I lost 80 pounds on a carnivore diet and it changed my health

I lost 65 pounds in the first four months alone. I lost a total of 80 pounds in just over a year, all without counting calories and by eating as much as I wanted.

How did I do it? I followed a meat-based carnivore diet.

Everything changed for me in the spring of 2022 when I was sitting on the couch, tired and depressed, and experiencing joint and back pain throughout my body. It was so bad that I had flare-ups in my knees or wrists that lasted one to two weeks. The pain was so bad that I could not walk.

I also had a condition called atrial fibrillation (A-Fib) which affects the normal sinus rhythm of your heart. I knew I had to lose weight and get healthy – and I had to do it soon. I wanted to make sure I could watch my three children grow up and have children of their own. I wanted to be able to provide for my family.

But with the track I was on, I wasn’t sure that would happen. And this became my Why.

I heard from some friends who were on the keto diet and losing weight, so I decided to give it a try. With the keto diet, you limit your carbohydrate intake to around 20 grams per day and increase your fat intake.

Over the next few months, I continued to research low carb diets and watch YouTube videos of doctors and others sharing their experiences.

I didn’t lose much weight at all and I didn’t feel much different, but I kept finding more and more information about the ultimate elimination diet where you completely cut carbs out of your diet plan. This was a carnivore diet, and in July 2022 I went full on.

I don’t eat vegetables or fruits or any other carbohydrates. I mostly eat beef, with some eggs and bacon. I’ll occasionally eat chicken wings or chicken thighs, as well as pork. I do not use any kind of seed oil and cook food with bacon or butter.

A typical eating day for me consists of a steak around noon, followed by a couple of beef burger patties – no bun – and eggs or bacon. I usually eat about two kilos of meat a day.

By the beginning of November, I had lost 65 pounds, had more energy to do things, and noticed that my arthritis and joint pain were gone. I’ve also noticed that I haven’t experienced a single A-Fib episode in months. Before I started the carnivore diet, I had several episodes a week.

Over the next few months my weight loss slowed as I got to a healthier weight. But the health benefits continued.

I have been on blood pressure medication for over 20 years. While I am still on the medication, the dosage has been reduced to the lowest prescription strength and my blood pressure is under control. I have also not had an episode of A-Fib in over 14 months and have recently stopped taking medication for it.

And my doctor is happy with my progress. Before I started the carnivore diet, my triglycerides — a type of fat in your blood — were 273 milligrams per deciliter, which is very high. Now there are 107, in a healthy range. My HDL cholesterol also improved. My liver and kidney function are excellent with the best blood levels I have ever seen.

Some of the keys to my success were short-term goals and an accountability partner. The short-term goals I set were somewhat challenging, but measurable and achievable. This allowed me to feel success along the way.

For an accountability partner, I had a Facebook friend who was also trying to lose weight. We held each other accountable by posting daily logs of our food, water, etc. intake. We also checked in with each other a lot. I feel this was huge because it motivated me and helped me overcome my struggles.

All in all, I feel like the carnivore diet saved my life. No more back pain. No more arthritis or joint pain. No more A-Fib episodes. Lower blood pressure. More energy and a happier mood. The list goes on and on.

I have not experienced any negative consequences from this way of eating. If there’s a special occasion and I want to eat a little piece of cake or something I wouldn’t normally eat, I treat myself. But I make sure it doesn’t snowball, and I go back and forth with my normal eating plan.

Eating this way has really changed my life and I have no plans to stop the carnivorous lifestyle. I can see myself eating this way for the rest of my life. Exactly what I eat may adjust as I go, but the main principles of a low-carb, meat-based diet won’t change for me.

With this life-changing health transformation, I decided I wanted to share my experiences and help others, so I created a YouTube channel.

I share good and bad experiences on my channel Vick Goes Carnivore. What I did right and what mistakes I made. I share the weight loss successes and all the health benefits I have experienced.

Brian Nowicki is a content creator and carnivore lifestyle advocate. You can follow him on YouTube.

All expressed views are the author’s.

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