Ferocious Fix February - Carnivore Challenge (Fit it In - Fit in It! ) Feb 2022

[FrankoBear]

Pardon the use of so many ‘F’ words. But it is February and this month we are going to fff…earlessly and fff…erociusly do it!

It’s the February 2022 Carnivore Challenge for everyone to try. Please, you are welcome to join. Jump on the wagon, fall off it, dust off and climb on again. We will help you back up.

Last month we got clean. Or at least tested our cleanliness. What does it mean?
Clean meant less waste. It resulted in less waist. Clean meant aiming for optimal. Clean meant lowest possible toxins. Clean meant feeling good and confident. Clean meant clear thinking and decisive actions toward better health. Let’s keep it going!

This carnivore crew are here for helpful advice, tips and tricks, helping you through.

Some of us are finding some tight fitting clothes to start the challenge. A clothes-fit challenge to highlight that body weight scales are not always the best metric for mental health and well-being. Let’s see how loose the “skinny jeans” are in 28 days time!

Let’s start by sharing your aims, what is in your sights, lining up your goals, placing in some safety nets. Maybe you can form an accountability partnership with other challengees who describe a path you would like to follow?

Lurkers are welcome. We love it when you finally jump in. There is no start date. Join us when it’s right for you. Welcome to our healthier online community February!

[FrankoBear]

I’m reviving the waist loss goal from 2021 to align with the tight-fit clothes-fit visualisation challenge. Waist loss not weight loss, as weight loss is a waste without a reduction in waist.

Staying on plan. Eating ruminant meats mainly and oily fish seafood. Easing the cheese, especially from breakfast has been successful. Cheese-ease achieved. An attempt at stopping eggs didn’t work. So, it’s time to try egg-ease. Eggs are so well packaged. Easy egg-easing is a matter of unit subtraction. There may be same seafood substitution involved. Hmmm, should I ease the nutrition packed fish eggs?

The March of the Carnivores!

I’m aiming for more waist loss and alert consciousness. Waist loss not weight loss, as weight loss is a waste.

Last night some vegetarians came to dinner. I ate my Cattleman’s steak. They said, “That’s a big steak”. And I said, “Yes, it is.” They kept looking at my steak. We met over some Spanish goat’s milk cheese. They drank wine. I drank water. We shared conversation.

Breakfast was a bit later at 1pm due to work meetings. 3 pasture fed chicken eggs, 4 slices short-cut bacon cooked in the tallow from last night’s steak. 2 coffees with carefully measured doses of cream. Yesterday I noticed I was ‘hungry’, meaning stressed, after hours of frustrating administration work. I ate 75g of chicken liver pate and got outside in the sunshine. After the pate, I suddenly felt tired, like a afternoon carb-crash from 7 years ago. So, I had a lay down and listened to a low-carb podcast.

I’ve decided unilaterally to stop the prednisone. I am on a tiny dose. It seemed to help. But I feel unwell on it. That unwellness correlates with morning fasting blood glucose readings of over 130mg/dl (>7.2 mmol/L) and blood ketones dropping to a trace at 0.1mmol/L. I’ll see what happens with the joint pain.

I am still on CBD oil, Magnesium, Vit B3 Nicotinamide, curcuminoids, CoQ10, Zinc, Quercetin, Glutathione and low dose hydroxychloroquine. Yep, rattling like a maraca. I told my vegetarian/vegan, bicycling, middle-aged neighbour this combination, and he commented that it was similar to what he had been on when he was having cancer treatment (a lot to unpack there). I also spoke to a local shamanic, hippy, naturopath about a COVID-19 homecare kit and they, interestingly, listed pretty much the same combination minus the hydroxychloroquine but added vitamin E, K and C. I imagine the whole alternate-living village must be rattling and shaking like a 1970’s percussion ensemble at the moment.

[buxomlass]

Lurkers are welcome. We love it when you finally jump in. There is no start date. Join us when it’s right for you. Welcome to our healthier online community February!

Not quite ready to commit yet, but …

[Fangs]

I am here for my Ferocious Fix Carni Feb

@FrankoBear
great post to read, I truly so enjoy them plus this one is loaded with F bombs and alot of great info about how you are doing!! Smart to lower that prednisone down to a tiny dose. I am a firm believer in using only the lowest amt. of any med. for results to help.

-----------------for me I am doing the clothing challenge. I got a real nice shirt that is still on the tight side in that I bought it in the junior section and I just loved it but it has that tighter pull on me, I would love to make it have that bit looser fit. So I tried it on, got my judge on it, gonna see how it does for me at the end of the month

My one F for this month is Fitness. I am slugging out a bit in this cold weather. Not doing outside stuff like usual so I am getting out my darn ol’ walking exercise dvd and commiting to a month of Feb Fix. OMG that means I have to do it this morning!! OH WELL, I will just do it!!

Second F is food. On LION Diet! I got a 1 lb. ribeye steak defrosting and I have some burgers and a Tbone steak available for meal 2…and here we go.

Why oh why the minute I say Lion I wanna inhale an entire lb. of bacon?

Let’s rock out this month in fine F form all.

[FrankoBear]

@Alecmcq I think that some restaurants do call it a “Coat of Arms” when they serve kangaroo and emu on the same plate. I really like smoked kangaroo tail, it’s delicious. But for a truly Australian carnivore plate we would have to add some crocodile, snake and shark to the red meats of roo and emu.

[Alecmcq]

I see roo in the supermarket, so it is easy to get. However, I don’t remember ever seeing emu, croc, snake or shark in Woolworths!

I do what’s easy. So, roo is in, but I am not sure I will be chasing the others.
Cheers
Alec

[Relic53]

I’m here and ready to go

[buxomlass]

But for a truly Australian carnivore plate we would have to add some crocodile, snake and shark to the red meats of roo and emu

Mmmmmmmm … shark! Om nom nom.

I’ve had crocodile too. Never tried snake though - maybe one day.

[Fangs]

I did rattlesnake. OK but nothing to write home about in the end.

I would love to try Roo. Just not happening around me here.

I am more backwoods rural. We just don’t have ‘exotic fancy’ stores around me so I am very limited on purchases.

I hit the beach and I can find shark and tons of crazy seafood easily which I love but most is fishy…I ain’t fishy gal. We got gator on the menu in some places more South but it again isn’t a store bought item to be found.

So many critters to eat and not enough time or easy location to score them

[JJFiddle]

Let’s start by sharing your aims, what is in your sights, lining up your goals, placing in some safety nets.

Since switching from protein sparing to carnivore on Jan 12th my goal has been just to find my stride within this woe, to develop the sensitivity to know what works within my lifestyle and what exacerbates inflammation.
Luckily, musicians are expected to be a little weird. That works in my favor. And we play regularly, I teach online (TY covid!) but food’s never a social issue anymore, luckily!
In my 21 days as carnivore I feel leaner, but stiffness, arthritis and sciatica still kicking my butt. This could take some time but I haven’t seen any other way so I’m here for the long haul.
Gabapentin and Skelaxin, a muscle relaxant, are my only meds and I take those before bed. Palpitations used to be common at night but I’m noticing they’re pretty much gone now - BP must be down.
I’m off all vitamins but take magnesium threonate and curcumin/boswellia also just at night. I sleep like a baby now and that is a change.
For better Fit Feb: Mom passed in Jan 2021 and I have her red leather jacket, still a little snug. Maybe that can be my goal for Feb!

[Karen18]

Happy ferocious fix February… and fitness for some lol

Slept a good night ast night for me. I would so love to think it might just be February thing for the rest of the month but not holding my breath. Maybe it was the extra food yesterday. I ended up eating the beef burger that I had left in the pan before going upstairs to bed.

Not as hungry today. Stair runs at 8.30am and then off to CrossFit for a very gassy workout. Think I must have been a little fuzzy headed this morning as I didn’t see the 25 box jumps and read 100m bike (instead of cals) thinking thats easy and then when I got home realised I had been wearing my leggings back to front!

Picked up and posted some ebay parcels for my daughter and came home for brunch. Lamb chops and as you will see by my pics I got distracted and burnt them

Off to appt with the pharmacist regarding my BP readings I have taken diligently in Jan. LOOK OUT EVERYONE I AM GOING TO BE ON THE ROADS!

Have some salmon defrosting plus king prawns for later plus the last of my pork chops in fridge.

[Fangs]

Mom passed in Jan 2021 and I have her red leather jacket, still a little snug. Maybe that can be my goal for Feb!

Sorry for your loss. My mom is going on 94 in a month and we have having big elderly issues and dealing with retirement homes and more now. But one thing I love is you striving to wear her beautiful red leather jacket…cause I got a red leather short biker type jacket that is a bit snug still and I have every intention of getting back into it too!! I know you will be wearing it before ya know it

Plus sciatica won’t be cured in any way, that nerve issue is a PIA I have to deal with also but we can get relief as we know but the other stiffness will go away with time. It is all time to get thru your personal adaption time and gain better joint health and you will so you hold strong!!!

Great post JJ!

@Karen18
if backward leggings is your only troubles

Hey maybe ya hit something, a little bit of protein right near bed time is WHO you are now…might be worth trying again as a mini experiment on ya!

you drive on the wrong side of the roads anyway right? glad you ain’t in my town right now too when ya drive out there HAHA

[FrankoBear]

I was a bit concerned he was going to eat the rocks.

[gingersmommy]

My condolences on your Mom. What a great goal to wear her red leather jacket!

[Fangs]

@FrankoBear
my worst concerns were a few thinking carnivore!

first WHY trim off that fat? that fat would be the oily animal fat to cook that meat instead of bringing a bottle of probably veg fat with ya on that excursion…ugh.

Second was no onions required but if 1 small…for condiment flavor…cool

Third was no rocks required. Cook the melted meat fat and meat…SO MANY damn rocks that I get it if ya want totally steaming action in that big azz pan but carnivores don’t require that truly LOL

Fourth is that whole eating could be trimmed to a 1/4th of time time on carnivore in that I AM hating the ‘kitchen duties’ either out in the wild or at home

No need for rocks for minerals, that water, so pure, has minerals, all ya need ever so no rocking should happen but darn if those rocks didn’t have some purpose but in the end, all those rocks were useless on that recipe if ya ask me, but no one is asking maybe

Fifth…which surprised me most was the guy never looked behind him to see if the YETI was creeping up behind him to eat him and his meat!
WOW I would have one eye behind me wanting to know if some YETI was sniffing that nice meal

BUT THAT was so nice to watch cause that is me. I wanna be there doing just that. I want pristine, natural, no life noise and that water in the background being all it is, was just wonderful and of course that recipe and life food was great…well the meat was til he trimmed it and the onions, probably not growing beside that beautiful river…but Ioved watching that FB!

[Shinita]

Jump on the wagon, fall off it, dust off and climb on again.

I look at the wagon from a distance right now but it looks nicer every day. I jump on soon, well will hang from the side, sometimes grabbing something that grows on the road…

(Today I ate a rosehip. Not like it was the worst I did. It’s just an example for the growing things.)

My goals?

1. Stop being 76kg again Not like I weighed myself without clothes but it was 77kg after I got up, before toiled and in my pyjamas. So I am 76 again. It will be 75 soon but 75 is so old, I am that since 14 months and I was way too heavy before.

2. I won’t try hard anything. And I never try hard but I evolved and I can try too hard, apparently.

3. Without trying hard, I skip lunches whenever I can. I don’t wait until hunger, never could do that, it’s way too restrictive to me. But I don’t want to eat just because I can (that’s what I normally do. except maybe on the monthly fasting, I only fast when I can’t eat or can but I feel zero or less urge). If the pull is tiny and I don’t need food, I will wait.

4. Well I actually plan to come back to meat eating soon. But I will keep in mind that I shouldn’t eat meat if I don’t want it. I have other options. I don’t really have rules. I can eat whatever I just want. It’s not as simple as my different parts may want different things, that’s the point I need to evolve a tad more but it goes wonderfully. I am close I think.
   So I won’t eat meat every day or in too big amounts. It just steals my joy too soon.
   But we will see.
   Eggs are different, they are my default item. I am hungry, I eat eggs, there’s no way around it except very very rarely, I had maybe 2 only meat meal in the last years…? Except maybe a few tiny ones? Eggs as default works and it’s convenient so I won’t change that. There are times when I don’t want anything but need food anyway so I can’t always eat what I desire. And it’s fine as long as it doesn’t feel bad and doesn’t happen too often.

5. As it’s almost totally hopeless for me to ever lose fat (I am super hopeful but well, it never happens. I probably need to chill and focus on other things first), I want to gain muscle as my primary goal body change wise And I will exercise more anyway, I even have more energy and desire to do so now!

6. NO tracking if possible. I still track my eggs and meat but that’s it. I already have a few half-tracked days. It’s super hard to stop tracking as I automatically restart, I am super curious and simple days especially trigger it but I will be careful.

Last night some vegetarians came to dinner. I ate my Cattleman’s steak. They said, “That’s a big steak”. And I said, “Yes, it is.”

And I never ate the exotic animals you guys did. Okay, kangaroo once, it was so forgettable I pretty much forgot. I ate frog and snail, the latter is meh, frog is tasty. And I loved octopus in vinegar. But I only ate these only once. I ate some organs but even that isn’t so interesting… Mostly liver and basically everything a chicken has. Chicken brain is nice but I love blood most and I can’t get any.

I haven’t even tried guineafowl eggs… And people keep them here. They just eat the eggs themselves. Oh well.

I have Mom’s grayish brown red leather jacket, it’s pretty… And has holes from a cat refusing to go into the box but both Mom and I were super stubborn…
Never wore it. I could, Mom wasn’t thin (or fat, just normal for an older woman here) and the jacket wasn’t form hugging but… No idea why. She died 12 years ago and it seems the shock totally wore off, I just start to notice it. It was extremely sharp in the first 2 years and not good in the following years. It’s good I have not many family members and friends, I am bad with losses. Of course, Mom was extremely special. She raised me alone, after all and taught me things and we were pretty similar as well (not a good thing when one is very temperimental and stubborn but we typically respected each other’s boundaries)… I didn’t write this much about her since she died, it stung for horribly long. She was the same, she seriously grieved her own Mom probably until her own death…

I have found the pair of punkish trousers I bought once. It was too small for me but I always knew I will fit into it one day. It was maybe 15 years ago (or a bit more, it was before my “big” fat-loss after going low-carb) but I am patient. If I will be 50 or more when I will fit into that pretty red-green stuff, so be it! I surely will wear it

I would be happy with 74kg in the beginning of March but that’s a bold goal from me…

The video had tempting meat But I am with Fangs… Who uses so much onions omg? (Unless it’s the protagonist of the meal like my eggy fried onions in my younger days.) And I would need more fat on my meat…
But each to their own I suppose. The river was lovely.
I wanna go out and see GREEN already. More green. We do have pines. Mostly sick ones, just like the thujas, the pines here are fine but the ones in the forests are sick All the thujas have problems, I don’t know why…

BUT we have wonderful weather so I can go out a lot. But I don’t wanna without green. I am a problematic one. We have a river, a big pond, small ponds, cliffs, birds, tiny rocks… Why do I want flowers and foliage too? I don’t have very many options for a small walk and they get old after a while without the greenery…

[Fangs]

@Shinita
are you all in zc this month with us all?
just curious on it cause I know you backtrack into very lc sometimes.
Are ya all in or ? Just asking wondering where you stand now for this Ferocious Fix Carni month we are doing

[robintemplin]

Love that your mom had a red leather jacket! Must have had some sass in her. and love that it will be your inspiration. Good way to honor your mom. And wearing that jacket will be like a hug, won’t it?

[robintemplin]

Aw, @Shinita, what a lovely tribute to your mom.

[Shinita]

I do 1-2 meatless days and then I come back to the usual just without trying, I suppose?
I will eat whenever I please so who knows what will happen but I imagine I will be almost always carnivore-ish until June. I barely can eat enough eggs and meat until i get satiated so I don’t have much room for other things. A little dairy and added fat, my usual condiments and spices and that’s about it. Surely won’t be that clean and chomp on some crunchy vegs here and there or enhance my bread with something though I pretty much try to avoid that and keep it carnivore… Oh my, my sponge cake breads, they have ZILLION options without introducing non-carnivore items! Even my 100% egg sponge cakes have multiple versions, I haven’t even tried many of them… I just made not fully carnivore ones now that I don’t eat meat, using the chance… But I go back to carni ones soon.

So i don’t know but no way I stay far. I don’t want the vast majority of the plants NOW that I borderline need them as I don’t eat meat! So if I bring back the meat, I will pretty much ignore them.
I don’t want sweets either (I mean, it’s hard to taste them when I have it for reason, i.e. I have mascarpone and whipped cream, of course I make sweets. Alvaro ate the vast majority of it), it’s odd, I always liked them off carnivore…

So I can’t imagine February won’t be (significantly) more carnivore than my January. It merely will be more pleasant as I won’t really have rules… Something like that but maybe I am overly optimistic as usual. I eat some borderline inevitable and really low-carb things tomorrow and come back on the 3rd. With fish I imagine, I am not at the pork roast level for a while yet and fish is the farthest from that (among meats).

[SecondBreakfast]

Good Morning, Fabulous Carnivores!
@JJFiddle … That is the coolest mom-tribute!
@Shinita … I am so sorry.((((BIG HUGS)))))) Having gone through the same flood of emotions, emotional ambushes, and just longing to hug her one more time … Totally get where you’re coming from. But, the jacket? That would make her smile and giggle, no doubt! You go, girl!

@Fangs … Missed you so much! Very happy to be back, and chat w ya. 94 years old! Holy smokes! Give your mama a high five for me. =)

@FrankoBear You’re clearly killin’ it with carnivore. Meds— glad you’re getting off the prednisone. I see that you’ve got a nice array of supplements and such that you are taking. Do you happen to have NAC, also? N-acetyl Cystine. I’ve been taking that to help the bod produce the glutathione, but I learned something new recently. Its best to take a dose in the morning, AND one before bed. Its window in the body is 8-12 hours, and so you get the full liver-detox benefit along with everything else, taking 2 doses ensures a steady supply and process. So, throwing that out there in case you hadn’t added it in yet.

@Karen18 Hoping the BP situation gets resolved right quick. Looks like you are back to your active wonderful self again with all that exercise. OH! Crispy bits on burnt lamb are still tasty!

So, we are back from vacation. Had some nice weather in FL and GA…of course…given that it was -19f when we left our house - ANYTHING above 0f I’d consider “nice”. LOL! WE did encounter the worst weather from Nashville to Louisville. Not sure what genius thought it was good idea to orchestrate road construction on a Friday night during a snow storm, but someone got paid a lot for that bit of stupidity. Seriously, chipping wood in the median at 6pm on a Friday evening? WTF is that even about!!! I was pissed we had to sit there for so long, as they moved their equipment around, but I was laughing because it was just so STUPID! The rest of the way was pretty stellar.

Carnivored the whole way, but did partake in a bit of southern no-no food one night with my cousin. Did not overdo it. So, I felt more in control. Will not, I will not beat myself up for it either. I am 100% back on track and February is my month to cleanse and rock. Going to re-start the gym membership too. Its right near work, so, should be an easy thing to work in.

Paying for my time off now. Checked my work schedule when we got home. Have a 7 day stretch - no days off. Nothing like getting burned out again! Hoping the new guy can shoulder a little more responsibility and take some of my hours. That will likely help me not to contemplate resigning.

Well, time to go play batwoman, and hang upsidedown on the inversion table. Then off to work. Take care all, and enjoy the carnivore life!
SB

[Ketodaisy]

My goal for February is just to kick this sickness that’s had me down the last week and get back into my workout routines. I haven’t had the energy to lift a paper clip . And to stay on lion diet.

Meal one was a lamb shoulder chop and some leftover steak. Meal two was my first time trying lamb shanks. Made 4, ate 2. They were extremely filling! Took a full dose of NyQuil split between two doses at night. NyQuil has always had this fascinating effect on me, whether I take a half or full dose. It knocks me completely out for exactly 4 hours and then to the minute of the 4 hour mark, my eyes fly open. So I always just take a half dose, then 4 hours later take the other half. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever had a sinus infection that’s made me as miserable as this one has.

[Azi]

Appointment ph call with Dr C went well
He was pleased with my blood work… at first he was worried that I had fallen into carbs when I told him about the weight gain but after going through my labs he felt it was prob caused by overeating and more often, add that to alot less movement…but since I’m back to 2 meals a day no snacking he’s not concerned and said got this and it should self correct his only concern was my vitamin D because its tanking at only 24 so he wants me to take a supplement with k2

Plans for Feb lose more of the regained weight fit my jeans with no muffin top (hopefully)
Plan is to start BBBE…
First meal was a egg life wrap bacon strip ,lamb, and a sausage strip…in a teaspoon of garlic/yogurt
2nd meal will be lamb hock…

[VirginiaEdie]

My goal for February is just to kick this sickness that’s had me down the last week and get back into my workout routines. I haven’t had the energy to lift a paper clip

Have you tested yourself for Covid. Two of my daughter’s came down with it right after Thanksgiving. They both thought they had nasty colds, but then they lost their sense of taste and smell. Turns out they had Covid.

[VirginiaEdie]

Last weekend, after visiting my parents, I received a phone call from my mom. She was very worried about how thin I looked. I told her I had actually gained several pounds lately. She told me I needed to put on 10 more pounds, lol.

Since I had decided that 2022 was my year of taking care of myself and getting checkups, I made an appointment to have a physical. It was this morning.

My blood pressure was good (98/70 - I made sure I had some salt this morning.) My weight was good, which I knew it was. I considered asking the doctor to write a letter to my mom explaining to her I was at a healthy weight, but I think she will just have to take my word for it.

I should have the blood test results back by Friday. I am very curious to see how my cholesterol and triglycerides are doing. It’s been over four years since my last physical. That one was done six months into my keto journey. It will be interesting to see how much things have changed with age and 4.5 years of keto/carnivore.

[Ketodaisy]

Turns out they had Covid.

No, mine is a textbook sinus infection (sinus goop, sinus headache, sinus toothache) but it’s a sinus infection on steroids if I had treated it at the start, it probably wouldn’t have been so bad, but I left it completely untreated from Wednesday to Saturday because I wanted to do a full 30 days lion diet… then I did raw honey on Saturday and Sunday and it continued to get worse. Then I started taking otc medicine Sunday night. As long as my medicine is working, I feel ok, but the second it wears off… ugh

[Karen18]

@Fangs hahaha backward leggings isn’t the normal around here ya know lol I really was have a touch of confusion. Yws I did think I should perhaps start eating cold cooked beef burgers for supper each night but I don’t think its that easy! Haha everyone one can rest easy I got out there and back in one piece!
Pharmacist trialling me on propranolol lowest dose and just to take on my work days as thats when the BP crazy spikes. (beta blockers) i will give them a go and report back to the pharmacist.

Dinner was a small salmon fillet that I thought I had desicrated but actually tasted okay but the king prawns I cooked with it were absolutely awful so they went in bin. So I then cooked up the last 2 pork chops in fridge and they were nice. Had some cheese, I try so hard not to !!! And 1 hard boiled egg

Git some more lamb chops out of freezer and some more beef burgers to defrost. I am going to try a cold one before bed tomorrow night as I am at work Thursday and it would be nice if it works and I sleep lol

[JJFiddle]

That’s the same thing that happened to me… although we never tested, we thought he had a reaction to the covid vaccine and a couple days later I got a cough and thought it was the worst cold I’d ever had. I even googled, can I die from a cold? We slept constantly, tried cold medicine and it didn’t work, then realized the dizziness probably meant lower O2 and Bingo! You lose your taste and smell and appetite, you sleep all the time, with us we had a bad cold with dry cough but no runny nose. We had it for 6 weeks. Couldn’t drive his truck and my car was dead so we never left the house, just ate an egg each every day for weeks! Anyway KD - maybe that’s it. And VE I can empathize with your daughters!

Thanks all, re: Mom. We still miss her, mainly because we built this house for her to live in with us, and we still refer to her room as Mom’s room, Mom’s bathroom, I sometimes forget whose clothes I’m wearing, lol. The last year and a half she was in memory care but when covid let up enough to visit, she was in hospice, and I’d take my uke down and play for her in her room. She never forgot any music, she’d wake up and sing words and harmonies, even when she couldn’t remember for sure who I was. The human brain is an amazing thing!

I didn’t get in here on any serious note yesterday but I made carni hollandaise and we had it over the last half of that pork tenderloin! It was yummy. Calls for bacon grease so I have to get TONS of bacon this week. I don’t think bacon yields anywhere near the grease it used to - or as much as our PA farmer’s did. Yummy though! Just egg yolks and hot bacon grease, dribbled into the yolks, mixed with the immersion blender. A little salt if necessary.

Today, beautiful chicken livers - they’re different than beef livers which I’ve done twice, softer and very good. Also some hamburger dressed with a soft boiled egg and a couple Hebrew National hot dogs - not so fond of those but hubby liked them. Instead of the liver, he had salad, broc and potatoes with gravy. I think mine was better!

[Sophie107]

I’m ready for a challenge!

My goals:

–Being more aware of being “in my body” (not walking around as a disembodied head).

–Drinking more water. I am pretty bad at this so need to make a conscious effort!

–Reducing my body fat percentage. This has been a goal for a long time. But to be honest, I dropped a few percentage points in body fat in the first six months of this WOE, but since then it has not it has not really changed. It tends to range from 31% to 33% depending on how hydrated I am (it was 35% when I started this WOE, which is considered “over-fat” even though I was not technically overweight).

I would ideally like to get down to 25% body fat which is a healthy level for a woman who is not very athletic (due to health limitations). I certainly can’t do that in a month but would like to work toward it! For me it will mean getting more consistent with resistance training and probably also dropping a few pounds. I have been ranging from about 127 to 130 lately, and my body fat is always too high at that weight. So I am shooting for 120 - 125. Again, not going to reach that goal by the end of Feb but I can get started.

I like the “skinny jeans” image you threw out. I love skinny jeans and just got a new pair, so I will be aware of how they fit and feel as the month goes on.

It will be great to be able to check in here. Thanks!

[Septimius]

Welcome!

[Relic53]

I decided to find those clothes that I knew were too snug to wear, I put them an to get an idea, even took a quick picture to compare at the end of the month.
Goals I’ve set are to continue moving toward a more balanced work-life which definitely reduces stress.
Continue to get outdoors and be more active
Talk to more people about what a positive experience that I’ve had with starting keto and then with carnivore.
I’m sure there will be many more goals that come along as I go.
Today’s menu is skirt steak along with salmon fillets.

[Karen18]

Morning everyone. Well crappy night last night… knew it was too good to be true having such a great night the night before… oh well not really surprised so not really disappointed either. I did eat cheese yesterday as I found a fairly nice one in Sainsburys so maybe that kept me awake . Also had RLS mostly in my ankles last night which I can only assume resulted from the 100cal bike I did in yesterdays CrossFit wod. I was going like the clappers and I am not great on the bike as I don’t much like it and would have preferred rower had I not tugged my hip on it on Saturday. Airing on caution and listening to my body … mantra hahaha

Anyway ran my 100 flights of stairs this morning at a good steady pace. Taking me anywhere between 34 and 38 mins depending how I am feeling which isn’t bad going. Took one propranolol this morning to guage how I feel on it and I am feeling quite OK. Not as tired as I expected and not as low mood as previous 3 or 4 days. Even got on with pottering around clearing and cleaning and I hate housework lol. Got some paperwork done and filed, changed my bed, hoovered and dusted upstairs, brushed the stair carpet down and hoovered downstairs too. Now taking a break in the laundrette for half n hour. got to work in the breaks else I am totally wiped out.

Brunch was 4 bacon rashers followed by cooked chicken heated in the big pan with the left over pork beef, lamb and bacon fats and it was really quite nice. The pan needed a clean but I didn’t want to waste the fat and I have plenty in little bowls in fridge so didn’t want to save it either. Just gave me a good salt kick this morning which I felt I needed.

Beef burger and lamb chops for dinner later and will save a beef burger to eat cold before bed … see if that helps me sleep again. Up early as tomorrow morning… middle of the night stuff again for work day. Only a 4 hour shift tomorrow as I am now on 50% of my normal shift on my phased return. Blimey I am glad I am partially retired.

The evening sky last night was getting quite heavy with cloud but it made the colour of my wall pop. I love looking out the kitchen window cos that yellow just keeps changing hue throughout the day and makes me happy looking at it. I know I know I am that weirdo woman!

[FrankoBear]

I decided to find those clothes that I knew were too snug to wear, I put them an to get an idea, even took a quick picture to compare at the end of the month.

The pic is a good idea. I have a series of selfie face shots from January, and will continue with that monitoring tool.

[Karen18]

Done the laundrette, done the spinner when I got home cos the washers at the laundrette don’t spin too well, done the hanging up and then was done in lol

Sat outside in the garden with a brew listening to the birds and refilled the feeders that were nearly empty. Dull and overcast but a lot milder than the last few days. Its lovely listening and trying to identify the different birds. The Robin always let’s me know when he’s there and now I can distinguish the great tits too. I am getting there. Its so lovely to have had to slow down, though I wouldn’t recommend doing it the way I have hahaha but there is always a silver lining and whereas I would have just gone out and about (and spent the pennies on rubbish) i can now improve my knowledge on the garden and indoor plants and the birdies. Feeling good and reflective today.

Made the lamb chops for dinner which were nice, the other bag I got out with them last night turned out to be cooked ham which is fine I may eat that later. Also had one of the big beef burgers and but cooked both from in the pack and have left the second one to eat cold before bed in the hopes it aids good sleep like 2 nights ago!

[Fangs]

So many posts I am getting confused on who is here and how well everyone is doing LOL

But @Azi
thanks for sharing that info with your Dr C appt! I love hearing what is going down with you on that.

TO ALL: this is what Azi is doing…Dr. Ken Berry, BBBE Challenge, which to me is what our plan is all about. for those interested.

Also remember too, ALOT OF times the more a carnivore eats the more they trigger weight loss.

@Karen18
wow that is a dark sky!
I love how you said slowing down is showing you a diff. daily life now for yourself, but yes, no one wants it thru a medical crisis but in the end, out of bad can easily come good for us!!

----I love we got skinny jeans as a focus, we got clothing articles we are wanting to be more comfortable, we got selfie pics etc to show progression, this is one interactive bunch of carnivores who are actively wanting to change themselves and taking big actions to do it…I love it!! I thoroughly enjoy being a part of this group and amazed just how dedicated to health and change we all are and it is a priviledge to be chatting with you guys

Lion Diet.
got a 1 lb. ribeye to eat and tonight I got burgers.
I feel ‘very safe’ eating beef beef and more beef I did it before and I know it will suit me well. So far so good…day 2, ask me how it is going on day 18 HAHA

Soldier on!!

[MischiefDM]

Where’s the link to this Challenge?

[Azi]

This morning I started with a lamb hock

2nd meal will be flanken ribs

[Ketodaisy]

Meal one was Denver steaks and bone broth jello (not pictured). Mea two was the leftover lamb shanks. I spent several hours last night laying with steamy cloths over my face and it almost completely broke up the sinus infection! I’m probably at 80% today . I considered working out, but decided to give it one more day. Sleep last night again was NyQuil sleep, so not worth noting.

[Azi]

Ferocious Fix February - Carnivore Challenge (Fit it In - Fit in It! ) Feb 2022

So many posts I am getting confused on who is here and how well everyone is doing LOL But @Azi thanks for sharing that info with your Dr C appt! I love hearing what is going down with you on that. TO ALL: this is what Azi is doing…Dr. Ken Berry, BBBE Challenge, which to me is what our plan is all about. for those interested. Also remember too, ALOT OF times the more a carnivore eats the more they trigger weight loss. @Karen18 wow that is a dark sky! I love how you said…

[JJFiddle]

Also remember too, ALOT OF times the more a carnivore eats the more they trigger weight loss.

Really glad you said that. For my meal at 1 pm I had a POUND of salmon filet and a patty of grass fed burger. That was a lot to eat! Probably won’t need anything else till tomorrow.

[Ketodaisy]

Where’s the link to this Challenge

This thread is the challenge. We do a monthly zero carb/carnivore challenge in this little corner of the forum. This is our February thread

[Shinita]

Plan is to start BBBE…

I didn’t know what this is so I googled. Now I know. (My guess wasn’t far But of course it’s butter and not broth…)
And found a diet that is the same - plus ice cream (mostly cream but sugar too. little but still)… What.

Hi guys, I didn’t want to come until I have a proper carni day but of course I can’t last so long. But just popped in a tiny bit. [Yeah, sure. You would think I already know myself after all these times. Nope, I still believe in the chance of me being short. When there are many new comments since my last visit and I am just getting ready for a new carnivore period.]
I had 6 vegetarian days I think, carbier than ideal but most of my food still was pretty good (and very, very eggy). I am not into scrambled eggs anymore but pancakes are fine and I have several savory fillings now.
I run out of all my dairy except butter and sour cream and I don’t overeat them. Not like I overate cream, almost the whole bag (250ml) was consumed by Alvaro. Yay. No cream January and low cream February, nice. I don’t ban it anymore but I rarely will buy it and only consume it in tiny amounts. 50-100g a month should be fine I suppose.

Today I planned to eat some leftover (from Alvaro’s soup) cabbage I fried. I LOVED that stuff. It’s quite low-carb - it’s not for eating in big quantities at all, it’s flavorful, a little goes a long way. It suits eggs, I can add sour cream too… I even liked the smell while frying it. And added black pepper, it’s awesome with black pepper. Nope. I don’t want to eat even this single leaf I actually liked before. (Spices don’t count.) The soup was nicer as it’s soup and I LOVE soups. Unless they are way too dense, carby or sweet. This one is good because… 1. water! 2. sour cream 3. vinegar. And it was tasty just too sweet but that’s what salt, sour cream and vinegar are for… Still wasn’t tempting in bigger quantities. So it seems I am still not good with vegetables beyond onions, tomatoes and the occasional crunchy juicy raw vegs. I don’t even want to try the rest in the future, they are simply not for me.

But I have a bread phase. So I will make carnivore breads, better ones than my previous ones, they worked but I want some firmer, drier stuff. Maybe it will be short lived as I will have meat but I can’t imagine eating my usual roasts yet. Maybe I just need to start… But I rather start carefully, with some fish and that will be not a big amount. I have liver too, sounds nice as it’s chicken liver this time, again.

It’s been over four years since my last physical.

I wonder if I ever had one… I know we at the company all had to make to a check-up about 15 years ago but I got no results, I just were told my blood is wonderful or something like that.
One day I might get curious but as long as I feel okay, I couldn’t care less about my numbers and I am pretty sure I will be healthy for many decades more (I was born with good genes and the opposite of hypochondria, you see. I wonder if it has its own word, probably… everything has its own word). And I have no doctor anyway. But I have healthcare, I should use it for something, I never used it for my teeth and they were very costly…
Yes, it would be interesting to see my numbers. But I can’t compare them with anything. Only with my even more future ones.

I even googled, can I die from a cold?

I am pretty sure a human can die from about anything. Not any human and it may take some other unlucky factors but…

I still can’t imagine losing my taste, it’s something that should be in my room 101… Though it’s not one of the worst things ever. But pretty bad for a hedonist who loves food and feels very irritated with super low appetite for days on row… I need my joy from food, not all the time but sometimes. Often. Almost always.

we built this house for her to live in with us, and we still refer to her room as Mom’s room

My aunt still says that. My Grandma died decades ago… But the house is big and my aunt is only one person and she had the biggest, sunniest room anyway with plants and a nice view to the garden. So that room stayed just like it was.

She never forgot any music, she’d wake up and sing words and harmonies, even when she couldn’t remember for sure who I was. The human brain is an amazing thing!

There is someone with an extremely short memory. MINUTES. He was a big musician and he still can play. And remembers his ex-wife (she visits and is nice and everything). Remembers almost nothing at all, everything is the first time but music and her, he remembers them. Not their wedding or anything at all, just something vague but important of her.
So music and the strongest love ties, they are special and some part must be stored(?) elsewhere.

Today, beautiful chicken livers - they’re different than beef livers which I’ve done twice, softer and very good.

Yay, another one who likes chicken liver. I still remember @Fangs saying it’s cat food
We all have our personal taste and many people doesn’t even like any liver. I can get bored of chicken liver but I still can eat it pretty regularly. Just not every week anymore. And I eat it slowly, a little at a time. I will make pâté next time, even the bad pork liver got edible that way, the chicken liver will be great I am sure.

I love looking out the kitchen window cos that yellow just keeps changing hue throughout the day and makes me happy looking at it. I know I know I am that weirdo woman!

No, that’s a nice yellow (orange), I could look at it a lot too (well, maybe we are both weirdos… well I would wish every weirdo would be this cool weirdo, appreciating changing colors) and it’s a blessing to find a warm color that looks good enough all day… I like warm yellows. I probably would choose a tad less orange myself (not like I can know from a photo what color is this but still) and would enjoy a superior warmness when sunset hits it. But I have deep red tiles on the roof so my wall never will be orange-ish yellow, that would be too much. I just like to look at such houses, there are many around here. The fences are very open, just some wire on most places. And we don’t even have any fence between us and one neighbour (we need to go to their property to care for our own blackberries. the owners probably were in good relationship in the past as the well belongs to both properties. hopefully it never will cause a problem. we don’t have neighbours living here at the moment).

For my meal at 1 pm I had a POUND of salmon filet and a patty of grass fed burger. That was a lot to eat!

IDK how big a patty is but a pound of salmon is very little food!
Once I ate 1000g fatty pork, not in one sitting, though… Well that was a lot. To me. Not necessarily to everyone…

Tomorrow I will bring photos. I think. Not sure what I will do with my fish (one hake at a time, it’s so tasteless lean fish but the texture is nice and I can add things to make it better), stew or some recipe I have found ages ago and never made it.

[Azi]

Yeah BBBE isn’t as restrictive as lion but ppl have had amazing results even if not in pounds but in lost inches…

I prob won’t eat a ton Of eggs and butter but it’s options along with the bacon that I can add if I need it…

I cooked 4 flanken ribs but I could only eat 3…

[Shinita]

I would rather stay fat Well I can’t afford much beef anyway and it’s fine as I prefer pork… And I don’t like bacon much. Sour cream, on the other hand… Butter should be avoided as it doesn’t satiate me (and I can’t afford it anyway). But it’s good and unique so a little here and there is fine… My eggy coffees would be very sad without both cream and butter. Butter offers the dairy flavor and I take up on its offer

Of course, I don’t NEED to drink coffee but it’s not how I work, sadly.

