What Happened When We Went Carnivore - by Desi and Dee

Desi's Story 

Vanity. This is the reason I first stumbled across Vince Gironda and the Steaks & Eggs Diet.

Vince was a champion body builder in the 1950s. He believed his way of eating was like a cycle of steroids. Rightly so. Steak & eggs are two of the most anabolic foods in the world, as they increase cholesterol, have a lot of protein, and a complete amino acid profile.

Offshoots of Vince’s work lead me into the meaty carnivore community, one which I soon found to be incredibly large. I soon discovered Dr Shawn Baker and Dr Paul Saladino. Both incredibly bright, articulate and ripped.

I pondered my current keto/ low carb paleo diet. Essentially, I was eating a handful of animal protein with every meal. So all I would be doing is removing the plants. Yep. No more salad, no more veges! Huh?

But what about the poo? How will ya poo? I will come back to that a bit later.

I ran the idea past Dee and she was all in for a 30 day trial.

So away we went. Steak and eggs for the first 4 days. I didn’t mind at all but Dee started to complain about the lack of variety. Meanwhile, we were researching the carnivore diet like crazy, unearthing thousands of people who had turned their health around with this WOE. Kelly Hogan from the US, not only turned her life around with amazing transformation – but she was inspiring thousands upon thousands of women on social media.

Dee and I quickly modified our approach to all meat. Fish, chicken, lamb and steak with eggs and butter. We sailed through the month without a hiccup.

Around the third week I noticed some incredible strength gains in the gym. This puzzled me as I was previously low carb and still low carb – so what was the change? I did some more research into why the removal of plants is beneficial to strength training. One word. Anti-nutrients. These are plant compounds that reduce the absorption of nutrients from the digestive system. So essentially my research found if you have a lovely salad or some spinach with your steak my digestive enzymes would be inhibited. Yep. Anti-nutrients interfere with protein digestion! But what about the poo? I’ll come to the poo later.

The main anti-nutrients are:

Phytate (phytic acid): Mainly found in seeds, grains and legumes
Lectins: Found in all food plants, especially in seeds, legumes and grains.
Calcium oxalate: The primary form of calcium in many vegetables, (such as spinach) many fruit and nuts.

Here I was, thinking if I didn’t eat greens with my meat, I would develop bowel cancer! It was all starting to make sense. My experience was showing me that nearly 100% of the steak I was eating was not being utilised – instead it was passing through me. Hmmn makes sense.

So now, the gym work I was doing was being supported by protein. See where is this heading? It’s progress by reduction. Eating less – absorbing more. I knew the most nutrient dense foods available are animal proteins and organs but I did not understand the impediment plants had on synthesis.

So, as we progressed we ate less, we became less hungry. Breakfast was lunch and dinner was dinner. No snacks, no tummy grumbles, no energy drops. Sometimes I would go for a surf on an empty stomach surf for a couple of hours return home with no hangry man raiding the servos for a snack of regret.

The only thing I really missed was milky flat-white coffees, as we were drinking black coffee only. Oh, btw almond milk is high in oxalates. This blew my mind too. I gave up dairy milk for almond because paleo recommended it so. 

So back to the less. We went from spending $350 per week on organic, fruit and veges and meat from the farmers' markets, down to about $150 per week. Our shopping list now focused on the best sourced grass-fed meat, sausages, pasture raised chooks, eggs, wild caught fish and stacks of bacon! Another benefit was we weren’t throwing out rotten produce either.

The thirty days passed and has blended into 2 years. Our diet has levelled to a hyper-carnivore WOE which sees us at about 90% meat. We use lemon, limes, garlic and herbs for flavour and the occasional squeeze of orange over some meats. We also eat dairy including butter, cream, yoghurt and cheese returning to our fridge. The somewhat immediate and profound changes which I experienced were:

Greatly improved sleep.
Increase in strength and muscle.
Accelerated fat loss.
Chronic knee pain vanished.
Mental clarity through the roof.
Good poo.

My bowel movements from the SAD diet went from 12 plus times a day down to about 4 on paleo and keto. But going carnivore took me down to normal levels of about once per day to once per 2 days. My glorious poos now a perfect textbook toothpaste consistency with a neat aerodynamic tail – a real work of art. No straining – no explosions. I quickly understood through experience (not a belief system) my body operated better, much better on meat only.

Carnivore is the ultimate elimination diet. If you are already prepared to have one piece of meat with every meal - all you are eliminating is the plant matter.
But what about variety? “Desi, but do you ever get sick of eating bacon and eggs?” “No. Do you every get sick of eating bird seed from a cardboard box?”
Occasionally we will have some plants with a side dish at a restaurant. But it is rare and usually I will have an upset stomach and some other issues in the toilet soon after. 

As for almond milk? After our 30 day trial, I ordered an almond milk flat white from my favourite barista, and doubled up in gut pain some 5 minutes later. Never touched it again.

I soon learned and understood you can’t hone and tune an engine into a top fuel dragster and expect it to perform optimally on shit fuel.

