Scott F.

The autophagy is one aspect but I think the difference is like mentioned, being fat adapted and also probably a little deeper is being in ketosis. A lot of the underlying skin is fat and the GLP-1 are removing total weight which includes muscle, fat and water. As Bob stated, when fat adapted the body is burning fat for energy and using ketones vs. carbs and proteins. Then it is the speed of the loss as well. The carnivore weight loss person has a body that is going to the well time after time as 99% of fat adapted people have fat readily available. Most GLP-1 users are still on a carbs/sugars with lots of 'skin fat' left along the process. Great topic. Scott

We had a conversation along these lines on Monday with one of my son's friends. He tried carnivore last November and it lasted til maybe February. He then re-added some vegetables and fruits here and there. He keeps his carbs between 30 grams and whatever sugars are in the fruits he chooses. He is in his late 20's and I think in those 3 plus months he must have been solidly fat adapted (maybe being younger, not sure). He was really strict during that time. He said his first 'keto' type meal was planned and not an accident nor a cheat. It didn't matter as he said this planned meal was like a gut grenade for him. He said his 'looseness' was far worse going back to carbs/sugars than coming off and it lasted much longer. I am a big fan of 'you do you' but as he was talking, I was thinking that the frequency and length of time of being that loose was his body telling him 'We were on a better path'. Scott

Ours has been cheaper with me on carnivore and my wife eating her way. If I were not on carnivore I would be eating the same meats but odds are with the carbs and sugars even more meat. Then add in the vegetables and carbs and sugars and sauces, etc. etc. that I would be eating the cost would be somewhat higher. I think my "part" of the grocery bill has went down but I think there are certain parts of my wife's "part" that has went up by a few pennies here and there. Certain canned foods and vegetables she does not buy the large cans/larger version as it is only her eating those things now. The smaller cans get slightly higher per ounce. My part has come down and her part may be a few pennies different here and there, but overall "our" grocery bill has come down. Basically, my volume has been drastically reduced overall and what I am eating does not cost as much as the total volume I was eating before. Scott

That is spot on. I'm a simple guy myself. If it works, it works. Arnold and Franco started somewhere. LOL. Nice work. It will most definitely serve the purpose. Scott

Tonight is left over brisket from yesterday. Both turned out pretty good. I used the old pig cooker and my son used the offset. On the pig cooker I set it up similar to a smoker with heat/smoke on one end, aluminum foil on the rack and the meat on the other end. The smoke/heat had to travel down the foil, under/around the meat and then back in the other direction. It worked pretty good as at times the smoke came out in a spiral. The flow was really good. I wish I had not used any direct heat at all. We were experimenting and I think it would have been better without the direct heat but when we set up the taste test everyone picked the pig cooker version except for me as I liked the brisket from the off-set. Either way, that is what my son wanted to do for his birthday, me and him cooking together from early in the morning til late in the afternoon. Although both briskets turned out pretty good neither factored in it being a great day, Scott

Fair trade. I'm not smart like that. I push the envelope when 'too much of a good thing'...... Scott

Good luck. Pretty much the same. Not sick, the least little bit left me gassed and then it took forever to get it back together to do something else. The infusions helped a lot but they are ever six months and the couple months before the infusion I started dragging. Since carnivore and the gym that has all but went away. My immunoglobulin bloodwork is coming due and the last time (maybe three-four months ago) my numbers were inching back to the 'green' (normal). This is all carnivore and the gym as the infusions just keep my immune system suppressed and does nothing for the underlying/root cause of the NMO/SD. I go back in about two weeks. The only thing really lingering, and maybe it is some better, is that if I squat down, or get up from a lowered position quickly, I get a bit dizzy/lightheaded. Heart rate and blood pressure check fine, blood sugar has never been an issue and it started when I first got sick in 2018. I had a number of lesions on my brain, neck, and spinal cord. I had a lot of mobility issues at that time. Best guess is it is lingering scar tissue from the lesions, or at least that is what is pictured in the MRI. Being a Navy guy I am hoping to work back up to doing burpees and 8-count bodybuilders. If I drop down, kick my legs back, get the pushup in, legs under and stand up......I may stagger, or fall and be out for a couple seconds. But I am 99% healthier now on carnivore than before with a boat load of energy just about all the time. If I have it narrowed down to just not being able to do burpees, I guess I can give carnivore a pass on that one. LOL Scott