I will have hake fish and pork jowl as my main dish, it seems, they are frying in the pan now but my meal is far away at this point. I just cook a simple thing for Alvaro so I could supervise my own stuff too, at the same time. Caroline (who had a name day yesterday and she got a new name as a present: Aida as it was both Karolina and Aida day. Karolina is the Hungarian version of Caroline/Carolyn, the cat got the name from the Portal game. I call her Caroline, Alvaro calls her Carolyn and he says the original is one written and the other spoken…? I don’t care, to me she is Caroline), so Caroline was happy with some fishbone with plenty meat on it. I am not stingy if it’s fish I don’t even like I would never eat it alone, boring, tasteless. And tender, that’s the good part. It’s so fun that there are animals with so soft meat…

[Fangs]

@Ketodaisy
so I read your lamb shanks and think WHAT is she doing? that isn’t Lion? and then I know what I mixed up…

In my brain I am doing beef and water only. My limited Lion version, but I know Lion is actually any ruminant like lamb or bison or deer etc.

Yes, hot water on face or steam from a shower is a very good break up on clogged sinus! I do it all the time when I go down with sinus but happy you are doing so much better!

-----------------So I said Lion with KD but I am doing limited Lion. Just beef and water. Beef meaning just from a good ol’ cow. But Lion of course is any ruminant critter but I am gonna do this month on beef…so that was my mix up reading about KD

today is big Tbone steak
second meal…not sure but probably burgers again but I have to hit store and check out entire beef area, I think I need some beef short ribs, beef roasts, like chuck or something…you know, just some change from a steak and burger in my day. Not like it is different ya know, but YEA it is different

All good so far but on exercise. I just am not doing those darn tapes. Raining today but my mind thought, walk dog? In the cold nasty horrible winter brrrr out there? maybe? Probably not HAHA but I know something in this month of Feb I need to find something to move a tad more…but ya know…warmer months ARE coming sooner than later so maybe I will wait? yea me bad on this!

we shall see…

edited to say hit my local close smokehouse little store down the road and scored 4 beautiful ribeye steaks on big markdown…oh yea my butcher friend was putting them out and I GOT them first happy ribeye shopper here right now HA

[Karen18]

This is the shade of yellow during the day when no sun on it. The sun turns it a golden yellow and that dark sky made it a darker golden yellow (orangish lol)

[FrankoBear]

Crikey another summer heat wave.

Warm balmy nights for walks at the beach.

Rib eye steak and baked chicken wings for dinner over 2 nights. 3 pastured eggs and 3 rashers of shortcut bacon at NoFUN breakfast (2pm). 2 coffees with careful portion cream before noon.

Have to restart prednisone every 2nd day with immune reactive polyarthritis flare up on 3rd day off it.

[Fangs]

@Karen18
I love you get a color change like that, changes the environment and keeps ya wondering on just ‘what shade’ the wall will be today LOL

Great pics, you did such a nice job making your own little paradise, well worth all the pennys ya spent on it K, all for you to enjoy!!

@FrankoBear
trade ya. wet cold rain here!

you are eating so well FB, I feel you are on that right path, a bit of meds controlled to help you and good food and that darn beach ya live by to just melt away the stress from your life is such a great combo for you!!

[robintemplin]

Those are my colors… anything in the amber/gold/yellow range. and I love when colors change during the day.

[robintemplin]

Meanwhile, we are in a sea of white. Six inches plus. Beautiful. If it wasn’t for our little dog Paul needing to venture out, I could spend all day indoors. Hot tea, a book, and a blanket. A nap, perhaps. (This retirement gig is growing on me.)

[Fangs]

me too, I am sharp paradise location colors like vibrant parrots and sharp greens and blue oceans but then I love love love the muted Santa Fe or Albuquerque type adobe colors. I can combine and do both actually LOL

what I hate is the drab brown and dead of winter type stuff…ugh or that ALL white crap you are getting!

being South in NC when we get 3-6-8 inches I have to literally shovel a dog path out in the yard. Papillion and he can’t make it so I am out there shoveling a pee/crap path…shoot me HAHA I feel ya on small dog needs

[VirginiaEdie]

what I hate is the drab brown and dead of winter type stuff…ugh

It’s the drab browns and greys of winter that bring a great leaping of joy to my heart when spring arrives. I would not get that leaping if it wasn’t for the drab winter.

[robintemplin]

YES! My hubby always shovels a nice little race track around all the bushes and trees for Paul. (Never mind that my car is covered, lol)

[robintemplin]

True.

[Fangs]

very true and I feel that too when it happens but what I want, no damn change, give me hot hot paradise 24/7 and I am good to go!!

Paul? OMG!! Paul! Ok you know where this is going right?

[Azi]

But even in florida there were places getting down in the 20s we hit the 3os but no snow but stikk needed to turn heating on lol…but yesterday was actually quite a nice day and was able to get back in the pool and enjoy it today Is another nice day but supposed to be another cold snap coming at us at some point.

[Shinita]

Okay, it’s the perfect yellow then!!! It was SO, SO orange that I thought it’s more orange to begin with and that in sunset would be maybe too rich (it depends on people’s taste though)
I think it’s one of my fav yellows especially if it’s on a big surface where a super bright color would be bothersome.
Nice choice

Bright sunshine, a nice walk (so much mud though, we had some rain lately between sunny times), good workout for me today. This week I raised (will raise next time) almost all weights except for my back exercise (but maybe it will happen today). As I raised my weights once or twice in the previous 3 months, it’s spectacular. And probably nothing to do with my carbier days but I will compare these things when I can (not my plan to go carbier in the next months let alone for days but it probably will happen eventually). As with other things, too many factors… I don’t know why I have extremely good weeks here and then. My spirit must be better (it has a big impact on my workouts) but why…? Sudden hope? Sunny day? (But we have so many sunny days) Better sleep? Better timing? (It’s not very successful for me to be good at lifting when already hungry.)
I just have good days sometimes. I can see that all or most of my exercises go better than before then.
Whatever, I am glad I get stronger!

anything in the amber/gold/yellow range

Yes, yes, yes. And black for me. And some nice browns and especially tans.
And deep red.
This is very apparent in my acrylic paint collection I have lots of extra yellow, tan, golden and antique copper (but it looks bronze to me)… And silver because that is cool as well… I have fav shades from almost all colors but I only like a very very limited range of blues or greens while I love almost all yellows. Not the ones without any red in them.

I like greens in foliage even though I am not very much into green as a color. I love olive but that’s about it. But Nature, oh I even almost like pink in Nature (let’s include skies. I LOVE clouds. I had a few years when I made zillion photos but they never were nearly as good as in reality), it can get away with anything!
I very very love red leaves in winter. And yellows and browns but looking at hills with lots of red leaves… That’s amazing.

I would not get that leaping if it wasn’t for the drab winter.

Maybe but I would get that leaping if spring would come NOW… I got bored of winter. I want tiny curly first leaves on the forest floor…
And snowdrops. I should start to look for them and a bit later pasqueflowers… They are super early, sometimes we forgot how early but we won’t anymore! I am so glad I always have a hill full with pasqueflowers around me since 2 decades… Purple ones only but MANY kinds of purple! Lighter, darker, almost pink… One of my favorite flowers and it’s so early that it gives me lots of joy. Maybe I will bring some of my best photos from last year next time. If you don’t mind. I just will be in trouble if I want to choose only a few…

Oh, food. My first carni day since a while. No photo, it wasn’t so pretty and I was kinda hungry. I ate lunch again but maybe it will be fine…
The hake fish fried together with pork jowl was a big success, I ate it all without difficulties. Last time a single fish lasted for 3 days.
I had some head cheese pancakes too and eggy/buttery coffees.
These processed things come handy now but I won’t eat nearly as much from them later (when I will find the idea of eating normal pork realistic).

We always need to burn wood and paper outside but Alvaro got bored of that thing if it involves much cooking on open fire (what we use burning stuff for). So he doesn’t want to cook beef stew just potatoes. I cook a lot of stuff for him all week and he can’t even make stew for me? (He probably is willing just inside.) So I am not sure about the weekend meal yet. But I still will eat some beef I guess even if we don’t make a stew. Anything but pork for now. I even ate FISH so my aversion is serious But it was okay. Not particularly good but very much edible. Like scrambled eggs when I am already a bit bored of it.

[Septimius]

what I hate is the drab brown and dead of winter type stuff…ugh or that ALL white crap you are getting!

Yet again, we are the same person.

[Karen18]

Well @FrankoBear you got me green with envy. Nights are just starting to get a little bit lighter, 5.15pm and it would have been lighter but for the overcast grey clouds. I want that heat wave! We may be getting snow in next week or so… trouble is we may get snow in June this country’s weather is so unpredictable lol

Thanks everyone who likes my choice of colour… I like happy colours. I am definitely with you all where drab browns are concerned … and greys.

Crap night last night… the burger did no good whatsoever and I was back downstairs a couple of hours after going to bed … wasnt able to drop off. Everytime I thought about work I did my utmost to change my thoughts to nice ones … didnt work entirely! Even when I went back to bed with a herbal sleep aid I didn’t sleep particularly well and then woke an hour before my alarm was set to go off. Of course I dropped off then but up at 4.45am for a 7am start at work.

Did my stair runs before going. Only had a 4 hour shift to do which passed fairly quickly but I felt so tired and was quite clumsy and had a bit of trouble with my balance. Spoke with our temporary #1 Gov who was very nice, so if my BP spikes too high before a work shift I just have to call in and say I have med issues and it won’t go down as sick. Think she probably only said that as she will know I don’t take sickies. Also they don’t want a dead prisoner officer on their hands lol.

Also brought up subject of medical retirement and she is going to set ball rolling but can’t make any guarantees as it will be down to the new Gov who arrives this month. We will see what rolls out but I am not going to get stressed about it. What will be will be!

Had a brunch of 500g minced lamb (ground) pan fried. It was quite nice. Trying to get stuff used up out of the freezer a bit of cheese to start and follow then dinner was a thin sirloin steak. Will no doubt have a bit of bacon and a hard boiled egg before bed. Which will be early tonight lol.

[Shinita]

7:30 pm. It seems the pork jowl was wonderful at satiation as always I just need to make sure I don’t eat it unnecessarily,. it’s super easy to eat and it’s super dense. 800 kcal is just a few very easy bites…
I am perfectly satiated and it wasn’t a big lunch. Just dense Maybe I can get away without a second meal, we will see. {Just tracked, couldn’t resist, it was a simple day. Well, I got enough calories for that, actually… Not like I function that way. But pork jowl satiation lasts quite long normally, I managed to make an early OMAD with it before.}
My belly complained in the morning, it’s rare but as my body got more spoiled and sensitive, it got even more vocal to guide me. So I get lots of tiny nudges if I don’t eat right.
But now it’s very content.

Tomorrow I will try to have more protein (but it probably will happen automatically anyway), I was a tad low today, didn’t want many eggs and my processed pork was mostly fat…

So I won’t be very surprised if I get hungry later but try to focus on lean protein then as I ate enough fat. I have 4 tiny tins of tuna… And it’s a workout day with wonderful results! My tiny muscles grow

[JJFiddle]

Wow. Every time I read, there’s more, and I want to answer things, so I wait, and then there’s more!

Since the pound of salmon (without lipase or bile supplements) I’ve had a MESS of bad reactions (cramps, to the point of not wanting to eat at all. Almost had to cancel my guitar lesson lastnight, almost bowed out of playing lastnight - glad I attended both. Up to the bathroom 3x starting at 5am.
About 11 this morning I got hungry and ate 2 boiled eggs with salt. It’s 1 now.

I have boneless beef ribs and beef shanks just out of the sous vide after 72 hours at 135F! They look mushy. It’s too cold to smoke or grill them so I’ll just throw some of them in the cast iron pan to sear at about 2. Hubby will be hungry! But I might not eat much.

Guitar player scheduled to come over and play tonight. With him we play pop. He usually brings deer sausage from his hunts, and cheese, and they eat crackers with that. I’ll see how my tummy’s feeling, I love the deer

@Karen18 how do those tropical plants survive winter outdoors? It must never freeze where you are. I’ve been in England in the winter, I wouldn’t want to be an outdoor plant then

[Ketodaisy]

@Fangs yeah I like that little bit of variety that lamb brings to the table! Today was an all beef day though! meal one was burger patties and beef bacon. Meal two was beef ribs and raw beef liver. The beef bacon was

[Karen18]

The Date palm only arrived about a week ago and it is for one of my big planters but thats round the corner and catches the wind and as it has been a bit windy recently I was a bit scared it would cause it problems so put it in the terracotta pot to start with till spring (cos its heavy and won’t blow over) and put it there nestled by the wall and patio doors. Thought it would save it from getting too cold when the temps dropped, which they did but only to about -3. Seemed to cope which I was pleased about cos it wasn’t cheap lol. It is all trial and error for me being a total novice. The cordylines are hardier than I would have expected, they have been out about a couple of weeks longer than the palm and managed to get through storms and freezing temps very well. I have been keeping an eye on the weather and if it starts to get really cold which it may shortly if we get snow I may just wrap them in some fleece or something to shield them from the cold. I procrastinated over getting them but unless I give it a go I will never know if I can grow them or not eh?

I do love them though.

[Shinita]

I saw palm trees in Hungary and we have -20C in every few years… I think I saw some protected with something but it seems they may live somehow.

I pity the fig trees sometimes. They live, that’s no problem but they need soooo very much sun to bring fruits that only the sunniest slopes has a decent chance… All the other fig trees (and I saw many, they are popular… I don’t have one though the south part would offer some chance, at least in some years… This is not the place of the country with the most sunny hours a year but it’s pretty sunny and that part is on the hilltop with only a field to the southwest… But I dislike figs and it would take a lot of space and I have other plants there (lilac and honeysuckle. honeysuckle is impossible to kill without digging a huge hole, I tried. so I just cut the quickly growing branches sometimes as it’s under my red hazelnut. my hazelnuts are flowering now nicely, the red one has red flowers and the green one has green ones. they barely yield nuts but they are pretty. and the red one grew more than I anticipated so I need to cut it sometimes to able to walk through it and the pine there. I can’t cut poor pine as it already has no other parts due to the thuja… the garden was like that when we bought it except the hazelnuts and some new trees. the pine vs thuja problem was present but the odd shaped pine is still very pretty. this is my 4th pine, the other 3 has place though they touch the house. I saw SO MANY horribly places pines, like, 40cm from the fence or the house or both… what do they think, they stay so tiny? they are pine trees, they wont… and they won’t let any sun to the rooms there either… some of my relatives had that problem too)… Oh. So I made this monster text between parentheses again… At least I don’t nest parantheses anymore So, most of the fig trees, not being at the few good places of this country makes a lot of figs and poor things stay green Just because I dislike figs, it’s sad. IDK why they can’t function like the other fruits but they could afford it at warmer places so they are like that.

[Alecmcq]

Interesting that you say eating more carnivore food triggers more weight loss… I am finding this too, and almost immediately. It’s as if the body says “I see plenty of good quality intake, I can spend lots of energy, including fat stores”.

But if I am a bit stingy on the food, I tend not to lose as much the next day. Counter-intuitive, but that’s my current experience.

@Azi recognise this was your quote first…
Cheers
Alec

[FrankoBear]

This is the shade of yellow during the day when no sun on it. The sun turns it a golden yellow and that dark sky made it a darker golden yellow (orangish lol)

Karen, your wall is dynamic it catches and reflects the mood and the light of the day, in which you can reflect on your day. It is a wonderful philosophical creation.

Also they don’t want a dead prisoner officer on their hands lol.

Cripes! If you need our special area of community support, where we talk with our mouths full of healthy nutrition, you can write/ talk it out here. You can see Fangsy does. Your combination of physical activity, good food, home pride, family and social connection is inspirational.

The Date palm only arrived about a week ago and it is for one of my big planters but thats round the corner

It’s supposedly a coastal Mediterranean climate here. From February through to April we move into a season called Bunuru by the First Nations speakers, or ‘second summer’. We get some subtropical humidity associated with cyclone (hurricane) season starting in the tropics way up north. Hence banana plants.

Mrs. Bear and I built a human scale cat enclosure for out 2 cats as part of the homestead. Mrs. Bear does yoga in there and there is also a day bed for reading with a cat nearby. As part of the design we added 2 banana plants. One has has a pup. So, now we have 3. The leaves are so useful as organic wrappers or compostable ‘plates’ (saves on washing up). Plants are useful in a carnivore lifestyle.

TO ALL: this is what Azi is doing…Dr. Ken Berry, BBBE Challenge, which to me is what our plan is all about. for those interested.

If I drop the cream (dairy), that is what I’m on, including the timings with the 18:6 feeding window. Good video, thanks @Fangs.

[Azi]

Today I had an appointment with my regular Dr to get a new referral to have appointments available for Dr C …I had hoped it would go well but nope it did not he does not agree with the ldl being up as ok he wasn’t happy doing the first referral and told me that as the referring Dr he should approve of the thinking of the Dr he is sending me to…and I told him you want me on statins I’m not going on them while im seeing improvement…cywes gives me the choice as its my decision…I told him every blood test I’ve had since under cywes has improved and as long as it continued to do so I was happy…told him my cac score was
0 he told me that they don’t use those any more cos not reliable…
He added a note that he had a lengthy discussion with m on the subject of statins and i had rejected them…
He reluctantly said he would do the referral and wants to see me straight after cywes sees me in 6 months. Along with my next blood work.

So being out and about today his office is just over an hour away …we stopped on the way back about 4pm and grabbed Wendy’s baconater no bun…
Dinner was flanken ribs.
I have appointment in the morning for xray on my arm im not expecting it to show anything… but we will see…

[Alecmcq]

he does not agree with the hdl being up as ok

If there is one thing that there is some form of agreement around the whole cholesterol thing it is that HDL going up is a good thing. If your Dr doesn’t understand this, I would say he is not a Dr worth having.
Cheers
A

[JJFiddle]

I had a doc in 2009 who insisted on prescribing statins and I refused. He and his assistant drew circles on a napkin for an hour to try to convince me about good and bad cholesterol (my HDL was 100! I had better than the 3/1 ratio they require.) I took his petscan order and threw it in the trash on the way to the parking lot and never went back. A couple years later a Dr at Walter Reed Army hospital asked if I knew my cholesterol. I said yes, it’s high. But I would refuse a statin. He trapped on the computer for a moment and went to the next question. By now, people know the dangerous side effects of statins, I don’t think doctors push them like they used to. Either way, it is the doctor who works for you, not the other way around. That first guy even said, “that’s the slippery slope we go down when we start prescribing metabolic drugs.”

After a few years of keto, my cholesterol was down by 50 points! I believe it will continue, but not get too low since I’ll never take statins!

@Karen thank you for telling me about the plants. I know they’ll make it till spring just fine. They’re beautiful! What a wonderful environment you’ve built.

Tonight I had the last shank steak. So, all beef today and not as much. Hopefully I’ll sleep better without running to the bathroom 3x like lastnight!

[Azi]

Oops I meant ldl…corrected that thank you… can tell you he had me pretty mad but I kept my cool…every other test i had improved : my insulin my hba1c, my glucose, triglycerides HdL everything my ldl had dropped and total too but not enough apparently…

[Alecmcq]

Linda
In the past I have hit the same issue as you: your Dr wants to put you on statins. Here’s what I did: I said “I am NOT going on statins whatever you tell me. I am making an informed decision not to take statins.” It is these magic words that the Dr is listening for… it means they can’t be held responsible for the outcomes. My doctor simply entered those words into my records.

If you want the Dr responsible for the outcome, then don’t utter these words. However, I believe we as patients are 100% responsible for our own health and we are in charge. They are our expert medical consultant, and we are their customer. They don’t tell us what to do. We decide what to do.

I have explained to at least 3 doctors in the past that I was not going on statins because I had done my research and it was clear to me that the diet heart hypothesis was just unproven and wrong. They just shrug and move on. I am sure they hear this ALL the time.

The Dr’s problem is this: they are TOLD to prescribe statins by the standards of care and if they don’t and something bad happens, they are in big trouble. This is why they do it, even if they don’t believe in it. They don’t have much of a choice but to suggest and indeed press statins.

Therefore, what’s the problem here? It’s the standards of care. Who creates these? The senior medical establishment. What do they have? Large financial incentives from the drug companies making statins. It’s scandalous.
Cheers
Alec

[Fangs]

#MeToo on statins

I went in and had ‘suspect numbers’ and a failed EKG treadmill test etc. and a heart cath etc. which in the end, I WAS friggin’ perfect and my surgeon said even, WHY are you having a heart cath? and in the end the BS of how this went down on my diagnosis was just a flippin’ mess…I was fine cause it was heart PVCs in the end that were controllable luckily for me thru DIET intake…but the cardiologist still wanted me on statins. Told him to take a hike Ran from those morons and never looked back!

Feeling the best I ever have now, well, til I keel over one day in a nano second and then someone might think, told ya so, but I won’t be around to know any of that HA

[Shinita]

I learned about the existence of statin on this forum maybe 2 years ago…? These topics are far from me. I don’t even ever had a doctor (just dentists and optometrists but nothing deeper or more general). Or maybe when I was a baby… But Mom was worried about my health and just didn’t let them to come close to me when it was flu season… Lol.
Of course, I pick up infos and I would never accept statins. Or antidepressants or the like. Not like I ever needed or would ever need any, of course.

My body doesn’t care about my eating, it stalls wonderfully. If I eat little, I lose fat fine but I never eat little. Due to few and usually short exceptional times, I know I immediately loses fat, it doesn’t even matter if I eat higher carbs but I can’t do that anymore. I mean, eating little, higher carb is possible as it’s relative High-carb probably isn’t. I can’t test it as my food preference is very biased but even several years ago, before keto I only could do a few days at most while feeling my body getting into a progressively worse mood. I never could go back after I went low-carb - I never even wanted to, it probably helped - , only for short, intense visits. Now I have short, not intense ones, I even manage to go off and stay on keto now.
And of course, I can gain… Well, theoretically… I need a pretty serious overeating for that (beyond a tiny bump as sometimes I manage that. it usually automatically go back), that requires much carbs and as I wrote, I can’t do that for long even if I go crazy and don’t mind going super off (but I do mind). I don’t even think I could keep up a serious overeating using fat, no matter how not satiating and easy-to-eat added fats are to me… And I am 76kg (still! where is my usual 75kg? maybe tomorrow? that’s my ketosis weight since my stress gain). I never ever could keep up my 80+ kg weight, not even eating sugars and fats galore all the time. okay, I was 10 years younger, I might have changed so I better be careful but nope, I never worry about maintenance (maybe sometimes should but worrying isn’t hedonistic and I extremely slowly gain weight even if I do my best to do so). I just can’t LOSE fat… As I eat too much fat, yep. And exercise little. But I gain muscles now, apparently so I am very patient. I don’t want to eat too little, I want my muscles (But I eat as much as I fancy anyway.)

We had pizza-like things today. If someone doesn’t know my attitude towards pizza yet, I am super choosy. Only the best pizza places can produce something I call pizza. And I probably don’t like them anymore, didn’t test. Mine is just fried bread dough with things on it. Bread in a wide sense (but seems very fitting as it’s very much bread to me) if we include mine
I don’t seem to like sour cream based “pizza”. The crust was fine - and the pork in it overpowered the 28g tuna (half a tin) I had… Last night I got protein hungry, no wonder so ate white-heavy boiled eggs and half a tin of tuna. I prefer my sour cream creamy and I did put some on top after baking but it still wasn’t that great. Okay but not great. But I had something new to eat and it was nice so no problem there.

Ground pork roast is one of the funniest things ever for me now. It has such an odd fluffy texture And it’s a great flour type thing, I badly need those for my breads and whatever. I like airy, drier stuff, I can’t just eat normal meat and egg dishes all the time.
I make a batch of PSMF bread today, I am hooked, great experiments and very enjoyable result I am lucky. People in the PSMF bread thread aren’t nearly as happy with theirs.
Today I stick to carnivore ingredients, I have many options, after all. We will see how great they will become.

The timing things (skipping lunch, no coffee until sunset) isn’t what I do well right now… But it’s fine I suppose. I will try harder later later but I got scared off trying at least remotely hard recently… It can backfire spectacularly.

I stopped tracking again. Stupid thing.

Feeling the best I ever have now, well, til I keel over one day in a nano second and then someone might think, told ya so, but I won’t be around to know any of that HA

I like your attitude

I trust my own body zillion times more than doctors and even scientific experiments. It’s me, my own, individual, very communicative body.

[Fangs]

I like your attitude

I trust my own body zillion times more than doctors and even scientific experiments. It’s me, my own, individual, very communicative body.

So agree with ya in that WE know US as patients, but I also know when to listen to a Dr ya know So if real med issues hit I will do research to the ultimate and make movements forward thru their advice, but darn, when meds are handled out willy nilly and actual true reasons for those are not even considered, nope, I ain’t no take this pill person ever…hit the root of the trouble but I also think Drs can’t get anyone to change either…so those guys I guess find the pill avenue simplest to when dealing with patients when told truths, won’t do crap to help themselves.

like my mother in law
told tons of great advice and would rather take the drugs to heaven forbid she changes one damn thing in her eating to help herself. a ton of crazy out there!

[robintemplin]

Glad you stuck to your guns. (What an odd phrase!) I have had the same doc for 35 years. We’ve had that conversation many times and he eventually quit fighting me and actually supports every aspect of keto and all the health benefits he’s witnessed with me. He still isn’t convinced on the cholesterol numbers and wishes I would take a statin, but he supports me. To be honest, if I was able to tolerate statins (I am not), I would take them and consider it a win win. But I can’t, so I simply don’t worry about it.
Are you settling in to your new old home?

[Relic53]

Had a Drs appointment this morning for a follow up to recheck my BP. The last appointment was back in November after which I immediately started very strict keto due to the disgust I felt with what I saw on the scale when they took my weight. I left that appointment and stocked my fridge to get started with keto the very next day. I kept my carb intake under 10 total g per day until I started the January Carnivore challenge with you guys. This morning my weight was 32 pounds less than when I was there back in November. I’ve avoided a scale because I really don’t think that’s the most important thing but o can sure admit that I was extremely happy with myself about that. Icing on that cake was that my BP was much improved. Now I think I’m going to go enjoy a plate full of beef. Have a great day!!

[VirginiaEdie]

So glad to hear your BP is going in the right direction. Does the doctor know how your eating?

[Relic53]

Thank you much. Yes my Dr and his nurse practitioner both follow a keto diet.

[Azi]

[quote="Shinita, . I just can’t LOSE fat… As I eat too much fat, yep. And exercise little. …

Eating fat doesn’t make us fat…over eating in general does but not because it’s fat its just finding the ratio that works for us and balancing out our hormones…
Your weight gain is probably water weight added in glycogen from your carbier days recently…it may have been lower carb foods but after carnivore days prior it may have been enough to add back your water weight.

1st meal today is going to be boneless lamb roast

2nd meal not sure yet…

[Karen18]

Sounds like you have some lovely mature plants and trees. I wish I had been able to keep some of the plants and shrubs I had but I had no where to put them for the period the garden was getting overhauled. Shame but there we go. I am such a novice gardener so its all a big learning curve for me. Fig trees seem to be very popular and I love honeysuckle. I didn’t realise it was an invasive quick growing plant though.

[Karen18]

Regarding my lovely yellow wall, you put it so eloquently and totally in a nutshell. I sit out there or look out the window and just love what I see and feel calm and relaxed. Some people need greys, blues and mauves to feel relaxed and I am sure don’t believe 9ne could ever feel relaxed with vibrant colours but they just have no idea … it cheers me up … and living on my own I do need a little bit of lifting now and again.

Yes I already feel this community is an important part of my life. It is good to have people to offload or rant to and know they really don’t mind. I think if we did it all the time it could become a bit hard going but the one offs now and again are good for us. This carnivore thread is family

Loving your banana plants. I have been thinking about getting one for the garden. My garden is south facing and gets very hot in the summer. Also a couple of trachy carpus for the big planters. No real shade anywhere. The shed offers a little bit of shade but really only in winter when the sun is further south by about 12° and doesn’t rise directly over my garden with it being lower in the sky. I thought my ferns would be able to get established while there has been shade but they are looking unhappy now. As I keep saying it is a learning curve lol.

Thank you for you lovely post. Bet your cats love that enclosure … I know I would love sitting in there with them.

[Karen18]

A better night’s sleep last night, still had a number of wee trips but got back to sleep straight away on return to bed. Stair runs done first thing, no CF because it would have been a more weighty session. I am booked on tomorrow’s class.

Brynch around 11am was cooked chicken reheated 8n the frying pan in some leftover fat from ??? I don’t know what animal lol but it was nice. No melted cheese 9n it but did have a bit of cheddar after, dinner was a small thing sirloin steak and 6 rashers of bacon. Now just having a tad bit of ham.

Sorry i ate the other meal before thinking about a photo.

A bit too cold outside for me today which was just as well as it meant I didn’t mind getting on with some cleaning and clearing out rubbish from my front bedroom. It is a room I use only for the dresser as it is in front of the right window to see when I am doing make up or tweeting my brows or getting ready to go dancing. More like a dressing room but totally overloaded with stuff. I am such a hoarder however I managed to get a bag for the charity shop, a couple of bits for my daughter, a rubbish bag and a recycle bag lol. Scrubbed the dresser down and the windows and sills and dusted. Nice to be able to see the colour of the dresser again … gawd! Still more clearing to do … more clothes and other bits n pieces. Its dreadful when you’re a dancer and go to all sorts of different themed and different era dances as one collects so many things. I have hats galore for all eras and the clothes to go with them, then there is the pucker gen jewelery to go with it and the shoes! I am sure I could thin it all out now that we’re not doing quite as much dancing but you never know eh?

Reading all your posts of cholesterol and statins. I didn’t want to be put on statins. When I was in hospital following my stroke the stroke consultant went on a right rant and lecture when he saw I was horrified at the thought of them. I didn’t want BP tablets either but as I have said on a post or two, I started them 7 years ago… just wish the docs had told me to take them at the correct time of day! I had a wake up call with my stroke and i wouldn’t wish it on anyone. Since my stroke one of my colleagues had one and although he wants to return to work the prognosis isn’t very good. He still has serious mobility, speech and paralysis issues. His was about a week after mine, also a Christmas another lady who worked in the prison library had a stroke and died. I am taking the stroke consultants advice to take the statins and the BP tabs at the correct time of day, also the blood thinners. I was the fortunate one, I am still alive and I am fit and healthy and able to enjoy my life… for however long that is. I am still quite vulnerable for the next year. Fortunately I don’t have to pay for my meds being over 60. I don’t know what I would do if I was living anywhere but England as I am sure the cost would be quite high.

Just saying … before my stroke I would have been right with you all.

[VirginiaEdie]

I’m curious, though. I know you have high blood pressure and that was the biggest factor for your stroke. But, do you have high cholesterol, too? If you don’t, what good are the statins? Do they serve another purpose besides lowering LDL? I’m asking this out of statin ignorance.

[JJFiddle]

@Relic53 Oh my, anybody would be happy and proud to see results like that! It’s what we live for. Congratulations! Also, on finding a keto Dr.

@Karen18 in such a specific situation, you have to trust your doc, especially with all the statistics going on around you! You’re amazing, no one can fault you for anything you do.

Beef ribs for today’s lunch cooked sous vide with the shank steak we had yesterday - 135°F, 3½ days, then seared in cast iron a couple minutes per side. By the way I don’t usually cook in plastic bags, I tried that and they can treat and leak into the water, which it seems could damage the circulator. Instead I get those Stash silicone zip top bags. They seal tight and never leak. We love our sous vide meat, it is so perfectly cooked, through and through, and keeps longer in the fridge. And the meat makes its own gel. I used to add Evoo, now just a little ghee or tallow.

Now I have enough bones to make my 1st pot of beef broth! Any advice for the instant pot? I set it for 3 hrs on soup-broth setting, usually do 2h, but can’t find specific instructions for IP Carni beef bone broth on Google.

[Ketodaisy]

Now I have enough bones to make my 1st pot of beef broth! Any advice for the instant pot? I set it for 3 hrs on soup-broth setting, usually do 2h, but can’t find specific instructions for IP Carni beef bone broth on Google.

I add some salt, a couple chicken feet, a splash of acv, and water just to cover the bones. Soup setting for 2 hours and then warm setting for another hour or two. It’s perfect every time!

2 ribeye steaks. With meal one I had some bone broth jello, with meal 2 I had raw beef liver. I personally prefer my steak either raw or blue rare. When I buy from the grocery store, they are manager specials that are close to being thrown out, so I’m just not personally comfortable eating them raw. I give them a nice sear and Bob’s your uncle. When it is meat from my cow, I typically eat it raw. Personally, I’ve noticed I don’t enjoy raw or even rare lamb, so it’s typically cooked more medium rare. Anywho! Sleep last night was garbage as always. I did take the cortisol manager and it was useless, so tonight I’m going to stop taking any supplements and just go back to my normal expectations of a terrible night sleep . I do have some Redmond relyte coming next week and will give that a try. I know if I just eat sat, it really makes my sleep worse, but maybe a balance of electrolytes will improve it.

[Karen18]

Atrial fibrillation heart arythmia, BP was high and has been so since at least my mid 20’s and cholesterol higher than stroke consultant would like but not so high according to my doctor as I had recently had bloods taken prior to stroke and it didn’t seem to be an issue. Strange thing is that my resting heart rate is always between 47 & 54 occasionally drops to 44 and sometimes raises to 58 which is generally related to high fitness level. But you can’t see whats going on on the inside. Stroke consultant believes my BP was a high contributing factor as the walls of the heart will have thickend over the years.

The pharmacist did say that apparently my cholesterol had been on the higher side for some time and he said he would have suggested statins some time back.

I will be interested to see the readings when they next take my bloods.

[Shinita]

It doesn’t make me fat, nope*. It keeps me fat.

*well it had a huge role but carbs were the culprit. I could never eat enough carbs to gain fat so fat was needed as well but even overeating fat was due to too much carbs back then. now I still overeat fat sometimes but not to that extent so I don’t gain fat on keto, I just stall. But I almost always eat too much fat to be able to lose, apparently.

I don’t worry about the +1kg, it will come down, sure. It always does. Even my body can do this tiny fluctuations especially if carbs are involved (it’s so odd carb eating change my weight now, they never did for years).

Oh well, it’s not one of my biggest problems.
I had a bad day again. The usual big problem: I was so, so hungry, for hours and I couldn’t eat enough. In the end I hated all my food (including non-carnivore ones, I can’t handle hunger so I ate whatever I was willing) and still was hungry. But not so much so I grabbed my not first eggy coffee and left the kitchen. And it got better.

I need to solve this somehow. I wonder if there is some super good dense food I can eat almost any time when hungry. I sooo hate making zillion tiny dishes even if they are simple I already baked bread and pizza today, I just had no mood to spend even more time in the kitchen

I may up the force-feeding level (from the zero I do now… I do eat things I don’t desire but nothing I strongly dislike and don’t want at all) but I hate that.

When will my meat eating willingness come back? I only could eat tiny amounts today and it wasn’t enjoyable at all.

Tomorrow will be better, rabbit stew and PSMF bread, two wonder dish that I am looking forward to eat. I dislike even the special items I practically always liked before.

Sounds like you have some lovely mature plants and trees.

I have When we bought this house about 10 years ago, it was full with ~12 year old trees as the previous owners planted a lot. Maybe they had older ones, I am not very familiar with 22 year old linden and pine tree sizes… They are pretty tall.

It’s fun to see what the new trees does. Sometimes they grow very slowly, like my plum trees. I have a walnut tree that was a mere stick (with leaves except in winter) for YEARS.
And I have a probably 22 years old medlar tree that is super tiny and very assymmetric as poor thing is in the valley but at the windiest place without protection. The other medlar tree that is maybe 15 years younger is about as tall (and prettier. we found a better place for that).

I am sad there was a big storm once that killed the biggest tree in this area, near to my property, I could see it from some windows. It was a HUGE cherry tree. Mine is just big, 22 years is enough to make a cherry tree grow to some nice size but that was old and respectable and way, way, way more impressive! It was wonderful when in bloom.

I have many honeysuckle They grow like crazy, produce a lot of dry branches (and I need to cut off live ones too as they grow too long and bend and bam, I lost the grassy place next to my terrace), keep some of my flowers bloom (I won’t forget to cut those off in spring! They will grow back in no time anyway. I don’t know why the original owner planted peonies there but I won’t move them) and they may be super pretty when blooming but that lasts only for a little time…

Some people need greys, blues and mauves to feel relaxed and I am sure don’t believe 9ne could ever feel relaxed with vibrant colours but they just have no idea … it cheers me up …

Yellow is the best color to cheer one up - unless they don’t like it so much. But yellow is cheerful, whenever I read about the role(?) of colors, it’s mentioned. As I love yellows, it may be especially true for me. A nice, not too bright yellow is calming to me.

[robintemplin]

GOOD GOOD GOOD!!! I firmly believe in avoiding the scale… for my own mental health.

I MIGHT weigh myself if I saw my clothes getting tighter and tighter or if I knew I had fallen of the keto wagon… (probably one of those sloooow motion falls, like when you trip and try to get your feet to run and catch up with your head before it hits the ground. Those are the worst.)
Anyway… good for you!

[Shinita]

I am wonderful not caring about the scale much - but my weight almost never changes anyway. My 5kg stress gain more than one year ago wasn’t and isn’t nice but I don’t get shocked even in such a case (just surprised. it was the first time in my life!!! well it took a BIG shock… simple stress does nothing to my weight, appetite or anything similar. not like my appetite has much to do with my food intake, I hate being hungry so I eat, no matter what. a VERY bad mood triggers a fast but it’s some epic horribleness I automatically avoid even in dark times. it’s damaging for a hedonist. I rarely lose my will to eat for a whole day. maybe never).

Oh I will remember to just wait some hours, I am so very perfectly satiated now, hours after today’s mess I will have this until tomorrow afternoon, I love that. If I got hungry every morning, I would be so, so miserable…

[Alecmcq]

I firmly believe in avoiding the scale… for my own mental health.

That’s funny… I love my scale for my mental health!! For me I treat this weight loss thing (and I do need to lose weight) as an exciting journey, lots of fun, and part of it is measuring how I am going. I love getting the direct and immediate feedback that stepping on the scales brings.

Each to his own… thank God we are all very different…

[Azi]

Yes I’m not totally against statins if I was to have a stroke or heart attack then yes I’d jump on the medical advice…as I told my dr if my numbers were headed in the wrong direction I might also consider them but mine have been continuing to slowly improve and he can’t tell me tgey won’t end up at a normal place except I can’t see ldl ever going low while carnivore…

Dinner was lamb, bacon and sausage strip wrap

[Ketodaisy]

That’s funny… I love my scale for my mental health!! For me I treat this weight loss thing (and I do need to lose weight) as an exciting journey

It’s detrimental to mine. 2 years on carnivore and I spent the first year gaining almost 15 lbs. lost is back the second year and literally tried everything within the realm of carnivore to lose the weight I already needed to lose and no matter what I do, I can’t lose weight. And I have a good 15-20 lbs of fat still to lose. So when I work my butt off and get on the scale, only to see the same weight or higher than I expect??? Noooooopppeee. Cannot handle it. After a month of strict lion diet, even after I said I wasn’t going to, I got on the scale last week, expecting to be about 7 lbs lighter than I was. It wrecked me to see the number I saw, which was 4 lbs up from my average. I don’t know why I’m broken when it comes to sleep and weight, but it does get frustrating. I’m still going to do lion diet through e month of February but so far I haven’t noticed anything so great as to keep me on it after February. I will go back to my eggs, poultry, pork, and seafood in March. No dairy, except butter and the occasional yogurt. I definitely know that most dairy is not beneficial to me.

