Dread's Carnivore Muscle Thread


(Susan) #264

Awesome, you look great, I agree with @Ilana_Rose. Keep up the good work.


(Chris) #265

Meal prep Monday.


(Chris) #266

Back shot from today since I haven’t uploaded one in a while.

Right now my diet plan has shifted to more of the “anabolic diet” or “apex predator diet” approach.

I eat nothing but top round London Broil steaks all week. No added fat. Pre-workout with my caffeine I have 4 egg whites and 2 whole eggs, and 2 sleeves of smarties candy (12g glucose in total). Friday and Saturday, I’m “allowed” carbs. So Friday I’ll bake up sweet potatoes with breakfast and perhaps hit the chinese buffet for lunch- unlimited meat and rice! Saturday, I usually still try to abstain from carbs and just hit my protein goals / keep calories limited.

Right now I’m cutting so my total calories for the day is not going over 1500-1600. I’ve been off plan since May eating very fatty meat and managed to gain some serious fat (calories in the range of 4000-5000, easily without dairy). This is why I’m back on the low fat, low-calorie, high activity plan that I started with in January. It just works for my body. Usually protein tops off around 250g or more. Fat usually 60g.


(Chris) #267

235


(Chris) #268

I’m not on here often but I figured I’d provide an update.

Though animal-based, I feel my health is good so I no longer follow a strict way of eating. I have, through carnivore, found some foods I handle well and others I do not (like bread and oil, fuck).

My goal right now is bodybuilding competition, and all my physical (health) efforts will be put toward that. That being said, I will be using carbs somewhat. Right now I am experimenting with a new fat loss protocol.

It’s similar to CKD but instead of weekly carb ups, the program cycles in weeks.

Week 1: Low fat, protein to goal, high carb (within caloric limits)
Week 2: Ribeye and isolate shakes only, no carb (slightly above maintenance)
Week 3: Shakes to protein goal for 4-5 days, fasting 2-3 days.

Rinse and repeat. Adjustment for calories should come when you know you’re losing fat.

Current milestone: my flab no longer hangs over the top of my lifting belt. My regular belt is tighter too.

I won’t be on here often as I’m sick to death of discussing keto and carnivore, and I’m mostly checked out of the respective communities. But I care about ya’ll and I hope you care about me too, so I figured I’d stop and say hi.

Always catch me on twitter and insta, carnivoremuscle, and on facebook by the same name and also my real name.


(Doug) #269

:+1: I’m glad you stopped in, Chris. Life is long - enjoy it and keep on keepin’ on.


(Windmill Tilter) #270

Nice to see you posting again! When I started keto last year, this thread gave me a ton of reassurance that I could build muscle without carbs.

Good luck prepping for the competition!


(Chris) #271

You most certainly can. I built the majority of the muscle on my frame in ketosis!


(Chris) #272

Here I am in July of 2017, starting carnivore at 155 pounds, my lowest weight. Actually this might have been after beginning carnivore.


(Chris) #273

And, here I am yesterday.

Same. Weight.


(Edith) #274

Congratulations on the huge improvements!


(Chris) #275

Updates from push day today:


My friend Liz was telling my how insane my back looked and I told her she was full of it but then she made me stop for some photos during my set…I didn’t really know what to say.


(Windmill Tilter) #276

Your back is looking pretty solid. I’m curious about your carb limits during your carb week. What is your limit/target? I’ve been keto for about a year and recently did an experiment for a few days to see how I tolerated higher carbs. I was surprised how well it went and how easily I was able to drop back into ketosis when I was done. How has your experience been in changing carb levels? Can you tell much of a difference with respect to fat loss, muscle gain, mental focus etc?


(Chris) #277

In week 1 I was using a total of about 145g carbs, equated to about 520g of white rice a day. I didn’t test glucose or ketones, but I was burping acetone again each morning. Mental focus I didn’t notice a difference being out of keto for a week. I thought I was going to feel strange transitioning from week 1 day 7 to week 2 day 1 (high fat, no carb), but I didn’t notice a thing.

Energy levels are always a weird thing, my sleep is so acute right now that it can vary throughout the week on any diet. That being said, I actually feel like I have more in the tank on lifting days during the carb week. I think there’s merit to what conventional wisdom says. I know a lot of people like to throw around the Virta studies from a few years ago, especially here. One of the things I have to point out any time that research is cited, is that the research was done on endurance athletes and elite runners and such.