When I was first diagnosed with NMO/SD I had a general fatigue. I was pretty much always tired and anything that took a lot of effort wiped me completely out. When I had to go the 4th floor or the roof at the plant i was spent at the 2nd and 3rd floors. In order to hide that, I would go on the third floor and do an "inspection" of the bottom side of the process equipment. Once I gathered myself, I would go to the fourth floor where the operators work. That went on for 5+ years but since I stumbled onto the medical side of the carnivore way of eating, coupled with the work in the gym I am much, much better. This past weekend when we were in West Virginia there is a steel tank that is about 8 stories high, 17 flights of steps. At 55, I made it to the top with relative ease, not winded the least. The 28-year-old guy was just about gassed out half-way up and the 32-year-old young woman had to pause at the next to last flight. With carnivore and the work in the gym I also feel like the more I do the better I feel. Hoping that trend continues. Scott

I made butter/bacon bite type chips a few months ago. It is a bad idea. If I had made a five-gallon bucket it would have been a 'single serving' container. I completely understand your message. Scott

Should be a good day. Anything more than heat and meat and I’m living above my raisings. Salt and pepper is as far into “the luxuries” as I can go and this is because everyone else eating today likes the sauces and seasonings. I’m good at “meat and heat”.

@Mesa_John That chicken looks really good. It is 3:45AM and I just about the door to light the fire barrel. We are cooking two briskets today. One, will be with the off-set smoker and the other on the pig cooker. The one on the pig cooker will be a combination of direct and indirect heat. Coals will be under the aluminum foil, forcing the smoke/heat to the other end of the grill with that end stack covered forcing the smoke to the other end. Should be a good day. Scott

I'm about to do eggs and bacon for a mid-afternoon snack. Earlier I drank what felt like a 1/2 gallon of gas siphoning it out of an old gas tank. Not the most refreshing drink. Scott

I am not sure where you are having it shipped to and I am guessing that factors. On eBay I paid around $5 with free shipping. I'm in the states and that might be the difference. After reading if it were the $18-20 shown, it is still worth the price and the time to read it. The format itself makes it a great read. Scott

I believe that. Everyone adjusts differently. My worst experience was on a Thursday I reached into the cooler at the store and grabbed the 2% milk with the blue cap. I opened it and took a big swallow to find out it was a Nesquik Vanilla type drink slam full of sugar and carbs. It was like 'drinking ice cream' and not being the smartest guy, I finished it. (I'm really cheap too, once I paid for it I couldn't let it go to waste. Then I paid for it again. I had a colonoscopy scheduled for the following Monday. If I had to choose the best product for the cleanout prior to the procedure, after being on Carnivore for 8-9 months, the Nesquik drink did a far better job. I was empty and clean before I even started using the prescribed medicine to get empty and clean. Quite the reaction. LOL Scott

Eating just meats actually sounds more expensive. Without doing the math per item or per year the easiest way to show it is to map the route in the grocery store. All in all, a carnivore is eating no more meat than the non-carnivore if we were to map it out. Most carnivores are down to 2 meals a day and large chunk is closer to one meal a day. I am guessing the total volumes are about the same. My trip to the grocery store is basically in down thru the produce section, not picking up anything, and straight to the meat counter. I by-pass the sauces and such as well. I skip the vegetable aisle and leave the meat counter make a turn up the laundry soap and toilet paper aisle, a quick trip down the aisle for toothpaste etc, then on to the dairy aisle. Just milk, butter and eggs there. Then out the door. When you minus the produce, the canned vegetables, the fruits, the sauces, the sugars and flours, the desserts and processed stuff at the deli, and of course the infamous ice cream aisle, things are much cheaper. Although I don't think there is a minutes difference between the amount of meat eaten between a carnivore person and a non-carnivore person, maybe there is, and if there is a difference, it is more than accounted for in what you are not buying. Now if you are eating prime ribeye 2-3 times per day, 7 days a week at $16-18-20-22 per pound then we would have to probably re-do the math. I haven't met anyone that is eating the expensive cuts every meal/every day. However, (and with chickens it didn't really affect me) the way eggs were going up I could almost make the argument the way. LOL Great topic. Scott