[JJFiddle]

add some salt, a couple chicken feet, a splash of acv, and water just to cover the bones. Soup setting for 2 hours and then warm setting for another hour or two. It’s perfect every time!

Thank you!
Tomorrow is grocery day, it was too icy to go to town today. I’ll get their tray of ‘chicken paws’ and more bony beef for next week. Maybe I can find oxtails! There’s a bag of marrow bones in my freezer but too expensive to just use for broth, I’ll cook and then scoop the marrow, then make the broth.
I suggested a book on Alzheimer’s treatment to a lady I know. It’s a ketogenic and coconut oil cure this doctor used on her husband, and she had good results with it. I read it when Mom was first coming to live with us and then attempted to keep her low carb.
I went to her previous book on Amazon and guess who gave a 5* review of it? Our own Dr. Ken D. Berry!
Here is the book. If I start getting Alzheimer’s I’m doing it

… Tonight I had 3 soft(ish) eggs with salt and ghee.

[JJFiddle]

Yummy! Tried the beef broth. Just 6 or 8 oz, really hit the spot

[FrankoBear]

Here is the book. If I start getting Alzheimer’s I’m doing it

Nutritional ketosis provides brain fuel to an insulin resistant brain to prevent tissue death. I think the challenge for Alzheimer’s sufferers is short-term and sudden diet changes at or after the point of diagnosis. That’s where adding one ingredient, like coconut oil, rapidly supplies medium chain triglycerides (fats) for fast conversion into available blood ketones by the liver.

Sad story alert - not for people worried about mental health issues or dementia.

My dad died from a rapidly progressive form of Alzheimer’s that coincided with a very late diagnosis of Type-2 Diabetes in his mid 70’s. When I took time off work in another state and flew back home and lived-in cared for him for a few months to give his partner some respite (they went on an overseas holiday), he would improve on the low carb ketogenic meals I fed him to the point where we could have meaningful conversations (and get what needed to be said, said). We created art together. He was a very good visual artist, and drank some unsweetened tea or bone broth over conversation. Dad was prone to angry mood swings when fed otherwise. We are big Viking built men, and angry Vikings can be quite formidable. My family wouldn’t listen about my observations and could not believe food would do anything. So, he rapidly deteriorated when he was put in a nursing home by my family and they fed the low fat high carb dietary standards diet. He was non-verbal and eventually heavily medicated as the staff needed to sedate him to feed him etc. Less than a year later he wasted away and died. I read him a book while he went through the last chapter of life. It was horrible.

[Karen18]

Bless that is very sad and tragic. To know you can see results of his change in diet only for it to ne taken away. It must have been a hard time for you and your dad xx

[Azi]

But how’s your clothes fitting? I know exactly how you feel about the gains though… its not easy seeing the scale going up even worse when some clothes that were fitting are now alot tighter.

I did noticed today though I didn’t want as much food but we will see if that lasts and produces results.
I have also noticed in the past following blake donaldsons plan if i eat 1.5lbs cooked meat, (not really lean meats because they make me more hungry) seems to be where I lose lbs on the scale with out hunger …Also since Dr C didn’t alter my eating this time so I can actually try to keep eating this way for longer and see if it will all come back off. (I’m hoping)
But I too have to avoid dairy well cheese and heavy cream for me cos that also seems to make me gain…

[JJFiddle]

@FrankoBear your dad and my mom were likely twins separated at birth, their stories were so similar. She lived with us for a year and a half and I did my best to provide her with a low carb diet (she wouldn’t give up her potatoes) and during that time, though her disease progressed, we had some good times and made good memories. When she finally went over the edge and became violent, we put her in a beautiful facility with “really good” food. Pasta and pie. The pandemic isolated the patients there for 6 months by which time she was on hospice, not eating, more violent and unresponsive, but I could visit her room once a week and I sang old songs and played uke and she woke up and sang and knew me. Then she got the covid vaccine and died.

The thing I’m excited about now is this lady with early alzheimers is proactive and wants to help herself. I’d love to see her take a stab at reversing the damage.

[Septimius]

Oh, I heard the story of Mary Newport and her husband Steve on a podcast; it was startling that coconut oil had such an impact. The part I remember most was her trying to get him into some sort of study, but his function was too poor - there’s a clock test, where you have to draw a clock, and his clock was not sufficient enough to get him into the study.

Mary started him on coconut oil, and his clock tests after that date were much more recognisable as actual clocks.

[Septimius]

On scale chat, it’s definitely my enemy.

I low-caloried my way to ~130lbs when I was younger.

I then fought the same 20lbs or so on and off for about 4-5 years, steadily getting heavier each time, eventually reaching 180lbs which was a tipping point, and then I keto-d myself to great health. I looked great, I was in very small size clothing etc, but I was just over 140lbs.

With the BMI scale in mind, I felt that 140lbs was too near the top range for my height so ‘I must be doing something wrong’ and I was utterly obsessed with getting to sub 130lbs, just like I had been a few years before.

I failed and ended up knocking myself off track in a terrible way. There were lots of factors, but I can recognise now that this was definitely part of it. Needless to say, not only did I not get to sub 140, but I ended up with a 2 at the start of that number instead.

With what I’ve learnt since, I’d say that it’s no wonder I was 140lbs - I realise that I had likely improved my lean body mass, my muscles, my bone density etc, so I wasn’t going to get to sub 130lbs.

Now that I’m older and wiser, I realise that the number doesn’t matter - what mattered was that I looked better and fitter at 140lbs than I did at 130lbs when I was half starved via low calorie.

I totally understand why people would find the scale inspiring - I weighed religiously at the start of my keto journey and it was great to see the number going down.

But it definitely had a negative impact on me in the end. I think sometimes the recommendations and our expectations do not stack with reality.

Nowadays, I go by other goals - size of my clothing, how much weight I can lift, how much exercise I can do without getting out of breath etc.

[VirginiaEdie]

Gosh, that must have been heart wrenching to know a difference could be made and his care givers wouldn’t listen.

My father-in-law is at death’s door as I type this. He had a heart attack 12 years ago and it became a downward spiral into all the symptoms of metabolic disease including type 2 diabetes and dementia. I believe it was all the meds that he started taking after the heart attack that led to the type 2 and beyond.

Several years ago, we told my mother-in-law about keto and even sent her a book, but I don’t think she tried it. I really do think she was too afraid to go against convention.

[JJFiddle]

I know. Why do people just blindly accept this? Why don’t they insist on some kind of control over their fates? Why do they follow doctors around like sheep?

[VirginiaEdie]

Well, I would like to use age as an excuse, but I know young people who are the same way.

[VirginiaEdie]

Could you post a link to that podcast?

[Ketodaisy]

But how’s your clothes fitting?

That’s hard to say as I mostly live in yoga pants and gym shorts . I do feel thinner most days. But then I have been so sick the last 10 days that I haven’t worked out at all, so now I don’t feel as thin

@FrankoBear that is such a sad and even more sad to say, common story these days. I’m watching everyone around me deteriorate in a similar fashion and all my warnings fall on deaf ears. My in-laws are literally killing themselves with food, and his whole family, including my husband, refuse to listen to me. They all think I’m completely insane and my husband thinks I’m being self righteous when I try to say these things will help. Nothing about what I’m saying is being self righteous, but he can’t see it any other way because that would mean he’d have to change. Which he’s not willing to do, so it’s easier to blame me as the crazy person. it breaks my heart every time I hear of other situations, so I’m so sorry you had to go through it

[FrankoBear]

Thanks to everyone for their caring responses and story sharing. It actually felt good to write it out. It re-affirmed the determination to not follow the follies of my parents’ generation but to pursue my own.

Had a great chat with Mrs. Bear today. She is turning 50 this year but looks like a 30 year old. She has been resistant to my ‘extreme eating’ and the deep dive I’m taking into carnivore, in a big part as a therapeutic diet, as mentioned before. Mrs. Bear was once a vegetarian. She appeared in a bikini to take Billie to the beach and she looks like a swimsuit model. Like my paleolithic ancestors I have no idea what she weighs. Then she told me how she has not gone low carb, she has just stopped eating fruit bowls (like you find at Californian smoothie bars) for breakfast and stopped eating “protein energy balls” with cups of tea after yoga. She has reduced her feeding window down to 4 hours after listening to a Pilates podcast about burning off body fat, with a cup of tea and a boiled egg in the afternoon, and then a massive green summer salad, or vegetables with a protein focus such as good size portion of fish or meat. She might have one piece of in-season summer fruit after that. I’m not going to tell her that she is eating keto. Nup, I agree (husband instinct) definitely not low-carb.

This is a dam down the valley a bit. Others might call it a lake. It’s both, I guess.

Heat wave continues. Bushfires are threatening towns in the region. Our area burned a few weeks ago and didn’t go up again today. It might rain on Sunday.

Mrs. Bear baked me beef ribs. I had a big chunk last night and the second big chunk cold this evening. Much easier to eat the fat involved when the meat is hot. Drinking rain water from the tanks, it’s delicious. NoFUN (No Food Until Noon) 1 coffee day today but still haven’t weaned off the cream. Four eggs scrambled cooked in beef tallow. Getting out in the sunshine bucket watering the food forest.

Sleep was difficult due to all over muscle and joint soreness made me wake each time I shifted. But that reduced during the day so I could take Billie the Labrador for an evening walk. She walked, I limped. We walk around the property, rather than heading 5 minutes to the beach (now, that’s plain lazy).

[Fangs]

It wrecked me to see the number I saw,

THIS! I use it as a very sparingly used tool now. I keep it as a weigh in tool every now and then thru PURE AZZ OBSESSION over the damn thing. Yes I dump it to only go back to it every now and then.

KD I found my best best total for weight loss on carnivore if we ‘feel we must’ drop whatever pounds fast is start the day with a big fatty delish meal…big heavy rumi meat and then that second usually if you do seafood or fish or fowl (without inhaling tons of skin) I ‘forced lbs’ to leave. NOW THIS is me. Problem being I felt like I was ‘on a diet’ again ya know…something I left behind on zc. So now ‘cleaned up’ carnivore and lost a few this month but ya know…I saw it, I ain’t using that scale as a focus anymore…I got on the clothing train! Take a pic and see a month later train. ANY darn way to measure some goals we got in our minds that never will involve a scale again!

I was that daily weigh person and my entire life daily was good or bad if I lost a damn ounce or 2 ya know. I had to let that go.

@Septimius
I could have wrote your post

I lost my 70 lbs the final time (3 times I lost that damn 70! lbs!!) and again when I did, I was ‘just near where I wanted to be on the scale’ and could not get there and in the end, would end up back in the 2s just like you said ALL CAUSE I could not accept I didn’t hit my number on that scale. It is a very very sad some type of physcological insanity happening for sure on that scale crap! ugh So many of us had it!

@FrankoBear
It was nice you had your time with your Dad. We can not control every thing around us in any true fashion in the bitter end, but you guys had your time, your personal moment!

Sorry you got soreness!

[FrankoBear]

Just popping out to grab me some health.

[Fangs]

ZC Zen and Pateience is absolutely required on zc plan for big changes to come…patience for me is the biggest issue I changed about my eating way of life

and remember too everyone, the patience timeline is NOT set by you on when results do come LOL We can’t say I will have patience for 2.5 mos. or 1.2 years on any subject

Sometimes it takes a heck of alot longer to achieve our best and hit some goals

[Septimius]

I will do my best - I can’t remember which one it was!

I think it was on Low Carb in the UK (the Dan Greef one that the dudes appeared on) - but if I remember rightly, it was someone talking about the Newport situation and not Newport herself.

Maybe it was one of the Unwins. I’ll do some digging and see if I can find it.

[Naghite]

Too much good currently. I cooked beef tongue and my first pancreas last night. I have both lamb and beef cheeks as well as 6 pound pork belly cooking now. Those will be later today after further preparation. This morning I had fresh meats I needed to cook , so here is my breakfast mid cooking and the completed meal.

An extreme food day.

[Fangs]

An extreme food day.

Just a good ol’ nose to tail carnivore…I think you are doing fantastic and I know you love your eating lifestyle! More power to you!!! Absolutely enjoy your posts and pics!

[Karen18]

Pre bed last night was some ham and a hard boiled egg. Had the alarm set for 7.45 but was awake at 6.50am. Up for a wee a few times through the night but managed to return to sleep once back in bed. Crazy dreams as per.

So did the 100 flights of stair runs first thing and then went to CrossFit for a teams/pairs you go I go workout. Very gassy. I would have loved to do rower but last Saturday thats what I pulled my hip on and still tweaking so I did all bike/ barbel work. Fortunately the girl I was paired with was happy to do row throughout. Daughter didn’t come today though I did see her later after the workout.

Brunch about 1300hrs of 2 large pork shoulder chops and a chunk of cheddar.
Dinner was going to be a small sirloin that I got out to defrost with some bacon but forgot it was on the side defrosted and chose some ham and scrambled eggs instead. After chatting scrambled eggs with @Shinita the other day I thought ahhh never got round to having them and just fancied some. A little of what you fancy does you good. I love them cooked scrambled in butter so I had 3 eggs and they were great with the ham.

Been a wet dingey drab day and it felt cold outside. Wind has got up in the last couple of hours and I can hear the loft door thud every now and again as it blows. Old houses

[Azi]

Well you been sick thats prob alot to do with the gain… inflammation and body holding water…I think its great your going to keep going …it could also be why your not feeling alot of difference because your body is fighting off infection…and you been feeling lousy with your sinus.

@FrankoBear so sad about your dad…So great to hear your wife has found her own path to a healthy way of eating…even if she doesn’t see it as “low carb”

[Ketodaisy]

Omad today of 2 ribeyes. Sleep last night: Supplements:none. All liquids stopped at 3:30, not even a sip after. In bed at 9:41. Up at 11:30 to pee. Up at 12:42 with weird pains in my feet (dehydration?). I put some magnesium balm on them and went back to bed. Up at 1:18 with a leg spasm (definitely from dehydration). I did trick of Karen Miles of tightening my stomach, and the spasm went away, but I went ahead and got up to pee shortly after at 1:51. Up at 3:30 to pee. Wide awake at 6 am, but not out of bed. Drifted back to sleep until 7, up to pee. Laid back down but didn’t sleep until I got up at 7:55. Was awake several other times that I didn’t get up. What I will never understand is how I can pee that much at night when I don’t eat anything past 1 pm and don’t drink anything past 3:30. And I was obviously dehydrated with the e cramps and pains, but still up to pee all night. It’s always been like this (not to the extreme that I did yesterday, usually I have a few sips of water through the evening), and I’ve never understood.

[Naghite]

Extreme volume of food I already know my WOE is extreme to my family at least Having said that, today my home-stay student left to return to Korea and braved trying a bit of the eyes and testicles for the first time, just so she could say she tried them once while living with me.

[Karen18]

I have to ask this … when you get up to have a wee is it a gush or a trickle. I think I get up and go because I get the feeling and know I won’t get back to sleep unless I go to the loo… then it is literally a trickle. Its like my bladder hangs on to the wee and sometime I have to bear down to force out a single drop. So frustrating because when I wee during the day it can be a lovely gush.

I saw a documentary a few years ago and there was a woman on the programme who had a similar thing, that her bladder just didn’t empty fully when she went to the loo. Never forgotten it. Think mine stems from when I was pregnant with my daughter, that was only 35 years ago hahahaba, we’ll blame her cos that makes me feel better lol, but I can remember when she was nearly due she was lying on my bladder and I constantly felt the need to wee all night long… and it was always just a drip or two! Drove me insane.

[Karen18]

And did she like them? Sounds very much like celebrity get me out of here! Lo

[Azi]

Maybe your dropping that water weight…

[Naghite]

She said the eyes were alright and the testicles were just “fine” (but my wife said she made yuck faces so not really), but good for her for trying them out.

[Ketodaisy]

gush or a trickle

Both at different times. Mostly gush though.
And @Azi I wish!! But this has been a 25 year battle

[Karen18]

She is braver than me!

[Karen18]

Oh lucky you … wish I could say the same !

[robintemplin]

Is that BRAIN??!!

[robintemplin]

Exactly what I do. I swear I get a good level workout every time I get up in the night. Hard to try to stay almost asleep when it’s such a game of effort and concentration!

[JJFiddle]

Today we went shopping in town and ate out, I had the 12 oz rib eye again and finished the last of it, heated in cast iron with tallow, when we got home. Tonight I had dried cheese, that crunchy stuff in a bag-Moon cheese.

I think one of the best things so far on day 25 is that other foods don’t look or smell good to me. I made cinnamon rolls with frosting - the ones in the exploding can - and had no desire whatever to eat any. (the fast food at the country bar smelled so bad the other night I nearly had to leave.) That’s a great nsv to me. I tried on Mom’s red jacket and it fits the same, but it’s only the 5th of the month!
@Naghite I stop in that section in the grocery store meat dept and look at all the organ meats, pigs feet, tongue, brains… One day I’ll get some. For now just chicken feet and necks to try to add gel to my next batch of broth. And liver.

[Karen18]

Absolutely, sometimes I lay still for a good hour or more doing just that and in the end get up and go, thinking I could have done that straight away and got back to sleep! Sometimes I wonder about myself!

[Karen18]

Woohoo! Had a pretty good sleep last night. Dropped off about 10.15pm and woke at 11.15, 4.30, 6.30 and 7.45am toilet trips each time but straight back to sleep again! Actually felt rested this morning. Dont think I did anything differently yesterday to enable such a good night … I don’t know! Had some strange crazy dreams but I always have strange crazy dreams so thats nothing new. My daughter messaged me before I went to bed and asked me to wrack my brains over some metaphors and similies … lordy she actually believed I knew what they were hahaha so after googling what I was meant to be wracking my little brain about I got putting pen to paper. I couldn’t believe she was putting stuff in my head before bed knowing my head gets too busy to sleep. Anyway I put pen to paper then text her what i had come up with but I reckon had I not done that straight away my mind would have been all over the place when I got to bed and that great sleep just wouldn’t have happened.

I had a small bit of stilton and some ham early evening just to finish the ham off as it had been in freezer and it was okay. A little bit salty but that was fine as i don’t add any salt to anything now.

We had a right storm last night. The winds were very gusty and it was raining before I went to bed. Through the night the rain came down in torrents and on one loo trip I could hear the rain gushing into the front porch where the gutter needs fixing. A job I was going to do when I borrowed next doors ladder after my blip and painted the apex of my extension… much to the horror of my daughter… cant think why lol well I think I need to get on with sealing that flippin hole, my door mat will be wringing wet. So I half expected to see my palm toppled over or broken but when I peered out the window this morning all was looking pretty dandy and now the sun is trying to pop out and everything looks refreshed. Its amazing what these plants can put up with but I do think the fact I put the palm in a heavy terracotta pot was a good idea. We are due more gusty weather and lots more rain today

I was very loose with my pennies yesterday … I watched QVC and ended up ordering conveyor belt full of stuff for the garden … then had to stop myself watching any more otherwise I would have carried on spending!!! Some things were advanced orders so the pennies don’t all come out of the bank at once. I will look forward to that arriving over next 3 months. Having got the 2 lovely pink passion cordylines from QVC I know I won’t be disappointed with any of it. I either procrastinate forever over buying stuff or I just buy on impulse! I am a strange one I think. Anyway I am not making so many trips to The Company Shop and buying lots of meat at the mo because I am truly honestly working through what I already have in the freezer… what a good girl I am! I have a good sized pork shoulder roast to cook today. It has been defrosting in the fridge a couple of days now so I will stop rambling on and get on with it. Looking forward to eating it later.

[Naghite]

Sheep brain. I get the brain, tongue, eyes and cheeks all for only 6 bucks from one place. My wife went and they automatically cut it all up and gave it to her for me when she went to grab the testicles and ox tail. They did not even ask, they know me too well.

[robintemplin]

That’s awesome!

[Fangs]

so far on day 25 is that other foods don’t look or smell good to me

and this is our biggest perk. We never want. IF we hold plan Key being on other plans, and this could be JUST me, I always craved when I ‘ate it all’ ya know but off carbs totally, as in zc only, I thrive. Loved reading this!

I was very loose with my pennies yesterday

those pennies were long hard earned, darn right spend some on you to make your life full and happy now not a darn thing ever wrong with that. Happy you are happy K!

-------------so for me I had a dream. I don’t dream literally OR well, remember them ever but I dreamed bacon and chicken wings LOL At restaurant with hubby fretting over menu of course and I ordered biggest amt of wings and then bacon freaked me out…like 3 strips for $10 and I NEED definitely like 20 strips and I was calculating the price and said to hubby I WANNA EAT AT HOME and that was it…yea my life in an nutshell HAHA

Pee. I got up ALL the darn time early in zc and extreme lc and had to pee all the damn time but it went away. I get 5-6 and 7 if lucky straight sleep. No more up to pee. I wonder if this is a changeover alot of us deal as we heal OR it can be a ‘pee thing’ that many just deal with in a more medical issue? Not sure on that but now…when I sleep I sleep…but the pee demand to wake is gone for me luckily. More time on plan to heal or ??? Interesting issue on the pee wake up LOL
Not sure where I am going with this chat but hmm, ??

I did a diff. cook yesterday. Got a fat fat sirloin steak. Did high temp fast sear both sides and put in oven at high temp for 10…well damn I got busy with other’s foods and forgot mine and got it out in 20…just over cooked. Way too well done…so next time it will be 10 with an eagle eye for me to keep it very rare like I want…but darn, tender as all get out so if I do it right next time…more yum to come and of course family jumped on my damn steak too…lucky I got mine…eeekk

today is steak and burger

but my mind is thinking wings, pork chops, seafood…but holding beef water for a bit more til I cave and eat bacon and wings and pork which is ALL ZC of course but enjoying this challenge for myself.

[Karen18]

Hahaha love that crazy dream … especially as it is so pertinent to how you are eating this month. I reckon you are so going to nom nom those wings and bacon when and if you decide to come off the lion diet!

And yes you are right I can treat myself now and again but why do I feel so guilty about doing it … perhaps its because I spent so many years on the (sorry dirty word alert) b***d line !

Well pork pork and more pork today. Cooked up the pork shoulder roast and while i was cooking it I finished off the remaining 2 pork shoulder chops and a bit of stilton.

The roast, I misread and cooked it on wrong heat 160 instead of fan assisted 140 arghh I wouldn’t mind but in my head I was thinking I’m sure it should be 140° anyway fortunately not too over cooked and still fairly tender. The crackling is amazing and i have already eaten half of it, so crispy crunchy and a good layer of moist fat under the outer crunchiness yummy.

Second plate … only side plates but big enough.

The miserable day we have here doesn’t really show how the bamboo in the garden 2 doors down and my palm are being swept about by the gusty wind! Only half 3 and looking very dark but I am trying to avoid putting lights on. I have a candle on instead… gas and electric going up by just under £700 a year! And I mentioned spending all my pennies on my garden… well I am off setting that by using candles lol oh I mentioned in my last post i don’t add any salt now which is true 99.9% of the time but of course I can’t make the pork skin crackle and tasty without coating it in salt. This time though the salt seemed to go into thin layers of salt that dropped off at the end of the cooking time when I touched it so I didn’t eat the amount I covered it in!. Wow sun has just come through the grey sky and is blinding me now!!! Hahha where did that come from lol.

[Shinita]

Hi people! You do good, let’s not talk about me. I still can’t reach half a pound meat, ew. So I just don’t do carnivore but it’s definitely quite low-carb and I don’t stay hungry. I just will get bored of the few things I manage to eat but don’t really want.
The rabbit stew is lovely but it doesn’t mean I want more than a few bites. Of course I eat many yolks a day, I would be lost without them. And my current sausage is nice but it’s a dense one, not a super dry one but I only eat a bite per meal. Still, it helps something. And I opened another package of cream… Even that isn’t something I am able to eat more than tiny amounts but if I eat a bit from everything, it helps.
I have quark, not opened yet, I don’t want it yet but it probably will help.
Even my PSMF bread (carnivore version) and salmon spread can’t interest me much but they help a bit too…
My pork is actually nice, I just stop after 75g or something and don’t want more.
Inconvenient.
Fortunately I am not so hungry today and Alvaro’s lunch triggered an earlier meal so I will be okay with some half-grazing, half-TMAD style (2 bigger meals with extra bites).

But we walked and found flowers in the wildlife park!!!
Alvaro didn’t bring the objective that is needed for flower photography if you ask me so the tiiiiny snowdrop was tiny in the pic but they turned out nice enough. He did the shots, I am not willing to do it without my fav 100mm objective that blurs the background so nicely and allows me to have only a 2cm object in my pic… I am excited as flower (and other small natural things) photography is my favorite. I am best at that I am sure but my passion is best there anyway… And flowers in February? Wonderful! Spring is so near, yay!

Hellebore, snowdrop and no idea what the thing I am holding (to be visible in the photo, it pointed to the floor) is… I go in a few days to catch the flowers in bloom, only 1-2 snowdrops were kind of blooming, nothing else.

[Karen18]

Isn’t nature wonderful. My daughter and I love walking when the flowers and hedgerows are starting to bud and some leaves are starting to grow back in the trees. My bulbs are poking through the soil in the containers now and i have noticed a few buds on some of the plants and the bee bombs are shooting up. I look at them most days to see another one poking through and I gave to admit I do get excited at their growth which may be due to this being my first attempt at gardening from scratch. looking forward to seeing some pics in a week or so to see how the snowdrops are blooming x

[Shinita]

My outside hyacinths are out, they are tiny but pretty green. My tulips aren’t that early but I will check what my garden actually does…
Did I say my inside hyacinth started to bloom and it has a nice fragrance now? I will shot it in a few days.
And tomorrow I will go and check the pasquaflowers. Unless we get rain. We might and everything is so very muddy already

Sometimes I meet those things where one is asked if they would do something restrictive for a lot of money. Last time it was being in an empty windowless padded(? soft walls) room without books, phone, internet, anything. A TON of money and one year.

I would go mad without natural light in weeks at most! (Maybe not mad, my sanity, in its not complete little way is extremely resilient though I haven’t challenged it very much yet. But I would wanna die very soon or something.) No NATURE? Yes, I am annoyed without internet for a day, sometimes for an hour (unless it’s planned, it’s cool then, I have 2.5 internet-less days every year when I visit my aunt and it’s perfectly fine) but Nature, natural light, plants and animals are even way more important. I could think about things with my built-in mind so no book is tolerable for longer but NO NATURE… Nope. Not for all the money in the world.
I am a free spirit anyway, kind of. I totally restrict myself in various ways as probably all human do but I hate not going out and make my decisions.

I look at them most days to see another one poking through and I gave to admit I do get excited at their growth which may be due to this being my first attempt at gardening from scratch.

It’s totally exciting 40+ years after first gardening too And it isn’t just for spring for me at all. I am excited about my plants all year, it diminishes in winter when I don’t do anything to them and they aren’t active but I still think about them here and there just not as much.
But it’s strongest in spring And when one does something new, be it first gardening or first Kamchatka honeysuckle (that was a few years ago for me. the thing is still so tiny… and it’s not tasty but pretty and I have it, how cool is that? I am a hoarder, erm, collector of different edible plants), that adds some extra punch to it too. But it’s very strong in spring anyway. Which of my new plants will do something interesting? Which of my not new but young fruit trees will grace us with their fruits? Will everyone come out or some trees died? How many of my zillion daffodils will bloom and where? This last isn’t so exciting as I have so extremely many that I always end up very many flowers but they are at different locations and one of them barely had flowers last year.
Oh and my tulips! Some are different from others and I just forget the details from year to year so it’s interesting to see what I have. And my black tulips came back somehow last year and it’s exciting to think about if I still have some… And so on, and so forth. I have plenty of very beautiful plants.
And I want more. There are strawberries with bright pink flowers. I want those. I have very many strawberries, it’s a chore to pick them at their peak (?) so I definitely don’t need more but I do want pink flowered ones. Mine are different types but all have normal white flowers.

I hope my… What, they are called mock oranges…? Why? Whatever, that. I hope it will be bloom properly, last year it had 2 flowers, I don’t know why. Maybe the blood hazelnut was too much for poor thing, when I planted them next to each other (as I have space problems), it seemed okay but the hazelnut decided it will grow huge. The sunlight situation is already not great here, to put it lightly but I can’t do much about it for most of my garden. But the plant was pretty 2 years ago so maybe it was a bad year… and the hazelnut I will cut back a bit.

I wonder what my young apricot will do. It actually died last year, it was originally a lovely tiny apricot tree… It suddenly withered so I cut it out but it grew from the root so I have some less noble apricot bush-like thing now. I don’t mind, I don’t want to buy another tree this year so it can live there I have plenty of theoretically edible plants and some fruit trees in my garden for something else. My garden stairs (the steep ones. I have stairs all along due to the pretty big elevation) would look so bare without the old and not good plum trees next to them. One even died but we feed the chickadees from that tree and anyway, I need it for the look… I can’t plant another one there easily as that area is full with raspberry plants… So I keep the old dead one until I can. I eventually need some other tree there, somehow. If a few raspberries die, so be it, I need a tree there. It already looks off without foliage in not-winter.

It’s already spring in my mind

[Azi]

Started today with 2 flanken ribs and a small slice of picanha 2nd meal will be a lamb hock

So im still doing a fattier meal and a leaner one…I just love that they don’t trim picanha to death…
I have noticed that since tightening things up I don’t go to the bathroom as often only every three or four days…so something has changed but I’m not eating as much as in nebraska and I’m sticking to Dr berry’s 4 hour eating window when I’m home and not out and about doing things. Otherwise I eat when I remember or get home…
And no snacking or adding things in even if its egg pudding im just not needing any extras…weight wise I’m at almost 5lbs down but it fluctuates daily so im not calling it yet… certainly not dropping off fast but if it’s moving in the tight direction I’ll take it…

[Ketodaisy]

Thought today would be an omad. I had some raw beef, crispy fried beef roast, and half of a large 2” ribeye around noon. Got stuffed halfway through the ribeye. But at 7:30 this evening, I was hungry again, so I had a little chunk of suet and the rest of the ribeye.

[JJFiddle]

@Karen18 that crackling looks amazing!

Today was music performance day - church and then the country bar to play. I made more of those cinnamon rolls to take, washed my hands a lot to keep it off me. It’s a good choice as it’s easy and they love it. They brought a Mexican main dish, wraps with sausage but covered with a pepper mix. So, no.
I have been bringing a little snack, eggs or meat, to get through the gig at the country bar after church but today I didn’t and you know what, it didn’t matter. Our first and only meal was around 4 when we got home. Chicken I sous vided lastnight and chicken livers for me.
The puppy has become my best friend at meals. Meat is our friend and she knows it!
Tomorrow I’ll be taking a chuck roast out of the sous vide, and eating that plus chicken and the rest of the livers. A veritable feast!

[FrankoBear]

The puppy has become my best friend at meals. Meat is our friend and she knows it!

Billie is a carnivore. 20 months old. Does not know what kibble/ dry dog food is. (digital painting)

[JJFiddle]

How beautiful Billie is! Mimsy has been on raw food, dehydrated meats and organs, with some bought treats, for most of her 5+ years. I make everything now.

@Fangs I’ve been thinking about “I WANT TO EAT AT HOME!” for hours now, and how many places that were barely passable on keto are now useless on Carni. I won’t say, oh well, just this once, and go ahead and eat a sauce or a wrap I’d never even look at, at home.
I guess sometimes eating out is just a place to sit socially and drink a mineral water and wait till later to eat. At least hubby gets it and makes an effort. I think next week he wants to try Billy Bob’s Steak House and see if we can get me an aceptable meal. A double cheeseburger, no bun or toppings, would probably do.
How do you guys do with travel?
This is an insomnia night but I ate some cold chicken in the dark so hopefully the hunger will pass and I’ll get some rest soon! It’s 1:41, but I can sleep in.

[Karen18]

That sea looks wonderful and clean xx

[Fangs]

sleepless nights are a pain but darn we all have those at some point…ugh.

At 5am I just got a school phone call saying 3 hr delay for school for kiddo because of possible icy/sleet happening. That got me up LOL I mighta got another hr. but that is gone now but at least I did get 5 hrs of straight good sleep, raring to go now.

For travel I am super lucky. I own a RV toyhauler camper. We camp. I have full kitchen and fridge/freezer so I bring all my meats. Worse tho is hubby and kid wanting to eat out and try all new restaurants in our travels but I can easily get by.

Many times I don’t eat at restaurants or just order like a shrimp cocktail while they eat. They order entrees and all and I order a shrimp cocktail and maybe bacon wrapped scallops as my dinner so at least I eat. What I can’t stand is spending $30 on a friggin’ steak I can make at home for $10 LOL
But alot of times I get burgers like you said, or I get a bacon/cheese omelet at a diner type thing or I do order just a steak or ribs. Ribs are iffy tho in that so many slather the sauce but if naked I will get them, so we can navigate around on carni but it can get annoying as heck and can get pricey in a way for us trying to be meat only.

Again the big luck is my rv. I eat so well Grill out every night and I do my bacon/sausages etc in the morning and I thrive on my vacations so I have to say the RV is just so user friendly for ZC.
While driving they stop and get fast food burgers and mostly I will go into the RV and get my chicken I have premade in the fridge or eat my OWN burgers I precooked. It beats fast food burgers to me. I am just not a fan anymore, but I did rely on them alot when I started but now they are just so inferior to my own food that the rv just means I get better when we stop to eat.

Plus we have a genny on board so if I want to I can fire that up in a truck stop and cook anything I want at my whim. A full kitchen at my disposal has made my travels very simple on my lifestyle.
I can’t even imagine having to do hotel/restaurant, whatever eating for 2-3 wks on vacay and have to survive off take out foods, would be such a chore…I know many have to do this, but happily I vacay different, the rv is what we love and nice thing is I have all I zc require.

So yea, I am one of those super fortunate on vacay with the rv

[Karen18]

At first it was a bit of a mare getting what I wanted in restaurants but I now know what places to go an eat in. Usually road side cafes are pretty good as they cater for lorry drivers so usually have all day breakfasts on the menu. If a place doesn’t have a menu I can eat from and there is no where else to eat I just ask if they can do a cheese omelette. Good posho restaurants I ask for steak as a rule without sides or sauces though sometimes you find a gem on the menu as we did when my daughter and I ate in an Italian place in Richmond, London on our Kew garden trip. … duck with bacon and black pudding, there was so much meat on the duck it was super lovely and the waiter said he was mainly meat eater too. Just have to choose wisely. My daughter tends to Google the local restaurants wherever we are going just to check out the menus to ensure they cater for us. She is low carb eater but not carni … she is battling with PCOS.

[Shinita]

It was good I continued cooking the rabbit. Alvaro cooked it for an hour and we hungrily ate. He was happy with it, I… Not so much. It wasn’t raw, sure but it wasn’t tender. I am big on tender. But now that I made it so, it’s quite amazing. And this is the fattiest little rabbit I ever ate. But I only eat the bonier parts (after taking off the “big” meats from it, even the back has those) and the bony parts of a single, not even big rabbit isn’t much. Still enough for 3-4 meals now that I eat little meat. But it was good and I could go higher now…
I have 5 different kinds of meat now (including the processed ones and the salmon spread) and quark and eggs so I surely won’t have problems today. Right now I am not very much into eggs so this is the day when I eat up my leftover meats. The pork roasts are a bit plain and the freezing didn’t help but that’s where the rabbit stew can help, it has lots of tasty jelly.

I have full kitchen and fridge/freezer so I bring all my meats.

It sounds the best solution to me, by far…
I had problems with eating elsewhere on low-carb! I only could do it as it was very rare and I could just eat more carbs, I could handle it. And of course I chose the not so carby dishes. And I have Alvaro to eat up some sides I don’t want…
But even if the restaurant was awesome (we usually found good ones), I was fine with one single time once in a blue moon.

I want a steakhouse next time, this year. I will make sure to feed Alvaro vegetarian food in the days before so he will be fine with eating a whole steak He will have greens and potatoes, I will have eggs and bacon with it… And it will be great. At least I imagine so but what could possibly go wrong? (One thing: the medium steak may be way too rare for both of us. I thought we can try that and a medium well-done. I’ve read restaurants actually go further than the order but I don’t even have any idea if a well-done steak isn’t too raw for me so that may be good… Though I know that I don’t need to fry everything into oblivion, it’s an interesting thing. But I still not into even remotely rare things. Any pinkness takes bravery to try. Except if it’s still very much cooked, pork can be pretty pink after 2 hours in the oven and it’s not a big piece, a big one can be raw in the middle after that time. But pink liver insides scare me. And I have miserably little experience with beef and I don’t remember that much. It can be chewy. But the cooked into oblivion beef soup my Mom did never was appealing to me either. She didn’t fry things into oblivion, though, that was me. She preferred her eggs yellow. I went for a deep brown color… Not anymore).

[Septimius]

All day breakfast is always a good shout, as is steak.

I usually check to see if a place serves breakfast, and if they do, if it contains fried eggs (usually the case here). That means they have fresh eggs.

I have found that most serving staff are fine with you saying, “Can I have the steak, but instead of the chips/peas/mushrooms, would you mind swapping that for two fried eggs?”

Never been denied that request yet.

[FrankoBear]

[Fangs]

Yup and when I hit a diner at lunch/dinner time, I always ask can I get an omelet and almost never am refused. I have to say most places will easily try to accomdate anyone which is nice actually.

Restaurants when we truly open our mouths and ask for directly what we want, they give it to us, but darn sometimes that ‘up charge’ is a PIA but worth it in the end to hold zc as we need.

[robintemplin]

Perfect amount of fat on each piece. Well done! Or should I say Rare?

[Azi]

Restaurants I’ll go Mexican and eat fajita meat got to be careful with omelets here because alot of chain restaurants add pancake mix to make them fluffier same with scrambled… so if at a truck stop I’ll order bacon sausage and fried eggs over easy.
I’ll eat at steak restaurants I saw a suggestion the other day that when ordering if they have loaded potatoe. And salad as sides take the loaded potatoe minus the potatoe if they have salad take the egg minus the rest of the salad and then you have your meal…
I’ll also order a Wendy’s double baconator minus the bun…
And do alot of bbq minus the sauce … or Arby’s and just order roast beef by the pound.

Todays food lamd hock/shank first meal and im going to roast picanha for 2nd
But its make do because I prefer to cook at home

[JJFiddle]

Sious vide would solve your problems with tenderness! Put a tough chuck roast in there for 24 hours and it’s as tender as a filet mignon!

