How to Start a Carnivore Diet?

As a new diet trend, the carnivore diet popularized by Shawn Baker is going viral for many of its health claims. If you are a meat lover and want to try a zero-carb and high protein diet, then the carnivore diet can be a perfect choice. It is an excellent weight loss diet that carries surprising health benefits. 

Carnivore diet can be referred to as eating only meat that fulfills all your nutritional requirements. A strict carnivore diet excludes all the plant-based foods, veggies, fruits, carbs, or cereals. This meat diet is also termed as the meat only diet, carnivore diet, zero carb diet, and high protein diet. 

Eating only meat for all three meals may sound crazy, but you may not understand its benefits until you try this diet. You can take a 30-day challenge to try the carnivore diet. It is believed that our body needs a minimum of 30 days to get adjusted to the new way of eating and to show any positive results. 

This article helps beginners to start with a carnivore diet. 

1. Consume More Fatty Meat 

When you switch yourself from a plant diet or keto diet to a carnivore diet, you are making a complete shift in your food style, so you need to fuel yourself. You may experience a drastic paradigm shift in the way you feel daily.

You will shift from many carbohydrates to zero carbohydrates and are entirely shifting to a protein-rich and nutritious diet. You may experience ketosis, which is a side effect of a carnivore diet. Ketosis happens when your body does not get enough carbs to burn for the required energy; in such a case, it burns fat and makes molecules called ketones, used as fuel for the body to energize. Hence due to the lack of carbs, your body will burn all fat for its fuel, so you need to consume more fatty meals. 

Start your 30-day diet with a fatty meal, this helps your body to have sufficient fuel to get energy and you need not worry about the fat in this diet.

Start your carnivore diet with fattier cuts of meat. If you wish, you can go with the steak route, ribeye, T-bones, and porterhouses. Do not worry about the fat; they will be used as fuel to your body. It is recommended to consume ground beef, eggs, bacon, pork belly, and pork shoulder. You can also try some chicken thighs; it is rich in fat and very tasty. 

One of the studies suggests a low carb diet or no-carb diet helps in weight loss and also improves the lipid plasma profile. People with high meat consumption and poultry, fish, and sea consumption showed a reduced risk of cardiac diseases. 

2. Make Your Diet More Tasty With Spices

Do you think a carnivore diet is completely insane? No, they allow you to add some spices, herbs, and seasonings to enhance the food’s taste, but strictly no carbs. 

Also, be cautious about the added sugar and some preservatives that are present in processed meat. Read the nutrition label and check for the total carbs. These carbs added will spoil the beauty of the process of ketosis. Try and avoid such added ingredients. 

If you think the constant repetition of food is boring, try some new recipes, spices, and seasonings to make it tastier. In the beginning, keep your spices restricted only to salt, pepper, and garlic salt. You will get used to the more nutritious and blunt food within days or weeks.

Seasoning with salt and pepper on chicken would taste great; garlic salt would go well with beef and steak. If you ask me, can I add salt? Yes, salt helps to maintain excess water weight from your increased sodium intake. Salt is required for electrolysis in the body. 

3. Electrolytes are a Must in Your Diet. 

We have all heard about the electrolytes like sodium and potassium, what they do, and why we require them. Chemically these electrolytes are minerals that carry an electric charge. 

Electrolytes can turn bloody fluid into an electrically conducting solution. They are generally present in your sweat, urine, blood, and tissues, supporting many body functions. 

So, how do you get electrolytes in a carnivore diet? Nutritionists always recommend you to keep your body hydrated by drinking excess amounts of water. 

Water helps to break your electrolyte balance; if you don’t drink water in sufficient amounts, then your electrolytes will keep shifting to balance water content between your body fluids. Keep drinking water in small intervals; don’t wait until you get dehydrated. This should strictly be followed when you start your carnivore diet. 

According to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, it is advised that men should drink a minimum of 3.7ltrs, and women should drink 2.7ltrs of water per day. Around 80% of the body fluid comes from the liquid intake, and only 20% comes from your food. 

Experts suggest 6-10gms of salt intake every day. Salt contains sodium and chloride and a few other salts contain potassium and magnesium. So know the composition of the salt which you take. Potassium and magnesium will help you feel full of energy. Take magnesium electrolyte if you experience any muscle sore or cramping. 

Many experts believe that eating a carnivore diet with ample amounts of water helps to get all the required nutrients and minerals essential for your body. 

4. Eat until you feel full 

You should eat a complete meat diet until you feel you are full. During the first month, you might feel uneasy. This is due to a change in your appetite; don’t give up on your spirit. Eat the meat until you are full, without worrying about your food’s proteins or high fats.

The high-fat content in your new diet helps you keep full for a long time, and gradually you might be able to cut down to one to 2 meals per day. If you are overweight, don’t worry much about the fat, weight loss will progress gradually. Eat whenever your body feels hungry and don’t get too impatient about your weight. The carnivore diet is best when you think of a healthy weight loss diet. 

You are having sufficient amounts of macronutrients; you will never experience any deficiency. Protein is one of the essential nutrients; it is used to build and repair cells and also to make enzymes, hormones, and other body chemicals. Carnivore diet with loaded meat helps to keep all the necessary nutrients in check.

Experts suggest having around 900 grams of meat per day. This 900 grams would include poultry, fish, seafood, beef, etc. 

5. What Should You Eat Cooked or Raw meat?

In a carnivore diet, you can always choose the way you want to eat. Few people like it cooked and few people prefer raw meat too. Our ancestors always had raw meat and food. 

If you like steak that is slightly bloody, you can go for it; else u preferences change once adapted to the carnivore diet. You might enjoy eating rare steak or well-cooked steak. 

You need to cook certain meat to make sure they are safe to eat. Chicken and bacon must be cooked to avoid bacterial infections. Fish can be tried even raw, and few people eat raw eggs too. Some people prefer sushi sashimi salmon, tuna, or fresh oysters eating raw. 

Here is a list few carnivore diet plan

Breakfast :

• Eggs and bacon
• Minute steak and eggs
• Chicken livers and egg
• Bone marrow

Lunch : 

• Ribeye steak
• Fresh oysters
• Grilled beef heart
• Burger patties
• Sardines

Dinner :

• Grilled ribs
• Porkchop
• Mackerel
• Tuna

Bottom line 

Are you planning a carnivore diet? It’s a great start; the carnivore diet is the most nutritious, rich, and complete diet that has all the essentials you need for your body. Shifting from a regular diet or any plant diet to a meat diet would be hard. Give enough time to yourself and to your body to get adjusted. 

Once you are thorough with your diet, you will never think of going back to a normal diet plan. Carnivore diet helps you to get all the nutrients, lose weight, and stay healthy and immune.