I only have 11 months in and have only cheated once or twice, once with a rack of ribs with BBQ sauce and once accidentally picking up a vanilla milk drink. I don't think mine was pain from carbs but more so from the sugar, and not sure it was anything more than the discomfort of the bubble guts. Scott

I would find something to do with it before I threw it away. It could probably serve someone some purpose. Scott

Welcome. Congrats on going carnivore, especially in your 30's. I was 55 when I started 11 months ago and wish I had started much sooner. Again, welcome. Scott

I go back next month. My immunoglobulin numbers, Ima and ImG numbers were so far out of whack a few years back that my immune system didn't know if it were coming or going. One part did nothing but lay around and the other part was so active it was attacking anything that moved. Since carnivore and now with consistent resistance training (but I think mostly carnivore,) my numbers have moved to the cusps of being normal. I am not going to look forward to them or hope as that seems to set expectations which might end up be a letdown. I am going with I feel good and I am doing good so the numbers will fall where they may. If they get into that normal range my Neuro and me will have that conversation about the Rituxin/Rituxamab as well. This time next month I will know more. Good luck with your conversation. Scott

@geezy I have had those same conversations several times today. We have a food vendor providing for the plant tomorrow and it will primarily be pork. At least three people asked today on whether I still eat pork on the carnivore diet. For some, the explanation seems difficult to understand. Then when I say I'm eating their pulled pork plus I'm bringing my own butter the confusion is ten-fold. Not that I am trying, but it can be a tough sell at times. LOL Scott

I think the best data point in your post was how the old jeans fit. There is nothing more telling than when you have to cinch up your belt a notch or two. Scott

I just use the seal salt, magnesium and potassium. It does not make the best tasting water so I make the mixture and then use it as "table salt" to salt my foods to taste. That approach works best for me. Scott

Strict carnivore most of your list is off limits but would move you into more of a ketogenic type diet. With ketogenic diets one would have to count carbs to keep them low. I have read less than 50 and less than 30, not sure which one is more accurate. I would guess the lesser the better. Almond milk is a bad choice because it is straight seed oil and seed oils probably contribute to a chunk of what is wrong with the Standard American Diet. But at the same time, find the path that works the best for you. if you need/want some of those things as you work yourself toward zero carbs/zero sugars, then by all means go with what works for you. When you move to lesser carbs and lesser sugars that has to be an improvement. God luck as you find what works best for you. Scott

I have NMO/SD and til it was differentiate/separated many NMO patients were treated with the MS approach. At some point the differences were determined and NMO/SD became its own thing. Alot of the symptoms are similar, very similar, but the treatments can vary. My doctor has highly recommended resistance training from the first diagnosis, even suggesting free weights over machines. Of course, like most patients, I didn't listen the first five to six years. Where ever th eline crosses between carnivore and resistance training I feel better than I have in a really long time. My immunoglobulin numbers are inching back towards normal which is not a response of the immunosuppressants I have every six months. I agree that both MS and NMO are different for everyone, but that normally is determined by what nerve gets attacked damaging the myelin. My left leg may not work and the next guy's right arm may not work, same lesion, different points of concern. It can be as individualistic as anything out there, yet be eerily the same. Resistance training is one of the recommendations/suggestions I got very early after my diagnosis. Scott

Congrats to him and his journey. I can see where the skin is an issue. A friend of mine had gastric by-pass surgery and although the weight is gone, the skin remains. It is an issue for her as well. Last year there was a push within United Healthcare to cover skin removal as part of covering some of the by-pass surgeries. I have read there is a difference between GLP-1 weight loss and natural weight loss (carnivore, etc, etc, ) as with GLP-1 there is a lot of muscle mass lost. Hopefully this guy finds some resolution as he has put in the work and i would hope for him to get all the physical rewards as well as both the mental and emotional rewards as well. Scott