[Shinita]

alot of chain restaurants add pancake mix to make them fluffier same with scrambled

So weird, eggs are so perfectly fluffy all alone when properly handled… I never ate fluffy eggs elsewhere than at home, though. I think I noticed while being a vegetarian that eggs aren’t really a thing at most restaurants… Hotel breakfasts had it, that’s fine, too bad I hate breakfast…

I don’t understand your steak restaurants… Why they have carby sides at all, I mean, not optionally? We have the steaks and we can choose zillion things. Like the eggs and bacon that I plan to. They don’t have a complete set. Some restaurants do that but the steakhouse menus I saw were different.

---

I doubt I will have much for dinner, I had a lunch and a tiny snack and I tracked way too much already - some are left for tomorrow though, I just don’t bother with cutting those thing, I will get my guesstimated average number! It’s horrible to weigh and guess too much, I usually just eat everything but that’s not hedonistic enough and on carnivore, often near impossible too. Not like it’s a 100% carnivore day but wonderfully close.
Okay, I won’t eat much or any because I am pretty satiated now, of course. But if my numbers are too high, I go for my PSMF bread, it’s fun and I think satiating as well (I will test it) though these carnivore versions aren’t firm enough yet. I made 6 different ones today, it’s easy and Alvaro needed NO cooking today so I could play with my own stuff… I have quark and sour cream ones too. I call all my egg white sponge cake bread muffins PSMF bread, fat content doesn’t matter but it’s typically low anyway. I didn’t even use yolks this time, I love the white look.
I ate meat and egg and quark, it was nice. I might have overdone the sausage a bit… But that’s so easy to eat and I needed some for my eggs as I am not into eggs much now. It doesn’t mean I didn’t eat 7 for lunch… Eggs just add up, they always do it. 7 isn’t much anyway.
I am quite satiated now.
About 320g (0.71 lbs) meat for today. The highest number since long but I needed my various kinds of meat and the exotic rabbit (nothing special here but we only eat it 1-2 times a year) to go that high… I managed almost 170g pork. Hopefully I will regenerate soon, a fresh roast isn’t like something from the freezer anyway.

Alvaro still wants chicken liver and heart stew so we will visit the butcher next time I go to the town and we come home together. I do that every week but the forest was awfully muddy several rains ago, it must be impossible now. It raining in the morning and it is raining now. Windy, cold, I had no desire to go out today. I do it tomorrow as I can’t skip multiple days in row, it does bad to my energy levels and they aren’t so great anyway. Though I can’t complain lately except when I get up too early when I went to bed too late as well. Bad combo. I have energy I think, it’s just a moot point as I only feel I want to lie down and sleep… But if I manage to wake up properly, it’s okay. Until I eat as I fall asleep afterwards if I am at peace. That’s nice. I like tiny, satisfying naps, just occasionally.

Sious vide would solve your problems with tenderness!

I don’t have such a thing and I am not patient enough to wait so long but it’s fine, I just need more time in a pot And if I am really into the most tender meat I can have, I just make mincemeat, that’s fun. As I do it moderately rarely. It probably would get old quickly if I made it all the time.
But a young rabbit has soft meat, it just didn’t get really tender in a single hour… But some more time and it was perfect. I am a bit sad we only have a little left. 2 legs. That is supposed to be Alvaro’s. But I haven’t given up the home I get some more of it But I have pork so he can have it if he needs it… I can be very assertive but I choose not to under normal circumstances. Alvaro is a cinnamon roll and he never would stand between me and my food. He is strong and assertive enough, he is merely a nice one who has a bit less strong ties with meat than me (and I don’t have very strong ones, I merely need it for my extreme low-carb ideal woe and it makes getting my nutrition simpler too. among other things).

And I don’t know what a filet mignon is like. I googled, now at least I have a vague idea what it is. Sorry, my world is a bit different

[Azi]

Yeah our steak restaurants usually come with sides you can choose from steamed veges,salad, mashed potatoes,loaded potatoes,french fries…
It’s just most carnivores give them to who ever they eating with or say no sides…but alot of ppl don’t like paying for sides they don’t get so the option to order the the egg from the salad and the topping of the loaded potatoe means they getting something for the money…
It’s funny sometimes to,see the faces if you just ordering meat and when you go out for breakfast and say no toast or pancakes…

[Karen18]

I sometimes do the same and yes never had a problem as I don’t ask for a discounts cos im not eating all the garbage they would like to serve with it.

[Karen18]

Hahah I have still ended up with a whole lot of salad 9n my plate when I have asked not to have any but I took your advice some time back and ask for a side dish if that happens so I can shape it all off. Dont know what it is but I don’t even want it near my meat now!

[Karen18]

I get this and they worry the plate doesn’t look full enough but I don’t need a lot to feel satiated. Plus I eat quite slowly, my daughter and her hubby can get through a full meal with all the gubbins that comes with it and still finish before me. I just like to savour the meat if has been cooked to my liking and put my knife and fork down between each mouthful. Just can’t wolf it down these days!

[Shinita]

Hm… It will be interesting to see how I will eat at a steakhouse I have different times at home. Sometimes I eat much, that’s the typical but on carnivore I had those 4-5 meals days where I got satiated super quickly… Still, if I am properly hungry, I obviously can eat the biggest steak at a place with eggs and bacon on the side. Maybe not in 15 minutes but that’s fine.

I just don’t understand WHY I remember that I never ever could order and finish a whole main dish in a normal restaurant (so not in one with super tiny portions, that’s not common here)… After some time I just gave up and ordered an appetizer and some other tiny thing, dessert or light soup or beer… I was fine in the fun Asian all-you-can-eat place though… Maybe because that was a fun relaxing environment with waiting for our seafood to fry, looking, walking so we were there for hours. Even at home, I often have a longer meal. Sometimes I eat my daily energy need in 15 minutes, though.

Maybe I couldn’t eat properly as it was either a too early lunch (I can’t eat much early) or a dinner (after a very substantial lunch)… I don’t remember the details. I always ate much, every day but it seems, not at every meal in every situation.

My dinner was tiny, I start to think OMAD would be more convenient again… As I had no desire towards anything, I ate some PSMF bread (quark is still one of my fav carni flour that one was fun!) and a bite from every carnivore food I had and it was fine. But only because my lunch was very substantial, about my daily energy need. I track in a simple way know, with leftovers if I lose interest in the middle so I don’t know.

Finally, an okay day I want my weight to drop now as it seems I was 77kg this morning. I am not worried, I clearly didn’t gain fat but I would like to go back to 75 already and then below.
BUT if I will just have good mood, proper energy and bigger muscles, I will be quite happy for now (Still want my usual 75kg back. My muscle mass is about the same, I don’t do much water retention so I want it back.)

[JJFiddle]

Thinking about the 3 day trip from TX to VA coming up around April. Usually we just hit the road with a cup of hotel coffee, stop at a truck stop for hot dogs around 2, which on keto was really carni but with mustard, 2 dogs no bun. Water. Then snacks at the hotel from our cooler. Since getting the little dog 5 years ago, no restaurants on the road, we’ve never left her unattended in a car, we just take turns walking her Ave going in the truck stop. So all I have to figure out is what to put in the cooler! Boiled eggs, and or the little egg steamer, maybe soft boil some in the room. Deli meats? Pork rinds don’t seem to agree, I probably am not making enough bile, still waiting for all that to level off but - baby steps. Still just day 27.
This week I guess we’ll be at a steak place. @Azi I love that, baked potato with all the toppings and without the potato, and the chef salad without the salad. That’s brilliant! And shrimp cocktail without the cocktail! Lol! When I was vegetarian I liked to order a “reuben without the Reuben,” just a melted cheese and sauerkraut sandwich! This is the reverse
The chuck roast truly was the consistency of prime rib. I poured the juice from the bag and put in ghee and egg yolks and whisked it into a nice gravy. Had a honkin big bone in it that will be nice for broth, so we finished it all off, despite it being too big to sear properly. I’ll definitely do that again!

[JJFiddle]

And I don’t know what a filet mignon is like. I googled, now at least I have a vague idea what it is. Sorry, my world is a bit different

Actually it said prime rib. Anyway - meat that tastes as sweet and tender as butter! Some pork is that good too in sous vide, like my shoulder butts. Chicken thighs take an hour from frozen. I repack them into bags and freeze when I get home from the store.

Oddly enough it was on KF in 2019 that I first read the long sous vide thread that led me to get a sous vide circulator and I’ve never looked back. People in that discussion said they put all their meat for a couple weeks into a cooler of water, let it run for a couple days, and they’re set for quite some time. At the time I was teaching at a music store till 9pm, then coming home and cooking dinner for mom and us 2, and it was exhausting. The sous vide simplified things, saved money on more expensive cuts and got dinner ready quicker.

[Azi]

You’ll have to share some of your times and Temps so I can try them in my oven…

I made the roast pichana omg soon good I def will do that again I scored the fat and had to light season it cos hubby was eating it too but it was so worth the effort…

I def hit the 5lb down close to 6 now so I will call it…but it will still prob bounce up and down…

[Shinita]

meat that tastes as sweet and tender as butter!

It actually sounds nice and interesting

And my day was so satiating, it’s midnight and I couldn’t eat if I wanted… It’s something I can appreciate. I drink a coffee but well, I can’t do everything right even for a day and only diet wise, it seems.
But this isn’t a good coffee. What is its charm…? It can’t be the habit as I lose zillion habits on carnivore…

[Ketodaisy]

I made the roast pichana

I’m so insanely jealous of your picanha.

meal one was raw round steak and suet with bone broth jello. Meal two was flank steak. Someone asked me on here about the flank steak and I discovered I had one more in the freezer. So this is what it looks like raw. Sleep was truly awful. I lay awake almost the whole night. I’ve not been drinking enough lately and it’s been giving me a lot of cramps. My feet have been seizing all evening this evening.

[robintemplin]

You had me at Double Baconater

[JJFiddle]

Shinita, you’re still here, that outweighs everything. If you want to be back to carnivore you will be!

[JJFiddle]

@Azi I Google a lot of the times and temps. I do my whole chicken at 165 for 6 hours, 9 if frozen. I prefer to start frozen, throw it in there at bedtime and take it out on the morning, ice it and refrigerate. Beef roasts, chuck and ribs are all 136°. The shank steak and bony ribs took 3½ days from frozen. I set it at 72 hours, put them in Sunday night and took them out Thursday morning! They took us through the weekend. The chuck roast we had today I cooked from frozen for 24 hrs @135. Wish I’d taken photos, it was nice and rare inside.
I used to make a lot of egg bites. Now I’d probably use cream and bacon. 45 minutes in greased 4 oz jars.
Did your oven come with a table of times and temps? They’re in a lot of sites.
Good to remember that more time doesn’t overcook it, it just tenderizes it more.
I’d love to see that oven!

[FrankoBear]

Staying on plan.

NoFUN breakfast. 2 coffees, second one without any dairy (baby steps). No breakfast cheese relapse. Breakfast is 3 pasture-fed chicken eggs with 3 slices middle bacon. Last night and tonight will be scotch fillet steak. I have some Castello Blue cheese that goes well with the steak. I have had a cup of bone broth both these two afternoons as I work on the computer doing admin tasks. The heat wave is over and we have had a cold front and cooler weather come in from out in the ocean. Billie had a great “freedom run” off-leash at the beach yesterday as there was only a couple of travelling surfers.

[Alecmcq]

Whereabouts is that @FrankoBear? Are you North Coast? I am in far south coast of NSW.
Cheers
Alec

[Fangs]

wonderful posts on the board with great pics.

today is another beef day. I am really hankering for some chicken wings now. I might have some, even tho I said beef/water for this month, a few wings ain’t gonna mean anything in a way, it IS still carnivore but not yet, still holding Lion since I committed to it. So far so good

steak and burgers again today

this Feb. ‘feels’ like a long month already HA

[Septimius]

My hunger signals are all over the place this week.

I find that I’m really hungry - stomach growling etc - but sometimes I cook and then I lose interest once I’m eating.

Almost all of my meals are beef. I ended up cooking scrambled eggs (6 of) on Saturday night at midnight because I was too hungry to sleep.

I’d had enough of this on Sunday. I had 500g of beef at lunch and for my evening meal I had 1kg of beef. I carried on eating even though I would’ve stopped around 750-800g because I didn’t want a repeat of midnight hunger - and I thought it would carry me through a bit longer.

Monday morning = it felt as if I’d not eaten for a week.

So I cooked up 500g of ground beef. Had a job to eat 300g of it.

4 hours later, starving - so I finished the 200g. Then I had 500g of sirloin steak and some bone broth - felt satisfied, but then a couple of hours later, I was back to being ravenous again.

This can happen in my cycle but I didn’t think I was that close yet.

Just can’t seem to judge how much to cook and eat at each sitting, and absolutely baffled as to why sometimes I am painfully hungry, eat two mouthfuls and lose interest. Weird.

[FrankoBear]

Looks like he had an extra bull calf in Azerbaijan. I find these videos quite relaxing.

---

still holding Lion since I committed to it.

Hold the line! er… Lion!

Whereabouts is that @FrankoBear?

Wild west.

[Fangs]

Just can’t seem to judge how much to cook and eat at each sitting, and absolutely baffled as to why sometimes I am painfully hungry, eat two mouthfuls and lose interest. Weird.

oh boy did I go thru this and sometimes still it hits but in a smaller form.

around year 2.5 or so?? I got like you with having no idea how much meat to defrost. would I need it? end up wasting it cause I just didnt want it and if the family doesn’t want it? Believe me it drove me nuts for a while…then it all settled back down but I remember it went on for a while.

I relied alot on chicken wings cause I batch cooked and they lasted a good bit in the fridge as a ‘go to’ and I used alot of canned sardines and tuna in a can cause I could just open and eat without defrosting and wasting. I remember I ate alot of beef sticks in that time too

I actually ended up throwing out some steaks and more a few times and that drove me more crazy LOL But you defrost it and then do not want it, at all, don’t even wanna cook it and it sits in that fridge and boom, real fast it turns and garbage and alot of times I would fry it up, eat a bite or 2, into fridge for leftovers and they just sat and had to throw out still…so…yea ya can’t win kinda in this stage LOL

I think it is the body being so nourished and more healed that we have a ‘reset time flip’ back to a better natural like established health guideline and balance in our bodies and our body is doing just that…resetting us for the next stage. Cause that is when I really ‘set my meals’ as in eating only 2 times a day,meal 1 bigger, meal 2 smaller later in the day and I got off all extras I needed, I got off all wanting food at different times and more…I became very zc stable in my feeding times…well that kinda is all I could apply to why it goes down like that for many of us

you’re not alone tho, many of us longer on plan goes thru this exact scenario so you are in good company!! You are hitting big milestones that people longer on plan experience, I love it!
just some thoughts!

[Karen18]

Well another fairly decent nights kip last night. I was on a late start at work today which is maybe why I slept pretty well, no worrying about getting up at silly o’clock lol.

Stair runs done first thing. Had a couple of slices of roast pork before leaving for work. Back home after 4 as I stopped to get car washed on way home and picked up some bits at lidl on way passed.

Had some more pork roast and followed that with cooked chicken sauted in some leftover fat I had in fridge. Both nice. Also had some cheese. And now in bed at half 8.

[Redrobins]

So yea, I am one of those super fortunate on vacay with the rv

Ditto! We love our RV:). So easy to travel in. I love cooking over a campfire! We are definitely campers. When we retire, our plan is to go somewhere warm for a few months (maybe January-March) with the RV before investing in a more permanent place.

On the CV front, things have been status quo for me. I’m still waiting for my sense of taste to completely return following my bout with covid in December. It’s getting there, but I’m still finding the need to salt my food to get the “full” taste of it. This results in water retention, which means the scale goes up. Oh well… I’ve thought so many times about just throwing my scale in the garbage, but I can’t bring myself to do it.

I gave up the treadmill days that I was alternating with my weight days as far as exercising is concerned. It was really causing my legs to swell and I was becoming to OCD about it. I prefer having a rest day between my weight days…

Food has been good. I’m weaning myself off of the bad habit of cheese and sausage I had been indulging on post-covid. That seems to help with some of my water retention. Beef seems to be my best go-to food. Either a ribeye or hamburgers. On weekdays, my body has settled nicely in to OMAD (with the exception of my coffee w/ ghee in the morning). I’m truly hungry when I get home and eat a lot of food. This has resulted in me having excellent sleep at night! I typically would wake up to use the restroom and it would be an hour or more, trying to fall back asleep. Not anymore! Woohoo!

[Karen18]

Too many post for me to read today… brain is feeling weary so forgive me for bypassing them all… except @FrankoBear loving his photos.

I have only just posted yesterday contribution as I had to wait to be able to post with having answered too many posts.

Another fairly good sleep albeit not as good as previous 2 nights… not going to argue the toss though. Very stiff and sore back this morning, so much so I nearly cancelled CrossFit. However I did my stair runs and that eased it off and I went even though my head was saying should I shouldn’t I? Lol… well ended up having a great session. I did rower today and started easing myself into it to warm up before the class started. Managed to finish the workout with time cap and did everything but scaled the weight because I get too wobberly still with heavier weights.

Stopped off at The Company Shop on the way home for some kitchen paper roll and i knew I would end up spending more when I got there… and I did lol. Picked up a whole cooked chicken, kilo of lamb ribs, pork loin chops, some cooked ham, cheese and a couple of packets of chicken wings. Got home and found they had over charged me for the lamb ribs so went back and got a £10 refund.

Enjoyed 4 reduced price lidl lamb chops, Pan fried rare very tasty for brunch about 1245hrs. Also had some of the cheddar cheese from Company Shop.

I have some sliced beef to eat up which I defrosted and so will maybe have a nice plate of that for dinner plus some of my home cooked cold roast pork and may even stick some smoked trout with it… we will see, may leave that for another day as it has a longer date stamp on it.

[Shinita]

Thanks for your words Well I am a stubborn one and whenever I stray, it’s no good. Well, sometimes it’s worth it but it’s rare. I typically stray out of necessity. Or compulsion but I think I am better at that.

Most of my post will be about my problems now and I don’t even do true carnivore so be warned, folks.

My problems are still here, today I managed an interesting combo.

1. Appetite problems so I had to relax my ways a little. Still keto so it could be so much worse… the plant carbs came from my lil extras, it’s not like I eat a non-carni main dish or something. I run out of meat too early, yeah it seems I actually can eat more meat now so I better keep enough ready to eat at hand! Tomorrow I make roast and mincemeat! I actually had plenty of carni food but…
2. I was starving. For hours. I was somewhat hungry in the last hours before lunch… And then I ate and ate and ate and spent the whole time starving… Eventually I stopped and waited patiently. I am still not satiated at all. I started to eat almost 6 hours ago. Well we can blame the carbs but they can’t be this powerful. I don’t know what is my problem but I was too excited and it made me super tired and when tired, I am often too hungry…
3. I overate, of course. I wouldn’t even mind, it’s just a slight overeating and I had my workout today. But I am hungry, not in a cute but in a… post-starving, still-not-satiated way…? It’s tiring.

When I overeat and feel starving, that usually happens with lots of carbs and maybe added fat. Not on a keto day with lots of meat and eggs and dairy and very little else
Sigh.

BUT at least I know that it doesn’t help to relax my ways at all. So I can go all strict again, I can’t feel worse than this and maybe it helps.
I still don’t know if I should focus on OMAD but today I had to eat early. Maybe I should go an OMAD lunch then. It seems I eat BIG meals now. Or starve. Or both. I am broken I know…

My mood is wonderful though except the annoyance. I am in artistic mood, I want to do things and it’s super rare! So I somehow got an energy/mood boost - but that excites me too much and that is tiring… So I have lots of energy but even more tiredness? Still wouldn’t swap to my low energy dark mood times! I need some last part of the puzzle, it feels… I am almost there…

Around 350g meat and I totally could have eaten more… Especially rabbit, Alvaro gave me a bit but we ate up it all now. It was nice. Not super flavorful but the soft flavor is so nice and the meat is tender… But the old defrosted pork was nice with the stew jelly too…

I ate plenty of protein, even more fat, my eating window wasn’t so big, I avoided non-satiating fats so I don’t understand today. It seems I need one big meal now. If early, so be it, maybe it still works (it is typically tricky if I finish eating 12 hours before I go to sleep. anything beyond 8 hours is tricky but going over 12 hours without getting hungry again? the chances are extremely low)…

So I make my woe stricter again, go for one big meal and try to ignore my inner problems regarding appetite. If I am hungry, I try to eat eggs or meat (or quark, that should be good too and I still have enough), no force but not accepting a mere “no mood for it”. If I can. It does against my core personality. We will see.

Oh I didn’t write about my day. So… I had my usual 3-egg scrambled eggs with some cheese and I ate my leftover pork, both shoulder and thigh. I had leftover PSMF bread muffins, I ate them with leftover salmon spread and I made egg white heavy sponge cakes and ate them with some sausage. I had quark too, mixed with sour cream, it’s a nice dessert. And whatever else I couldn’t resist, Alvaro brought some wonderful fruits… I can’t resist them when tired, hungry (not like it helps with that) and it’s end of winter… I actually felt temptation this time, it’s not uncommon at this time of the year.
But I better behave. If I must be so relaxed and whatnot, at least I shouldn’t do it on weekdays Seriously now.

Oh I am horrible with coffee too. At least I didn’t drink many calories today, I can’t afford that now.
My coffees were tiny but I had them early.

Just can’t seem to judge how much to cook and eat at each sitting, and absolutely baffled as to why sometimes I am painfully hungry, eat two mouthfuls and lose interest. Weird.

I can relate. Sometimes I get hungry with little, other times I eat my daily energy need and feels hungry. Sometimes I can only eat a little meat, sometimes I eat up 1000g fatty pork (okay, it only happened once. 600g is more common, that’s a cute amount for a meaty day, I almost never skip my several eggs and other items and my meat tends to be fatty). And I can’t predict this! It’s somewhat random. That’s why I like keeping various roasts and other stuff in my freezer, ready to eat. I make a big roast and when it’s not plenty anymore, I should make something new… Even if my weird appetite still can mess things up. IDK what is with me lately. It was loads easier before.

And my tiiiiiny meals are in the past, it seems, thankfully. It was annoying to eat again and again and again. Getiing hungry once a day is enough for me.

having no idea how much meat to defrost. would I need it? end up wasting it cause I just didnt want it and if the family doesn’t want it?

But why would it be wasting?

1. Meat lasts pretty long. I can’t even roast enough meat to spoil on me and I don’t eat meat like you folks here. Or it’s because I make roasts? Nope, so many other meat dishes last long…

2. It’s wonderful to have ready to eat meat in the freezer… So I just put some back, it’s so good I can do it. I do that with lean meat I am not so much into it as Alvaro would never eat it with his impossibly low pace…

Maybe it’s stuff one should eat right away, fresh? I don’t know such meat dishes but my knowledge is still quite limited…

Oh my, throwing out meat… We would never do it. (Well we are savages so when my aunt gave us not refridgerated beef soup (her pantry is cool but not as cold as a fridge) and it turned sour, we still ate it, it was still tasty And spoiled food never could do any bad to me, of course I have my limits, I don’t eat spoiled MEAT. It was spoiled (well soured. I like sour stuff, sorry) vegetable part with still okay meat. I wouldn’t eat spoiled egg either, of course, that’s horrid. Sour milk is fine, I had that once, half a liter. I wanted milk and I was stubborn and sour dairy is cool… It’s nice I don’t need to worry about my body when I do such things, it handles it just fine.)
But meat lasts almost forever, really, even we eat it up in time. Of course we don’t keep the raw meat in the fridge long, we cook the meat. And the freezer is there so yep, never emerged any chance for our meat to go wrong.

Cracked eggs can be forgotten sometimes but the cats gladly eat them up (they are still okay when I find them, I would eat them if I had no cats but if I can choose, I don’t eat 2 days old yolks. only 5 days old whites. no idea when it spoils, I never could store any long enough to see any problem with it)…

Dairy is pretty safe, we eat them quickly enough, the sour cream stuck to the side of the package may have slight problems but that’s what Caroline, the cat without lactose intolerance is for. She loves sour cream. NOT enough to eat her worm medicine mixed into a lot of sour cream, rabbit stew jelly and even ground up pork… No idea when we can get her the special tasty chewy medicine she loves and eats up in 2 seconds.
She doesn’t understand why she can’t sleep in my bed now. When Tofu (who gladly ate up the medicine already at the “mixed into scrambled eggs” level…) can.

[Shinita]

Awww… Pretty plate, pretty food!
I would eat that Maybe not all right now but tomorrow… Looks absolutely fabulous!

[Karen18]

Second meal of the day

Cold roast pork and 2 slices of cold beef topside

[Shinita]

I find all meat pics nice today. Good. A few days ago not one could charm me. I am totally lost in a meat aversion phase, I can’t function properly there. Theoretically yes, practically not so much.
But I am hopeful now. Today will be a great day. Right?

[Azi]

Todays meat was roast picanha for both meals

[Ketodaisy]

I seriously get so jealous of @Azi’s picanha…
@Fangs I’m starting to crave sausage more and more, but I’m hanging in there!

meal one was a burger patty, beef bacon, raw beef liver, and bone broth jello. That didn’t remotely fill me up, but I had a meeting, so it had to do. Meal two I put in the air fryer, then had a work call come in on my computer and completely burned my beef bacon . The ribeye was safe though! And I still ate the bacon. It didn’t make me happy though, so I ended up making the last 2 pieces. Was still a little hungry, so I had a little bit of beef suet (not pictured). Sleep last night was pretty good! I went to bed around 9:30, then got up at 12:30 and 3:30 to pee. Then woke up around 4:30 and lay there until a few minutes before my alarm went off. Turned off the alarm about 6 minutes before it went off at just after 5.

[robintemplin]

personally, I would eat that burned bacon.

[Ketodaisy]

I absolutely did eat it

[JJFiddle]

Yes Azi’s picanha looks like it’s too die for! If I ever see any I’m getting it!
Fun reading the posts today. Seems like the overriding theme was managing /balancing hunger with meat supply. And no matter how well I plan, I think I could manage more supply. I love Septimus getting up to scramble 6 eggs at midnight Saturday, eating 1.5 kilos of beef Sunday night, then getting up Monday feeling like she hadn’t eaten for a week Only on carnivore! And glad to know it’s all okay.
I had half a chicken and cooked 2 pkgs bacon trying to get enough grease to make baconnaise! So used that bacon and chicken too make crack chicken. Added a little of my beef broth and it was delicious! All I left out of the original recipe was the Hidden Valley dressing mix which I never liked anyway.
Tonight, 3 shift boiled eggs. Last time I was starving at midnight after this snack so hope tonight is better. I just have to start keeping more meat ready to go in the fridge!

I wondered if it would work without the mustard and lemon I’ve always added to my mayo, but it did work and the consistency is thick and perfect! I also added a big spoonful of the beef broth.

[FrankoBear]

Meanwhile in New York…

[robintemplin]

Couple of happy realizations since sliding head first in carnivore for a few months now. First, I weighed today… been ages… I expected to gain when I went carni. And I am still at my new seemingly sustainable and natural weight of 155. (My original goal 20 months ago was 180, lol).

Also…just dawned on me that I have totally forgotten my nightly drink of magnesium citrate with salt water… for controlling the nightly leg cramps. Oops! Totally forgot, and surprise surprise, I have not had leg cramps for weeks now.

Isn’t it wild how we don’t notice the absence of horrible things we were just living with? Like my ex husbands, I guess.

[Fangs]

When we retire, our plan is to go somewhere warm for a few months (maybe January-March) with the RV before investing in a more permanent place.

So get this. Snowbirding gives us a chance to really see new locations and where one might buy a home later when off the road. We are gonna do that same thing, but I know one constant, it will be coastal and warm weather for us HAHA I love I got another camper in the group!!

What rv ya got? We are Heartland Torque, 34 ft tag along toyhauler. Omg this floorplan suits us so well cause we bring our kayaks and golf cart and fishing gear etc and a toyhauler gives us all of that room to bring this and at the same time we got use of kitchen/bathroom and bedroom while traveling so our gear we haul ain’t in our way to use the rv on the fly when we stop.

I’ve thought so many times about just throwing my scale in the garbage, but I can’t bring myself to do it.

The day you do we will throw you are Carnivore party on this thread like one has never seen before! but like you, I got mine shoved back in the closet and haven’t checked it any time soon but the thought of throwing it out isn’t even a thought just yet

@Karen18
there are so many good posts, it gets tough to respond all the time LOL
I hear ya on sleeping better with no clock wake up. In my farm days I would just ‘wait’ for that 4am alarm and I swear I went to sleep just knowing that alarm would come so fast and I think it truly does mess with your sleep patterns. Off on early retirement, my day to me now mostly that alarm is gone and it has made my life a darn big amt better! I hate control. Work, alarms, pay due dates, appts scheduled and more drive me batty. 0 freedom ya know, always on the clock or time date schedule…ugh.

@Azi
WOWZA on that decadent meat pic…so juicy and rare and that fat cap!

@Ketodaisy…woooooo on that bacon. that is burnt, I am a super crispy gal but that is almost cinders but yea, I woulda ate all I could of it too!

@JJFiddle
You are rocking the lifestyle!!!

Isn’t it wild how we don’t notice the absence of horrible things we were just living with? Like my ex husbands, I guess.

love this!

----------------------so my burger last night was ICK and another ICK
I defrosted 73/27 burger. thought I had that all gone from the freezer, guess not. OMG the rendered fat taste in that beef is absolutely nauseating to me.

So I turned it into taco dinner for family. Hubby sucked it down but when I fed some tacos to my DD, she said, mom this tastes funny and I thought, yea cause it is 73/27 nasty meat and I use 85/15 or 90/10 or 93/7 burger meat now.

Old zc days I used the fatty burger but real fast got rid of it to 80/20 and was ok on that. So this just showed me when I tasted that ground beef I cooked that this meat IS NOT ever for me anymore. Hope that was the last freezer pack, yuk.

So then I had to find food…hmm…I got my 90/10 2 frozen burgers from the fridge and just put a lid on the fry pan and cooked…yum

Holding beef and water Lion and like KD wanting her sausages calling her name, those darn chicken wings are still on my mind but holding ok still.

got nice 1 lb ribeye steak to set my day for my first meal. probably just a burger later if wanted.

I ‘feel my big beef’ first meal of the day changing me! All good changes. I am getting that ZC Zen feeling again, like I don’t ‘require anything’ more ya know but the brain wants wings HA but so far I love the overall well being feeling change. Had this before, I kinda do want it back before I started eating chick/pork/seafood in my day. BEEF IS A KEY factor for me, I know it, I should just eat it

will see how I roll forward but all great in my personal zc land

[Karen18]

So a crappy night last night. I foolishly had some cheddar i didn’t much like last night before bed. Tummy was feeling upset before I went up, constant massive loud burps and had RLS well into the night which kept me awake. Wee trips throughout the night and felt very weary this morning. When I did h e a bit of sleep it was crazy dream stuff again.

Did stair runs when I got up to loosen back though I must admit I didn’t feel like doing them but once i start I just get on with them till they’re done and out the way.

Brunch about 1045 maybe a bit later. Plate of cold meats, beef topside, roast pork and chicken drum, thigh and wing. Followed by a bit f cheese… and not the cheap one that upset my tum that went in the bin.

@Azi that beef looks amazing and just how I like it. Loving the moist looking fat on the top. I could have downed that this morning.

@Ketodaisy I too would have eaten the burnt bacon. I either like it shown the pan or completely over done.

@JJFiddle what is shift boiled egg ?

@robintemplin love it … me and you both on the ex hubby’s

[Fangs]

and not the cheap one that upset my tum that went in the bin.

Yup, I would have done the same.

omg I hate RLS. Had it before, now gone on zc so I don’t experience it anymore but the rare times I get it now thru ?? I keep saying, this is one of THE worst things. just nasty to me for sure.

Hope you clean out and clear up and do ok now!!

[JJFiddle]

what is shift boiled egg ?

Should have said SOFT not shift. I try to edit my goofs, getting better after 33 years or so texting on a cell phone

@Fangs Yes to beef being a lot more satisfying, filling, and long lasting. Woke up at 3:45 this morning STARVING, decided to try to make it to 6 while lying there trying to decide what to eat. I decided so as not to disturb hubby’s sleep i’d just make eggs and bacon. Honestly, they tasted like plastic crap, even with ghee. Now, at 7, I’m Uncomfortably stuffed. Just chicken and cheese and eggs yesterday. Got out 2 lb hamburger and a roast, this can’t happen again!
@Robin so funny! Luckily for my 1 of my exes is dead and the other has mellowed and is much easier to deal with. But you’re right, how did we put up with them so long?

@FrankoBear great cartoon! I have to screenshot that!

[Fangs]

Woke up at 3:45 this morning STARVING, decided to try to make it to 6 while lying there trying to decide what to eat. I decided so as not to disturb hubby’s sleep i’d just make eggs and bacon.

Yea I know this but one thing I realized, little ol’ me would never die from not eating that that very second, that in fact I could be ok going a hell of alot longer without food

But we do ‘hit a mark’ on ZC and we feel ‘on big empty’ and when that goes down we do need to eat. I also subbed crap like bacon eggs or tuna and sardines or some fast stuff against eating a darn big beef steak and we come out sub par on it.

My ZC motto now is when in doubt, eat a beef steak and don’t look back.

I never liked frying my steak from frozen but sometimes I do. I lid it. Put it in on high, sear fast and hard, then cover and lower and let that middle ‘defrost’ and still be pink and darn if I don’t get an ok steak thru that effort.

your burger and roast, oh yea you will be SET fine with all that

[Redrobins]

What rv ya got?

This past summer we got a Damon Challenger. This isn’t a picture of ours, but it looks just like it.

We had a 26’ travel trailer previously, which suited our needs just fine for camping, but we didn’t like the truck payment we had to haul the darn thing. So, we sold the truck and the trailer and bought the Class A motor home. My hubby’s in the body shop business, so he picked up a 1995 Jeep and did a full restore on it to haul as our tow behind vehicle.

Here’s the before picture of the Jeep–

And here’s the after–

The RV’s name is Bullwinkle and the Jeep’s name is Rocky.

We’ve only had one camping trip Bullwinkle, since we got it in the fall, but we are looking forward to many trips this coming summer. We typically do mostly state parks, but one of our sons lives on Michigan, so we might take a trip over there. Fun times!

[Karen18]

Wow Heather they look amazing. My daughter would love that RV. Her and her hubby honeymooned driving the west coast in a rv they rented and loved it.

[Shinita]

I KEEP underestimating my need for meat now…
I cooked 380g pork shoulders (pretty fatty and I fried it and some were mixed with fatty skin so there was plenty of extra fat, yeah it’s not satiating but still, it possibly helps a bit?) and had eggs… I still was hungry. So I ate more eggs. And more eggs. My roast took a lot of time and I wasn’t patient.
Technically 3 meals but 2 hour eating window Guesstimation is 2350 kcal and 10g carbs, it was an eggy day with some dairy, after all.
I wonder if I will eat (much) less or not when my past carbs get farther from me, it can go either way, I don’t always drop my calories on carnivore anymore, only if I stick to OMAD… But today I ate a lot. Oh and I ate at 2am too, I felt truly hungry. It was the smaller worse, some heavy feeling in the morning instead of suffering and bad sleep. I am very motivated to keep a tiny eating window now.

My food except a bunch of eggs and some quark (mostly pork shoulders but some skin, lard, egg and spices too):

It was super easy to eat, I liked my food but was hungry, this stuff even felt overkill :D. These are things I can eat when I get bored of roasts and eggs!
My roast will be the main part of my menu in the next days. I go for some lower-egg days, probably will fail but at least I won’t actively try (and succeed, hungry me has no problems with eggs, usually) to start with 3-5 eggs and drinking some more and eating them galore anyway. Pork shoulders will boost my calories enough, I don’t need all the other “help”. I will be super careful with added fat including sour cream. It’s nice to eat simple anyway - as long as I enjoy my food. And I will make my super low-cal PSMF bread (almost only egg whites, it’s nice as a side dish or base for a spread. I have this phase, it seems). But today I made some normal sponge cakes (well, for me. very normal people don’t make 100% egg sponge cakes I am aware. but they are FUN just a bit deflated but I am working on it. I can make them firm with a ton of fiber, it’s trickier without. today I used some egg powder, it didn’t do much, surely more would be better, gelatin is ineffective but I still have many more ideas), twice as many whites than yolks though, it suits my fatty meat best.

So, tomorrow I just sit down to my smallish roast, it’s still 3 pounds in raw weight so I finally will have enough meat! I better don’t get meat aversion too soon. Vegetarian days are problematic for me nowadays, theoretically fine and dandy, practically not so much. My Skylla is more carbs than good for me, my Charybdis is utter boredom… And they are close so no more or less easy golden middle way exists for me.

[robintemplin]

Sounds like you are on a good track!

[Azi]

Today started with 1/4 of a lamb rack I’m still not sure it was enough but I’ll wait 20 mins to see if it was I still have the other half…

if not I’ll eat that tommorrow

2nd meal for me will be tomahawk well part of one…

[Shinita]

Now I wanna eat this… Too pretty and I actually could eat now… I shouldn’t, needn’t but could… Why am I like this now…
But the meat is VERY pretty. Some of my favorite colors, mmm.

Oh I forgot to tell before that it was a wonderful day weather wise. Sunny and warm. For real, I went for a walk in a t-shirt. 14 Celsius, Alvaro says. And not windy.

[Ketodaisy]

meal one was lamb chops and a sirloin. Meal two was beef ribs. Sleep last night was almost identical to last night. 2 three hour stretches, which was nice! I’ve been taking a different cortisol manager than I was since the day after I said I was going to stop them. A friend of mine reminded me that not everything gets instantly resolved and sometimes you have to take something for a few weeks to see results. So hopefully it’s helping!

[robintemplin]

Having this new air fryer helped me give up that easy processed meat (deli sliced stuff). Probably cheaper too and for sure tastier!!! London broil on sale today. Wish I could share a photo but I devoured the evidence.

This makes me so happy. I have wanted to eat cleaner carni, but was lazy and did what seemed easiest. I realize now how much I gave up. Nom nom.

[JJFiddle]

@Fangs yes the eggs, bacon the crack chicken, they don’t satisfy and I’m not handling all the fat in the cheese. Unless at least 1 of my 2 meals is all (or mostly) beef, I will not sleep through the night. A lot of beef is not required, it’s the nutrient balance that somehow tips the scale.
The grass fed roast is in sous vide for Friday, tomorrow is KBobs steak house, should be good. I’ll see about the baked potato toppings served separately.

My sister and her hubby full-timed in an RV for 8 years when they retired. They were very happy and their travels took them to 49 states I’m sure, so they finally selected Washington State for retirement. Beautiful place. I love the control you have when you travel like that. As you’ve said!

