Humans want a magic bullet to solve all our problems. That’s why so many are fixated on the carnivore diet being the cure all, but it’s really not. It depends on your activity levels.
This video explains my experience and struggle with pure carnivore in the gym.
https://youtu.be/J8rWS9gqZ0E
I felt extremely deflated in my muscles and I had low energy. I was going to the gym and training hard but after a few days I was dead tired. It got so bad that I was actually getting weaker doing the same exercises and I needed naps during the day. I was lightheaded and could barely function. One of the explanations people gave is that I wasn’t fat adapted. That may have been true but why would I settle for a less efficient energy system? Muscles store glucose and getting glucose to your muscles in the form of carbs is much faster than having your body convert fat into glucose. I’ve never met a pure carnivore that was ripped, they were all skinny. And the trainer/athlete in the video says he’s never seen a pure carnivore actually get bigger unless they were on drugs. I’ve also never seen a buff carnivore and I only got skinnier and weaker when I tried to do carnivore. Some would say that I’m only skinnier because I’ve lost water from the carbs, not muscle. Is that a good thing? Lmao. Your body is mostly water and your muscles hold more water when you eat carbs. No matter what explanation you provide, the fact is that I was stronger with carbs. And the reason I train is to get stronger!
Humans are not pure carnivores. Look at our teeth in comparison to other carnivores. We evolved from plant eating apes and our teeth look more similar to an ape’s teeth than a lion or wolf. Our digestive system still benefits from carbs too. One thing that carnivores overlook is the purpose of insulin in the body. It’s well known that insulin sensitivity is a marker of good health. But it isn’t well known that insulin signals cells to grow based on its current need. If you go to the gym and workout hard, then slam carbs, an insulin spike will tell your body to grow the cells that are in need which would be the muscles. That’s right, insulin has a benefit. In this case, it would help your muscles grow more efficiently. This is why carbs are so helpful for athletes growing muscle and recovering from training. For non athletes, that insulin spike directs the body to grow fat cells.
Paul Saladino is a good example. He also struggled on carnivore because he lives a very active lifestyle. So carbs in the form of fruit and honey helped him tremendously. His animal based diet is what I follow and has worked best for me.
There is some evolutionary evidence too. The theory is that our primate ancestors would eat fruit at night in the trees when it was too dangerous to wander around in the dark. Glucose in the blood is always easier for our bodies to utilize as energy than fat. Glucose is readily available in the blood whereas fat needs to be converted into glucose first: an inefficient process. However, our bodies convert fat to glucose better in the morning and it becomes more inefficient as the day progresses. So in the morning, our primate ancestors likely would run on fat storage looking for meat and then eat fruit later on at night in the trees where predators couldn’t reach us. Try it for yourself and skip the carbs in the morning. If you’re not cracked out on energy drinks and coffee, you will usually feel a loss of energy around midday. That’s when a sugar snack gives you that “kick” to finish the day. Substitute the snack for some fruit and honey instead. By running your body on fat in the morning and carbs later in the day, you can burn off those love handles.
Conclusion:
If you train your body, carbs will help your muscles grow stronger. Even better is skipping carbs in the morning so your body burns fat and then eat carbs when you need the extra energy. But everyone is different so listen to your body. If you feel like shit, adjust the timing of your carbs. I will sometimes wait until noon to eat my carbs but if I wait longer I’ll get a headache. If you don’t workout and just want to stay lean, then going pure carnivore or minimizing carbs will help you a lot. And of course, never eat any seed oils or refined sugar. Cut out all the processed garbage because they fuck up your digestion and doesn’t allow you to get the energy you need from your food. The only carbs I eat are fruit and honey. Rice is okay if you soak it in water for a day or two in order to break down some of its harsh defense chemicals. Bread and pasta should be avoided because most it has gluten which disrupts your digestive system.
There are no solutions, only tradeoffs. Find the balance that works for your body. You don’t have to starve yourself or torture yourself. Listen to what your body is telling you. If you crave something sweet like ice cream, then eat some fruit or honey and you’ll notice that craving go away without sacrificing your health. If you crave something salty then try adding more salt to your food or your water. If that doesn’t help then try eating more fat. Experiment with different natural foods until you understand what your body needs. And if you need any help you can reach out to me with questions, I’ll try to help.
Additional sources:
Deep Nutrition by Cate Shannahan
Body by Science by Doug McGuff
Carb back-loading by John Kiefer
