I’m closing in on completing my second week of the Carnivore diet, a diet that has been gaining momentum and a modicum of notoriety over the past year or three. Mostly for how outlandishly crazy the idea of only eating meat is!
There are plenty of resources and records out there for you to get reliable information, but this one is for me, my record of the most extreme diet I have ever tried.
Bottom Line: So far the diet doesn’t suck, but the jury is still out.
I started the Carnivore Diet around the same time the United States got serious about the Corona Virus aka COVID-19. Not long after, my state closed all essential businesses so really, such a ridiculously extreme diet couldn’t have been attempted at a better time.
I don’t have access to my favorite watering hole and I can’t get junk food unless I make it myself.
The timing is perfect!
Disclaimer
I’m not a scientist, a nutritionist, nor even remotely successful at maintaining a good body weight.
I have always been physically active and to be perfectly honest, except for a cheat day here and there, I have had a healthy eating regimine.
I rarely overeat, sometimes over-drink, but otherwise I struggle to get down to my desired body weight, 185 pounds. And things are getting worse.
Me
After a couple decades of military service and its associated bumps and bruises coupled with the realities of getting older, my body is slowing down, pains are getting worse, and injuries are slow to heal.
Last year, to try and get ahead of the curve, I did a 10 day fast. I made it nine days and probably lost about 5 pounds, that is if you believe in water weight and all.
Basically after the initial quick-drop in pounds, I continued to lose five more before I ended the fast.
I suppose that wasn’t terribly bad, but come on?!? I didn’t eat for nine days! How the hell is my body so resistant to losing weight?
The Carnivore Diet: weeks one and two
As I mentioned above, the jury is still out on whether the carnivore diet is effective or even something that I can recommend.
As with the 10 day fast, I had a big loss during the first few days and continued to lose “ironically” five more pounds.
I started at 224 and by the end of the first week, I weighed 215.
And, at the end of the second week, I weighed (wait for it) 215 pounds! – WTF?
Why, the Carnivore Diet?
Now, weight loss isn’t the only reason I’m doing this diet, but I won’t lie and say that it isn’t the most important (to me).
Permanent followers of this eating regimine often do it for other reasons including, easing inflammation, aiding with autoimmune diseases, and positively impacting their mental health.
Such a wide array of potential benefits speaks to the fact that our bodys are a complex bag of competing chemicals. The right mix can make you healthy and happy, and the wrong… well, the wrong mix of chemicals makes you miserable.
The Pros
Thus far, I like the Carnivore diet for three reasons.
- Simplicity & Taste
- No hunger pangs – No crashes or swings
- Weight loss
Simplicity & Taste
My body devours and absolutely enjoys and thrives on ribeye steak!
I have always been a salty savoury sort of fellow, so this diet is definitely in my wheelhouse.
For the most part I eat red meat, and typically the fatier cuts. Mostly, I have eaten ribeye steak, though I have thrown in the occasional sirloin and filet mignon. I ate ribs once, but in my book St. Louis style ribs aren’t truly ribs without barbecue sauce and coleslaw.
For breakfast, if I’m hungry, I’ll have some bacon and eggs.
Besides beef and breakfast, I do add in some dairy here and there. I add heavy cream to my coffee and cheddar cheese to my eggs every once in a while.
No Hunger Pangs – No Crashes or Swings
I eat when I feel like it, usually twice a day, and I don’t eat that much, usually a normal portion.
Perhaps I haven’t fully adapted to the diet yet, but I just don’t feel like eating two steaks or six eggs in one sitting.
It’s difficult to describe hunger now, because I don’t get the cravings that I did when I was eating carbs. The best way I can explain it is that I feel like eating, or I eat because I know that I should.
Interestingly, I know that if I wanted to, I could skip a meal and be just fine. Compared to intermittent fasting (which I did last year for about 4 months) skipping a meal or two is much easier.
If I eat breakfast, it is a late meal no earlier than 9 and my last meal is usually around 5 pm.
Weight Loss
Thought: Maybe I’m not losing weight because I’m not eating enough?
Well that doesn’t make any sense at all.
I have lost a bit of weight so far. The scale is down nine pounds, and for a week I’ve been hovering around the same weight.
The goal is to go for 60 days, ideally 90 days, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit that the thought of that is mentally exhausting. I’ve been secretly hoping that I can quickly drop 20 pounds and then reintroduce healthy carbs.
Exercise
Even though exercise isn’t the prime mover when it comes to weight loss, I’ll touch on the topic.
My training hasn’t changed. I train (squat, pull, press) two to three times a week. I walk everyday, and I ride my Airdyne most mornings.
Could my routine be better? Yes
Maybe I would lose more weight if I stopped lifting weights and only did cardio. Who was it that said you can be catabolic or anabolic, but not both?
The Cons
No mincing words here. I have two cons, personal dislikes or irritations if you will.
- The back of my throat feels funny.
- I either don’t go or when I do it’s of the hershey squirt variety.
I’ve done a few Google searches and discovered that I’m not the only person out there that complains of the feeling of a lump or an odd sensation when swallowing.
It’s not a painful sensation, though it’s not a normal one either. Due to my timing conducting this little experiment, the symptom did make me think of the CoronaVirus once or twice. 😉
As far as bowel movements go, they happen less frequently and since there is no fiber in my diet, there is… well let’s just say there is no fiber in my diet!
While this is a con, it’s also not. So much of this diet is about not being a slave, to eating and in this case hitting the head. This diet continually points me towards living, towards doing. That’s definitely not a con.
How do I feel?
I feel good.
It’s only been two weeks and my joint pain from inflammation has been dramatically reduced. My acute joint pain unfortunately continues to plague me, the only solution to which is to think about something else.
I thoroughly enjoy not having cravings, but I do wish that the weight would fall off faster. So far I enjoy eating only meat. Breakfast hasn’t changed from my old diet, but eating a ribeye everyday certainly has.
So, I’ll check back in another two weeks and write another update. Hopefully by then I will be closer to my short term goal of dropping south of 200 pounds.