[Azi]

I used to live in Washington state infact my daughter and stepson and grand kids still do…
Way to wet for me lol…green yep… but I prefer sun and beaches…

[Fangs]

I love your rv pics and nice Jeep to tow too. With that Class A you sure are traveling in style

We farm so we always had big trucks. We got a Dodge Ram Mega Cab. That thing just rides so smooth but we are still debating that ‘truck and tow’ or Class A and tow like you have. But hubby drives his truck daily and is a truck guy so we just keep doing what we do right now.

but since we bring the golf cart and kayaks that toyhauler is such a compliment for us at this time. but who knows, we always are keeping an eye open to trade and switch LOL

Bullwinkle and Rocky…too funny! I never named anything, I just call the rv home. We go out on trips and my kid when little was like what are we doing next and I say going home and she is like, no I wanna keep camping, I said HOME is our camper I think that is what I do love best, my own home on wheels. I am not a hotel person.

--------------Cooked country style pork ribs for family last night. OMG you know I had to eat one. Such crispy fatty goodness and YUM. Being beef so far this month I really tasted that country pork rib and it was out of this world delish. I really appreciate my ZC eating plan, I absolutely love love love my food daily!! Steak and burger again with my 1 delish pork rib. Feel very secure and calm on this eating choice.

Store has chuck roasts on sale…gotta go get me a few

[JJFiddle]

Awake at 3 again this morning but this lack of sleep doesn’t affect my productivity during the day and I’m not a napper so 4 hours it is I guess, until and unless I suddenly get 8 a couple times a week.
I find I work 5 or 6 days a week now but the days aren’t long. Seems there’s always a moment to put my feet up.
Lastnight I snacked on pork rinds (the big light ones rather than the small hard ones) and sour cream. Took bile and lipase prior and had no issues. This morning I’m comfortably empty, not hungry at all.
I think it’s just taking me longer to fat adapt at 69 than it used to. But the arthritis pain is lessening and I’ve tightened my belt 4 notches since the first of the year. Hubby was worried yesterday, wondered if maybe I should stop this, I said yes I want to lose weight but mainly I need to reverse inflammation. I don’t want to be unable to walk at 80! And I have found no other way to get rid of the inflammation.
I read one time that if we could get rid of inflammation we’d all live to be 150.
I asked him how he can sit there and eat those mountains of starch and veggies while I eat 2 hamburger patties and he said “I really need to eat even more plants. I’m eating for two now.”

[Septimius]

Really appreciate this response, thanks @Fangs - I will keep calm and keep carrying on! Appreciate hearing your experiences too @Shinita

Curiously, I do feel a little thinner again this week.

[Fangs]

Curiously, I do feel a little thinner again this week.

oh man I do love that feeling!!! one of THE best!

[Karen18]

Foody pics looking great and yummy.

Bit of a crappy night last night. I took a beta blocker (they are lowest strength and as and when going to work) I thought perhaps they would help ease any anxiety or business in my head about getting up at silly o’clock for work. Not sure they whether they worked or not, I don’t recall feeling anxious and seemed to drop off fairly quickly but it was a very restless night.

So 4.45am alarm call, up and straight on with stair runs, bath and off to work. BP was elevated this morning before going to work and when I arrived and retook the readings it was about the same barring a digit or two. No anxiety issues or attacks on way in like Monday which is why the readings were similar I suppose. Still high but no significant spike. I have been given job listening to the moaning and groaning prisoners on the phones to their friends and family which is fine and no stress related to it which is good. Its like going back 18 years as my first job at the prison before becoming an officer was split between listening to the pin phones and assisting the dog handler. Loved my job back then but we move on through needs must don’t we?. I will be doing this job for time being until they start getting paperwork in order for medical retirement… and possibly longer if the new Number 1 Gov doesn’t agree to it! It isn’t an overnight thing and may take a number of weeks. If I end up staying in the job till I retire in the normal manner thats only 17 months away I can handle that.

Home by 1130am and was ready to eat so brunch was cold roast pork and cold roast chicken. Just a drum/thigh and half the pork in the pic cos it was an end bit and getting too dry for my liking. Also a bit of cheddar.

The other pic is last nights meal of 2 big lamb ribs. They could have been cooked better which would have meant slower and I was in too much of a hurry and pan fried them. Could only get through 1 and as I started the 2nd I just wasn’t able to eat it so horror of horrors it went in the bin. TThis is 2 days on the run I have thrown away some food but it is once (or twice on this occasion) in a blue moon. I just don’t really like cold lamb.

No idea what i fancy for later, may have chicken wings or perhaps scrambled eggs.

Nearly forgot to take the photo of the lamb ribs so had already eaten one by time I remembered lol.

[FrankoBear]

"Beach Rumpus"
Imagine running
And playing
On beach
With friend
Care free

–

–
Staying on plan. But ate breakfast at 10;30am. 3 pasture fed chook eggs with 3 rashers of middle bacon, and potassium-rich salt. 2 x morning coffees, separated by 3 hours, one with controlled dose cream frozen as ice cube aliquots. Last 2 nights have been dinner mirrors with a big rib-eye sat on some butter and baked under a scarf of middle rasher bacon. Tonight I added a thin slice of sheep milk halloumi cheese pan-fried with 4 ribbons of squid (surf&turf wins again!). 2MAD.

Still taking prednisone and it allows for pain-reduced physical activity. Out in the sunshine, shirt off and in shorts, doing homestead chores to get natural Vitamin D. Tanned. I read about 3 pages of a novel per night. Sleeping 7 to 9 hours per night, and woken by the full bladder nature-calling alarm. Fasting blood glucose is remaining unacceptably high due to the cortisone dose in the morning on waking; 120mg/dl (6.6mmol/l) with 0.2 mmol/l blood ketones. It will be interesting to see my HbA1c next month. I really want to get back to medication-free (and surfing).

10 days ago tight clothes are less snug.

I painted my cat looking out the window from a photo reference. I have traded any ‘van life’ urges for 3 acres of trees, a pretty-good* wife, and pets.

*Mrs. Bear actually is awesome.

[Fangs]

@Karen18
so cool you ARE walking toward job change or sticking it out but I am sure your medical will come thru I think and new changes and new adventures will be coming…but so nice you are just ‘waiting in good form’ for it all to go down

I also never get pics of my meat cooked HAHA I always take pics raw before cooking, cause once cooked my brain IS not on a picture, it is on inhaling that thing LOL too funny!

@FrankoBear
that cat rules the roost, not one doubt in my mind with that expression on his kitty face, as in, I am King, hear me Roar! I loved my cats! I loved the devil may care attitude they own and boy do they own it, oneo of the best things about them but many find offputting, I find wonderful about them.

WEEEE…your tighter clothes are less tight…I am loving that for ya FB!

remember this I just posted and read and LISTEN WHY…your new life shows totally NEW issues with blood sugar truly…a new you, a new changed you with balanced hormones and healing and vitality won’t ever ‘equal’ that other blood sugar info kinda out there

means we are not still conforming to old controls ya know, we aren’t ‘using’ or driven by a kinda low carb eating way of life info out there, WE ARE now new and NEED truly to understand our newness thru our health on what zc gives us.

darn if you aren’t doing good. Your van life, yes I still have it!! With my rv when I get the chance I am selling the mini farm, last of it, house and barns and all and gonzo and travel. Kid in college and gonzo. THEN later when I ‘hit our location’ we love in our coastal adventure we will find a place and settle and let me tell ya, your homestead location, to me, personally, is the TOPS and it would be an area of beauty and inspiration I would just eat up Enjoy your homestead FB! ALL YOU can get out of it!!

[robintemplin]

Fingers crossed for earlier retirement for you. Imagine no alarm clock! That alone is a game changer.

[robintemplin]

Yes, a pretty good life. Amen.

[Shinita]

Maybe I will read back later…

Well. After I looked at that wonderful pic here, I realized I have pork shoulder roast… And I actually can eat… And managed to eat a ton of it, sometimes I tried to stopped but resumed it… I didn’t feel hungry, per se but eating it felt right. I never got a stop sign this time, I just stopped when my pork shoulder consumption for yesterday reached about 1000g and I went to bed anyway…

Not a huge surprise, actually, me and pork shoulder roasts after very low-meat times triggered such things before though I only ate this amount once. The problem was that the roast got ready in the evening, after I already ate some other meat but not enough after this extremely low-meat period (with a week without any or something)… Oh well. I will make sure I stick to early dinner OMAD if possible in the foreseeable future!

It’s a nice roast. I ate better meat before so I didn’t eat because it was irresistibly tasty. It was simply irresistible. I am sure my body knows what it is doing.

Problem is… I almost run out of meat and we won’t visit the city yet. Only a bigger town (well, it has supermarkets. it’s actually small where I am came from, the village my family is from isn’t soooo much smaller. and it’s town now but it was a village with a population of 15-17 thousands my village has a population of 2000, it’s a tiny one but there are tinier ones nearby). on Saturday so we surely will find something.

My tiny (but quite fatty, even for a shoulder) meat today:

I had to spare the rest for tomorrow… Then I ate some of that too… But I really had to stop. Oh well, I ate some more eggs (I had 3 before the meat) and quark too and it was surely enough. I am a bit too full more but it’s fine and I am positive I won’t eat this night for a change…

So I am fine now but I need to get some proper meat. If possible, a tad leaner but I can handle shoulder as long as I stay away from added fat and sausages and the like.
Fat is way too easy to eat, it’s a struggle to keep it low enough (a struggle I usually lose but it should be fine on OMAD).

I always take pics raw before cooking, cause once cooked my brain IS not on a picture, it is on inhaling that thing

Of course. It’s probably very familiar to many of us. I could show my roast as I still had 2 pieces after I ate half of it… Okay, I originally wanted to shot it before and it was realistic as I was already satiated when my roast got ready but it was cold at that point, solidified fat stuck to it and I thought oh, I just will warm it next time and it will be shiny and pretty and make a photo then… But I jumped it cold at night. It happens. It was good cold and it was good warm (today).

When I have other pics, it’s usually because I prepare my food along with Alvaro’s when I am still satiated from the previous day… So I make a photo and wait for him to come home
But I ate up my food before a photo zillion times even when I actually planned to do it - but it wasn’t THAT important while eating when hungry is important.

My food is often the same anyway. Except not 2 piece or roast is the same It’s like flowers… OH I have those too!
The first snowdrops are in full bloom, others are close but the flower is there, the hellebores need more time.

I will check if the pasqueflowers showed their (totally furry as their flowers) leaves yet. I looked them up in my notes and Alvaro remembered them in the end of February so it seems they are blooming mostly in March but sometimes they start in February. Snowdrops started their show weeks earlier than in 2019 so I better check the pasqueflower hill! The view is pretty from there anyway, I wasn’t there ages ago…

[robintemplin]

So pretty!!!

[Shinita]

And things will just get prettier!

Hopefully on my woe too. I tracked because I am strong and can handle my numbers. AND I collect odd numbers! This was a record breaking among tracked days!

Guesstimation is 2150 kcal for me, I ate a bit more in the end (how I can do it when I really was full a bit before? whatever) but still in a small eating window, significantly below 3 hours. Good enough for me nowadays.
Just over a pound pork shoulder (as I was so modest today :D)… 140g protein.

For yesterday… 4100 kcal (probably less as I have rendered out fat left. but it’s not so much. and it’s possible this pork shoulder is fattier than what the data uses. who knows?), 250g protein… Wow. I remember 220-225g but that’s it. So it’s a new record for me!
326g fat, says guesstimation but this is the value that we can’t trust. Fatty meat is impossible to track.
Whatever real numbers are, no one can accuse me of being shy if it’s about eating fat.
It’s nice a eat a substantial amount of fat now and then. My 250-280g days gave me a tiny comfort for a while but it was still not MUCH fat, just higher than usual and higher than what I should eat. I consider 300+ g much

But I still find it best to eat little fat (like 100-150g) and being happy with it. I only need a fatty day now and then. And I could even afford more if I just could stop eating for days but I can’t do that without a lot of carbs, apparently. Oh well.

Don’t mind me, I just try to handle my numbers. Wow. I only did 4000 kcal on my TMAD off days after I went low-carb. They were RARE. I barely ever did 3000 on keto. Wow.

But I noticed this with me + low-meat past days + fresh (1-2 days old cold is fine) pork shoulder roast. Things get wild there.

I STILL don’t know what happens if it’s the same combo except chuck. Stupid and tasty fatty shoulder is what I can do in big packages and cheap most of the time. And it may work if I just avoid fat like the plague otherwise. Yeah, fat chance. I bought 850g sour cream today… It was on sale, okay? And it’s sour cream. And the brand is what I only tried for milk and it was the best milk ever except the one time when I get some freshly milked warm foamy wonder from the neighbour.
But I will be modest. Fortunately I am not used to eat much of it anymore, my training was successful! I ate 20g today only because my quark needed some creaminess, it’s a crumbly, drier quark.

And NOW I should stop thinking of food for a looooooong time. Like tomorrow evening. Except I will cook and bake food for Alvaro as usual but that’s fine.

Well 4000 kcal isn’t THAT much. Once in a blue moon. After several super low-meat days. I still shouldn’t do it with pork shoulder if possible. I am sure my body wanted meat, not allllll that fat with it. Though it was nice to have much fat. Oh whatever.

My weight was crazy and it went up to 77kg but it’s 76 again (this morning, I even undressed and everything and I rarely do that, I am not that curious) and I am waiting for my usual 75. It’s supposed to be my real weight, after all… I totally can’t use other measurements as I have no fitting pants. I barely have any pants (trousers if you are in that country), I keep postponing the shopping as I HATE clothes shopping with a passion. And I have pants, it’s just not so pretty and it has NO POCKETS. Outrageous. It’s winter so I just have a jacket on me outside but it’s often too warm for a jacket now (so it’s on my waist, with my phone in it. I am a super addict of listening to music all the time. except while sleeping, talking but I usually have music. I barely ever talk).

Why I can’t stop?

[Ketodaisy]

meal one was a small tbone and beef liver. Meal two was country style ribs. Meal three was another tbone. High stress day. So glad I stress eat with t-bones instead of Reese’s cups these days! Sleep last night was pretty good. In bed at 9:40. Fell asleep instantly. Woke at midnight to pee. Then my husband woke me with his snoring at 1:23. I tried to just put an earplug in and go back to sleep, but went ahead and used the restroom. Then I woke up at 4:45 and struggled to get comfortable. Finally got up to pee and reset my alarm from 5:10 to 5:30. I didn’t think I’d fall back asleep but I did and woke with the alarm. But when I was sleeping, it was very restful sleep. I am still taking the cortisol manager that is just ashwaganda and l-theonine (the one I got from Walmart) and one magnesium tablet. I also got my @redmondrelyte yesterday afternoon. I put one in my glass water bottle and it was way too much since I haven’t eaten salt in over a year. I kept diluting it until I got it to a bearable level. Drank probably half a packet yesterday afternoon. Drank the other half this morning and another half a packet. Will probably drink part of the other half this evening. It has made my mouth and lips dry and my fingers a little puffy. I’ll see if it makes much of a difference in my sleep.

[JJFiddle]

Great to read your stories. I feel centered and stable in this woe but how much is me and how much is you? Would I be saying “maybe a little bit of mustard and lemon in my mayo wouldn’t be out of line” and before ya knew it I’d be adding a little salad, a little BBQ sauce, and I’d be right back where I started. The fb group for Carni women over 60 allows keto or whatever they want, and it’s a mucking fess so to speak.
Anyway so we went to the steak place and yuck. 10 oz ribeye for $30, gristly and they charged Xtra for the included sides that I only got for John as they were included!
So we came home and I opened a 93% ground beef and started nibbling. Better then, but too much fat and pretty soon I was running to the bathroom again. No bile or lipase today.
So tonight I had canned tuna with baconnaise, which interested the puppy greatly! Lower fat for me, I’ll be fine now.
@FrankoBear love your cartoons and that crazy video was great! “Don’t eat that salad! Are you trying to kill yourself??” loved it! Also your paintings, Photoshop? Wonderful!

[Azi]

Today was the other half of yesterdays lamb rack and 4slices of bacon dinner was a lamb hock/shank.

Went shopping today spent way to much on meat but sirloin was on sale 5 dollars off per packet at samWednesday… couldn’t let that go by without buying half a dozen packs… rib roasts were under 10 dollars packs… so had to get one of those and I saw a rib eye steak for. Valentines I bought for my husband in a heart shape pan…its huge … also grabbed some scallops and flounder to throw in freezer …
Well looks like the house in nebraska is sold its supposed to close next wednesday…

[robintemplin]

I find it surprising that you rarely talk. You have so much to say!

[Fangs]

going off beef water for a day here cause, well, I wanna LOL and it is all carnivore.

chicken wings, big ol’ mess of them and having leftover country pork ribs that fam didn’t finish.

back on beef steaks tomorrow.

enjoying zc for sure as always

[FrankoBear]

One last dip before lights out.

Work from home day saw me out in the sunshine in surf boardshorts planting some pumpkin seedlings for Mrs. Bear to roast in the woodfire oven in winter.

NoFUN breakfast 3 pasture fed chicken eggs and 3 rashers smoked middle bacon. 2 morning coffees, 3 hours apart with an ice-cube measure of cream in each. Worked on the computer doing administrative forms and emails. Then a 2.5hr Zoom meeting with a manager, which was stressful. They might try to promote me, but I was not having it. I ate about 80g of blue cheese (like a Stilton) in response to corporate ladders being placed in front of me. Then took Billie to the beach for a long evening walk. Home to a baked rib eye steak with a middle bacon rasher. That’s ribeyes 3 nights in a row.

[Karen18]

@FrankoBear photo and painting … beautiful. You’re very talented … words and art

@Fangs had to say this although it isn’t this thread but I just wonder why people comment when they can just scroll if they don’t like what one has said. I saw the funny side lol… just saying!

@robintemplin … no alarm sounds awesome but I will still have yo set it for my Saturday morning CrossFit class cos its an hour earlier than mid-week and I still have to stair run beforehand!

@Shinita really lovely photos of the crocuses my daughter took a photo of a great big patch of them on her walk yesterday, they looked so nice.

@Ketodaisy an invite to help you eat that T-bone? Thank you I will be right over

@JJFiddle it is always so disappointing when a restaurant over charges for a crappy steak. I look forward to it being cooked by a professional and if the piece of meat is below par I usually send it back.

@Azi well done selling your nebraska house, that will be a lot of stress off your shoulders and easier on the mind. I generally don’t like the bigger steaks unless they’re cooked for me in a restaurant as I can never guage how long to cook them for. I always opt for smaller when cooking them myself. If I am still hungry after eating the smaller ones I can always cook another or get something else to follow. When I eat a bigger steak in a restaurant I can generally get through the whole thing as I probably haven’t eaten all day in prep for the ‘Big One’

Up at silly o’clock again this morning for my shift. Stair runs done at 4.45am , bath and off to work. Everything okay until my line manager gave me a letter. He was very sweet and said he was very angry and had fought against Gov not to issue it but had been forced to give me the letter. Well prison showing its contradictory true colours. I was surprised at how supportive they had been and the number 1 Gov last week telling me the prison had to make sure they looked after me and if my BP spikes before work then I wasn’t to go in and it wouldn’t go on my sick record … the letter this morning was an absence warning letter because I have had more than 5 days off in the last 12 months! Hmmm was i suppose to discharge myself from hospital after my stroke and get myself in for my shift the next day? I just laughed at it but my line manager said he was dreading giving me it as he thought I would be so angry, as he was, and my BP would surely spike! He was so sweet and kind though that that set me off emotionally took me ages to compose myself i know when my daughter reads the letter she will be so cross! She can’t wait for me to leave the prison service.

Very hungry when I got home about 11.45. Should have left work sooner but I wanted to finish my task in hand before leaving which set me back a good half hour plus. Silly cos I don’t owe them anything but finishing a job is in my make-up and I can’t change that. So I tucked in to some cheese for brunch while Chicken wings were heating up in the oven. Left them a bit too long and they were charred by the time I got them out but oh oh oh they were so nice. I definitely prefer the skin baked to a crisp.
@Fangs I read your last post and laughed cos I was reading it and looking at the bones left on my plate . I have another packet in fridge and may have those later and I think I will get distracted again and oh dear they may end up charred!

[robintemplin]

I received a “rules are rules” Written Reprimand once that really shook me up! I was known as the hardest and happiest worker, the biggest seller, etc etc…. But rules are rules and no apology for the insult was offered.
That’s when I realized I was a great employee with excellent work ethics for my own self and pride. Plus I loved my job. That’s what stung the most. I gave my all because I loved it there.

[Fangs]

an ice-cube measure of cream in each

this is smart. I did it with cream also to make my alfredo cause I only needed a small amt and ended up throwing out the rest of the carton, so I thought, freeze it and stop wasting money but you got great portion control thru it~

They might try to promote me, but I was not having it. I ate about 80g of blue cheese (like a Stilton) in response to corporate ladders being placed in front of me.

yea. In life we hit a boundary. work harder with tons more stress and responsibility or ARE WE OK where we are and living good…don’t follow the almighty dollar for some works best at some stage, I so feel ya on this!!! Let the stress go, you stated your point of view on it, let the chips fly after that as they will in that you can’t truly control anything after giving your response…smile cause ya gave that response that suited you

I was surprised at how supportive they had been and the number 1 Gov last week telling me the prison had to make sure they looked after me

I am super happy you have ‘real humans’ dealing with real med issues for our working environment…it is a real plus you truly have this happening to work for you cause so much work out there is take take and dump, you got real humanity going down as it should be

@Fangs had to say this although it isn’t this thread but I just wonder why people comment when they can just scroll if they don’t like what one has said. I saw the funny side lol… just saying!

I appreciate that but it was a tad off color LOL and it wasn’t typed out as I laughed about it in my head Thing being my stress levels are thru the roof right now, my 94 yr old mom with the dementia now kicking in, handling retirement home issues and letting go of her now I think? and I guess being so close as we are I am in a new zone I can’t comprehend actually…for a lack of a better way to say it…grieving the loss and death of a living parent? UGH…I am kinda in a dark space, a reflective space and more right now, emotions flying everywhere and I don’t think a damn plant is ‘gonna save anyone’ ever HAHA so my joke went by the wayside for sure so will send apologies if it all came out in a wrong way But life is what it is and I should stay off threads as I get ‘me under control’ a tad more

-------------I need time to come around to a real normal gain…I guess?

[Shinita]

Oh I talk a lot if I have an audience but I only have Alvaro. I don’t meet people. And he comes home tired and watch videos and play games in his own room. We spend time together, of course but I could talk way much! But I have this place and a chat with a friends. I was a lonely child without friends so I am actually not used to talk at real speed while thinking (let alone have any resources to notice anything from the other person). I am comfortable with writing though, I have my own pace (it’s pretty quick though. if I would want to be perfect, that would take forever but I am usually fine with being as clear as I can be with my too complicated thoughts and things and I try not to butcher poor language I actually use… but it’s English in more than 99% of the cases)…
Writing is a form of thinking for me. I usually think with words anyway.

---

I ate lunch again… This was my tray… Not my actual lunch. I had a tiny leftover roast so I fried liver too. And the usual scrambled eggs, not so scrambled, I cooked various things at the same time, whatever.
6 PSMF sponge cake bread muffins, all are different, I experimented. And they actually contains fiber but I am sure it can’t change anything for me, the carbs are negligible (not like I ever cared about total) and I have not enough meat so I need something else. Not like I got the firm texture I got the first time… Hmmm…

I didn’t eat it all (just almost) but I ate 6 more sponge cake muffins (they had more yolks) and quark as dessert And eggy coffees.

Guesstimation says 1800 kcal but I didn’t ate it all. The food in the pic is about 1480 kcal. A very bad sized lunch, too small for OMAD and tricky for satiation, too big for a proper TMAD… I probably will have a tiny early dinner very soon.

It was an okay lunch. It’s my 3rd good enough carnivore-ish day, I am waiting for the usual carni satiation and chill to kick in, for a few days before I get bored…
But at least I won’t cook in the weekend, today was a bit rough, coooking multiple not extremely simple dishes in the same hour… And ONE of them was my 24 sponge cake muffins and almost every 2 were different from the others… I try to be more careful in the future but such things can happen. It would help if I ate only dinner though I would need 2 cooking sessions a day then. Sigh. I can’t simplify it much more. Well 2 of the more complicated dishes (I didn’t even do one of them) is all because we have vegetables and Alvaro don’t use them. Of course I don’t do it either but eventually I must. Alvaro could have eaten eggs in purgatory or chicken liver, he is fine with both but poor vegetable was in the bottom part of the fridge since too many weeks. Next time I will just pressure can it, that’s easier and the first 2 steps of a future dish is done. Alvaro actually used poor thing, half of it, that’s why he bought it. And the other half can just die or whatever. I can’t let it even if it’s just a (half) vegetable.
Stupid vegetables, only good for making my life harder. I don’t even eat them. Good vegetables are crunchy, juicy and require absolutely no work (maybe peeling if they are that type but it’s done by the one who actually eats them)… And they disappear quickly, basic every day items for Alvaro and occasional joys for me.

My freezer is more than half empty now, tomorrow is shopping day! And we try to get fancy tasty chewy worm medicine for Caroline who refused the normal medicine mixed with eggs, sour cream and some of my own precious grounded pork. Tofu had no problem but Caroline… It’s stressful and the vet doesn’t always keep that thing. Caroline keeps trying to get inside, airing the house is less easy this week. At least the weather is awesome, I walked a lot in the sunshine and in a t-shirt again. Found no pasque flower leaves yet. Or any other flowers.

@Karen18: These are snowdrops and hellebores but crocuses will come later, I obviously have them as they are great One of my favorite flowers. They never multiply, in the contrary So I keep planting some as I want more than a few one day but keeping the population at its normal level is the minimum! IDK why they are like that, the tulips and daffodils and the others are quite fine, we have many every year. Well I could use some more fancy tulips, there are sooo many different lovely kinds… And I don’t have very early or late ones either.

I have the spring mood. Weather has the spring mood. And the forest I visited today was so, so bare! Not even snowdrops! Come on, Nature! Show me something!

I’ve read the posts since last time (there are still some unread from before but things are so busy here I almost never get to go back even if plan to) but I just have no words for your difficulties… Our best friend is in a bad place too and she just don’t chat, not to bring us down… We are down enough all by ourselves anyway except I have spring mood and a very good inner hedonist and self-uplifter or something… I have a bright interior (oh. we spell it with e in the beginning so it was a new word for me) most of the time with darker, somewhat suppressed things inside. Alvaro is gloomier but he is still a cinnamon roll. I can’t say it differently, sorry Sometimes I call someone I love (cats included) sugar (we don’t say honey) and I feel off as I don’t LOVE sugar, actually… Oh well.
I usually call everyone vole though (it sounds WAY cuter in Hungarian!). It’s odd for the cats but Tofu has a stupid food name anyway (very good name choice there, she is a silly cat. I love her way more than tofu though. I don’t even understand why tofu exists, it isn’t good for anything IMO. if I was a vegan, I still wouldn’t eat it, I would have so many better ideas).

Sorry, next time I try to avoid non-carnivore food items but it’s pretty hard especially that I cook with such things. I already avoid most of them but some find the way into my comments.

[Ketodaisy]

@Karen18 the “rules” that these companies have been enforcing, I just can’t. My husband works in the medical industry and they have THE most ridiculous rules and I get so frustrated! I’m so thankful for the company I work for. They do some things that make no sense sometimes, but usually very easy going.

meal one was ground lamb/beef soup. Haven’t had it in forever! Not since I was doing my lower fat experiment. Meal two was raw round roast and some raw suet. I ate probably half of the roast and a couple chunks of suet. If I get hungry again, I’ll eat more of it (for some reason, raw doesn’t keep me full for long). Sleep last night was crappy. I had done the relyte all day yesterday and just felt dry and puffy. It translated into poor sleep. Went to bed at 9:22 and was so tired. Up at 10:46, 11:53, 1:30, 2:30, 3:41, then up with my alarm at 5:28. I think the electrolytes are not for me. I’m finishing the half packet that was in my bottle from last night. I just keep adding water to it, so it’s diluting more and more with each refill. I’ve given myself a workout challenge at work. I gave it to my team too, but they haven’t been sticking to it. But I have and I’m so sore! Feels good though and I feel like I’ll see great improvements if I keep it up. I’m on day 3.

[Karen18]

I learned long ago that one is very indispensable and you get no thanks for being reliable, coming in when a bit off colour and working all hours passed your time. I wasn’t shocked at my letter … I was more shocked over the last 3 months seemingly having so much support from them hahahah. You know my daughter said that I am not allowed to let things get to me or get angry about things and I am doing like I have been told else I will be in big trouble with her she is quite right though, it’s only me that will end up poorly with high BP and possibly another stroke and where will I be then? I should have learnt this abstaination from the wrong type of energy and emotion along time ago… it is quite liberating

[Karen18]

Of course silly me I meant snowdrops

[robintemplin]

Bless your heart, with everything you are dealing with, it’s no wonder your mood could be misunderstood in post. Plus, we’ve had Remorse after hitting REPLY. Just this week, I abused my role as an admin and snarked at someone for being snarky. Yikes! I quickly deleted it. And I didn’t even have any good reason, like yours.

You are in what I think is one of the hardest parts of life. It sure was for me. my mom also had dementia the last couple of years and it made everything a bazillion times harder. So in a way, you have said goodbye to your mom (as you knew her) many times already. So hard.
Hope YOU have good support!

[Shinita]

meal one was ground lamb/beef soup.

Never ever heard about such a thing!

At least you can go back to sleep, it’s something (it still quite bad, I can’t even imagine, I never woke up more than once a night in my life but it’s typically zero. until a few years ago I thought most people sleep through the night but it seems waking up is super common. my SO does it every night, very early and he goes back to sleep at that point, it’s fine enough). If my SO wakes up (later than his usual no-problem time, of course), that’s it. It’s not fun when he does that at 3am… He never can go back to sleep. If it’s a weekend day, he still stays up and has a nap after lunch or something.
How you folks can function like that? My sleep isn’t its perfect uninterrupted 6-8 hours and I am a zombie. If it’s perfect, I still wake as a zombie but it passes and at noon I feel kind of living.
I am bad with go back to sleeping now too (oh 10-20 years ago, it wasn’t even a challenge. I effortlessly and immediately slept on command) but I almost never wake up, not even when morning come. I still only have 6 alarms, I need to make more, maybe some will wake me up? The last ones actually do the trick now but sometimes I sleep over all.
Stupid sleep, it’s probably a rarity for a human to get it perfect… Most of their life as I imagine many kids has it perfect as long as their mothers don’t get them out of bed at stupid o’clock. Being a kid was horrible for me in the mornings. Waking up 3 hours before I wanted and eating breakfast… Poor past me.

my daughter said that I am not allowed to let things get to me or get angry about things

Wise advice. It’s understandable if you aren’t 100% affected but you really shouldn’t harm yourself with reacting too badly. But you know that as you wrote it, I just wanted to agree enthusiastically.

[JJFiddle]

I just want to say I’m here, I’m good, slept well lastnight (resorted to melatonin). Took that roast out of the sous vide and had cooked it as beef but it was pork! OMG weird tasting. Seared and ate some with chicken livers left from a few days ago.
So much to comment on your posts but we have a gig in an hour and a half so I have to rush around and get ready now
Beef shank steaks and chuck roast are in the sous vide for the upcoming week. They take 2-3 days he I started them frozen with duck fat and smoked sea salt! Should be yummy come Sunday night or Monday.

[Azi]

Crazy all the silly rules of work environments…I’d have laughed too… you had medical issues and needed medical clearance another rule lol.

Meat first meal was 4 slices of bacon and 1lamb shank but with the bacon I couldn’t finish all the shank…
Tonight I’ll prob eat more lamb rack and rest of lamb shank
Weight wise I’m still at 5lbs down …

[Fangs]

my mom also had dementia the last couple of years and it made everything a bazillion times harder. So in a way, you have said goodbye to your mom (as you knew her) many times already. So hard.

Thanks!!!

So you know the emotions are going batsh** flippin’ off the charts for me right now, cause you went thru it too. Yes in that I feel like I have to let go but on mom’s part it is easy and non-complicated thru medical ya know, for me it is in my face and it is very hard. We are very close. Just a tough issue to live thru and having no experiences like this, it is navigating deep open water full of man eating sharks it feels like…every nerve just on edge all the time and on alert ya know. Thanks for your understanding!

Weight wise I’m still at 5lbs down

finding your zc sweet spot, so cool!
also super congrats on selling the NE house!!
You are in full great mode with things being so positive for you now. Love that!

---------------------my wings and pork yesterday were super delish. Like I never had that taste before and was a great change from beef but that day is done and woke up this morning just hankering for big ribeye beef!

so that is it today, got a nice big 1 lb ribeye steak and burgers are easiest for second meal since meal 1 just makes me so content and satisfied, so steak and burgers for me today

Beef on everyone!

[Karen18]

Oh my goodness, i am with you 100%. The last 5 or 6 years with my parents were so hard. My dad got a rare form of Lung Cancer and lived 2 years with it, my mum wouldn’t accept he was as ill as he was and was totally dumbfounded when I had to go into her bedroom to wake her and tell her he had passed. She had started drinking heavily and as soon as dad passed started smoking after stopping for many years. Then had to come to the realisation that for her on safety she had to go into a care home. The emotions were all over the place. My parents lived an hour and 3/4 away so the constant driving back and forth got me so tired. Going in the care home actually prolonged her life by a further year because she would have either drunk herself into oblivion, set the house on fire or fallen down the stairs.

I just hope I keep compos mentis so my daughter doesn’t have to go through it with me! Scary.

[robintemplin]

Yes, it’s scary to think we’ll follow our parents path. My great grandma turned mean and needy for her last several years. My grandmother (her daughter) swore she would NEVER. And of course she did.
MY mom (her daughter) said she would never never never! And of course, she did.
So I have warned my daughter to confront me the instant I start down that path. Although, I swear I will never EVER! (Sigh)

[Azi]

Today I started out with small 1/4 rack of lamb then I had two scoops of ketochow Icecream fat added was butter. And mixed with water
Dinner was two lamb shoulder chops.
(Almost for got to take the picture)

[Ketodaisy]

meal one was lamb chops, meal two was beef ribs. Meal three was burger patties and beef bacon. Sleep last night was pretty bad. I still had drank the relyte yesterday. Went to bed at 9:46, up at 11, 12:30, 2, 5:30, and then up for the day at 8:30. Was awake several other times.

[FrankoBear]

I don’t think a damn plant is ‘gonna save anyone’ ever HAHA

I’ve got no idea what the convo is about between you @Karen18 and @robintemplin, but I love plants like vegans love animals; they are useful and lovely, just not to eat.

I am enjoying @Shinita documenting the Earth waking up with snow drops in Her eyes.

@Fangs I hear you about parents with dementia, it’s Crap!

Yesterday I did some gardening. My little brother (huge Viking, like me) is visiting and helping with some big jobs around the property. He is a great catastrophizer as he is right into the main stream media reporting, so I get to catch up with what crap people are being fed through their eyes from TV and tabloid newspapers. But I’m not totally innocent because my inputs are Internet connected. It’s good to sit and have a coffee and a brotherly debate with him. Just saying it’s lucky we modern Vikings don’t so readily have our swords, axes and shields to hand for punctuation purposes. Little brother is an unmonitored, so not well-controlled T2D and leans (in more ways than one) toward a plant-based diet because he is in love with a Spanish girl who is vegetarian.

Staying on plan here, using eggs for a work stress coping food, I like them too much, all 3 of them, each NOFUN breakfast cooked in the tallow/butter base of the beef from the night before. Coffees with measured dose cream that is then easier to cut in increments because it is in a measured dose like the medication I take, for example I can cut down to 1 cream cube per day, then every second day etc, while watching out for other sneaky dairy like creeping cheese. @Karen18, watch out for creeping cheese, it can be the stuff of nightmares.

It was rib eye steak again last night, and that one was hard to get through. Mrs.Bear offered me some nanoguy (a prized local white fish) omelette, and I could not even face a mouthful. Satiety can mean that any forced food after the satiety point tastes like eating candle wax, like we all used to as kids. I did eat 3 sardines from a can as an appetiser for the steak. Still finding surf&turf a really good plan, just wish there was more surfing involved. Swam with some stingrays yesterday late afternoon. Swimming is my fitness scaffold to bring me back to surfing. My shoulder pain is reducing with each swim.

[Karen18]

Beautiful photo again @FrankoBear gorgeous sky. Yes the cheese is a nightmare I can’t get out of. Had some soft goats yesterday and oh my goodness ì am glad I didn’t buy more than one as it was so lovely I could have eaten it all day! Sounds like you are having a great time with your brother, its good to catch up but I bet its hard for you to watch him going down that plant route. Does he eat meat while he is visiting you?

Water therapy ahhhh super… I love swimming but I find it messes with my neck. I am not the best swimmer though I have to say I have got better as I have got older but if I am social swimming with someone else I will breast stroke and I only have to do a length in a pool and the neck is crunching like a good’un! My osteomyologist tells me I have arthrosis of the spine at the top of my neck and base of my spine so my neck and shoulders are always crunching. Not so much if i do front crawl but that isn’t very sociable is it… cant swim and chat at the same time hahaha.

[Karen18]

Dinner yesterday late afternoon chicken wings.

Then later I had some smoked ham and a tin of salmon and finished off the cheese.

Dreadful night. Up in the early hours for an hour or so. Head far too busy with that damn absence warning letter. Should I appeal, shouldn’t I? Started reading up on statutory rights and stroke info. Starting wondering whether I should have taken 3 months to recover. All silly stuff cos I know in myself I wasn’t ready to go back any earlier. Annoyed that the prison was so supportive and now contradictive. Stupid thing is I wasn’t bothered when I got it but now not sure whether I should appeal. I think it is because I am so consientious and am never late to work and have good work ethics and integrity and you sort of feel like they are tarring you with the same brush as those who don’t give a damn and who are always off sick. I can remember way back when I had only been in the service a couple of years staff used to get close to the end of the year and if they hadn’t been off sick they would go ‘sick’ to use up the 11 days they would have been allowed had they been sick! I couldn’t do that, not in my make up!

Oh well a tired day today. When I was sitting down in the kitchen at 4.15am, even though it was dark outside I could tell my date palm was not there​:astonished: the wind had blown it down! We are having some right gusty weather. I thought being in the heavy pot it would be fine couldn’t do anything about it at that time so I have been trying to sort it out this morning. It is not very happy but I have used a pair of tights to secure it to the drain pipe and just have to hope the drainpipe doesn’t come down! Fortunately the pot hadn’t tumbled fully but fallen against the sleeper step up and not broken. I think I need to get a bigger container, maybe a half barrel keg will be better. Mustn’t get upset over it.

Brunch was chicken but I could eat it all so the carcass went into the big pan and has been boiling for a while on the hob and the chicken meat will get chopped up and I will pop it into the stock and have it as a soup.

I have a steak out of freezing defrosting for later. Looking forward to that.

[Septimius]

What does the warning letter mean?