You can really only understand this through experiencing it. I mean, I thought I was a pretty healthy keto guy until I went carnivore. Then and only then did I know I was a pretty healthy guy.

Now for the cherry on the top. You save a bomb! And it so very easy to shop and cook this way. Over the past 2 years of going ‘carnivore’ the only impediments has been alcohol consumption. Dee and I have gone through 10 to 12 week blocks of no booze, then a holiday, a fishing trip and birthday or some bloody excuse followed by a couple more weeks of drinking. We both go backwards then go forwards again. This yo-yo experience however is a precursor to our next great chapter – removing booze! And this is the next chapter in the making.

For hundreds of carnivore experiences and jaw dropping transformations click HERE

 Dee's Story

One day when Desi returned from the gym he announced “I’m going to try and eat just steak and eggs for a month”. I became immediately intrigued! This was a bit of a coinkydink. As I had just recently happened upon an article about a couple from the States, Joe and Charlene Andersen, who have eaten only meat since their mid 20s. Now in their mid-forties and late 50s - you would swear they’re barely in their 30s! The decision to join Desi on this journey was a no-brainer. Particularly as I was the cook - it just made sense to give it a crack!  

Within 2 weeks I began noticing positive changes. For most of my 40s I experienced “sore, sensitive feet” every single morning. I never really understood what it was. I didn’t bother to enquire from a specialist as it came and went quickly. The sensation of this discomfort forced me to walk on my tippy-toes - as if I was walking on hot coals, alternating the pressure shuffling from left to right. It only ever lasted for a minute or two whilst my feet adjusted to walking. I assumed this was all part of the joy of “just getting older”. I can’t believe I was actually buying into that. I also noticed feelings of general stiffness and soreness vanished as well. I often found if I’d been sitting for over 20 minutes on the couch it was tricky to rise and straighten up as my knees and joints felt as though they “locked up”. It became a variety of feeling “a bit stiff, sore and tired”. I danced a lot of flamenco in my 30s and just assumed I had residual wear and tear catching up with me. Again dismissed it as ‘normal - just all part of aging’.

I thought to myself if this is what a month of eating only meat can do, surely I could handle another month. I must confess. During most of this period, I continued to drink my usual levels of alcohol with the odd break here and there. However, as the months soon became a year (still drinking booze) I managed to lose 8kgs. I didn't see that one coming and was delighted.

Fast forward to a little over 2 years later, and having just turned 50, I decided to give alcohol the flick. It had been nagging at me for 12 months or so and took a good few days to finally decide. As I couldn’t help but think that by omitting alcohol I’m destined to feel even more amazeballs!

I must say we’re not as “strict” as we were initially, in that we still eat meat, at 2 portions a day. It’s no longer just steak. There is more variety these days. This includes pasture raised eggs, grass fed butter, goat’s cheese, grass fed beef liver pate, pastured raised chicken, wild seafood, fish and bone broths, blood pudding, free range, nitrate free pork, grass fed beef and lamb. During and around Christmas I also enjoy seasonal stone fruits (including mango). These bring me so much joy. Fruits of the Gods!  There is a new appreciation for sweet. As my palette has become so sensitive to it. But as the Christmassy vibe passes our mostly meaty life returns. I guess we could call ourselves Hyper Carnivores: mostly animal protein and fat, and some plants.. they're optional.

The remaining plants we regularly consume these days include organic black coffee, organic dried herbs, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice for added flavour, occasional crushed garlic or chopped onion for our fish broths, and salt and pepper seasoning. I also enjoy raw cacao powder and raw cacao butter in my homemade chocolate bark, sprinkled with toasted coconut flakes, for when friends or fam come over. 

This is the best I’ve felt my whole life. Even during my twenties I didn’t feel this good. I’ve learned my body adores me when I adore it back by giving it primo fuel. Much like a car. 

Another intriguing aspect of this way of eating is the extraordinary sense of well-being. I’m fairly certain this exists in everybody’s bodies. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever known what it is to feel good because I’ve eaten so much high-carb stuff from such an early age. Each day is now welcomed with a spring in my pain-free feet! Stress, in all its entertaining forms, is dealt with as it arrives and then sent on its grumpy way. The well-being pops straight back up where it belongs. 

As Desi mentioned above, this is a wonderful way to eliminate crap without deprivation. It’s incredibly freeing - emotionally and physically. I don’t think about food anymore like I used to - until I notice a grumble in my belly and that's code for steak time. I leave the table feeling sated, nourished and energised. 

Just as a little side-note. My beautiful sister embarked on her carnivore journey around the same time we did. She suffered severe psoriasis for years, which had almost engulfed all of her skin. It had also worked its way through to her joints, arthritically. Omitting grains from her diet earlier saw an end to the arthritic pain however her skin was still inflamed. Soon after adopting a carnivore diet and later ceasing alcohol, for good, a year later, she is nearly 100% free of the psoriasis and sparkles with good health and beautiful skin.