Any other carnivores still here?

[fisharmor]

Trying to pump for info / share info, not brag.
Wanted to ask because I remember seeing people taking it up here years ago, and want to find out how it went. Y'all were the seed that started me thinking about this so long ago.

I'm almost 2 weeks in. The adjustment to finding things to eat was pretty easy - the gut die-off on days 3-4 was difficult, and I still have to consciously avoid snacking out of boredom. (I never did it because I was actually hungry... but now, even if my stomach is empty, I still feel like I have energy and don't 'need' the snacks.)

I haven't cut plants totally out yet but I've maybe had a meal's worth of plant material over the last week and a half.

I'm noticing I'm not getting heart palpitations, my hemorrhoids are completely under control, I swear my back is aching less, and the only reason for me not to bounce out of bed in the morning is the woman next to me.

I feel like other than the two pretty miserable days of going cold turkey, this has been way manageable. Moreso than paleo was. Paleo only lasted a month and that's probably because all the vegetable carbs kept feeding the gut and made me just feel hungry all the time. In fact, this is a lot like when I quit smoking - two days of misery and then a drastic lessening, and a realization that I'm on the other side of something and experiencing something new.

 

[Cleaner44]

I have been carnivore since June 2023 and I love it!

I have learned to cook meat very well now. I eat a good amount of fat. Cheese and eggs are included.

I never feel hangry. I can go long stretches without eating and it doesn't bother me. I dropped 38 lbs of fat and then put 5 pounds back on to get to a weight I like. I should put on more muscle weight, but haven't done that yet.

 

[fisharmor]

I never feel hangry. I can go long stretches without eating and it doesn't bother me. I dropped 38 lbs of fat and then put 5 pounds back on to get to a weight I like. I should put on more muscle weight, but haven't done that yet.

Same here. I've had a couple nights already where I'm out working in the shop at 7:30pm and thinking "oh wow I guess I kinda need to eat something before the day is over".

I've also gained weight so far. I've read that intake of majority protein will do that so I'm tapering off on the meat and adding in lots more eggs and fat where I can get it. But I can tell the edges of my 30-year-old-man belly I've been carrying around for 20 years are getting whittled down to skin. When it gets to the front I'll be excited.

I've read that I shouldn't be looking at the scale because that's not telling the story of what's happening, but I'm still taking data - I don't want to gain a bunch, nor do I want to get back to my 18yo weight because 5'10 men who weight 140lbs vote democrat.

 

[acptulsa]

Well I'm not pure carnivore. I do grains. I do brown beans and rice.

My advice is don't worry about being a purist. If I get the craving I'll buy a tub of guacamole and eat it over the next few days. Don't listen to the purists, listen to your body. Eat only when hungry; if you don't completely trust that, then listen to your blood sugar. When you have the energy, get up and work or play, and don't be afraid of muscle weight.

Wood smoke is a preservative as well as the healthiest way to cook it.

 

[sparebulb]

Every time I go carnivore I feel great, no downsides.

I find it hard to stay on the plan once I get results.

Today, I had a totally carnivore chicken at The Colonel's.

It's not that chicken's fault that it was surrounded by breading, fries, and a biscuit.

 

[jmdrake]

Well I'm not pure carnivore. I do grains. I do brown beans and rice.

My advice is don't worry about being a purist. If I get the craving I'll buy a tub of guacamole and eat it over the next few days. Don't listen to the purists, listen to your body. Eat only when hungry; if you don't completely trust that, then listen to your blood sugar. When you have the energy, get up and work or play, and don't be afraid of muscle weight.

Wood smoke is a preservative as well as the healthiest way to cook it.

My eyes are getting bad. I promise you and I at first read your post as saying "Weed smoke is a preservative."

 

[Cleaner44]

Well I'm not pure carnivore. I do grains. I do brown beans and rice.

My advice is don't worry about being a purist. If I get the craving I'll buy a tub of guacamole and eat it over the next few days. Don't listen to the purists, listen to your body. Eat only when hungry; if you don't completely trust that, then listen to your blood sugar. When you have the energy, get up and work or play, and don't be afraid of muscle weight.

Wood smoke is a preservative as well as the healthiest way to cook it.

I agree about not being a purist. There is no club to get thrown out of and it is all a personal choice.

I don't think I ever want to eat grains again unless I really need to in order to stay alive. Sugar is enemy #1 and grains come after that in my book.

I think avocados are great because of the fat.

Every time I go carnivore I feel great, no downsides.

I find it hard to stay on the plan once I get results.

Today, I had a totally carnivore chicken at The Colonel's.

It's not that chicken's fault that it was surrounded by breading, fries, and a biscuit.

I don't mind skipping biscuits or fries. I haven't eaten any breaded chicken since going carnivore, but I don't think it would be a big deal either.

 

[acptulsa]

Some people consider grains to be sugars, plain and simple. I think that's too simplistic. Back in the day people called grains "roughage" as a way of saying it aids digestion. My digestive track appreciates it, as long as it isn't too processed.

And while I don't mind oily veggies like avocados, I do consider vegetable oils enemy #1. So, no KFC for me. I hate fries now, they're disgusting. Again the amount of processing makes a big difference.

