body. There are so many success stories out there just like mine.

[GorillaTheater]

Besides, when I look at beef I see a cow so I couldn't do it for one meal let alone one month.

 

 

If you've raised cattle you wouldn't feel too sentimental about them. Eating them almost feels like revenge.

Edited August 3, 2018 by GorillaTheater

[amaysngrace]

If you've raised cattle you wouldn't feel too sentimental about them. Eating them almost feels like revenge.

 

How's your ladies' cow doing these days anyway? Still moooving along?

[GorillaTheater]

How's your ladies' cow doing these days anyway? Still moooving along?

 

 

I just picked up a new chest freezer last week (to supplement our upright). Mr. Moo ain't long for this world.

[guest569]

How is the colon? Wouldn't you need more fibre and fruit??

 

I'm glad that your depression is under control but damn that sounds like a boring diet.

[Poutrew]

This is insane. Personally I love meat, but you're setting yourself up for plenty of health issues down the road. There is good reason why all of our direct ancestors are omnivores - the human body is not equipped for pure carnivorism. Vegetables and fruits have plenty of health benefits beyond just "vitamin C" - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3649719/

 

There is plenty of truth to this. 30 years ago, I did an all meat diet, and while I did loose weight, I started a process where my gall bladder was destroyed. I had to have it removed 10 years later because it had stopped working and had a golf ball sized gall stone made of pure cholesterol sitting in it... Be careful...

[OatsAndHall]

People need to be careful with ketogenic diets of any kind. Yes, they're a quick way to drop weight but they're not meant to be followed long-term for a variety of reasons. You drop carbs low for a certain period of time and then gradually reintroduce them into your diet until you've figured out how many grams/day you can take in and still lose weight.

 

 

 

Once your weight loss goals are met, you have to SLOWLY bring your carb levels back up to normal. Your body is nowhere near as sensitive to insulin as it used to be because your blood sugar has been so low for so long. Basically, you've become a pseudo-Type 2 diabetic. You'll end up gaining much, if not all, of that weight back if you jump the gun and ramp up your carbs because the insulin receptors in your body have been deregulated and that blood sugar bypasses the tissue and gets stored as fat.

[c.a.f.]

People need to be careful with ketogenic diets of any kind. Yes, they're a quick way to drop weight but they're not meant to be followed long-term for a variety of reasons. You drop carbs low for a certain period of time and then gradually reintroduce them into your diet until you've figured out how many grams/day you can take in and still lose weight.

 

 

 

Once your weight loss goals are met, you have to SLOWLY bring your carb levels back up to normal. Your body is nowhere near as sensitive to insulin as it used to be because your blood sugar has been so low for so long. Basically, you've become a pseudo-Type 2 diabetic. You'll end up gaining much, if not all, of that weight back if you jump the gun and ramp up your carbs because the insulin receptors in your body have been deregulated and that blood sugar bypasses the tissue and gets stored as fat.

 

 

I'm going for at least another two months, I haven't felt this good in years, man. I get that I feel better because it's essentially a restrictive diet, but I don't feel like trying to experiment any time soon, since that would take a lot of work (it's likely not just carbs that did me wrong, probably certain ingredients in some foods that I was sensitive to). I not only love meat, but the simplicity of groceries and meal prep. Compared to the exponentially longer vegan meals (aint no one got time fo dat), I will continue eating meat for sheer convenience.

 

Plus it makes me feel like a predator, like I'm better than everyone else. I look around and people are literally shoving gross carbs down their gullet. I saw an easily 400lb man outside the grocery store with multiple packs of coke bottles, and I did a little "ts" as I passed and shook my head, people like that are ridiculous.

[Garlend]

Nope! I'm an omnivore.

 

I maintain a healthy diet consisting of properly prepared vegetables and animal flesh.

 

No greasy 'fat' food for this man.

[Els]

Just gonna leave this here...

 

 

 

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(18)30135-X/fulltext