In places where I’ve worked, the warning letter is automatically triggered if you hit a certain number of days off or a certain number of instances. They don’t care the reasons why - if you cross over the threshold, you’re given a letter (this happened to my friend who had cancer).

But are there any consequences to receiving the letter?

[robintemplin]

Hey @FrankoBear, wondering if you might be open to a daily “dispatch” type post just like today’s. I love my morning routine with coffee, catching up on emails and this forum and then reading a random selection from a poetry book (never fails to feel like a horoscope; meant just for me).

I would like to include a daily beautiful photo and musings from you. Always just right. No problem, right?
Think about it! I’m sure you have nothing else to do other than appease me, lol.

[robintemplin]

You and your tights! LOL
You should write a book. 101 Ways to Use Tights.

I hope you can move beyond that stupid warning letter. I know it’s hard, especially when you take pride in your work performance and dedication.

Hang in there!

[Karen18]

Yes this is same. Just annoying when you’ve worked 18 years in same place and never been sick to have a stroke and need to recover for 3 months and get a warning letter. I will be interested to see if my friend gets a warning letter when she returns after her cancer treatment. A lot of the time there is a rule for one and another for someone else. My daughter has said not to bother appealing . I have only 17 months left before fully retiring anyway.

@robintemplin hahaha I had forgotten that I used tights for the bird feeder before the rascally rats devoured them lol. I also saw a good hack using tights to store all the plastic plant pots in then hang them on hooks in the shed

and yes I know I have a good work ethics and am conscientious and that won’t change any. I am sure I can move beyond that laughable bazaar letter. Thank you x

@Septimius thank you… I know I am not alone in this stupid situation and there are many who have been or are going through such unfair treatment. The thing is that last week the #1 Gov said to me that if my BP spikes too high before work then to phone and say I have medical issues and not to go in and it won’t go down as sick … how can I trust doing that now? not that I would actually need to do it as I am controlling the BP to a certain degree and I am not the sort to think I could get away with saying that it was too high just to get time off! Don’t know what yo think but hey ho it is what it is !

[Septimius]

It’s incredibly infuriating, but I would just put it to the back of your mind. The faceless front of HR is not going to care about your record prior to this - it’s literally the ‘beep boop, rule broken’ of a machine.

What does matter is that the people close to you - your colleagues, your manager etc - have supported you strongly throughout. They will have done so partly because you do have such a good reputation through your work ethic.

It is absolutely, completely, totally and utterly unfair. I have been there myself. But it’s also not worth giving it any brain space.

If there are no consequences, try to forget it and move on. Keep it in your mind for when people try to convince you not to retire - or even if they try to convince you to take on more tasks than you’re ready for. If you take on more and fail, they’ll send another letter - so don’t be afraid of using Occupational Health to slow down your return to work if needs be, or of exploring early retirement as you’d mentioned previously.

Crap though, mate. I really feel for you.

[Karen18]

Decided I was still hungry after the small bite or two of chicken so cooked steak and bacon. Just felt like something salty. Put the bacon over the steak and it completed hid it so took another pic to show there was a small sirloin underneath it. Then had a second batch of bacon. Now enjoying a couple of mugs of the chicken soup. Just stuck the chicken in the smoothie bullet and stirred it in to the stock and it was very tasty.

[robintemplin]

Also to @Septimius point… I do think my letter of reprimand helped my brain accept the idea of retirement. Sooner rather than later.

[Septimius]

I think it’s quite damning what @Karen18 shared earlier, about people using their ‘entitlement’ of sick leave (which isn’t a thing in the UK as it is in America) - compared to what plays out with those who play by the rules.

All these companies do is teach you to take the time off because you’re thought no more of for playing by the rules. You’ve played fair with them all this time, and then it isn’t repaid at the moment you genuinely needed it - and that’s hard to accept.

Seems to me that they spend all of this time cracking down to stop people from abusing the system, but those people just find a new way to work the system, and they end up penalising those who have never put a foot wrong.

It’s genuinely a rotten system.

[robintemplin]

@Septimius @Karen18
Pet peeve alert: YES! I’ve worked for folks who put very specific rules in place for everyone, while those rules were actually aimed at the few people who needed them but ignored them. The result was those of us who put our heart and soul into our performance felt belittled and unappreciated.

A manager of people should have the courage to speak to individuals about their individual issues and not take the coward’s way out with a group scolding. OK. All done. See, Karen? We all feel your pain!

[Karen18]

You are all such a comfort and I feel exact same way about it all. You know I never ever believed I would be treated any differently but it still stings.

@robintemplin … a manager of people should have the courage… yep and i have confronted one or two over the years for sending out a group telling off instead of confronting the offending staff

Good thing is I have had some lovely messages of ‘horror’ that I should have been given the letter. I didn’t realise until having the stroke how well people thought of me. I always thought people probably hated working with me because I like things done properly and don’t suffer fools or non team players hahahaha

Well I think I have been that tired today that it has roused my hunger and picking instincts. Just had 2 hard boiled eggs with an incy wincy bit of mayo and a small slither of stilton prior to them. Its the only cheese I have in the house and I am not so keen on it these days so it’s taking me an age to eat. Perhaps I should only get stilton so it gets me off cheese altogether

[Azi]

Started today with bacon and scrambled eggs later will be beef chuck I put in oven last night.
I got the chuck roast out after 20 hours then pan fried it in butter came out perfect med rare and tender… I def am enjoying the food out of the oven…

[Karen18]

I must admit I use my oven and hob the majority of times. Got a bit fed up with stuff in the slow cooker as it just didn’t really have the same taste. Not that I won’t use the slow cooker again… its perfect for overnight cooking if ever I want to cook a beef joint but I prefer steaks. And of course pork roast has to be done slow in the oven to get that beautiful tender pulled port effect and crispy crackling. Oooh I am feeling like it must be nearing brunch time and you talking about your scrambled eggs this morning has made me want some lol… and the bacon hahaha. I have another small sirloin in fridge to eat later.

A much better sleep last night… any sleep would have been better than the night before lol but I did feel it was a good one and only had about 3 wee trips in the night. YAY! as soon as I got up I did the stair runs to get then out the way and dine a bit of pottering this morning. The palm is still upright so the tights did the trick … oh and the hold-up stocking that I also had to tie round it as the tights were not quite tight enough on their own to keep it standing. Gusty again today but not as bad as the last couple of days… well not yet anyway, who know what it will be like later!?

[Jesty]

Drs have become very frustrating people to deal with these days. I don’t know if it is because they seem to become less empathetic when you get older, or if they are just less knowledgeable.

They also seem to try and blame you for everything rather than diagnosing a problem. “Do you drink, do you smoke, how much exercise do you do?” Never anything like, “What is you diet. How are your stress levels.”

They just to like prescribing the first thing that comes to mind, and show you the door!

We tend to find an old Dr as they appear more knowledgeable (sometimes). But here in South Africa we find that our pharmacist is more knowledgeable and on the ball.

[JJFiddle]

Satiety can mean that any forced food after the satiety point tastes like eating candle wax,

This is such a unique experience to this woe, never had it before. Also it signals the end of my fat tolerance for the meal. Just incredible how the flavor suddenly changes almost mid bite and hubby will say, are you finished? And sadly I answer yes, I’m done.

@Karen18 what a rip, getting a reprimand for being ill. It is government service after all and you have such an exemplary record. You’ll love “retirement” but I bet you don’t just put your feet up and call it a day. We finished military service over 20 years ago and I work more now then then. (6-7 days a week.)It just seems to get more and better and the biggest difference is that now there are no reprimands and everywhere I work I’m loved and appreciated and people actually listen to me. Do retire. There’s another, better layer under this onion skin and it’s far, far more satisfying.

This weekend I’ve been reading here but had troubling finding time to post. Valentine’s Day shows Friday and Saturday and yesterday’s church and pickers circle. I love that I’m not so hungry in an evening’s work as to have to eat their food but I did order a heated lunch box with lava rocks especially for Sundays so I can grab a bite between church and the roadhouse. Friday we were away from about 4-10, menu was hamburgers at this roadhouse so I got double cheeseburger patties. Choked down about half of them, they were gross. Then Saturday we were resting after teaching and lunch and had a call for a show 45 minutes away from 9-12 pm! Naturally we both accepted eagerly, masochists that we are
Saturday I made cheesy meat and bacon things in the air fryer out of Maria Emmerich’s Carnivore cookbook. By the time the bacon is crispy the hamburger layer is so overcooked. There are 2 of them left now. Dry. Improved with a little baconnaise.
Friday was the weird pork I thought was beef and sous vided 2 days at 135.doesn’t taste like pork, I think the rest goes out this morning!
Yesterday afternoon I took out the chuck roast and shank steak that was in the sous vide since Friday. I had used some of the smoked salt on it. The jury is still out on that stuff, also an Emmerich suggestion. The chuck was very nice! Lastnight I seared a piece of the shank and it was pretty good, but not pink. Maybe a lower temp for that, but still the 2 days, next time.

[Jesty]

Happy Valentines!!

[robintemplin]

Funny that tights weren’t tight enough.

[Karen18]

@JJFiddle Thank you for the encouragement. When I retire fully I don’t think I could ever be completely inactive. I like to be doing things but don’t want to feel committed to any one thing. What service were you in? I was in the Army for 7 years back in the day … before marriage Nd children came on the scene. Then I had to get discharged when I fell pregnant with my son as it was before one could remain in service with children.

@robintemplin yes my daughter thought it was funny too.

Well I had scrambled eggs for brunch and I was blessed with 2 double yolks. Then had a side plate of bacon. Nearly run out of butter and thought about braving the cold and wet to go to Lidl but knew I would want to buy cheese, which in turn made me think about it and want some so I had a slither of stilton as I knew that would suffice and although not half as nice as cheddar, would take the thought away, which it did and I didn’t go to the shop. Had a bit of ham defrosted from freezer as well.

Dinner was a small sirloin steak and 2 fried eggs and again I was blessed with one more double yolk! I really enjoyed that meal. Now finishing it off with a small cup of boiled water.

[Alecmcq]

Drs have become very frustrating people to deal with these days. I don’t know if it is because they seem to become less empathetic when you get older, or if they are just less knowledgeable.

I think it is because you are getting wiser, and probably less trusting. Certainly true for me. I used to believe what my doctor told me. Not any more.

[Ketodaisy]

It’s been a super busy last couple days. Sleep has been ok. Food has been good. Just have a lot going on that has my feeling kinda low. But here’s today’s food:

[Azi]

I got up and started cooking my meat but my husband was dropping the truck off
To get fixed after the jacknife…so I asked where he was said he was walking so I said I’d go get him so turned off theneat headed out the door…well I got stuck in traffic ended up on the turnpike got stuck in more traffic after getti g off again he caught a Uber and got home before me but that left me hungry hadnt eateb yet so I cooked up a small sirloin added pats of butter then looked at the time it was close to 6 so I decided to cook the 2nd piece from the pack today will be omad…its funny how when busy don’t even think about food at all…until I stop them I’m really hungry lol

[robintemplin]

Me too. NOT the busy busy part. Just the absence of appetite until I have time or it.

[Fangs]

Fast one guys.
Super busy and things are screwed up rough around here.

Mom is having surgery to amputate 4 toes. Today or tomorrow?
I tell ya guys…

will be off the thread for a while so I can get surgery, rehab and more handled.

ROCK OUT CARNIVORE in strong form guys!!

[VirginiaEdie]

Thing being my stress levels are thru the roof right now, my 94 yr old mom with the dementia now kicking in, handling retirement home issues and letting go of her now I think?

I’m sorry to hear you’re going through this. We are going through something similar with my parents and my in-laws. When we talk to others our age, it seems almost everyone is going through something similar. It’s sad.

I hope you are taking some time to take care of yourself.

[VirginiaEdie]

I have a funny, embarrassing story to share.

I was off from work last week. Yesterday was my first day back and by the end of the day my brain was tired, so I was a little scatterbrained by the time I got home. For dinner, I made pork roast in my instant pot, and I had it sitting on my stove, so I could vent the smoke when I was browning the meat.

After the roast was done cooking, I needed to thicken the gravy and I was busy chit-chatting with my husband and not paying attention. Instead of putting the instant pot on saute, I turned on the burner instead. Smoke started pouring from my instant pot. I caught the darn thing on fire! Melted the bottom! Argh!!

I actually liked that instant pot. It didn’t deserve to die such a fiery death.

[Karen18]

Oh my goodness thats dreadful. Don’t forget to take care of yourself and eat well while looking after mum or you’ll be down with something yourself as soon as you sit down and rest. Praying mum will be okay through the surgery. xx

[Karen18]

@Ketodaisyyou and me both. I have spent a really emotional weepy few days… all over the weekend and yesterday was even worse, crying over FB posts and stuff on the TV. Stronger today, I saw my daughter at CrossFit and had a big weepfree hug and thats a good sign! Let’s hope all that tasty looking beef raises your spirits - food heals

@Azi if I am busy at home or out and about I can go all day without hunger of thinking about food. When I am at work my tummy will growl and tell me I am going passed my refuelling time!!! Its not like I am not busy at work either!

So yet another fair nights sleep and only got up 3 times for wee trips. Perhaps it was the cheese and maybe too much of it too close to bedtime!?! It won’t be that easy … and the last dreadful night (Saturday into sunday) was all about the letter! Anyway up and stair running before going off to CrossFit for a very gassy but very good workout. Upped the weight today and glad I didn’t put a lighter weight by the side of me cos I would have tossed the heavier weight during the box step ups saw my daughter there and enjoyed a lovely hug.

Brunch was a 2 egg, prawn omelette and lo and behold yet another double yolk! Yay! Very nice but as you will see from the photo I was heavy handed with the prawns i have another packets of prawns to use later
I have some pork chops and a ribeye steak to cook so I can eat the prawns with those for dinner.

Forgot to mention… maybe this is what cheered me up today …
Lovely surprise when I opened the front door to go to CrossFit this morning . My Fatsia Spiders web was sitting very well packaged in my porch from QVC. As per the lovely pink passion cordylines from QVC it didn’t disappoint. It is lush and beautiful and I need to go and buy a big container now so I can put it outside lol.

[Ketodaisy]

@Fangs @Karen18 @VirginiaEdie big hugs to all of you!!!

[robintemplin]

Understandable. What a roller coaster. We will miss you. Remember to breathe. You got this

[robintemplin]

Sorry for your loss! But funny story!

[Azi]

So sorry to hear about your mom…your stress must be through the roof with worry…sending hugs and best wishes things go well with her surgery we will be here thinking of you…

[Karen18]

Dinner was later than I would normally eat but I just lost track of time and the food had been defrosted and I thought I ought to eat something a bit more substantial than just the omelette earlier. So I pan fried the ribeye very rare and 2 of the pork loin chops and very tasty it was too. I would have been satiated with just the steak or with just one pork chop but I think I needed the calories. I left the 2nd packet of prawns till tomorrow, I am sure they will be fine albeit a day over the use by date. I will just sniff them first and if they smell okay I will eat them.

[Azi]

I cooked the rib eye I bought for valentines day but it was chewy so a cheap cut of meat ill not do that again I shared it with hubby so 2nd meal will be strip steak

[Septimius]

So sorry to read some of the updates here today - sending good thoughts to everyone.

[Alecmcq]

Why is it I always remember to take a photo of my great carnivore meal after I’ve eaten it?

Just had great bacon and scrambled eggs with a pat of butter… yummo!

[FrankoBear]

Image: moon rise at the beach last night.

Went off plan. Back on plan. I can feel the difference.

Plan slip was due to travel (to the city) for a work meeting about workload for 2022 with my line manager. We agreed best to do it face-to-face, as it was important to communicate well. We can all see what happened to @Karen18 when a robot sends a letter.

So, I drove 3 hours to the city to arrive at 9pm on a Sunday night. I’m going to write it out here. Hopefully to learn from. I had eggs and bacon afternoon breakfast. At the fuel stop I started the slip. Not hungry, but driving is inherently, physiological stressful, I bought a packet of something at the pay counter. “Packet of something” is the red flag. It was pork crackling. But we know they mass produce it deep-fried in cheap oil and then chemically flavour enhanced.

It triggered something, half an hour later I felt that I needed food. I wasn’t hungry. This was a craving. Red flag. I found a drive-thru takeaway chicken joint in a sad, grubby, little retail strip in a sad, grubby, little wayside town. The chicken was covered in flavourings on the skin. An hour later I felt nauseous as I drove, with an hour to go.

Arriving in the city I threw up on the front lawn of my brother’s house. The Labrador cleaned it up. Before I could restrain her. But I felt sad for her because of the toxins. My joints had become all stiff and sore, and I had a headache. Billie the Labrador seemed to not suffer any ill effects despite the toxin exposure.

Next morning, Monday, I still had joints flared up and a brain full of fog. ‘The horse’ was waiting and I climbed back on it with eggs and bacon that required me to show a COVID vaccination certificate. Checking my work emails, the line manager, at 10pm the night before, had changed the meeting to online. I could have stayed home.

It was a hot, summer day in the city. Too hot. I could hear the lemons boiling on the backyard tree.

It was a crap meeting. There was important stuff to talk about, but the manager’s internet connection made it so it was hard for him to hear my points. May have been a meeting tactic? I was delivering my prepared notes like a professional boxer introduces an opponent’s face to hooks and jabs. It was one of those stupid meetings where things remain unresolved and somehow I end up with more work to do. Would’ve been better face-to-face.

At Italian family dinner that night I had my once per month glass of home-made red wine that my 89 year old father-in-law makes. The plate was huge. It had beef, chicken and fish on about 50% and cooked garden vegetables mixed through a fresh summer salad in the other 50%, after we had a tiny plate (like a tea cup saucer) of fresh summer fruit.

I look at my parents-in-law, they came from a rural upbringing in the steep hills of Sicily, and they are as vigorous and bright as anyone in their early 60s, even though they are finishing up their 9th decade. They mentally spar with their teenage grandchildren and dispense love, family connection, and wisdom, as easily as they fill a plate with home-cooked goodness.

During apperitivo, pre-dinner nibbles, when the others have a small dose of mysterious spirits, I have water, my mother-in-law evasively swerved the main platter away from me with 4 types of cheese, chopped celery and carrot, and 3 types of nuts. But rapidly reappeared with a small platter of halved boiled eggs and cold cut meat. She apologised and admitted that Mrs. Bear, my wife/ her youngest daughter, had phoned and told her not to feed me cheese . It is hard for an Italian mother-in-law to restrict food.

I drove back down country roads taking me home yesterday, Tuesday. Broke fast, NoFUN, with 3 pasture fed chicken eggs and bacon cooked in butter. Powered through a lot of admin paperwork. Straightened out the manager above me but below my line manager on a few tasks. They offered me a promotion again. I said no. So, I got out into the summer sunshine and bucket watered our food forest. I could do it with a hose. But the 10kg buckets and mindful “farmer’s walk” (walking while carrying weight in both arms), is so satisfying. Back on the computer. After looking after the needs of the employees I supervise. It was time to take Billie the Labrador for a walk at the beach. It’s almost full moon, so we stayed a bit longer after dusk and played on the brightly moon-lit white sand beach. The summer night was warm, t-shirt and surf-boardshorts weather. It was a bit magical.

For dinner I ate an all-beef stew. Slow cooked beef cooked with beef bones and salt with added beef bone broth. Today I feel great. Reset after that failed trip to the city.

Moral: don’t eat anything from a packet. It’s the rolled carpet ridge you don’t see at the top of a flight of stairs.

---

Thinking about bathroom scales after chatting with @Alecmcq in other threads.

Body weight scale bashing. Visceral fat measurement without MRI as a health biomarker

We know about carb addiction hangovers that follow us into this Low Carb Healthy Fats way-of-eating (WOE). One of those is that we bring body weight scales with us. There are plenty of topics about the benefits and dangers of body weight scales, or ‘bathroom scales’, in these forums. "Take your scales and give them to your most hated enemy." Old keto proverb. "Shed your scales and let’s get started." Misquoted lyric from Australian rock band aptly named, Hunters and Collectors. Song: Throw You…

[JJFiddle]

@FrankoBear Wow. What a ride that was. With you all the way. I love any story that ends happy, as yours has. Incredible that all of that was unnecessary! Mrs Bear takes good care of you even when you’re hundreds of miles away.

@Karen18 I was Air Force Band, DC, mostly. With a few years in Army medical.

This morning I (re)discovered a wonderful thing, cheddar wraps. A hard boiled egg chopped into baconnaise and tucked into this microwaved wrap. What a nice lat

e morning snack!
Mid afternoon, shank steak. Tonight, soft boiled eggs, no pic for those.

[robintemplin]

Being retired has an extra perk…no food at work and few unplanned meals. And yes, there is definitely snack inducing about traveling.

[FrankoBear]

This morning I (re)discovered a wonderful thing, cheddar wraps.

Would love to see the ingredients. I am intrigued how the cheese is lactose-free?

[JJFiddle]

It’s just cheese. Probably terrible. My main judgement of dairy is whether it has a disgusting metallic smell, courtesy of covid back in August. This doesn’t. I think the smell and taste are from lactose, however. Small amounts of cheddar seem acceptable.
I’ll check the ingredients in the morning.

[FrankoBear]

Second F is food. On LION Diet!

Hey Fangsy. Thanks for checking in on us. Hope things go as best that they can in you life happening moments. Stay strong.

Regarding the LION diet, is part of it testing yourself physically? So that you could sprint away from a lion, if you needed to?

I made a Low Carb Biomarker Quiz. One question is about the ability to sprint.

On another topic

I know there’s lots of people who are very anti daily weigh-ins, but I love it and try not to miss it.

Body weight scale measurement tracking is good as long as the goal is weight loss and the numbers are dropping. The mental uppercut happens when there is a stall or there is up-creep. (I’m waging a campaign against bathroom body weight scales)

Body weight scale bashing. Visceral fat measurement without MRI as a health biomarker

Biomarkers Quiz. - Questions to ask your self as your own primary health coach. Can you squat down? Can you run sprint for 30 feet/ 10m? (How far?) Imagine being chased. Can you get up from sitting on the ground without using your hands? How long can you stand on each foot with your eyes closed? Does the iris of your eye have darker pigment (limbal ring)? How quickly do your fingers pucker when you are in the bath/ shower/ sauna? Do you have visible pulses in your wrists? Note how long it take…

[Alecmcq]

Body weight scale measurement tracking is good as long as the goal is weight loss and the numbers are dropping. The mental uppercut happens when there is a stall or there is up-creep. (I’m waging a campaign against bathroom body weight scales)

I love getting the instant feedback on progress. If what I am doing isn’t working, I can instantly see it. I realise that weight loss is not everything, but for me if the weight is going in the right direction everything else is as well. It is an excellent proxy marker for me for overall health.

[Septimius]

Interestingly, a spammer bumped a thread earlier that I’ve been reading this morning - and in it, the OP says that they only lost 15lbs. The before/after pics appear to show more of a loss: Doctor Goes Keto

Weight measurement can be a really useful tool - but it’s just being mindful if/when you stall or gain that it’s not the only tool, and not to get disheartened if the scale doesn’t reflect what you think it should.

I think it can be more distressing in those who have less to lose, or are near goal, or who experience wild swings due to hormones. If you’re only 5lbs from goal, a big meal and some water retention can push you up a couple of lbs and it can feel like the world is ending.

[Alecmcq]

I think it can be more distressing in those who have less to lose, or are near goal, or who experience wild swings due to hormones. If you’re only 5lbs from goal, a big meal and some water retention can push you up a couple of lbs and it can feel like the world is ending.

I can’t agree more with this…. Judging progress on weight loss when you are close to goal is just a hiding to nothing. When close to goal, my experience is you judge progress on the tape measure and gut feel (literally!!).

But I am approximately 30kg (70lbs) above target weight… the above subtlety is lost on me. If I am not losing weight I am not winning.

[Septimius]

I have to admit, I think I come at this from a very female-centric standpoint, which is obviously very different from your circumstances - so I 100% appreciate that what you’re doing is working for you, especially at this stage.

Some of this is the Kevin Stock logic - the difference between a John and a Sally: https://www.kevinstock.io/health/fat-loss-and-the-carnivore-diet/

But some of it is the ordinary dieting thing of losses generally being lower for women. I know so many partners who have embarked on a diet together and the men lose a massive amount and keep losing consistently week on week, whilst the women drop a couple of lbs and then stall out - and it’s incredibly discouraging for them.

I also think that - in very very broad and general terms - most women have a history of restrictive eating. We’re taught from an early age that we should exist on a small number of calories, and so many of us ate nutritionally empty foods (in line with recommended guidance) - and I think this can mean that our lean mass is not where it should be.

Suddenly, on carnivore, you’re getting the nutrition you need - so you might find things like bone density or muscle mass increases. This is amazing and exactly what you need, but it shows on the scale as an increase or a stall - and that can really mess with your mind. It is likely not as big a deal for some men in some circumstances because they might increase lean mass whilst still losing a massive amount of fat, so they don’t notice the increase - but for women, if you’re only losing a small amount of weight and then your lean mass goes up as well, all you see is the stall.

Let alone the general hormonal cycle that a woman goes through - and this is something that I have a massive amount of interest in at the moment because eating carnivore has revolutionised this for me.

What I am astounded at is that I did carnivore for fat loss predominantly, but it’s actually fixing things. I have long thought that what I experience each month is normal - reinforced by views in society - and I am utterly astonished that it’s been completely changed and improved beyond measure.

I did not think it was fixable - and it took many months to fix, and I think I’ve said previously, it got worse before it got better. If I’d just been watching the scale, even with a lot to lose, I might’ve given up because I thought it wasn’t working - but in reality, my body was prioritising fixing what was wrong and not working on the fat loss as much at that moment in time.

For me, I am ravenously hungry at certain points - and if I was worried about what the scale would say the next day, I might fear eating to satiety because of the volume of food. Let alone the fact that you do retain water etc at points - I think it’s easy to become disheartened, especially if your mood is low.

I realise all of this is not particularly relevant to you or your circumstances! I just thought I’d mention it all in case there are others lurking and debating starting carnivore and these things may not be obvious to them.

[Alecmcq]

All excellent points. I can absolutely see there are some real challenges there. KCCO!

[Karen18]

@FrankoBear oh my goodness what an up and down trip! I can remember many long journeys, before carnivore, when I was stopping at service stations en route. I would spend ages trying to find something that was in my eating remit of the day, I always ended up buying something that was off plan (generally carby) and that always sent me spiralling out of control one way or the other. Plus you could guarantee you would eat crap and want more crap and then feel crap. So glad you spun it around again and to feel good as soon as you did is just a credit to this woe. Loving your photo. Your expression of words change immediately when you talk of that wonderful beach.

@JJFiddle What is DC? Did you enjoy your time in the service? I was 7 years in the Military Police though I can’t say it was the best of times. I would have enjoyed it more had I done that time later in life … older and wiser lol. Cheese wraps? Do they not have potato starch in them ? I noticed the other day that the pre grated cheese i was buying regularly has it in the ingredients along with a host of other stuff. I was surprised though I don’t know why really, I had just not bothered checking… when it says cheddar i believe thats all thats in it hahah … stupid girl! I will be grating my own in future… I only bought it for convenience! I usually read all ingredients and carbs … I know if its flavoured there will be plenty additives/carbs. I bought some ‘cheddar’ yesterday and it promptly went in the bin. It tasted wrong … like ‘cheddar style’ fake cheese… Read the ingredients and the list was as long as your arm!!! your wraps do look nice though.

@Alecmcq I think it is harder for women to judge by scales because a women’s weight fluctuates so much, not just daily but also throughout the day. Scales can become such an obsession and dependancy … once a month is acceptable if you really have to use that guage. I chucked mine out years ago and got off that roller coaster … Best thing I ever did … FREEDOM

@Septimius I second everything you’ve said especially about restricting our calories and fear of eating to satiety because of how much food might pass our lips! That has been me a zillion times, I would restrict then binge eat and then would feel terribly depressed that m weight had gone up, appearing to undo and sabotage all my hard work … of restricting my calories and putting a clamp on my eating … mind games​:unamused: Oh how wonderful it feels to be totally free of all that! This forum and carnivore has been totally liberating for me

Went to bed too late last night probably because I ate too late but then didn’t settle to go off to sleep till maybe 1am. Still up twice in the night for a wee trip. Then awake early this morning so was up and stair running my 100 flights. The sun was shining and I knew it wasn’t going to be for long as we are due storm Dudley today.

The cardiologist called me for my tel appt, (over an hour early so was taken by surprise, they are usually late rather than early lol!) Anyway he talked me through the therapies my Occupatiinal Health consultant had mentioned and neither are any good for me. One was not for my type of AF and the other was only funded and offered to people who can’t tolerate blood thinners. They were both intrusive therapies. Anyway he is going to write me and my GP a letter outlining what he has told me. Well I have done what the OH suggested in his report and in turn approached cardiologist for answers. Cant do any more that that. I have been given an appt with OH for next month for the first stage of the process for Medical Retirement. I can foresee the stages to be ongoing for some time, will probably only have about 8 or 9 months left before actual retirement by the time a decision is made! Hey ho … and then I may not get it but I think I could hack a further 8/9 months in admin role if need be.

Brunch was cooked chicken sauted in butter with the remaining packet of prawns which were fine this morning… no funny ‘off’ taste lol. Wasn’t all that, I think they would have tasted better with a steak or the burgers I have in the fridge but they went down

Thought I would pop this photo up … yesterdays CrossFit class… I am on the bike in pink leggings … love pink haahah but here i am with a class full of youngsters lol they are all 30 plus years younger but not necessarily 30 plus years fitter. Proud of my achievements.

[Redrobins]

but for women, if you’re only losing a small amount of weight and then your lean mass goes up as well, all you see is the stall.

I feel this is where I am right now. I would like to lose another 10-15 pounds, but my weight has been stuck for the past year or so. I bounce up and down between 165-171, but lately it seems to be creeping higher.

I’m doing my weight routine every-other-day, which consists of slow burn lifting for my arms, until failure (at least my definition of failure ) interspersed with 9 sets of 12 reps of sumo squats, for a total of 108. The whole thing takes me about 30 minutes. I would like to think the weight increase is due to building muscle mass, but my clothes actually feel like their getting tighter, not looser and my measurements are increasing, not decreasing.

I don’t think I’m over training. I’m definitely seeing definition in my arms and shoulders, but my thighs seem to be the same flabby blogs they’ve always been. I am also very rarely able to increase the heaviness of my weights.

I eat around 2100-2700 calories per day of mainly beef. I have coffee with ghee in the morning and then my big meal at dinnertime. The fat percentage of my food is around 70%.

When I had covid, I loss my sense of taste, so I had to restort to salting my food again (which I had totally gotten away from), in order to taste it. My taste still hasn’t completely returned.

I’m wondering if my change in scale/body composition is a result of–

A. My increased cortisol from exercising too much
B. Being peri-menopausal
C. Eating OMAD (with the exception of my coffee w/ ghee)
D. Eating too much/too little
E. My body is just happy where it is and it doesn’t want to move any lower

Or, all of the above. Any thoughts?

[robintemplin]

I would say “maybe” for any and all of the above. I also lost my sense of taste, but I can detect sweet and salt.

[Karen18]

I’m no expert but I have been training quite a number of years. I got very into weight training for a while and thats all I did for the most part. Then moved to more reps less weight and eventually to where i am now doing a mixture of both at CrossFit, stair running daily, walking and dancing. Even before my blip and doing a combination of those exercises every single day i was only maintaining my weight. I may have once or twice eaten calories to 2700 but generally eating between 1500 and 2000. Having said that I only started tracking when I did keto and since changing to carnivore haven’t tracked at all in a long time. My point being, and I know we are all different, but unless you are doing competition level training I would be thinking that you may be going too high. What are you doing for exercise on the days you’re not doing 30 mins weight training? I don’t know your situation but are you physically able to throw some cardio into the mix?

I have been going through the menopause for about 8 years and still see no end to it

I do hope you manage to find the answers, I think it may be a case of trial and error.

[VirginiaEdie]

You may want to try mixing up your strength training exercises and work a variety of body parts. I use the exercises from a book called “You Are Your Own Gym” by Mark Lauren. I quite enjoy trying the different exercises. I do a whole body workout three times a week with a few upper body, legs, and core exercises, 6 - 8 different exercises. It takes me about 30 minutes. The nice think about body weight exercises is that you are less likely to injure yourself with too heavy weights and you can see improvement by doing higher reps or making the exercise more challenging such as inclined pushups instead of regular pushups.

My weight has also been slowly creeping up over the past few years, and I have put it down to perimenopause.

I have heard Megan Ramos speak about the importance of keeping your body “off balance” by changing up the fasting schedule. Maybe you need to change up your schedule: OMAD some days, 2MAD other days?

I know you are not training every day, but since you are doing the same exercises all the time, maybe over training is an issue?

8 Signs of Overtraining That Most People Don't Know - Legion Athletics

Signs of Overtraining: 13 Tip-Offs and What to Do

[Alecmcq]

I’m wondering if my change in scale/body composition is a result of–

A. My increased cortisol from exercising too much
B. Being peri-menopausal
C. Eating OMAD (with the exception of my coffee w/ ghee)
D. Eating too much/too little
E. My body is just happy where it is and it doesn’t want to move any lower

Or, all of the above. Any thoughts?

My guess is E. I think we need to feed and train our bodies the best way we know how, but then respect what it wants to do, especially if the current state is not of itself unhealthy. It’s view may simply be “Right here is the best place to be”.

Having a reasonable amount of fat is perfectly OK. It is natural. What is not natural is driving our weight towards media hyped “ideal body shapes” that are in fact the product of some incredible genes and deliberate starvation.

[Redrobins]

Thanks, Karen, for all of your input. If I eat much less than that, I feel ravenous and my next workout session suffers. Plus, I’m trying to go by the idea that carnivore isn’t a CICO way of eating.

I tried doing cardio on my days off, but it resulted in me being exhausted and tired all of the time. I don’t know how you do what you do with your routine!

Since I have gone OMAD and eating the one big meal in the evening, I have been sleeping wonderfully, so that’s a plus!

I think part of me needs to just let go of what I should look like and be happy and accepting of where I am.

[Redrobins]

Thanks, Alec, I needed someone to tell me that.

Now, I need to accept it.

I am in a healthy weight range for my height and I feel better than I did when I was 50 pounds heavier. I need to focus on being thankful for that.

[Redrobins]

Great articles! Thank you!

[Septimius]

First things first - you’re right; being in a healthy weight range for your height, feeling better, and sleeping well are all real wins. Don’t let the goal of perfection ruin what you’ve achieved so far, which is brilliant.

I’m doing my weight routine every-other-day, which consists of slow burn lifting for my arms, until failure (at least my definition of failure​:slightly_smiling_face:) interspersed with 9 sets of 12 reps of sumo squats, for a total of 108.

Wow, I’m impressed - that’s a lot of squats! Squats are great, but on some programmes, they’re a lot. I’m surprised your thighs aren’t like steel with all that squatting!

How do you feel about your lifting programme? Are you enjoying it, or would you be open to trying something different? What equipment do you have available to you?

[Redrobins]

Thanks @Septimius!

Yeah, that’s part of my frustration - I see virtually no difference in my legs with the squats. Maybe I’m not doing them right. I carry the majority of my excess fat in my hips and thighs, so those are the areas I am trying to focus on.

I guess I don’t feel my weight progam is too difficult (for the most part), which I like. My muscles are sore for the next 24-36 hours after doing it, so I feel like I must be doing something right. Equipment-wise I have a Weider Home Gym, which has the adjustable weights and allows me to work out my arms and legs. I also have a treadmill and some kettlebells.

[Ketodaisy]

@Redrobins for some reason it won’t let me quote you, but that one line jumped out at me. “I carry the majority of my excess fat in my hips and thighs”. Have you looked into any of the information on Lipedema? So many people have been talking about it lately and if I’m not mistaken, I think even Vanessa Spina just did a podcast on it. That may actually help you with some answers! Also, I’m the same as you with eating. I know for my size and activity, I consume too many calories, and that’s probably why I don’t lose weight, but I’m always hungry so I just eat.

@Septimius I could not give your post about the scale enough hearts. So much yes!!!

[Septimius]

I’m not too familiar with Weider, although I know they do a lot of different ranges.

I have lifted in the past but it had been a long time between lifts, so I ran a beginner programme last year. The one I used is called Greyskull LP, but I’m not sure if it works with a home gym? (I’ve got free weights and a rack.)

Annoyingly, the website is down at the moment, but the app is: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.maxtrainingcoach.app&hl=en_GB&gl=US

I enjoyed it a lot more than Starting Strength or 5x5 etc. I liked the fact that you only do 3 sets so you’re not bored/gassed out, but because the 3rd set is ‘as many reps as possible’, it gives you some hypertrophy too.

• Week 1

  • Monday
    • Overhead Press: 2×5, 1×5+ (+ is AMRAP = as many reps as possible)
    • Squat: 2×5, 1×5+
  • Wednesday
    • Bench Press: 2×5, 1×5+
    • Deadlift: 1×5+
  • Friday
    • Overhead Press: 2×5, 1×5+
    • Squat: 2×5, 1×5+

• Week 2

  • Monday
    • Bench Press: 2×5, 1×5+
    • Squat: 2×5, 1×5+
  • Wednesday
    • Overhead Press: 2×5, 1×5+
    • Deadlift: 1×5+
  • Friday
    • Bench Press: 2×5, 1×5+
    • Squat: 2×5, 1×5+

• If a set is easy, you rest 90 seconds before the next set.

• If a set is hard, you rest 3 minutes before the next set.

• If you fail a set, you rest 5 minutes before the next set.

This is the base programme. People add in extras, and I added in curls and rows (Curls on OHP day, Rows on Bench day). The free app is really good at suggesting options and/or letting you do your own thing.

• If you fail, it automatically “deloads” you by taking 10% off the lift for next time so you can build back up.
• If you succeed with complete sets (5, 5, and then between 5-9 on the last AMRAP set), you go up 2.5lbs next session.
• If you succeed with 10+ reps on the AMRAP session, you go up 5lbs the next session.

So you can start really light and get your form perfect because you’ll soon leap up the weight.

It’s the first time I’ve really noticed decent, visible muscle gains (and not just me - my mates have marvelled at them too!) - although I am certain a lot of that is carnivore and the quality and abundance of what I’m eating. I was forever lifting and simultaneously starving myself through CICO diets when I was younger; no wonder I wasn’t getting stronger.

If it reassures you any, I also often eat around 2500 - 2800 calories (about 1kg of 80/20 mince beef). I just plugged in my last week to see, and I ate 3800 for about 5 days just before my cycle (I wasn’t lying when I said I was ravenous). I am still on the fence about whether this is causing me to lose fat slower or not - but I think it’s helping me to build muscle, and weirdly, when I overate last week, I felt like I’d lost weight so I’m not quite convinced that eating less will help.

