Carnivore diet
Replies
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robertchatman812 wrote: »I dont think it's a fad, and I think you may have found a video of some who isnt all there.
There must be merit to the diet. I found a very informative article on onnit. Worth a read.
Look I have a specific reason to which I am looking into it. My profession takes me away from home a lot, sometimes to other communities for weeks at a time and sometimes to mining camps for weeks at a time. When living in crew housing in communities it's easy to eat right and maintain a balanced macro diet. When in a camp, in the Baffin Island for example there is a cook, cooking for hundreds of people. The quality is poor and maintaining a balanced macro diet becomes extremely difficult especially when work 12hrs or more a day. With a diet such as carnivore it easy and straight forward, just eat meat and animal products. So, this is my reason for asking and exploring the option because in June I will be such a camp till October, with only 18days out in total, 9 days a piece.
It's not a matter of jumping on the latest fad diet but a matter of maintaining my body composition in which I worked like a dog to achieve.
Anyway, thank you all for your valuable input, I appreciate you taking the time out of your day to pass along your info and opinions.
There are posters here who find that eating carnivore is very good for their particular medical conditions, and I support that. However, without more specifics from you, I cannot relate to cutting an entire macro out completely due to poor quality carbs. What are these poor quality carbs, and are they present three meals per day, day in and day out?
I thought the food was lousy when I was in Boot Camp, but made decisions on a per meal basis.
When I lived in a yoga retreat center for a year, I got so sick of oatmeal for breakfast, and looked forward to Monday mornings, as the Monday cook made millet, a nice change. (To this day I cannot eat cooked oatmeal.) Yoga philosopher Stephen Cope tells a great story about cravings, aduki beans & rice, and blueberry cobbler.
So you see, I can relate to not being happy with my food options. But without more details about the carbs from you, I'm puzzled about your desire to eat carnivore, especially since you mentioned several times the importance of balanced macros. Cutting one macro completely out seems your least balanced option.8 -
robertchatman812 wrote: »I dont think it's a fad, and I think you may have found a video of some who isnt all there.
There must be merit to the diet. I found a very informative article on onnit. Worth a read.
Look I have a specific reason to which I am looking into it. My profession takes me away from home a lot, sometimes to other communities for weeks at a time and sometimes to mining camps for weeks at a time. When living in crew housing in communities it's easy to eat right and maintain a balanced macro diet. When in a camp, in the Baffin Island for example there is a cook, cooking for hundreds of people. The quality is poor and maintaining a balanced macro diet becomes extremely difficult especially when work 12hrs or more a day. With a diet such as carnivore it easy and straight forward, just eat meat and animal products. So, this is my reason for asking and exploring the option because in June I will be such a camp till October, with only 18days out in total, 9 days a piece.
It's not a matter of jumping on the latest fad diet but a matter of maintaining my body composition in which I worked like a dog to achieve.
Anyway, thank you all for your valuable input, I appreciate you taking the time out of your day to pass along your info and opinions.
I don't know anything about the carnivore diet specifically, but just eating meat and animal products doesn't sound like a nutritionally sound diet.
Fad diets capitalize on the "easy" part because if you're just eating cabbage soup (real diet fad btw) you don't have to spend time thinking about what you're going to eat.
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I dont diet anymore, it's a life style and Ibhave no problem spending time and putting thought into what I eat. If I didnt this thread wouldnt exist.
The food that is in this work camp I am going to is like a cafeteria style place. It's a place that serves volume and thus quality is sacrificed in preparation to feed hundreds of people. There are healthy carbs and unhealthy carbs and those in between. But you cant measure what you are eating and you dont know what the food is prepared in, such as sauces, that are usually high is carbs from sugars.
I know I cant weigh my meat there but on average you can make a proper guess. I honestly dont see this as a fad due to it being a way of life for various groups of people for hundreds of years. It comes off as a fad because it has been popularized by main stream media, but there is actual merit to it if done right.
I am not looking for an easy way out just a way to get through the summer without gaining unnecessary fat, there is a gym where I am going so I can mitigate this to a degree.
Thanks again everyone for your input. I have a lot to think about based on what I have read from a few people here.1 -
robertchatman812 wrote: »I dont diet anymore, it's a life style and Ibhave no problem spending time and putting thought into what I eat. If I didnt this thread wouldnt exist.
The food that is in this work camp I am going to is like a cafeteria style place. It's a place that serves volume and thus quality is sacrificed in preparation to feed hundreds of people. There are healthy carbs and unhealthy carbs and those in between. But you cant measure what you are eating and you dont know what the food is prepared in, such as sauces, that are usually high is carbs from sugars.
I know I cant weigh my meat there but on average you can make a proper guess. I honestly dont see this as a fad due to it being a way of life for various groups of people for hundreds of years. It comes off as a fad because it has been popularized by main stream media, but there is actual merit to it if done right.
I am not looking for an easy way out just a way to get through the summer without gaining unnecessary fat, there is a gym where I am going so I can mitigate this to a degree.
Thanks again everyone for your input. I have a lot to think about based on what I have read from a few people here.