So we may agree on what the worst of the worst is, though for different reasons. If you consider high fructose corn syrup the most unrepentant sugar with no redeeming features, you wouldn't be the only one. I consider it the single most over-processed vegetable oil of them all.

 

[fisharmor]

Some people consider grains to be sugars, plain and simple. I think that's too simplistic. Back in the day people called grains "roughage" as a way of saying it aids digestion. My digestive track appreciates it, as long as it isn't too processed.

Yeah sorry for taking it in a graphic direction about bowel movements that follows, feel free to skip.

I haven't eaten badly for the last 20 years and I definitely included a ton of fiber in my diet.

I absolutely love cruciferous veg and would destroy an entire large bowl of brussels sprouts just by myself.

I would talk to doctors and tell them that I was creating a murder scene in the toilet 2-3 times a week, sometimes with so much blood it made the water opaque. They'd tell me the same thing every time: eat more fiber. I'd say I eat tons of fiber, and they'd say either the medical equivalent of "sucks to be you" or start talking surgery.

But I'm realizing it's the same old story of "the physician is telling you the polar opposite of what to do". Fiber was the problem. On rare occasions I didn't eat the "proper" amount of fiber I'd make a few pebbles that would come out effortlessly and require little wiping.
When I do eat the "proper" amount of fiber it aggravates the internal hemorrhoids, and the first problem there is it makes it impossible to feel like I'm done, because I have swollen internal roids making me still feel like I have to poop.
Then that snowballs into three other problems. First I end up straining and creating external hemorrhoids, and then sitting upright becomes uncomfortable.
Second, I end up either wiping (and popping) the internals or just push them back in and get up from the toilet not feeling like I accomplished anything.
Third, I'd end up stuffing TP up in my crack to stop the leftover bleeding from ruining my clothes.

I haven't been doing any of that bullshit for the last week. I'm also still drinking coffee in the morning and not bolting into the bathroom around 9:30.

And this is the other thing about carnivore - it's improving not just my health, but my life. Some days I'd be on the pot for half an hour waiting to bleed out before starting a 10 minute cleanup. Some days I'd do that twice in a day.
That's all time I've gotten back.
That's not even getting into how simple meal prep is - two burger patties topped with sunny-side-up eggs is a pretty big meal and it's delicious and it takes 10 minutes to make and uses one pan.
So far I've got an average of two hours back in my day.

 

[acptulsa]

Yeah, any doctor who tells you to run counter to your instincts is a quack.

Compared to that, you don't need me to tell you your grain intake needed to be severely moderated, even curtailed for a time. But don't develop a phobia about it. Those pebbles can lead you to difficulties too.

As long as they know it isn't a license to have ice cream five times a day, the best advice for the majority of people is, eat what you crave. Do what works from day to day, and when you suddenly think of this food that you're normally not gung ho about but it sounds really good today, just go with that. There's probably something in it that you don't quite have enough of right now.

 

[sparebulb]

Since going low carb, I've started using heavy whipping cream in my coffee.

It is an incredible experience.

And non-dairy creamer is disgusting.

 

[acptulsa]

 

[Cleaner44]

Seed oils are what I always hear are super bad for humans. I don't know the details but I only eat animal fat and butter.

 

[Suzu]

There is no legitimate way to deny that we humans are omnivores. You might feel fine eating 100% animal products for a time, but it is not a diet that can sustain you for a lifetime. Avoid the junk and eat what you crave that's good for you, whatever it is. Brussels sprouts are okay if your body craves them.

 

[dannno]

Directionaly, yes, but far from pure.. more like meat based, I try to be low carb most of the time, don't have any issues skipping out on veggies.

There was a day last week I also didn't eat until 7:30pm and was like, ya, I guess I'm getting a little hungry.

However, if I have a big carb day, I'm usually hungry the next morning.

 

[acptulsa]

 

[buenijo]

I started a low glycemic diet in 1999. I stopped eating highly processed foods at that time. I switched to carnivore in 2016 when I learned that humans require quite literally ZERO dietary carbohydrates. Although, I am not PURE carnivore. Minimum 80% of my calories come from animal products. I almost never eat highly processed foods. My core diet is primarily ground beef mixed with some cream cheese and sea salt. I eat roughly 1 pound of beef every day. I eat other meats, fish, and eggs depending on price and availability. I eat fruit, but not every day. Recently, I've been eating ripe persimmons (my favorite fruit) that grow in my mother-in-law's back yard. Yeah, I'll succumb to sweets on occasion. But I don't let it get away from me.

 

[Suzu]

I doubt that tallow is any better for you than seed oils. They ought to just switch to baked potatoes, or air-fry them.

 

[acptulsa]

I doubt that tallow is any better for you than seed oils.

Yeah, that's kind of the joke.

WARNING: DON'T FRY IN TALLOW!

The ugly part is tallow might not be all that terribly much worse on you than seed oils.

It's not a total loss. Sunflower seed oil is an excellent fuel for diesels.

 

[buenijo]

There is no legitimate way to deny that we humans are omnivores. You might feel fine eating 100% animal products for a time, but it is not a diet that can sustain you for a lifetime.

It is highly restrictive to eat only animal products. But I sincerely doubt this practice cannot sustain humans. If animal products provide all essential nutrients, then how does one go about concluding otherwise?