It’s goes against everything we’ve ever “known” and I am torn between the thought that if I just traditionally dieted, I’m sure I’d have less fat than I have now. …but at the same time, carnivore has fixed a massive problem for me and I have muscles, so I keep thinking that I should just hold steady and see what my body does with the nutrition I keep giving it. I was very concerned about loose skin but going slow has had the benefit of keeping things tight so far.

With working out, it is tricky finding something you enjoy though - I think that’s half the battle with any programme. I always dreaded 5x5, so Greyskull was massively refreshing. I’m at the point of moving off it because I keep stalling out, but I don’t really want to let it go! It’s simple and quick! I struggle with cardio because I don’t enjoy any of it - I like playing group sports but hate treadmills or jogging and things like that.

Anyway, I’ll shut up. I’ve been very talkative today.

[FrankoBear]

Yeah, that’s part of my frustration - I see virtually no difference in my legs with the squats. Maybe I’m not doing them right. I carry the majority of my excess fat in my hips and thighs, so those are the areas I am trying to focus on.

Mrs. Bear noticed some shapely subcutaneous fat gain on her upper thighs in the pandemic years. I was no help because I didn’t mind. But husband survival instinct warned me away from answering any “is my [area of concern] bigger?” questions. This also precludes any after-the-change compliments, because they reveal things like, “so, on February 16th 1996 when you didn’t answer my question if you thought my legs were bigger…” Best not to comment on any woman’s physical appearance, and just compliment more esoteric things like their vibrancy.

Over the past three summer months Mrs. Bear found eating OMAD low carb with the proviso and permission to eat in a wider feeding window if hungry was a primary adjustment. No counting. Whole foods, home cooked. No packet foods. Each day varies but she tunes in to well understood hunger signals. Dietary wise she moved to no added fat in her eating but did not trim nor drain fats from whole foods. No added fat to beverages. Mrs Bear is very active and found the activity that she thought resulted in fat loss to regain thigh muscle definition was Pilates. She mainly does yoga as the primary activity. So it’s all body weight workouts. She has never been to a gym, except to teach hot yoga. She lives the yoga daily including the mental balance parts. Despite us both going through menopause, it’s a shared thing, we both suffer it sometimes, she was able to ask that unwanted body fat accumulation to shift. She completes her fifth decade in April.

@Septimius, @Karen18, @VirginiaEdie, @Redrobins - Wow! inspiring physical activity! Carnivore on, and more strength to you as @Fangs might say.

[Azi]

I started reading this last night so I’m going to try it
https://mobile.twitter.com/KetoCarnivore/status/1461324518077566976?t=Sn_IK3crH85_SVudCe4i7A&s=19 still with bbbe but see if this works.
I been getting hungry at night so been eating 3 meals I tried fat first last night then protein and so far today I’ve eaten once no hunger and it’s now 11pm about 12.30am at night I got hungry so I ate fat first them prime rib so that’s twice in one day…

[OldDoug]

Thing being my stress levels are thru the roof right now, my 94 yr old mom with the dementia now kicking in, handling retirement home issues and letting go of her now I think? and I guess being so close as we are I am in a new zone I can’t comprehend actually…for a lack of a better way to say it…grieving the loss and death of a living parent?

That’s quite accurate, Fangs. My dad is 85 and went into a care facility last month. Cognitive decline, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease - it began 30 years ago and thankfully progressed very slowly. It’s only the last 2 or 3 years that it’s really been “bad” - this year it became too much for my stepmother.

It think it’s common that when those involved really accept that “it’s too much,” it has been too much for some time. It’s a hard and cruel thing, more for my stepmother than any other - to lose the person you’ve loved for half a century, while having to care for, in essence, a “baby,” a big, possibly dangerous baby who wakes up at midnight and makes coffee, or tries to burn the house down.

My dad not remembering things isn’t all bad, here. To think of him being ‘imprisoned’ away from the farm he’s lived on for 50 years, the fields and buildings, the animals and the air he loved, was almost unthinkable for us all, but he’s actually quite happy, the same cheerful, amazingly sweet guy he’s always been. The other patients/residents and the staff at the care facility love him.

Even last summer he would remember a lot about his early years, and most days he would - or would come around to - remembering who we kids were. Now it’s a matter of explaining that, for example, I’m his son, and that’s how I know such-and-such… A strange thing - to hear him read from a book now, he’s the same that he’s always been. And the next moment will be something impossible, amazing, hilarious, crazy… The mind is a fascinating thing, even in its decline.

[FrankoBear]

I started reading this last night so I’m going to try it
https://mobile.twitter.com/KetoCarnivore/status/1461324518077566976?t=Sn_IK3crH85_SVudCe4i7A&s=19

Interesting to read what Amber says about the interference from “dairy” (“dairy” is a wide variety of foods).

As it happens, many do find that dairy interferes with satiation or fat loss.

[Ketodaisy]

This was something I tried in 2020. It did not go well for me lol

[Fangs]

I read some posts on the board, so many since I last visited.

Dealing with mom and her decline still and brain still fried a bit.
Today my brother and I hit the hospital to get some more clear options for forward movement on all this.

I am just super sad thru it all but I am also 60 yrs old and mom being near 94 right now, none of this comes as a shocker to me. We all deal with loss of family!

So holding our own here.

Holding Carnivore so far. One day I eat nothing, one day I literally had to eat the world of everything I had in the house, canned tuna with mayo, my sardines, cooked wings and pork ribs from frozen and inhaled them.

So my beef month is kinda shattered but I am ok on that. I don’t have a good concentration level happening for me. I can start it up again when my mind is in good form. It ain’t there yet. Key to it all for me, hold carnivore strong any way I can and I am doing just that.

I so enjoy reading posts!! So many smart, zc clear minded people here!!

Check in later down the line and thanks everyone for well wishes and prayers to my family at this time!

[Redrobins]

You are a rockstar for being able to remain carnivore through all of the stress!

Prayers for you and your family as you navigate this next season of life. God’s got it!

[Redrobins]

Mrs. Bear noticed some shapely subcutaneous fat gain on her upper thighs in the pandemic years. I was no help because I didn’t mind. But husband survival instinct warned me away from answering any “is my [area of concern] bigger?” questions. This also precludes any after-the-change compliments, because they reveal things like, “so, on February 16th 1996 when you didn’t answer my question if you thought my legs were bigger…” Best not to comment on any woman’s physical appearance, and just compliment more esoteric things like their vibrancy.

@FrankoBear You are a smart man and Mrs. Bear is lucky lady! I am extremely impressed with her commitment to yoga. I imagine I would benefit from it, but it’ s just not in my “make-up”. To each her own, I guess…

I will poke around the internet to get some tips on Pilates. I’ve heard of it, but it’s been several years.

[Redrobins]

This has been a very helpful post, @Septimius!

I looked into the app, but do not have the equipment to do the exact sets they ask for, but I was able to modify for my morning routine today with what I do have. I’m wondering if my body has gotten used to slow burn same routine every other day and will benefit from mixing it up. Time will tell.

Thank you for the suggestion!

[Septimius]

That’s really great to hear! Good luck with it - and if it doesn’t work out, there are other programmes out there; sometimes a change is all that’s needed to cause your body to react.

I’m cheering for you!

[Septimius]

All the best to you, @Fangs - holding carnivore strong any way you can is absolutely the right approach during this difficult time.

[Karen18]

About 10 years ago I picked this book up from a charity shop. I read it from cover to cover and then I followed the workout (not the nutrition side) 100% and tracked everything as recommended. Literally within 2 weeks people were asking me what I was doing differently as the body changes were incredible. I did a body analysis test before and after and the stats absolutely affirmed what the eye could see. I believe he has an online programme as well as his books. www.BodyforLIFE.com

Last night I had 2 pork chops and bacon for dinner

and went to bed early but head was so so busy and anxiety setting in so i went back downstairs, took 2 herbal sleeping tabs, watched a documentary and ate 2 hard boiled eggs.

Back to bed about 45 mins later and eventually, about 11pm drifted off only to wake up at 11.50pm then 1250am then at 2.50 then 3.50 and then didn’t go back to sleep and got up before my alarm at 4.15am! I don’t think I actually got into a deep sleep at all as I was feeling either too hot with my covers off or chilly

So anyway I wearily got on with my stair runs, had a bath, did my hair and set off for work at 6.30am. A 6 hour shift today on my phased return and nearly asleep listening to prisoners phone calls! Home now and relaxing before doing it all again tomorrow.

Was naughty and stopped at M&S on way home for some nice good quality cheese and thats been my brunch! It will be beef burgers, bacon and eggs for dinner as thats all I have in the fridge note to self get some food out of freezer for tomorrow.

[VirginiaEdie]

It’s a hard and cruel thing, more for my stepmother than any other - to lose the person you’ve loved for half a century, while having to care for, in essence, a “baby,” a big, possibly dangerous baby who wakes up at midnight and makes coffee, or tries to burn the house down.

Omg, this is exactly what my poor mother-in-law went through. My father-in-law just went into hospice at a nursing home and he is no longer her responsibility. She looks like another person, no longer weighed down by his care. She said she didn’t realize how sleep deprived she’d been because of his frequent night wanderings until he went into the hospital.

So my beef month is kinda shattered but I am ok on that.

There will be another time for your beef month. I’m glad you’re not stressing about that. The last thing you need is your experiment adding to your stress.
Sending hugs.

[VirginiaEdie]

Best not to comment on any woman’s physical appearance

Yeah, we tend to be pretty tough on ourselves already.

[Redrobins]

About 10 years ago I picked this book up from a charity shop. I read it from cover to cover and then I followed the workout (not the nutrition side) 100% and tracked everything as recommended. Literally within 2 weeks people were asking me what I was doing differently as the body changes were incredible. I did a body analysis test before and after and the stats absolutely affirmed what the eye could see. I believe he has an online programme as well as his books. www.BodyforLIFE.com

Hmmm, when I click on the link, it takes me to www.eas.com?

I did google the Body for Life program and came across a description. It certainly sounds doable. The only thing I can’t find in the description is now man reps eat set is? There’s a chart for reps for the leg press, but not for any of the upper body exercises or other lower body exercises. Do you happen to remember, Karen?

[JJFiddle]

Wow, so much here! Lastnight I read but didn’t write here. Long late got @the country bar and we were both exhausted.
@Karen18 “DC” refers to Washington DC. Our Virginia house is 8 miles from the DC border. That whole Maryland - Virginia - Washington DC area conglomerate is often referred to as just DC. But we’re not there much. Mostly in the Texas Hill Country west of Austin. When we have to go east we try to get back to Texas as soon as possible!

I loved reading the Keto AF Twitter thread and I’d love to get there whenever I can get “fat adapted,” still needing ox bile and lipase to digest what I do eat. I really believe that as people age, the more fat they can consume the healthier they’ll be in both body and mind. After all the brain is all made out of fat, as is the spine, and dried up old skin needs more than Oil of Olay! But I’ve always believed in high fat,even in my vegetarian days (40+ years ago) I ate 5+ avocados a day!

@FrankoBear and @Karen18 here’s the analysis for the cheese wraps

Since I still can’t stand the smell of many of the dairy products including sour cream, milk, cream cheese, and butter. I assume that’s lactose. Also some soap products have it, like 7th Generation dish soap. The cheese wraps taste good. You can make them, use grated cheese on parchment, in the microwave or oven. They will crisp up.
I like the cheddar ones but they also have Parmesan and another white one.

Yesterday I smoked a chicken and also some sea salt to use with sous vide. Tomorrow I’m buying a bunch of meats to stick in there all at once and then portion and freeze. Seems like a waste of pellets to do one little chicken.

Yesterday, boiled egg with baconnaise on a cheddar wrap, then later, smoked chicken. Lastnight after the gig, another cheddar wrap, egg and baconnaise, and some smoked salmon.

I have the bone broth I made and use it in things but don’t seem to be interested in consuming it. I’ve made bone broth since 2007 and usually wind up tossing it. I have to be more assiduous in drinking/eating it!
No pics yesterday

[robintemplin]

I think you are so smart to hang on to your ZC during this… not only because it probably helps your mental state and abilities when you need them most. But because we need something besides the ongoing trauma that we can hold on to, cling to, think about, feel familiar and steady support from, etc. You are doing great and you have a big ZC and Keto family rooting for you.

[JJFiddle]

@Fangs thinking of you! Staying on course with carnivore will also keep your mind clear with all of this. These are tough times. Love @Redrobins saying “God’s got this.”

[Karen18]

I will dig out the tracking planner I photocopied from the book, take a photo and send on here. I will do it tomorrow after work as just got in to bed. The plan is a 6 day workout although I did 7 which alternates as such…
day 1 - 40 min upper body strength
Day 2 - 20 min hiit cardio
Day 3 - 45 min lower body strength
Day 4 - 20 min hiit cardio
Day 5 - 40 min upper body strength
Day 6 - 20 min hiit cardio
Day 7 - rest
Day 1 - 45 min lower body strength
Etc etc for 12 weeks. I found it easy to stick to and he tells you exactly how to do the workouts. I really enjoyed doing it. I may still have the first 12 weeks workouts I did too! I am a hoarder lol…sometimes it comes in handy haha . If I haven’t sent by this time tomorrow please remind me xx

[Karen18]

Wow I am surprised at the few ingredients. I really imagined a long list of stabilisers flavourings and colourings. Well I’m pretty impressed. Not seen any over here which is maybe just as well cos I could probably get hooked lol

[Azi]

@ Fangs In times of stress I find carnivore something I can hold onto too doesn’t matter if your not sticking to a challenge it be for you when your ready to…

@Ketodaisy yeah I’ll have to monitor it but I did find eating lean meat makes me ravenous and the last two days I can’t eat more than twice so at least to begin with its got me out of that third meal…finding the beef fat is my issue I do have my picanha that I can cut fat off and see how that goes…
@FrankoBear Yeah I was eating butter but im going to try to get the fat as beef fat.
What I do like about Amber and Sabian is they usually find the science to back up what they suggest…
I Love that your wife was able to get her covid gain off again and yup def smart to avoid making comments on body size lol.

[Ketodaisy]

I’m going to drop a few pictures since I haven’t the last few days. My father in law is likely in his last days by the corrupt “healthcare” system, so it’s been a very long day/week.

[FrankoBear]

Another hot summer day. I guess that’s what one gets in summer. The sunset was spectacular but I only recorded it with my eyes. It’s sunny again today and calling me outside.

Had a doctor’s check up yesterday. Coordinated and consolidated the advice from my current 3 doctors into one place. My blood pressure is up 138/86, when it’s normally around 120/80. But I had just stepped off the doctor’s new body weight scales. They max out at 120kg (265lbs). My weight was “ERR”. At least it didn’t have an exclamation mark. @Alecmcq, I’m not a fan of body weight scales. Was able to organise my next bunch of biomarker blood tests.

The other night I was at the beach with Billie and dolphins were surfing waves as a fishing technique. They were right in the shorebreak and the fish were almost up on the sand at our paws.

While I was down in the village I bought a rack of beef ribs (2 meals), a large rump steak that will do for 2 meals, and some chicken wings from the laughing butcher. Last nights dinner were 2 of the ribs with 2 rashers of middle bacon. NoFUN breakfast was 3 rashers of middle bacon with 3 scrambled pasture fed chicken eggs. 2 morning coffees 3 hours apart with careful, measured dose of cream. I need to separate the second coffee away from breakfast. Coffee is better metabolically dosed separate to food.

[SecondBreakfast]

Hey Carnivores!
Popping in for a visit. Still on the bandwagon. Adding more red meat in constantly. Laying low on chicken/turkey now. Though…there are still 10 turkeys roaming around the backyard that need butchering.

Had some issues with dizziness a couple weeks ago, and realized that I wasn’t eating enough red meat. (Like, who woulda thought?!) Apparently, I was on a chicken and turkey binge, and failed to keep up ample amounts of iron.

Fast forward to Saturday…went to the gym and did a very basic bit of exercise on the eliptical and bike. Back was sore later that evening. Aching on Sunday, but nothing unmanageable. Monday…same. But, was still chalking this up to the exercise thing. Tuesday, the lower back still hurt, but made it into work. Within two hours, ready to pass out from the pain. It escalated very quickly. Could hardly walk to the car. Getting in took some doing. Had to pull myself up because the step was too high. Once home, I fell over on the bed and couldn’t move. Fever kept inching up towards 102F. Broke last night. Kidney infection and stones like I’ve never experienced before. I gave birth to a 9 1/2 pound baby with no meds - that was easy compared this.

Taking antibiotic, a UTI med, cranberry pills, ACV and water. Still feeling exhausted bc the pain wakes me up at night. Missed 2 days of work already, and had to leave early today. Anyone experienced an infection like this? Not sure what else to take or do, or not take and not do. The ER here is not doable Must plan on at least an 8 hour wait…in.the.ER. I wish my doc would get back here from New Zealand!!! She was the best!

Sorry for rambling. Physical pain has left this mind in the shambles, and it is difficult to move beyond the constant ache. Going to drink more water now. Have a good one, all.

[Azi]

Yeah had a kidney infection as a teenager had me doubled over curled up in pain i was given antibiotics and honey to swallow it in lol…

I do hope you have a speedy recovery…

[robintemplin]

Your pic is especially lovely.

A laughing butcher? Lucky you!
And no worries for me. Coffee IS my breakfast.

Here’s my current view. Our house is just around that bend on the left. More snow. Love it.

[robintemplin]

UTI’s are the worst! I haven’t gotten one in a couple years. (Knock on wood.) I never know I have one until it is full blown and severely painful. The meds usually help my pain in a day or so.

all I can send is sympathy!

[JJFiddle]

I wouldn’t be able to tolerate anything with all those additives! I would know right away if it was “dirty” cheese.

[Fangs]

My mom died last night at 1am. Got a call from hospital around 1:30am

So sad. I am just so sad. We were close and it is just a tough pill to swallow right now.

Will be off the thread a bit but I will be ok. Time for some emotional and mental adjusting here.

[robintemplin]

@Fangs All the love…

[SecondBreakfast]

Oh Fangsy, I am so so sorry. There is no heartache like that. But, my dear friend, remember that your Mom left this life with the knowledge of how much you loved her and cared for her. All the time, effort, love and care you gave to her - those moments can never be taken or erased. Those are most precious- and remembering them will get you through the tough times.

Wishing I could hug you. Prayers going out to you and your family.

[Redrobins]

Karen, I’m so so sorry. I always loved reading your posts about when your mom would visit. You made her sound like such an awesome lady.

Praying for you.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:7

[VirginiaEdie]

My husband’s father passed away yesterday, too. That he is no longer suffering is solace to us, especially my husband.

I hope you find something that can give you solace, as well.

[Ketodaisy]

@Fangs and @VirginiaEdie so much love to you both

[Karen18]

You’re in my prayers , sending you much love

[Karen18]

Thoughts and prayers are with you and your husband xx

[Septimius]

I am so sorry, Fangs - and my thoughts are with you and your husband too, VE.

[Ketodaisy]

meal one was steak bites, raw beef liver, and bone broth jello. Meal two was beef ribs. My father in law just passed away about 10 minutes ago. So I also may be quiet for awhile.

[VirginiaEdie]

I think yesterday was a bad day in general. My son-in-law’s aunt passed away yesterday, too. She’d been battling cancer for many years and caught COVID. It was the COVID that got her, and she was vaccinated. Sigh.

[robintemplin]

Sorry, Virginia…sometimes it really is a blessing though, isn’t it?
And yet, their sudden absence is still shocking.
Sorry for your son-in-law also.

[Septimius]

Oh, how awful.

And I’m so sorry to hear about your father-in-law, Daisy.

[VirginiaEdie]

Sorry, Virginia…sometimes it really is a blessing though, isn’t it?

Oh, yes. Definitely a blessing in my father-in-law’s situation.

@Ketodaisy, I’m sorry to hear you and your family are going through this as well.

[Azi]

Fangs, Virginia, ketodaisy, sending best wishes to all of you and your families. Such a sad day today for the forum…sending hugs to each one of you.

[Karen18]

So sad to hear that. I will be keeping you all in my prayers this evening, sad times xxx

[FrankoBear]

Hold strong. You are all strong. Testing times call for self care to be maintained to support the people around you. We can all lean on each other.

The night before last there was an amazing sunset here. The evening was hot, humid and still. There were no clouds. But a hazy smear had appeared, like we sometimes experience after a large bushfire nearby. Billie the Labrador had run off to the neighbours property sensing we weren’t going to the beach, and she went swimming in their dam. The neighbour came out and offered us an abundance of homegrown fruit being tomatoes and capsicum (peppers). Mrs. Bear loved them. The sky was kaleidoscopic with pinks against blues and striped with orange. I found out yesterday that the phenomenon was from the ash cloud from the Tongan sea volcano eruption travelling the skies of our planet.

Last night I had the last rib off the rack. Beef ribs are large. I think the laughing butcher has them for smokers. But I take them home and carve them further for oven baking. I had a plate of chicken wings on the side. They baked a bit quicker than the beef, so I had two courses. I really enjoyed the cartilaginous tissues around the bones. That’s what my body was asking for. Breakfast yesterday was at 2pm of 3 pasture fed chicken eggs and 2 rashers of hickory smoked middle bacon cooked in the tallow of last night’s beef ribs. People think I’m weird eating cooked breakfasts on hot summer afternoons. I think people are weird.

@SecondBreakfast I feel for you. I experienced a calcium oxalate kidney stone. They are spiky like an anteater stuck in the plumbing. I have never birthed a 9 pound baby, but I was one. The kidney stone was eventually blasted with lasers like in Star Wars and the bits were extracted while I was under general anaesthetic. I had kidney soreness for months after. The pain of the stone put me in ER, A 6ft 5 Viking curled up on the ground in pain. I was on morphine in hospital and synthetic opioids to ease the waves. It all felt very real and in the moment. It was the main reason to move from oxalate unaware keto to carnivore. If you are on antibiotics look for some good quality probiotics to have 2 hours after each antibiotic dose and for some time after the antibiotics course has finished.

Stay on plan. Remain ferocious. The waves will pass. Disasters risk transformation into beauty.

[robintemplin]

BEAUTIFUL. Not the kidney stone part. The ending sign off… nice,

[JJFiddle]

@fangs @Ketodaisy @VirginiaEdie So, so, sad to hear. Hugs all around. Strength, love. Now comes the hard part, picking up the pieces, since you’re the ones left to do it. The ultimate rite of passage.

Day 39 of Carni and still experiencing serious disaster pants. I keep googling, how long does this go on?? Taking lipase and ox bile twice a day, should I take more?
In 2019 I started OMAD and had it then. So confusing and a Google search brought me to this forum, the only place that addressed it at that time. Most of my family are diabetic and without gall bladders so maybe there’s an inherent weakness there, but I can’t help but believe the way to develop strength is to continue to test the waters and challenge that organ to increase its bile production.

I read this good article on it: https://www.doctorkiltz.com/carnivore-diet-diarrhea/#:~:text=When%20adapting%20to%20a%20carnivore,more%20efficient%20at%20absorbing%20fluid.&text=Other%20potential%20causes%20of%20carnivore,or%20too%20many%20irritating%20seasonings.
Maybe I should stop eating pork. Or eggs. Beef does it too though. If I just thought it would eventually subside…

Yesterday about 10 am, an egg in a a cheese wrap with baconnaise. We went to the brewery for a late lunch where I had a hamburger party with cheese and a mineral water. Lastnight I chewed around the large bone of a shank steak and then an eggs in cheese wrap again.

Yesterday I bought a 12 lb brisket, a chicken, and also have a pork butt and a 1 lb salmon filet to put all on the smoker, then apportion and freeze. The chicken (and salt) I smoked Wednesday was a ridiculous waste of pellets! This will be my first big smoke.

[Septimius]

Dreams

People often talk about dreaming of carbs when they’re keto. I used to occasionally. Since going carnivore, I very rarely dream of food.

But I did last night. Two specific things - and weirdly, they’re things I don’t even like that much; I cannot recall the last time I ate them, and if I was given a free pass to eat carb/sugar junk for a day, I would not select them.

The reason I raise it here is because I haven’t eaten much red meat the past couple of days. I normally eat beef for every meal, salmon once a week, and lamb probably once a week.

But this week, I deviated:

Wednesday dinner: pork belly
Thursday lunch: leftover pork belly and leftover beef (very small amount)
Thursday dinner: half chicken
Friday lunch: most of the other half of the chicken
Friday dinner: tiny amount of leftover chicken and salmon

I really enjoyed the chicken - I bought it on a whim. I did think it probably wouldn’t sustain me, so I should eat beef - but I did not feel hungry at all.

When I am very hungry, I get stomach-growling hunger. That’s why I eat 3000-4000 calories on those days, because my stomach is so ferociously hungry, I realise I must need it.

I didn’t have that. I didn’t have any hunger pangs or any desire to eat, even though I’d eaten very little. I ate the salmon more because I knew logically that a couple of bits of chicken wasn’t enough to carry me through the night.

But late Friday night I was watching tv and thinking that a few things onscreen would be ‘nice’ to eat (I think I mentioned up-thread that is a warning sign that I am actually hungry, even if I don’t feel it).

I didn’t eat. I went to bed. And then, boom, dreams.

I thought it was interesting that the dream came off the back of not eating red meat for so many days in a row. I am convinced there is something in the nutrient profile of red meat that my body needs/craves and that craving manifests in an odd way.

[Fangs]

I am sorry for your loss also VE and KD! Life is marching straight over alot of us right now…as life will do with no remorse or thought about it

I appreciate the support and condolences. Thank you guys very much!

I am ok but just sad. Just sad but that is ok. One is allowed to be sad and grieve. Normal. What one isn’t allowed to do is use emotions for excuses and I am going down that road now so back for accountability.

My nibbles went to full on tablespoons of ‘a taste’ and my eat only 1 has become eat like 10 french fries off my kid’s plate kinda thing. NOT good for me.

Carbs are drawing me back and I have to make a stand. I am on plan but flirting off plan way too much and I know I am one who will backslide in a nano-second so today is stop the BS! Stop the food is comfort BS in my brain, it is not, it is the carbs saying eat me eat me and I will make ya sick.

I am bloaty to the max. I feel icky inside my body. Directly from food intake. So that is over. O V E R as of right now.

I am convinced there is something in the nutrient profile of red meat that my body needs/craves and that craving manifests in an odd way.

you are absolutely correct. Cuts of red meat (as with beef being the best vs. say ‘lean’ deer meat or lean bison meat etc) is that beef holds a very great fat to protein ratio that gives our bodies the balance it requires just thru the food of that meat. Beef from a cow is very stable and balanced in ratio so us carnivores do best on it cause it ‘sets us up into a very even keel’ of nutrition. We can ‘play a bit’ in that we can choose a leaner cut of beef when we want it, we can also choose a very fatty cut of beef when we want it, but that nutrient profile is packed how we need it best.

I also when eating pork and chicken and seafood ‘felt different’ than when I was eating beef only in my day.

I know all these years on ZC that if I start my day with a friggin’ 1 lb. fatty ribeye steak I do best. My body is in love with that. I feel balanced, settled, calm, in peace with my plan, my body feels stable and my brain goes along with that, meal 2 can be more flippy with some beef or pork or chicken or seafood but my ‘set in stone’ first meal of big ol’ ribeye steak is my anchor rock.

Many carnivores thrive and hit only beef in the end as the main staple but when we start to ditch it as a main in our every single day life for a bit longer, we tend to get the ‘wanders’ and that isn’t good. We tend to see changes like more dreams, or our bodies are ‘needing just something’ and we aren’t sure what, or we might get massive appetite swings or we get that ‘just off feeling’ of where we were. I know it. I go thru it. I know exactly what you are talking about!!

When food becomes a focus-----food of crap ----- in any way it is showing us our bodies are off its best nutritional balance. So if pork/chick/seafood is a focus go back to the big hefty beef. It takes a bit eating the big beef as you love to get rid of those unbalanced changes but it will do the trick.

--------SO GUYS for me I am in that sad spot of grieving, and wanting excuses to take me away into carb land and I will not allow it.

I am going back to all beef and water in my day come hell or highwater.

Today I got a nice NY Strip steak to start my day and I got a nice ribeye defrosting on the counter for tonight.

Time for the pull yourself up wtih the bootstraps type day. I need it. I know me. I will go down into a burning flame of carbs in a flash, I won’t allow it and I won’t go there!

Hard issues in life that come at us call for hard attack scenarios for keeping our control and lifestyle we desire for best health!

I say thank you again to all, you are so kind, each of you!

[Septimius]

so back for accountability.

Good on you, Fangs - you’ve picked up on the signals and you’re putting methods in place to stop the slide from happening. Good stuff.

[Fangs]

ohhh and I defrosted 3 packs of bacon for ‘just in case’ and yes if required I can inhale all 3 lbs on top of my steaks for the day as I might crave or go brain crazy…bacon to the rescue! Believe me it is a savior default eating tons of bacon that made me come into this plan and hold it and will always keep me on plan when required

BACON! Life blood to keep my health…who would ever think that HA

[robintemplin]

Pardon me if this has been asked and answered already…do you take powdered Magnesium citrate? I do and the dosage can be tweaked to change your poop issues. I like it because it can and does clean me out, when I want that. But I have found my personal level of manageable.

[robintemplin]

@Fangs so glad you are able to allow yourself to feel your feelings. That helps us to not find an escape through food, to take out mind off the trauma. It’s been years since I lost my parents, but recently lost my best life long friend. I wake up to a world without her, every day. My mantra is: I will never get over this, but I will get used to it.

Thinking of you still.

[Karen18]

Foods over last couple of days…

I am kitty sitting this weekend while my daughter is away. I needed something easy to do while I am here so popped to The Company Shop. Picked up some chicken wings and had to share with the kitty! They were okay but not overly brilliant. I had got a double pack of steaks, some lamb ribs and a pack of pork loin chops out of freezer this morning but decided they wouldn’t defrost in time so put them In the fridge to slowly defrost. So of course can’t just buy one thing in the cheapo shop … spent £49 and for that I got the chicken wings, 2 x 1.25kg ribeye steak chuncks… I will slice them into at least 7 or 8 steaks, maybe more and they were reduced to £17 each …hope they’re tasty! Lol got 2 half price rumps and 2 Angus sirloin steaks, 2 x large packs of pork chops ,(700g each) £2 a pack! I was pleased with my buy today.

After 2 very bad nights i got quite a decent nights sleep last night… I needed it I was shattered especially having been up at 445am both mornings for work.

Did my stair runs when I got up and then off to CrossFit and did a great workout. Really enjoyed it and it felt really good.

Been round my daughters all afternoon playing and cuddling with Astrid

And still here. My daughters has her heating on so its a lot warmer than my house a bit too warm for me so at one point t I got a bit dozy couldn’t doze off though because Astrid was in my arms for a good 1.5 hours!

[robintemplin]

Good for you. We must never disturb a cat sleeping on us. That is all.

[Karen18]

A little foody pic… my loverly meaty bargains!

[Azi]

my rings were so tight this morning could get them off so I weighed myself up 4lbs of the ,5 I lost my arm is still sore after falling in nebraska so I have asked for a referral to see if I’ve pulled something or torn something.

I’m going to return to my bbbe seemed to be doing better on that…

@Fangs yeah it’s so hard losing our parents I was close to my dad and when I lost him it hit me hard even though at the time it was best thing for him I didn’t want to see him suffer anymore…
But now I live knowing he will always be therefor me I can’t pick up the phone to hear his voice but I still often talk to him when I need him the most…he will always be my strength.

[JJFiddle]

I take magnesium threonate. Started with the usual mg oxides 25 years ago and slowly worked over to this one. I like that it does NOT mess with my poop, lol. (crosses the blood brain barrier, they say.) I’m waiting for more “solidity” nowadays - I think bile and lipase help if I remember to take them a few times a day. Just waiting for fat adaption, whenever it decides to manifest!

[JJFiddle]

Taught on and off today, fixed hubby’s big meal and cookies for the church-then cleaned it all up. He’s worried this woe is a bad idea especially because I still have diarrhea. But I got over it with OMAD so in time will likely get over it this time, too.
Today I got the grassfed beef roast out of the sous vide and seared it in tallow. Hubby loved it, it was good. He commented that he couldn’t eat a lot of it, I said that’s because it’s nutrient dense.
I tried @Ketodaisy’s beef broth and hamburger soup with a little Parmesan sprinkled over, it was a nice change. I’ll put some in my new heated lunch box for tomorrow as I’m out most of the day.
Here’s some food:

[FrankoBear]

Day 39 of Carni and still experiencing serious disaster pants. I keep googling, how long does this go on?? Taking lipase and ox bile twice a day, should I take more?

I keep thinking about gut bugs and diet changes. Fermented foods seem good to help restructure a gut society after a diet change gut biota die-off. Zero carb precludes us from eating fermented vegetables. Fermented dairy is our next option. Cheeses and unsweetened yoghurt? But commercial yoghurts may not be made from the cultures we need and are only fermented for a day or two for business expediency, so they may not have the colony numbers to get through the stomach to the intestines. Home-made yoghurt, might be the way? There are also fermented meats, but I don’t know much about them except they are presented as small goods.

Probiotics also come in powders and capsules. Again getting through the stomach environment is the challenge. But health companies are looking into spore forming helpful bacteria. The spores are acid resistant and get through to the gut. But those gut bugs might not be the ones we want for a carnivore diet?

Lipase and bile are digestive helpers, so are the right gut bugs. Might be an angle to consider?

[FrankoBear]

I’m thinking about disturbed sleep. Last night I woke at 3:49am. Thought I needed to go to the toilet. So I started to get up and felt incredibly weak. The moonlight was amazing. So it was easy to navigate. Interestingly I had a full bladder urination. Then I realised that my heart beat was all over the place. So I took a 500mg magnesium aspartate tablet with a swallow of water, and went back to bed.

I woke at 7am, which is normal. I had the prednisone tablet, every second day now seems to hold off the sharp joint pain. When I woke it felt like I had sliding door shifted into another dimension. I had another full bladder urination. I’m recording that as I ended up having 5 full bladders by noon. That’s a lot of water dumping. Then I realised what was going on with the increased urination I was probably also dumping electrolytes. The prednisone can be calculated in as a part cause.

My feet and ankles were swollen. I felt weak but not too unwell. In that “something ain’t right zone” that @Karen18 described in having a stroke. I wasn’t having a stroke, but the diagnosis is related. I slept another 2 hours and got up at 9:30am. I still felt like a drunk time traveller. So I took my heart rate. It was 230bpm. There it was, I was in atrial fibrillation. It can lead to a stroke. Mrs. Bear arrived home from morning yoga. And it was into action mode. Home treatment to avoid a drive to the hospital emergency room. We got it resolved within 20 minutes. It’s an interesting feeling when the heart flips back to normal rate and rhythm. My heart rate now is a steady 66bpm. That surreal feeling of being in a movie that you’re watching of yourself, welcomes the audience, you, back into the body and a feeling of wholeness and reality ensues. Now I’m tired. Last night I had a total of 12 hours sleep. But I also had an extreme cardio workout for about 6 hours mixed in there.

So, I was thinking. My heart woke me up. Could a heart-rate check help others when they wake up? If you’re waking up at night to pee, what is your heart doing? It should be under 120bpm. It should actually be the lowest rate of a 24hr period. If not, revisit your electrolyte management.

Here’s what we did if anyone is interested:

• Mrs. Bear puts on hypnosis music sound therapy aimed at slowing the heart rate and steadying the breathing. I find it a good cue to help me focus on deep, slow breathing.
• Mrs. Bear presses on my eyeballs to initiate our ancient ‘dive reflex’ that slows the heart rate
• The key here is to let people help, if they are nearby
• I dose magnesium citrate and magnesium aspartate tablets to gut tolerance disaster pants by taking a set double dose every 20 minutes
• To swallow the magnesium I drink a large mug of salty (added bullion cube) beef bone broth. The salt is important as a magnesium helper.
• I take 50mg of aspirin to help prevent a stroke while the heart rate is so high
• Every 20 minutes I check my heart rate
• On the 3rd check, at the one hour point, I hit the shower for a 20 minute hot shower
• At one hour and 20 minutes I take a final dose of magnesium and bone broth and wait a final 20 minutes
• If I’m still in AF at that time point we go to hospital

I flipped back to normal heart rate within 12 minutes this time.

These episodes are rare. I diarise them and there are months in between. It’s been years since I have been admitted to the ER. And the last time my heart rate had settled while I was in the waiting room, but I was already on the hospital conveyor belt and they wouldn’t let me go home until they thought they fixed me.

In January 2021:

JanZC --- No Plants! Smaller Pants!

BAM! Ugh. Yesterday had NoFUN except a coffee. Does writing that I have a coffee trigger any one? Should I blur filter? No Food Until Noon. Then breakfast was 3 pan filling slices of middle bacon cooked in butter, 3 egg omelette, topped with Jarlsberg cheese 60g (guesstimate) and hard cheddar 45g. I’m in that space. Do you know it? It happens in low carb, where one feels they need to be physically active. I think I saw @Fangs write about it back in October 2019. It’s not a planned exercise pla…

[robintemplin]

My gosh. I have never heard of doing anything but heading to the hospital when in AFib! You and Mrs Bear have tapped into the good flow of body/mind/music. Touch connection. I applaud you both!

[Azi]

Wow scary stuff

[JJFiddle]

Thanks @FrankoBear, I better look into probiotics. Any dairy product with lactose has that post-covid metallic taste for me (even butter) - if I could make kefir or yogurt out of pure cream! But unfortunately it’s the lactose that ferments. Probiotics in pill (or liquid) form could be a way! I used to give the kids acidophilus, I’ll get some next week.
I keep reading the magic number “6 weeks.” I’m on day 40, maybe just 2 more nights of this?

[JJFiddle]

@FrankoBear that’s brilliant workmanship, I’m going go and write all that down as soon as it gets light out!
220 is a LOT of afib. Interesting to link it to electrolyte imbalance, but of course.

Back in '84 when my grandma was 84 and I was in nursing school (after which I went back to music, lol) she called and asked me to drive up to New Jersey and see her. When I got there she opened her pill chest, pointed to each one and said “what would happen if I stopped taking this one?” when she got to the calcium blocker I said, “you’d probably have a massive heart attack,” and she closed the box and said thank you.
I went home later that day and the following morning she was rushed to the hospital and did not survive the week.
Electrolytes.

[Fangs]

@Karen18, ahhh your kitty Astrid is so cute. My cat looked exactly like her but she was solid dark gray, but that same type of fur and face angle. Her name was ‘Lil’ Kitty’…you reminded me of her when I saw your kitty you are kitty-sitting, too cute!

Yea my sleep is a train wreck right now.

@Azi, taking that fall could also have inflamed alot of your body ya know. When hurt we retain liquid and other stuff from that darn inflammation but yea, if you are not sure on your arm, definitely get it checked out. I hope you get over all this quickly and get back to feeling ok!

