MY APPROACH

I feel great when I eat a diet rich in animal products but I’m not about to reject other foods completely. My approach is carnivore-ish in that I focus on meals high in meat, eggs and dairy but also enjoy some lower carbohydrate fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs etc. And occasionally I eat carb-y, starchy vegetables too.

Fasting is probably the most important thing

My body had naturally been pulling me towards a more carnivorous diet for years but I’ll never be fanatical about what I eat. Carnivore-ish seems like a good way to describe my approach because it’s more realistic for me.

A strict ‘carnivore’ title would make me feel like I’m constantly failing, whereas carnivore-ish gives me a little leeway to relax the carbs a bit, depending on the time of the month.

Carnivore-ish, for me, is a diet based mainly on animal products but with a few other whole foods and even the odd carb-y day thrown in. Nothing extreme, nothing complicated – just me listening to my body and focusing on what it wants each day and at certain times of the month. Optimal nutrition with minimal thought.

My decades-long battle with food addiction has taught me that sugar is enemy number one in my life.

It’s also shown me that my brain gets sharper, my energy increases and my cravings vanish when I cut the carbs and eat more animal fats.

Throw fasting into the mix and everything about my life gets better. In short, food isn’t the main focus of my life and I’m not driven by cravings morning, noon and night.

With sugar being so harmful and addictive to me, it makes sense that my body’s asking me to choose fat-laden foods like meat, eggs, cheese, avocado, olives etc. over things like bread, pasta, chocolate, crisps and cakes.

It also makes sense that it wants me to eat less often – to fast for a good majority of the day and to eat my meals within a 4 or 5 hour period on most days. Around the time of the month it wants – and probably needs – more carbs so as long as they’re from whole foods they don’t push me off the wagon. It’s a good balance for me and means the difference between staying in control or plummeting off track for weeks, months or even years at a time.

I’m basing the majority of my diet on meat, in particular beef, lamb, pork and chicken, in that order. I cook in butter, tallow and lard. I have two or three meals a day and avoid eating until at least 12pm, sticking to an eating window generally of between 4 and 6 hours. If I’m not hungry, I don’t eat. Some days I have a longer eating window but occasionally I don’t bother with time-restricted eating at all. Around the time of the month I eat more carbs, more food overall and do less fasting.

I think it’s best to keep the body guessing what’s coming next.

Fasting is probably the most important thing

A strict ‘carnivore’ title would make me feel like I’m constantly failing, whereas carnivore-ish gives me a little leeway to relax the carbs a bit, depending on the time of the month.

My decades-long battle with food addiction has taught me that sugar is enemy number one in my life.

It’s also shown me that my brain gets sharper, my energy increases and my cravings vanish when I cut the carbs and eat more animal fats.

Throw fasting into the mix and everything about my life gets better. In short, food isn’t the main focus of my life and I’m not driven by cravings morning, noon and night.

I’m basing the majority of my diet on meat, in particular beef, lamb, pork and chicken, in that order. I’m eating eggs most days and cook in butter, tallow and lard. I have two or three meals a day and avoid eating until at least 12pm, sticking to an eating window generally of between 4 and 6 hours. If I’m not hungry, I don’t eat. Some days I have a longer eating window and occasionally I don’t bother with time-restricted eating at all. Around the time of the month I eat more carbs, more food overall and do less fasting.

I think it’s best to keep the body guessing what’s coming next.

A typical day:

12pm: Streaky bacon cooked in butter or leftover meat fat, scrambled eggs, grated cheese, salt and pepper.
Sometimes with avocado.

2pm: Steak, sausages and beef burgers cooked in butter or leftover meat fat, with a sauce made from butter, egg yolks, garlic, cream, salt and pepper.
Sometimes with broccoli and cabbage, onion and bell peppers, baby potatoes, or if I want a larger meal I’ll add a salad made with lettuce, red onion, grated cheese, cherry tomatoes, avocado, celery, cucumber, grated carrot etc.)

4pm: If I’m still hungry, a snack, for example hard-boiled eggs, goat’s cheese and olives, avocado and salt, Greek yoghurt

Drinks: Water, soda water with lime, soda water with cucumber, lemon and lime, lemon or lime tea (sometimes with raw honey from my parents’ bees).

The most important thing is that I do time-restricted eating or intermittent fasting most days and I avoid processed foods, alcohol, grains, seed and plant oils (except coconut oil and high quality olive oil), artificial ingredients and sugar as much as possible.

The summary

For me, being fanatical about my diet is never going to work. I don’t have an issue with fruits and vegetables, I have an issue with processed foods, artificial ingredients, sugar and alcohol. I feel sharper, stronger and healthier eating a diet rich in meat and dairy and low in carbs but I’m more than happy to have a roast dinner with all the trimmings. That’s why I refer to my lifestyle as carnivore-ish, as opposed to full on carnivore.

The goal

I have a total of 150lbs of excess weight to lose. That’s an entire person, or half my body weight. More than that, though, I want to get rid of anxiety, depression, low motivation, stiffness, lethargy and a general lack of fitness. I’m aiming to lose all of my weight in 12-18 months. I know my goal is achievable with a carnivore-ish lifestyle, mostly because it eliminates cravings and balances me both mentally and physically.

The Plan

My plan is to do a combination of a carnivore-ish diet alongside time-restricted eating, to walk for an hour at least 5 days a week and to build up my fitness by doing things like weight training, HIIT and Tai Chi, to record my progress in a food tracker, weight loss tracker, body measurements tracker and online journal; to create an online community through YouTube and to help once I’ve reached my goals.