Well even if going carnivore is not a fad it is certainly a fad to demonize sugar and so-called unhealthy carbs.
Also, if I felt like the food was lower quality I would go the other way and be more vegetarian while there. Low quality meat never sounds like something I wish to center my entire diet around.8 -
Maybe. The meat is not of low quality. Its chicken, beef, pork, fish, etc...
All I am asking is what is the difference between doing carnivore on a factory farm meat compared to the non GMO grass finished meats.
If I am going to try this diet I want to know if I can do it without the high end meats. And if not then is it wont be worth trying. All the food at this place is sourced from large grocery distributors from Montreal. But I can garentee it's not the same food you would get at a whole foods.1 -
Higher end meats are going to have a better omega 3 content, relevant if one is not supplementing or eating fatty fish, and also likely a better sat fat ratio. Also if one is eating only meat one should seek out organ meats which seems unlikely in the context identified. If I were eating a whole lot of meat (let alone only), I'd certainly try to source them from the most healthy options (i.e., pastured and if not that, then leaner cuts -- https://paleoleap.com/paleo-when-you-cant-afford-grass-fed-meat/ or https://www.thepaleomom.com/if-i-cant-always-afford-grass-fed-beef/).
I still see 0 benefit to cutting out veg and fruits. That some cultures have adapted to the lack (really, seasonal scarcity) of them doesn't at all suggest one is better off without them, but again you can eat veg or not, your deal, but it's not somehow healthier not to. I'd far prefer a keto diet with meat or eggs + veg to a carnivore diet. I think it's the worst and least healthful fad to spread and I blame Rogan and Jordan Peterson.7 -
robertchatman812 wrote: »I dont diet anymore, it's a life style and Ibhave no problem spending time and putting thought into what I eat. If I didnt this thread wouldnt exist.
The food that is in this work camp I am going to is like a cafeteria style place. It's a place that serves volume and thus quality is sacrificed in preparation to feed hundreds of people. There are healthy carbs and unhealthy carbs and those in between. But you cant measure what you are eating and you dont know what the food is prepared in, such as sauces, that are usually high is carbs from sugars.
I know I cant weigh my meat there but on average you can make a proper guess. I honestly dont see this as a fad due to it being a way of life for various groups of people for hundreds of years. It comes off as a fad because it has been popularized by main stream media, but there is actual merit to it if done right.
I am not looking for an easy way out just a way to get through the summer without gaining unnecessary fat, there is a gym where I am going so I can mitigate this to a degree.
Thanks again everyone for your input. I have a lot to think about based on what I have read from a few people here.
Betting your health on the probability of poor quality meats satisfying all your nutritional needs seems risky to me.8 -
robertchatman812 wrote: »Maybe. The meat is not of low quality. Its chicken, beef, pork, fish, etc...
All I am asking is what is the difference between doing carnivore on a factory farm meat compared to the non GMO grass finished meats.
If I am going to try this diet I want to know if I can do it without the high end meats. And if not then is it wont be worth trying. All the food at this place is sourced from large grocery distributors from Montreal. But I can garentee it's not the same food you would get at a whole foods.
That should not be all you are asking but if I were doing carnivore diet and getting ALL my nutrition from very limited sources the smart choice would be to get the highest quality available to me. I would also insist that the meat be properly prepared which is never going to happen in a cafeteria situation. It will always be cooked in advance and be kept warming where it will dry out. To cover for this it will almost always have sauce or gravy. I am not sure how fair it would be to expect the kitchen staff to do something special for you.
I think you are allowing your carb biases to cloud your judgment. The sensible and reasonable approach when not in control of your own food is to practice mindful portion control. It would only be if you had a strong aversion to vegetables or considered it unethical for some reason to eat them that you would force a restrictive diet in a situation like this... in other words be a carnivore at home if you feel the need and eat with an eye on portion control when you are away.
You do not gain weight eating carbs. You gain weight by eating too much.9 -
A little late to the party but I've been carnivore (with some carb cheats) since October. I love it... except of course I fell into cheating somewhat because sugar addiction is a *kitten*.
I've been doing a lot of research, there's some conflicting info out there but hell of a lot less conflicting than regular ways of eating. Reddit is a good place to check out, either r/carnivore or r/zerocarb.
I have experienced immediate reduction in bloating, very much improved digestion, hormonal balance, less brain fog, less ADHD symptoms, less joint pain and overall feeling great. My thoughts are calm and I have so much less anxiety and depression.
People call it a fad but I don't believe that to be true, it's just gaining more attention lately for some reason. There are people who have been carnivore 20+ years and are thriving. Some who aren't overweight do this for better body composition. I also want to note that I did not do any exercise for the first 6 months and my biceps were stronger.
I started it, only as a 30 day trial, to try and lose some weight because keto wasn't doing it for me. I felt so much better after 30 days I decided to continue. Other than the initial water weight loss within my first 3 weeks, I haven't lost any weight but I continue because I truly believe it's healing me from the inside, the weight loss will follow when my body has healed from all the damage I've caused it for the past 40+ years. There are supplements that some choose to take, especially electrolytes at the beginning but you're really only missing out on Vitamin C which is said to be less needed when there's no or little carb consumption - but this provides pretty much the most complete nutrition especially if you eat liver and other organs (which I do not). It's not for everyone, some people don't do well on it. Some give up after 3 days because adaptation may not be fun for some. Some are good to go from the start. I noticed a lot of positive changes right from the beginning, and still experiencing them 8 months later.