I noticed I looked leanest during week 3, not really surprising. I went up from 155 to 160 transitioning from the Pweek 3 back to week 1. I lowered my week 1 calories, dropped protein to 150g, and upped carbs to compensate (total carbs now 175). I also changed my workout routine this week from an upper/lower split to a 6-day push/pull/legs, and had to get a 2nd gym membership to accommodate - but I like how the upper body volume can be spread over two days rather than crammed into one.

As far as fat loss and muscle gain, so hard to quantify. I’m leaner than I’ve ever been and definitely more jacked, and it seems like though I’m in a caloric deficit and using glycemic carbs the previous truth prevails! I am going to keep this cyclical style going for a while yet, but I have more plans to experiment afterward with some of the concepts from Stan Efferdings Vertical diet protocol. Pretty much what I’m doing (based on red meat and rice) + he has some other stuff to say about specific fruits and other plants for their micros - not sure I buy into that part, but his stuff on macros was interesting. I believe it said 100g carbs on cutting, and 250 to 400g if lean bulking, 600 to 1000g for BULKING bulking.

Crazy stuff. I’m tracking everything. Not sure what I’ll do with that data, but it is being tracked. I’m not paying for cronometer right now so I have no way to export that to a spreadsheet right now, and I’m tracking weight each morning dry, as well as every training session.


(Chris) #278

Lastly, one other thing I’m working on this season is lowering some weights and using better, more strict, form on more exercises. I’m not getting any younger despite these amazing diets.


(Windmill Tilter) #279

That’s interesting. I was up around 200g carbs for several days as well and I felt pretty damn good too. I won’t have to worry about 1000g bulking days anytime soon; I’m about halfway to goal weight, and about 50lbs from your level of bodyfat. For that matter, I’m back on strict keto after my brief experiment and will probably remain that way for a while.

My muscle building progress is slower than I’d like, but given that I’m dropping ~2lbs a week of bodyfat, it’s a trade-off I’m happy to make. I do a 2:2 fasting schedule that’s been pretty sustainable. I currently do 60hr water only fasts, I lift heavy fasted and then follow lifting with 2 days of ad libitum feasting. I do that on a continuous basis, and I’ll be doing it for 3 more months. My reasoning is that it should be possible to build a bit of muscle in 2 days of high calories, and not lose too much during the subsequent 2 days of fasting. I do the water fasting because I reckon if I’m going to do the work all the way down to my goal weight, I don’t want to see an inch of loose skin at the finish line. It seems to work reasonably well because I keep adding weight on the bar, and pounds keep dropping off the scale.

You know a heck of a lot more about lifting, bodybuilding, and hypertrophy than I do though. If you were in my shoes with 50lbs left to drop, would you recommend something closer to what you’re doing with longer hypocaloric weeks followed by less severe restriction to preserve mass? It seems like you’ve done a fair bit of experimenting.

Me neither! I’ve actually been doing something similar. I dropped my leg press down from 550lbs all the way down to 400lbs once I realized how much harder it was to break 90 degrees. Now that I’m going to a much more acute angle I’m getting way more glute activation out of the bottom of the lift. When it comes to ego vs form, the latter is always the smart choice. Maybe I’m getting wiser in my old age… :yum:


(Chris) #280

I had a few periods throughout the previous cyclical carnivore sesh that exceeded 800g carbs, but those weren’t very healthy carb ups. Still went back into keto quick. I think it definitely depends on being very strict keto for a very long time.


(Chris) #281

(Taking this here so as not to keep derailing a legit keto thread with my nonsense!)

No, not right now. I’m basically making certain I have it in me to get close enough to contest ready that I’d want a coach to continue on. Right now basically I’m just shredding for summer in preparation for a reverse diet in the fall into a long slow bulk. I added a great amount of mass in the past two and a half years and it’s just starting to show. Pretty excited.


Fasting energy limits and body composition mystery
(Chris) #282

@Fruno my diet right now is pretty strict but not exactly what I’d call keto or carnivore. On the days or weeks that I have actual food and normal-ish calories, I eat 90% ground beef or some kind of steak and white rice. Fill in protein needs with isolate shakes which I digest well.

Right now though? 5 shakes and maybe a tablespoon of raw honey a day, and I’ll refeed with maintenance calories probably Saturday and Sunday.

Despite eating almost no fat at the moment, I’m feeling almost all the effects of being in ketosis, the only thing is I’m severely lacking in anaerobic energy outside of the gym. During training, I’m a beast, but last night pulling clothes out of the dryer was getting me tired.

I’ve posted about my reasoning and other dietary tidbits in the few posts above this one if you care to give it a read. :slight_smile:


(Chris) #283

On that note - I am abandoning this thread once this discussion concludes. Please see the following thread: Carnivore Muscle Experiment Goes...High Carb? Natural Bodybuilding