Sunday 31 July 2022

Challenge Accepted! 30 Day Carnivore Challenge

Yes, I accepted the challenge. Going 30 days with animal based foods only. 

Why? For the experience. For the purported mental and physical benefits. Some people may be shocked. My mother won't be happy about it. She told me once that a friend of my uncle went on this diet many years ago (this way of eating is not new) and that everyone commented that he looked fantastic. Then the next thing they knew, he died.

Well. First things first. What did he die of? Accident? Illness? Disease? If so, was it a preexisting condition even before he started the diet?  Or perhaps he did not stick to the diet and went back to eating loads of carbohydrates mixed with high fat foods? If someone decided to become a vegetarian and then died shortly after, can we blame the diet for their death? That would be too simplistic.

As far as I know, nobody has died from practicing the carnivore way of eating. We all die eventually one day. In fact many auto-immune and mental health conditions have been resolved by observing the carnivore diet. It is a meat based, zero carbohydrate diet, which is nutrient dense and is a species appropriate diet. Mankind thrived on meat since prehistoric times.


I have done my fair share of reading and research and I know that this diet is safe. I will be eating meat and animal fats. And no, I will not be overeating to the point that I consume too much proteins and fats.

Trust me, it is not easy to over indulge in proteins and fats. You become satiated very quickly. It is not like carbohydrates where you can keep eating and eating. I can easily eat 12 donuts in one sitting but I am already full after two hard boiled eggs.


So to kick off my challenge, I had a late lunch of one sirloin steak (about 150g raw weight, not that I am counting, just for context) and two fried eggs.


Those cubes of stuff are fat from the steak. You know how a sirloin steak has a strip of fat on the side? I ripped it off, cut the fat into cubes and fried it. Beef "chee yau char" like that hah...hah...

Now for some ground rules and exceptions for the sake of transparency. On a strict carnivore diet, only salt is allowed as seasoning (some carnivores don't even salt their meat) and no coffee or tea is consumed, only water. In my case, I will make exceptions as follows :

1. I will season my food to taste either with salt or soy sauce and even spices.

2. Very the sorry, I will not give up coffee or tea. They have no calories (I always drink my coffee and tea neat, no sugar, no milk) and I do not have any problems with these two beverages.

3. I will add the occasional onion or garlic or spring onions or cilantro for extra flavor.

4. I will continue to take vitamin supplements even though some carnivores claim that we can get all nutrients from meat. Maybe if the meat is of high quality and very fresh it could be true but I can't be sure of the meats I eat will be of the same.

5. I will still eat processed meat such as bacon, sausages and beef patties (making sure sausages and beef patties do not contain any fillers like soy protein or additives like msg). These will be consumed sparingly just for variety.  

As for condiments like chili sauce and ketchup, absolutely no no because these contain sugar and additives. And in keeping with the spirit of carnivore, I will not be consuming any plant materials (except for those mentioned in my exception listing).

What can I eat? Beef, pork, chicken, duck, turtle (if can find), seafood, eggs, cheese and butter. Anything as long as it is an animal based product.

I believe there are a number of Malaysians practicing this way of eating but keeping it real quiet due to the controversies surrounding this diet.

I came to know of this guy, William, who was interviewed by Revero.


In addition to being a carnivore for 30 days, I will also implement intermittent fasting into my protocol. So there will not be any eating out or food delivery for the next 30 days.


Today's lunch was so nutrient dense and satiating that no dinner is required.

16 comments:

  1. Wah, thank you thank you for sharing with us about you eating only meat based food for 30 days. This means no greens at all and no fruits. Will you write everyday to keep a record here on what you eat for that 30 days? Hope that you do. All the best! And may you enjoy the experience. Also please share with us on whether it affects your toilet habits or not? Frequency and ease for big business is important business for each individual. Thank you again! 💪💪💪

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will try to write everyday so that it will be like a journal for me to record what I ate for 30 days. LOL! Big business is important business, I agree! It is a common question people ask about in carnivore diet. I will do that and review how I felt after 30 days.

      Delete
  2. Congratulations on starting your carnivore diet adventure! I am not on this diet, I still love carbs a bit too much. Looking forward to you writing about your experience!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks :) Many people including my partner cannot live without carbs hah..hah...

      Delete
  3. Wow! I am supposed to be on carnivore and extremely low fiber diet now. I know you will succeed and reach your goals. Tell your mama not to worry as I give her a guarantee seal your lifetime KPI is 101 years old after this diet. I agree that we would die someday and fate will arrange it. Good that you are not that extreme to avoid kopi O and all seasonings.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Really? Let's carnivore together! Thank you for being so supportive. Since you are my mum's favorite, she will agree with you hee..hee... No lah, I don't want to live until 101. LOL!

      Delete
  4. Gosh!!! All the things that I can look...but mustn't touch! Hope it works well with you...and then maybe, I can follow suit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will do a review at the end of 30 days and share how I feel and what changes I experienced. Meat is better for you than carbohydrates like rice, noodles, bread and such.

      Delete
  5. Good luck as you embark on this 30-day carnivore challenge! ;) I, for one, will fail at such a challenge coz 1) I love my carbs too much, 2) I'm not a meat-person, 3) A meat diet like this will be too expensive (since I'll need to stock up on beef steaks), 4) I can't stay committed and 5) I once went on the Atkins diet, lost weight and gained it back all again, so no more dieting or diet challenge for me...lol. That means you'll also have to food prep (for your work lunch) the whole month for this challenge...whoa, that's a lot of work. But, never mind, I'm sure you'll find the way and the will since you want to take up such a challenge. All the best! ^_~

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! Thank you! You sound like my partner, very carb dependent LOL! I won't be eating steaks every day, very expensive lah. I won't need to food prep because cooking on carnivore is very quick and easy.

      Delete
  6. I don't mind meat every day but I do need greens to go with them. Anyway, I am looking forward to seeing what you eat each day, carnivore or not... LOL...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL! I will try to update everyday so that I have a record of what I ate.

      Delete
  7. Wow, hopefully you can make it! Like what I've told you, I can't give up my dessert & snacks, so this carnivore diet definitely not for me, hehe :P

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL! Yes, let's see if I can tahan or not.

      Delete
  8. Gosh, please don't die, as your mum warns. ;-) What about fibre? How will you get that through animals alone?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, not to worry, this way of eating is safe. But thanks for the concern hah..hah... Ah...you have asked a very popular question!

      Delete