I eat beef, lamb, pork, chicken, eggs, some cheese (cut down a lot), cream and butter. Some eat only beef. I only drink coffee and water, but some cut out coffee since it's not an animal product. If you're still considering, I'd say try it even for just 2 weeks if you don't want to commit to the 30 days.3 -
Maybe. The meat is not of low quality. Its chicken, beef, pork, fish, etc...
All I am asking is what is the difference between doing carnivore on a factory farm meat compared to the non GMO grass finished meats.
If I am going to try this diet I want to know if I can do it without the high end meats. And if not then is it wont be worth trying. All the food at this place is sourced from large grocery distributors from Montreal. But I can garentee it's not the same food you would get at a whole foods.
I have eaten both grass fed meat and regular meat. Although my mentality is to go with grass fed, my budget and availability of it doesn't always allow. Since the quarantine we've been eating regular meat and it's been fine. This is one of those areas that can be conflicting, some will say only grass fed, others will say either is fine. It might just boil down to your personal preferences or what you have available.1 -
Wow, 2lbs of meat per day. I'd be looking at a groceries bill of at least 20 Euro per day, 600 Euro per month. And that's the cheap, mass produced stuff. Can anyone actually afford that? (yes, I understand that meat has different prices in different countries).6
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I've been doing a lot of research, there's some conflicting info out there but hell of a lot less conflicting than regular ways of eating. Reddit is a good place to check out, either r/carnivore or r/zerocarb.
One of the reasons why there isn't much conflicting information is that there is little quality research on the nutritional and health outcomes of eliminating all plant foods from the diet. I'm actually not aware of any research supporting the supposed benefits (it's all anecdotal).7 -
Here are some references to start with .
Meat only diet (a carnivore diet ) Why would it work?
https://youtu.be/isIw2AN_-XU
Two men all meat diet for one year 1930 by Walter S McLean and Eugene F Du Bois
http://www.jbc.org/content/87/3/651.full.pdf
https://zerocarbzen.com/2015/04/19/eskimos-prove-an-all-meat-diet-provides-excellent-health-by-vilhjalmur-stefansson/
Why all humans need to eat meat for Health
https://breakingmuscle.com/healthy-eating/why-all-humans-need-to-eat-meat-for-health
Nina Teicholz: Red meat and health
https://youtu.be/1rz-8H_i1wA0 -
I see an all carnivore diet as being
Unstaintanable for our environment
Incomplete in nutrition for a human to thrive and
So expensive as to be unaffordable for the average person
6 -
A little late to the party but I've been carnivore (with some carb cheats) since October. I love it... except of course I fell into cheating somewhat because sugar addiction is a *kitten*.
I've been doing a lot of research, there's some conflicting info out there but hell of a lot less conflicting than regular ways of eating. Reddit is a good place to check out, either r/carnivore or r/zerocarb.
I have experienced immediate reduction in bloating, very much improved digestion, hormonal balance, less brain fog, less ADHD symptoms, less joint pain and overall feeling great. My thoughts are calm and I have so much less anxiety and depression.
People call it a fad but I don't believe that to be true, it's just gaining more attention lately for some reason. There are people who have been carnivore 20+ years and are thriving. Some who aren't overweight do this for better body composition. I also want to note that I did not do any exercise for the first 6 months and my biceps were stronger.
I started it, only as a 30 day trial, to try and lose some weight because keto wasn't doing it for me. I felt so much better after 30 days I decided to continue. Other than the initial water weight loss within my first 3 weeks, I haven't lost any weight but I continue because I truly believe it's healing me from the inside, the weight loss will follow when my body has healed from all the damage I've caused it for the past 40+ years. There are supplements that some choose to take, especially electrolytes at the beginning but you're really only missing out on Vitamin C which is said to be less needed when there's no or little carb consumption - but this provides pretty much the most complete nutrition especially if you eat liver and other organs (which I do not). It's not for everyone, some people don't do well on it. Some give up after 3 days because adaptation may not be fun for some. Some are good to go from the start. I noticed a lot of positive changes right from the beginning, and still experiencing them 8 months later.
I eat beef, lamb, pork, chicken, eggs, some cheese (cut down a lot), cream and butter. Some eat only beef. I only drink coffee and water, but some cut out coffee since it's not an animal product. If you're still considering, I'd say try it even for just 2 weeks if you don't want to commit to the 30 days.
I'm just intrigued you have an easy way to know your hormones are balanced, as in all of them when there are almost certainly hormones we don't know of yet, let alone know what a balance of hormones is for all the ones we are aware of already.
Though I'm not surprised the diet made you feel better. If you did no exercise but gain strength in the biceps, you must have been eating an incredibly poor amount of protein or just plain starvation to see spontaneous increases in strength.4
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