@JJFiddle
I never had the big D when I adapted in that I was so extreme lc when I went zc that I was already kinda there, so my adaption was way easier than most but I had some adaption like weird sleeping etc. but never the other. You mostly control your D situation thru food…fat intake. More fat intake, more gut issues…leaner food like make a meal include some lean like chicken without the skin or some fish/seafood options etc. to feed up yourself it helps a bit. Of course not all can control with eating some leaner, so some supps like ox bile or even something like Immodium come into play when required. Hoping you get adapted thru faster than longer Also rendered beef fat alot of times is a huge cause of D for many of us when we change into this plan. So eating just burger and draining off any fat helps alot, plus eating some leaner beef cuts helps alot etc.

@robintemplin,

@FrankoBear
wow, 12 mins. is all it took for you to get back to normal…that is amazing actually. Your list of what you guys do is so smart to find yourself a natural change on how to handle this is so interesting to me. But you also know if no change back you seek other help

this was a scary post to read about what affected you but I just enjoy your posts, taking care of yourself and being very smart to journal your episodes and more.

-----------------------I am not sleeping well at all. I am in that brain zombie land a bit still. Of course coming to terms with stuff as I have to but still in that bit super sad weepy stage. I am sure I will follow my time after my Dad passed around 5 yrs ago, I kinda now how this will go down for a while.

I don’t even pretend to participate in life for real right now. 2 focus. food that goes in my gob and just take the day in any simple way and best form for me without any other BS coming at me. In a bit of time I will be fully back in the brain and will tackle life again, right now I kinda checked out of it.

Plus I got some darn sinus cold type thing going on. clogged nose etc. Probably got that from hosptial visits? who knows, but all in the head, other than that I feel good…but of course still feel bloaty at this point.

Got NY Strip steak for first meal of day. I defrosted chicken for family and they don’t seem to want it so I might just fry up those chicken breasts and use them for tonights meal. I just hate defrosting stuff for meals for them and then no one wants it ya know…irks me to no end LOL

Ferocious Feb is winding down guys…we are heading toward March soon. I tell ya time is flying by without me even realizing it right now. But I know all of us will go into March as strong Carnivores!
I

[Karen18]

@FrankoBear so glad you knew how you could remedy your AF. My stroke was caused by AF. I don’t know what my heart rate was doing on that blip day but I was told my heart rhythm was erratic. My temp also dropped to 34° and was hypothermic. My resting heart beat is generally between 45 and 54 sometimes a little higher/lower. Interestingly when they were doing their regular stats while in hosp it was between 43 and 45 bpm. Of course did tell them that was normal. The PEI’s at work used to say how strange it was that my heart rate was so low but BP so high! They would take BP before our fitness tests as one guy dropped dead straight after his test! Scarey! That was when they decided I couldn’t take the test unless the BP was lower. Annoying as I used to enjoy doing the fitness test and used it as a warm up for my lunch time gym session!

Well I really hope you don’t have any further problems, you sure are fortunate MRS Bear can help you x

[Septimius]

That was a terrifying read @FrankoBear - I’m glad you and Mrs Bear were able to remedy it, and as has been said, you know when to head to the ER.

[robintemplin]

Your “time is flying by without me even realizing it” statement really hit home for me.
When you are there with your loved one while they are struggling for so long and then suddenly, the battle is over and they are gone….
I can remember so well, looking out the hospital window and seeing all the cars… people driving to work, like nothing had changed. I was in a bubble suspended in time. All around me, everyone else was having a life, while I was in limbo and grieving a life.

It’s very disorienting when you slip into a world that exists without your person. You feel as if the calendar and clock should be reset to day one, as you are starting all over again. Day one. Now day two, etc.

Some day, you will be one of those people in your car, going somewhere… like nothing has changed. But you’ll know.

Everything has changed. You have changed too. You are learning how to navigate without your rock. I send blessings as you find your balance again. Patience and peace, friend.

[Fangs]

You are learning how to navigate without your rock

yes. I feel abandoned in some way but I know that is never the issue ya know, but I feel the rock has been pulled out from under me, I so understand what you posted!! everything you said is so spot on and thank you tons R! I appreciate your thoughts! Very kind to help me thru tough times I also feel better others ‘get it’ like I am feeling it right now It is comforting to not feel alone.

[Septimius]

Have you seen that image online about a ball in the room? I think that’s the best description I’ve ever seen of it.

Basically, there’s a button called ‘grief’ on the wall - and you start off with a ball that’s as big as the room. The ball constantly bangs against the button.

As time goes on, the ball gets smaller - and each time it hits the grief button, it’s as painful as it ever was, but because the ball is smaller, it only hits the button periodically instead of constantly.

I thought that was a really great way of depicting it. I always remember thinking the worst of the pain was when it was just starting to ebb away - when you’d wake up and for the first 5 seconds, you’d forgotten, and then you’d remember. The grief would hit so hard - and it’d be combined with guilt that you’d briefly forgotten. I think the juxtaposition between ‘not feeling’ and ‘feeling’ was worse than just ‘feeling’ constantly - but of course, that’s the first step forward to managing going forward.

Everyone who is going through a tough time at the moment is in my thoughts.

[robintemplin]

Yeah great analogy!

[JJFiddle]

Y’all are so beautifully graphic in your descriptions of grief! @robintemplin your writing brought tears to my eyes.
@fangs thank you, I’ll stop with the tallow and ghee for awhile, that makes perfect sense.

[Fangs]

Now heck I got tears in my eyes but they are ok tears. We are allowed to be sad…you summed up what moving forward will be all about for all of us! Thank you for your kind words to help!

[Karen18]

Had a pretty decent sleep last night, u went to bed fairly late but didn’t wake for the loo till probably 6am so think I slept about 5 hours solid… very unlike me but I am not complaining… hahah I even had to ask myself ‘did i get up or not through the night?’ Didn’t do anything differently I don’t think except I ate less as I just had those chicken wings and some cheese when i got home from kitty sitting. Maybe cat therapy is working its magic? Another day of Astrid sitting and my daughter and her husband returned home at 4 this afternoon.

I did my stair runs before going round my daughters house and took a packet of 4 pork loin chops of which I ate just 2. Had to share a little bit with Astrid else she would have just sat on my plate! Little minx! The chops weren’t as nice as when I cook them at home… I grilled them (I don’t have a grill at home) much nicer pan-fried.

Came home and had some cheese. Must slice the steak up tomorrow and freeze it.

[JJFiddle]

Nothing to eat today until after the jam session, about 3 pm… Then, 3 eggs and 2 beef hot dogs (Hebrew National, no sugar) and just a ½ piece of bacon along with my leftover hamburger and beef broth from yesterday. BAD digestive reaction an hour later. I did the hot dogs as they’re fairly low fat and beef, compared to the bacon. I really hate Immodium since I grew up constipated, but if it comes to that.
Tomorrow I’ll make chicken tenders.

On the upside there’s a lot less inflammation and joint pain. I’ve all but stopped the gabapentin (for sciatica). I just take a muscle relaxant at night, either Robaxin or Skelaxin, and use a lidocaine patch on each side for sciatica. My legs aren’t as sore either.
In 20 years when I’m 89 I’d really like to still be independent and have my mental faculties. It’s NOT that far off! Really. My chosen way to die would be to get hit by a bus - or maybe just to say, it’s a good day to die. Like everybody here, I’ve seen the inside of enough nursing homes never to want to live in one!

[FrankoBear]

Maybe cat therapy is working its magic?

Yes. Cats, our obligate carnivore spirit guides (if you’re into Animism).

Ferocious Feb is winding down guys…we are heading toward March soon.

Time for the annual migration. Back to the March of the Carnivores. Following where our healthy appetites, our appetites for health, take us.

Last night’s sunset from the farm gate.

[Azi]

Today was omad I didn’t eat til almost 6 and had a large ribeye steak that I couldn’t quite finish …
It’s 1am and still not hungry now im ready to head off to bed…

[Alecmcq]

[Alecmcq]

I promised you Kangaroo….

[SecondBreakfast]

Well…kidney infection is pretty much over, with one stone gone. Hoping that was it. Still sore, but functional. Managed to work the last two days- full shifts. Then have today and tomorrow- day shifts. Wednesday off, then work Thurs-Sun on afternoons. Even with all these hours, I have not really been hungry at all. I have been drinking water and chicken or beef broth quite a bit. Excited to dig a steak out of the freezer one of these nights and just gobble it up.

We have 1-2 feet of snow heading our way this evening, (yes, feet.) Maybe I’ll get snowed in tomorrow and have a day off! LOL! =)

[Fangs]

@Alecmcq
your meal pics look great. That kangaroo seems nice, I am more rare eater too and love that juicy on that plate.

@JJFiddle
Yes if you need Immodium, take some. It is ok to work thru some adaption symptoms we get as you need. Also your body is truly healing more but it is still shedding toxins so that can upset the gut apple cart also for some. Do as you need, take care of you, and let more time get under your belt and I hope you come around fast now.

@SecondBreakfast
wow hope you get some relief now and it is over for you!!
You work thru anything don’t ya I do hope you get that snow so you can have a darn day off, you hard working lady!! I saw on the news that Winter Storm Nancy is coming at ya…looks like you will be getting hit kinda hard.

----------------ALL OK but darn if I didn’t wanna jump on some choc and other crap yesterday. But I did not. I had to put on the big girl panties and yell at myself that excuse time is not an option and to just cut it out. This works for me actually! I fried up 1/2 pk bacon and sprinkled with some cheddar I grated up and it wasn’t enough so I ate up a piece of leftover chicken breast I made at dinner time. That filled me up enough to stop the stupid brain cravings.

Today I defrosted a pack of thin cut NY Strip steaks. I think that is the last thin cut pack in there. I am not buying those anymore, they are useless in size ya know and taste isn’t same as a big ol’ honking fat thick steak cooked so watching my meat buys. I ain’t buying anything to just fill the freezer anymore ya know.

So in the pk is 3 thin cut steaks which total just under a lb…will eat all 3 and dinner I have a nice pk of pork chops to eat. I been wanting pork again so decided to let the beef only challenge go for a bit while I get my brain ducks in a row

All going ok here. Final biggie is I pick up Mom’s ashes and death certificates at the funeral home today later and after that, I feel like I got ‘thru it all’ better now and feel more like life will march on ok Still raw but feeling better definitely.

[JJFiddle]

That was a big day for me, picking up Mom’s ashes last year and it was just about a year ago we went down to the Veterans Cemetery in San Antonio and watched from our truck when they buried the urn next to Daddy. Peace for ya @Fangs, you’re being brave with your food and doing right for your mom.
I’ll get some Immodium. John’s going to town today, I’ll see if he can stop and pick some up.
@azi glad the trauma is almost over! Great that you never let it get you down!
@Alecmcq Roo looks good! Is it gamey? Do they farm breed them or hunt them wild?

I’m hungry this morning, going to take my bike and lipase and have a hard boiled egg. I read that lemon juice is okay on carnivore because it supplies vitamin C, so I may defrost some shrimp to have with beef roast for lunch. That will be a treat!

Is Lemon Juice Okay on the Carnivore Diet?

[Fangs]

Thanks @JJFiddle
I feel more stable and secure in it all as I know you feel like I did on ‘pick up day’ yikes

lemon juice you do not need. Your body OFF plants and adjusting means your ‘need for C’ will be minimialized and easily replaced by eating fresh meat.

Those sailors long ago did not require fruit for scurvy. What they need was FRESH meat but on board they got cured, salted, dried meats for stability in travel so our C recommendations etc is not valid if ya know what I mean…fresh meat intake provides all the C you need and you are getting just that. You do not NEED lemon juice in any way truly!

some info: https://youtu.be/JDpRJWdpkiQ

[JJFiddle]

Aww… Ok… Rolling into town and thought I would check. So shrimp, no lemon. I know I don’t need it, just sounded nice.

[robintemplin]

“Raw but better” is just fine. Will you have much work to do with your mom’s stuff” I’m guessing that was dealt with much earlier.

Glad you can boss yourself around and then mind yourself! And yeah, thin steak??? Just WHY?

[Karen18]

@FrankoBear I have never heard of animism? I will have to look it up. Beautiful photo again.

Well a half decent night sleep … ish. Rained so much over the weekend and through the night that the fields at the back of my house were very flooded again. The little river that flows round the back was swollen and the current racing along.

Stair runs done and then got quite industrious slicing all the ribeye into steaks. Now don’t get all envious hahahah

17 big thick steaks worked out at £2 ea

The packet steak which is an Angus sirloin, very thin cut and small was £3 (which is still quite cheap but not compared to the big thick ribeyes) thought I would show compariaon

Those steaks all went in freezer cos I already had stuff defrosted from Saturday that needed eating so I had 2 big rare rump steaks for brunch.

and 2 lamb ribs slow roasted in the oven for dinner.

They look over done and were crispy on the outside but underneath they were very tender.

And finally a lovely thank you present from my daughter

[robintemplin]

Ok. You win! Just looking at all those lovely slices made me happy.
And the polka dot plant is fabulous! Good daughter.

[Azi]

Yesterday stayed omad today I will see how it goes I just ate another rib eye this one was a bit smaller and ate it all but im def not hungry so it may well be another omad meal.

[SecondBreakfast]

This storm is a doozy! Drove home from work around 5ish. Its snowing so hard, there coulda been a herd of sheep running towards me at full speed - never would have seem them.

Home now, safe and sound. Got the pups at my feet. all happy and snuggled. However, the kitchen needs cleaning, and goodness sakes…everyone KNOWS that ONLY MOM can clean the kitchen! Because, yeah, a 10 hour work day, a trip to the eyedoctor to get kiddo’s glasses repaired, then a trip home in the snowstorm…not enough for Mom to do… Gotta cook dinner, gotta clean, and do laundry. Then get up tomorrow and do it again. yippee. If school is cancelled tomorrow, that child will have a list to do before I get home.

Sorry. Had a rough day at the job. Got thrown under the bus by a co-worker. But, ya know what? I did not get flattened. In front of my boss, I tore the door off the bus, throat punched the driver, threw them out, backed that bus up, and ran over the driver. Because, at the end of the day, I will not be used as scapegoat. One more time, and I will hand that person my badge - and they can do my job if they want the responsibility so damn bad. I don’t need it. I don’t need the headaches. Very tempted to walk out today, but, the streetfighter in me said, “Not Today.”

Going to bed early. Might have some tea - to soften my demeanor a bit.

[FrankoBear]

Mrs Bear and I have a housework system that works OK. We agreed on it when we first moved in together. If we don’t feel like doing housework we don’t do it. That was because at the time we were both young professionals in full time jobs that included middle of the night call outs. The agreement has served us well for twenty something years. That is a clear rule. You’d think the house would be a mess. But it’s not. It’s not an immaculate show home. But art comes first. We are reasonably neat people and have a well designed small home that takes only short bursts of enthusiasm to set right. Of course, Mrs Bear might tweak my cleaning here and there. And I’ll fix things up after she has done a task. But that is allowed, it’s not judgement. Someone might sweep up the pet fur, then the next sees and vacuums the beach sand. It’s an organic system. If we have timetabled guests we work together to makes sure the place is presentable. And we often have guests. We’ll be cleaning up the place together laughing that we like having visitors because we get the house cleaning done. The chores get done.

I know how to do the laundry, cooking, dishes, clean the kitchen etc. my Mum taught me and my brothers as teenagers as she was a working mum. We loved the adventure of cooking roast dinners after getting home from school. Hanging out laundry was often fun in working out how to hang things out to dry the quickest, but also be the most efficient for folding into a basket, to be packed away in wardrobes and drawers. My girlfriends were always impressed that I knew how to do that stuff. I have middle-aged male friends who wouldn’t know how to do the shopping, nor how to cook, and nor how to feed themselves. They say they work full-time so don’t do that stuff.

Carnivore eating is efficient on time kitchen tools and utensils. Fat spatters and around the stove top cleaning can be more regular chores. As is cleaning the oven. I’ll say something about winter cooking on a cast iron wood fire stove, the animal fat spatters get rubbed into the iron to temper it, like a favourite cast iron skillet that is never washed in detergent. But food prep time with is nothing, unless you like to grind your beef and make fancy patties, and most of the foods cook themselves. Carving, butchering meat, or filleting a fish, or jointing a fowl are all very satisfying jobs. I love the work of Dr. Bill Schindler in this aspect.

[Fangs]

@JJFiddle
oh sorry, ohhh…yea if a bit of lemon is wanted on your shrimp that is cool, I thought your post was ‘needing’ it for vit C…sorry on that confusion Alot of carnivores keep some taste condiments for their meals every now and then like a tad of lemon or ? Plus once ya do keep a few tastes you eventually drop them down the line alot of times. I always used a tad of fresh minced garlic when frying my steaks when I started cause I was in love with that taste, til one day, omg it tastes so sweet and icky I dumped garlic.

@Karen18
wonderful pics and yes I am envious that is a fab freezer stockpile!

@Azi
I always did my best life on zc with ribeye. It seems to have that miracle meat/fat ratio that suited me so well!

@SecondBreakfast
wow sorry on that whiteout. I drove many when I lived up North. They are unnerving to say the least. Wow you defending yourself, good for you! You go Carnivore girl!

------------------doing 2 ribeye steaks today also as my food.
keeping it super simple is key for me and I know I thrive on ribeye so that is my focus.

March is coming fast and all of us are doing ok!! Cool!!

[Karen18]

Rotten nights sleep … alevery time before work! Couldn’t drop 9ff so came downstairs, took 2 herbal sleep pills, watched a documentary and went back to bed. Eventually dropped off only to wake up 45 mins later! Arrgh. So up at 4.45am stir runs done, bath, hair and off to work for 4 hours… was it worth it, probably not lol.

Home at 12.45 and eyes ache now. Tucked into 2 large pan-fried pork loin chops and they were delish. Huge difference to grilling on Sunday at my daughters house! They were so tender and I have 2 more for later.

[Karen18]

And another 2 pork loin chops plus I had some cheese. Was so tired I was starting to doze in the chair so went up to bed at 3.15 and lay there wide awake, just like last Friday! Got up and came back downstairs. 8 have munched quite a bit of cheese but I think that’s because i am tired . I shouldn’t have stopped at Tescos on the way home lol … should have gone straight home and eaten

When I was in bed last night just lying there trying to get to sleep I could really feel my heart pumping. I was laying on my left side and it wasn’t just the beat I could feel but the actual pumping like you see on medical programmes. Cant recall feeling that before though I have often felt the beat.

[VirginiaEdie]

@Karen18, I have a problem with histamine. Histamine is mostly in aged foods like meat, cheese, and fermented things like veggies (which you don’t eat) and wines. Seafood tends to be high in histamine.

When I’ve had something with a lot of histamine I will have a pounding heart and palpitations. I will also have something called air hunger, where I just feel like I can’t get a deep enough breath.

Histamine intolerance is dose related, so sometimes I won’t even realize I had a lot of histamine until I wake up with my heart pounding.

Could you be having histamine intolerance trouble?

[SecondBreakfast]

Good afternoon all!
Much better today. Amazing the difference a night’s sleep can make…even if it was Benadryl induced. I was a pretty foul mood yesterday, did not sleep great until 1am when I decided to pop a Bene. That is not something I do often, but after so many nights of on and off sleeping…I had to do something effective.

I just arrived home to a very nicely cleaned house, too! Yippee for kiddo! She did a great job. I just need to sort out of the papers on the dining room table and can tidy that up in a jiffy. The kitchen/dining/living room area is the most frequented of anywhere, so, keeping it clean can be a challenge with two puppers plus us humans. Finally feeling a bit more relaxed. Tomorrow is the only day off, so, gotta make the most of it. I’ll have to sort out the details, but I know that steaks will be involved. =)

Snow is coming down and the winds have started. Good to hunker down tonight and put a fire in the fireplace, me thinks.

Hae a good one.

[robintemplin]

Hurrah for good kids and better days.

[Azi]

Todays food was a lamb shank didn’t eat til about 7pm so im thinking another omad,that makes three days in a row but I’ve not been hungry so I might as well keep it going…funny how eating the fat first made a difference in my hunger… can’t really do that with the shanks don’t have much fat… so be interesting to see if there is a difference.

[JJFiddle]

@fangs Thanks. I didn’t get a lemon, just ate 4 shrimp and we finished the beef roast yesterday. There was a good amount of the shrimp left today, I melted some ghee to dip it, he liked it but I only dipped one, ate the rest with just salt. Next time maybe lemon.
@SecondBreakfast I have a friend in Missoula who is describing their winter temps and snow. It’s a different world up there! Here in the Tx hill country we had a terrible freeze a year ago and we were so, so happy to have the wood stove! It won’t be long till spring - hang in there! Spring is so pretty in the north.

@FrankoBear and @Fangs your advice seems to be paying off, yay! Bought some probiotics and Immodium yesterday and also paid better attention to taking the ox bile and lipase combo, and today - incidentally day 42! - no troubles at all. I could tell almost right away that the probiotic was solidifying, and have used 1 Immodium.

Today we finally got the smoker cleaned up and did a chicken, a pork butt, and a 12 lb brisket. The chicken came off the grill about 7 when I finished teaching and I ate a leg and thigh about 8. Half of the bird went in the freezer. Brisket and pork are still in the smoker. My probe didn’t work so I’ll have to play it by ear. So happy to have done this!

Hamburger and shrimp was lunch.
Food hasn’t tasted great lately, I assume that’s part of the change taking place. The chicken was good but tastes different. I actually think my taste is um… evolving? Hubby thinks I’m hyperfocused and not myself, but that’s happened on other diets from his perspective too. (probably that’s just ketosis.)
Do you think you changed when you started this woe?

[Karen18]

No it was nothing sinister. I have had heart palpitations on many occasions and the feeling like my heart is racing , though when I check my fitbit my pulse rate is normal! No this feeling was totally different and dare I say comforting … it was like my heart was cradled beneath my ribs and I could feel it pulsating … maybe thats a better description, I don’t know, it was a nice feeling but did make me ‘noticed’ it! Someone at work commented that I had lost some weight, this was when I returned after 3 months recovery from the stroke, and I think he was right as I was rubbing my ribs the other day and noticed there was a lot less fat covering them and maybe thats why I noticed the pulsating so much as I lay on my side. Just rambling thoughts. (The weight loss wasn’t deliberate as I don’t need to lose any, I just wasn’t as hungry during that period due to the reduction in my usual activity level.)

That said thank you for your thoughts on it. Oh by the way was it you that I was going to send the B9dy for Life workout templates to? There are so many posts now… I have forgotten who it was. I didn’t send them straight away as I didn’t think it was right time with everyone losing loved ones all at once xx

[Fangs]

Got big Tbone steak for first meal.

Second meal don’t care. Maybe chicken or shrimp or ?? whatever I grab. First steak is a honkin’ big one so second meal won’t be an issue after I inhale this baby

doing well…getting thru the days, looking foward to March and next challenge and fresh new days.

[Karen18]

@SecondBreakfast I definitely empathise with your ‘irritations’ at home. Nothing more annoying than being the only one who knows how to wash up, knows where things get put away, know how to turn the wasing machine on yada yada yada lol. AND there is always some work thing that compounds the way one feels and will upset the apple cart, be the straw that breaks the camels back… I remember a Governor a work that did the same thing to us, in particular to a colleague. We were in video link and had an issue with some video equipment and it just happened to be involving the highest court judge in London who wasn’t best impressed and the governor lied 3 times to the judge. My olleague said same thing to her “just yhrow me under the bus” … the incident was brought to the attention of our #1 Gov and ‘she’ went off sick for 8 months!. Unfortunately she was allowed to return because they always take back the lying deceitful ones and then end up promoting them! Hate liars

Had a better sleep last night and BP way down this morning, lowest its been in a good while. Sure sleep has quite a bit to do with it. Took 2 readings one after the other as i always do and it was 127/70 & 118/66 so well with in ideal range, perhaps my anxiety is subsiding too. Probably be up again on Friday… work day lol

Had a very strange dream this morning. I was putting on a very tight fitting all in one outfit which wasn’t a trendy sexy one lol I could feel how snug it felt against my skin as it was so tight but it wasn’t uncomfortable and I could move freely even though the legs were snug and tight too. Strangely weird eh? If I had to interpret it I would maybe think that it means i am not feeling as stressed, that the anxiety is subsiding and I am maybe feeling secure?

Had a little lay in catching up on my phone then got up and did stair runs. Brunch was one of the ribeye steaks I sliced up and put in freezer. It was very tasty and yummy delish looking forward to eating more of them. So pleased cos it would have been a chore getting through them if they weren’t as nice as they looked. I have a rump steak for later… let’s hope that it as nice. Been panfrying in left er bacon grease and it has just added a slightly salty taste which is lovely.

Lazy day today as the winds are still a bit blustery and although the sun is shining on and off its quite cold. I have had to put heating on as my hands are freezing. I was going to try and get the plants back outside but will leave that for the weekend when these winds are supposed to die down so I am still living in a jungle

[VirginiaEdie]

Oh by the way was it you that I was going to send the B9dy for Life workout templates to?

I think it was for @Redrobins.

[SecondBreakfast]

Round 2 of the snow storm hit yesterday. Woke up at 530am to learn school was cancelled. Its not the snow that causes the closures, its the high winds coupled with the snow - then the bus drivers can’t see the road. Some of the higher elevations got 14 inches overnight. Its very peaceful here now, so taking some time to relax, re-group, exercise a little, and drink lots of water.

I have a couple steaks thawing out for lunch and dinner, but might take out a few more to thaw and cook for the next few days. Starting tomorrow, on another 4 day stretch, with mixed shifts.

Well, better get off my bum and try to tidy up my bedroom, and get some laundry done. Have a blessed day, all!

[robintemplin]

@Shinita
Where are you? You okay?

[Fangs]

first meal coming soon but not all that hungry to fry up just yet.
hmm

1.78 lb…no clue on bone weight, gonna chew on that bone too HA when I decide to fry it up but I love meat cooked from warm and out vs cold and from fridge so this baby can sit til I wanna have at it.

[Karen18]

@Fangs that steak looks so yummy hope it tasted as good as it looked raw. I also prefer the steak at room temperature, it just cooks so much better and most of mine are done that way cos I prefer to defrost them rather than cook from frozen and I generally, not always, defrost on the side rather than in fridge.

This was my dinner, a lovely thick rump. Nicely defrosted on the side, unwrapped to get to room temp and allow air to it and once cooked left to sit for same time as cooking it and it was delish and so tender. Took a while to eat but I am a slow eater and like to chew well before swallowing to get the full juicyness of the meat. Yum. Eaten some cheese too.

[JJFiddle]

Well, thought I’d be over the D but up lastnight for 2 hours running back and forth from the couch to the bathroom. It is good to have these 4 supplements to help with it - in 2019 when I did keto/OMAD I had no clue how to mitigate it. When I finally added the evening snack it went away - and I was @the 3 month mark so possibly better adapted.
Had smoked pork butt and brisket I did

yesterday. We each had 1 slice of each, not all that you see on the platter. From fridge, I seared it a little in duck fat.
He said the pork was amazing. I can’t taste meat much yet, I’m thinking I’m waiting on my digestive adaptation to catch up. Nothing tastes much like anything
The cold has returned here! High today around freezing. We go out in a couple hours to play at the country bar - I hope they can warm the place.
Oh! I didn’t mention I’ve been drinking my morning coffee black and no hwc until after lunch. Better.

[JJFiddle]

That rump looks beautiful!

[Shinita]

Hi guys, I am alive (sorry Robin!!!) just couldn’t handle my internet addiction anymore and took out my wifi card for longer this time (it didn’t help enough but at least I didn’t think about food all the time).

I heard about Fangs’s mom and read back and I see there were more though not that very close losses. My condolences to all, I am not good with words in this situation…

@Karen18: I never heard about fatsia spider web but it’s BEAUTIFUL!!!

I brought pics! Nothing new except the hellebores are blooming (and there are way more snowdrops):

Well nope, I forgot our first crocuses came out! Not a good photo but I only have this now, I shouldn’t forget to go out and make a better now, with multiple flowers!

But of course, it’s still February so not a very green scenery at one of my fav places in the wildlife park…

Alvaro catched something at work and I was kinda sick for several days, nothing serious just some very slight cold but I am not used to it. Maybe being a hermit did bad to my immune system… Or my supressed general life stress? Oh well, I will get better at it again.
I obviously lost all will to try anything, I ate whatever, whenever. It wasn’t so great first as I didn’t do OMAD. But the monthly fast came and I do OMAD-ish since. My food is mostly carnivore as how else would I eat except for rare periods, Alv made a great somewhat carby dish I love and didn’t eat since ages maybe a week ago. I still love it and it felt great so I am so looking forward to have it again but I am in no hurry. But I embrace my lil extras as

1. I don’t want to get bored of meat again
2. They are nice and feels great and don’t even trigger overeating. Trying even a bit hard just backfires in my life.
   I surely will have my challenges and I really should be careful not to let things get out of hand - but even then, it’s just too much fat like today, okay, my carb intake could be lower too but I just can’t go too high as I prefer carni food, apparently.

I made something new! I bought some interesting pork chops. I googled a lot as I didn’t understand the cut and it was in Hungarian… It turned out there are interesting fatty pieces around there and sometimes the slab contains them too! It was AWESOME and I opened my big packed of bacon after 2 months(?) and used it generously on the proper meat… It was a match made in heaven, I must tell you. Beautiful as well! I definitely will make this again, I guess any leaner cut will do.

It was several days ago, I had chicken and pork chuck since then (both roasted, I used spice on the chicken legs as they are so tasteless normally), we bought it at a market we never used before, the chicken was okay, not much taste but a tender, easy to eat thing for variety… But the chuck was disappointing. It wasn’t bad, per se, I ate it up but it wasn’t nearly as enjoyable as usual.
I still have pork shoulders and we really will make beef stew already… I guess this weekend. But it’s up to Alvaro, he eats meat now after 5 vegetarian days and who knows when he will have enough? But he should be okay with it for the weekend.
We had egg stew, well, I am not so much into it anymore. And I fried potatoes today and tasted the crispiest pieces and OMG, they have starch flavor now!!! What. (I am aware they are starchy, obviously but I always felt nice potato flavor before. It was one of my HUGE fav for decades.)
Oh well, I won’t exactly mourn them if I can’t eat them anymore due to taste changes, I have lots of other things to eat and it’s not like I had much in the last decade (except when I had phases after 5 years almost completely without them. but I changed since).

I still have my sponge cake bread phase now, I use twice as many whites than yolks now. Pretty awesome. Best bread ever even in its deflated way…

I started to track again, I couldn’t without internet, I have notes but I may or may not be diligent enough to track my first OMAD day (I won’t the rest) when I probably ate A TON. My calories dropped since. Now I automatically have a little deficit even when I do “everything wrong” with my food choices like much added fat and my single meal being elongated (one may say it’s two meals but they are quite close).

We will see what will happen, I stick to this new style now.
My strange 76kg period came and went, I am below 75kg again. I wish to go lower already. I am this weight since 15 months, I was 69 or a bit more or less for 8 years before… I had enough though it’s still not one of my most important problems. But it seems a good time to lose, I never will eat less than this.
Oh my exercise. I got weak as a kitten even with my tiiiiny cold so I stopped my workouts. Then the weather was cold and I didn’t want to go out with my sore throat and funny nose, then my sleep got horrible… So I am sedentary now but I want to change it coming tomorrow.

The weather is sunny every day again and it’s not very cold for February. Sometimes pretty warm and I better go out in a t-shirt… We need to heat the house way less now and as it happens with the AC, it costs very little. Significantly less than $1 a day, we don’t know exactly as we don’t measure the AC alone. Heating, hot water and cooking is still below $1. But we have spent much on insulation and it’s not a big house. And at least my room gets sunshine, the others very little.

Tomorrow I go to check out the pasque flowers again… After a proper sleep AT NIGHT, I hope. As I sleep, just not when I should. And that causes various problems.
But it seems I don’t need as much sleep as before. Hard to tell as I don’t take notes and I always was okay with less sleep for a little while (it means 6 hours, not less but my average should be way higher).
My energy is okay, my mood had problems. So I think my noticeably higher energy that started several weeks ago(?) is still here. Bad sleep interferes but I am sure I am more okay energy wise. Good.

[VirginiaEdie]

Those are some lovely photographs!

[Azi]

Seems I’m on a omad cycle …todays meal was two smallish chuck eye steak about a 1.1lbs in total.
Good news is that I dropped the 4lbs I put on so back to 5lbs lost since coming back from nebraska.
Maybe it will keep going one can only hope.

[JJFiddle]

@Shinita so good to see you and read your post! Glad you’re here. Lovely spring pics.

We went to the country bar to play tonight and it was SO cold in there. They had trouble with heating. I I played fiddle wearing fingerless gloves and we all wore overcoats. I’m still chilled, it will be good to get under the covers tonight.
When we came in I took another probiotic, bile and lipase, drank a weak scotch and soda, and fixed us eggs and smoked chicken breast. That hit the spot. If I have to get up tonight I’ll take another Immodium after - I’m starting to get this now. I may have this another 6 weeks but meanwhile I’ve stopped the gabapentin, all the vitamins except vitamin D, and feeling less in pain than I have in 5 years. That makes adaptation well worth the wait.

[Fangs]

it was delish and so tender. Took a while to eat but I am a slow eater and like to chew well before swallowing to get the full juicyness of the meat.

beauty meat pic and full on tender and juicy, best combo remember old days your mom gave ya ‘something healthy to eat’ and we could barely choke it down but mom wanted us to eat it for health…well it stinks eating stuff that is icky, but darn you made your chewing experience on your rump sound so darn good HAHA

I didn’t mention I’ve been drinking my morning coffee black and no hwc until after lunch. Better.

good for you. steps in a direction you want to go and you are doing well.

some brutal temps out there with some big snow storms around for so many…let’s ALL say EARLY spring and maybe it will happen faster, lol.

remember. big fatty meat into us ups the possibility of D during adaption, leaner cuts of meat or seafood are good options to help control D while you adapt.

your meat pics are stellar, I would be ALL OVER that but it is super high fat content which is great if you are thru adaption and doing fine HA but again, watch that fat intake for a tiny bit and keep those OTCs around to help you thru the D days. you’ll be ok sooner than later I would think.

Good news is that I dropped the 4lbs I put on so back to 5lbs lost since coming back from nebraska.

big diff. from being out of our element and on the road traveling eating and more right? Nothing like home for our kitchen and food control and our comfort Super happy you are doinjg great Azi!!

---------------------GOT ribeye for today. 2 nice steaks. coming in at around just shy of 2 lbs. for both steaks. I think that will be it but if required I do have some burgers around if I need that little extra but I think today is just that ribeye day.

Keeping life very simple. Easy. No drama. Non-taxing. Just being.
I like it.

Kid says when ya gonna go and do a big grocery shop? We are out of everything and I said, I got a freezer jam packed with beef, pork, chicken, seafood and I find I don’t need to shop and she got all flustered LOL and it was fun to watch her squirm HAHA I said go eat the lovely cucumber in the fridge and she said it went mushy and I said eat that lovely lettuce ya got in the fridge, and she said it went brown and wimpy and icky and I said, well looks like you are ■■■■ out of luck I tell ya I love playing mind games with the carby eaters!!

So yea a grocery shop to buy crap will have to happen sooner than later. I am getting where the grocery means nothing to me. Stock up on toilet paper and meat, what else do I require? Nothing LOL too funny

Carnivore on strong into March guys!!

[FrankoBear]

With rump steak, I think it’s better to cook it less. It gets so tough to chew when it’s medium cooked. Nothing wrong with chewing.

I’ve lost 2 inches of belly fat this February. The medications have created some resistance to losing more. My mental capacity has been hitting about 75% and I have been getting some headaches as I deal with bureaucracy and office politics. There’s some new managers on the mountain that think telling people what to do gets things done. My philosophy with work and employees is to choose hirings wisely, then keep out of their way. The right people will surprise you, if you trust them. The mangers won’t be here long. They’ll make some changes. They’ll make some mistakes. And they’ll leave for the ladder climb, if it looks like they made some money. When they leave, they’ll leave me alone. I am getting stronger, feeling better.

Dinner at the mother-in-laws sees me slip into keto for one meal and a glass of red wine. It was my mum’s 80th birthday on Tuesday just gone. She said I could come for dinner but to bring my own food. Mum and brother had Japanese dumplings. This little piggy had roast beef. I beat them at cards… happy birthday mum. Family card games can be gladiatorial. No holds barred. Card games are a good test for mental clarity. That includes keeping track on an elderly relative’s mental state. Mum would crush me and my brothers, when the cards fall for her. Not only do I play my own cards, I play the other players’ cards as well, as best as I can guess them. But on ZC those guesses are sharp and clear.

Rump steak the past two nights with 2 rashers short cut bacon. Not my favourite bacon style as it is not fatty enough. So, I add a bit of butter. 2MAD with a NoFUN breakfast of 3 pasture fed chicken eggs, 3 rashers of bacon cooked in tallow. I get out in the sunshine and do some outdoor chores, the weather is nice and not too hot. But the computer requires more of my time as I navigate work needs and wants. I’ll have to get in the ocean tomorrow.

I have an appointment with the nutritionist tomorrow. I had a poo sample sent off a few weeks ago for gut biota testing, to see if there are any tweakable ideas for my WOE. The joint pain of the past few months is fading. But I have had some oxalate dumping (or diabetic) symptoms like increased urination, and some night time muscle cramps. So I have made sure to drink a large mug of salty bone broth each day as part of the plan. But I am also adding extra magnesium supplement twice daily.

This evening I was walking in the woods on our block of land checking trees and bees.

[Karen18]

The buds are blooming nicely @Shinita and the meat looks lush too. Nice to see you back and hope you are more or less over the cold. Nice you have sunshine while we have had storm Dudley, Eunice and Franklin and today albeit sunny at times it still gusty and was snowing/hailing a little earlier. My jungle is still indoors but hoping to be able to put them back outside over the weekend if I have enough time. Yes the fatsia spiders web if a gorgeous plant but should be outdoors … just arrived in time for the onset of the 3 storms one after the other they all look okay inside and are safe at least which id main thing. Need to put the palm into a bigger tub and I bought 2 plastic half barrel type containers at £7 ea which will be less likely to blow over in high winds. Blimey its like caring for children/pets lol x

[JJFiddle]

@FrankoBear beautiful sunset I could just fall into! Love that little patch of blue at the top.
@Karen18 nothing wrong with a jungle in the house for awhile if they’re all healthy, great benefits for you! You should have fun moving them out this weekend
@fangs Thanks, as always. Yep I know fat makes that happen more, somewhere I read it speeds adaptation. Seems the D is is mainly @night so at least I’m not on stage! (that would be real stage fright, lol). Brisket and pork butt are fat cuts for sure! I have some tilapia, maybe should thaw that too for today.
Glad you’re calmer, just being… It takes awhile. LOL@ hassling the high carb fam!

I’m playing better, mainly thinking faster since everything in this type of music is improvisation. In my 20s when I was doing long fasts I played solos with the Air Force Orchestra and remember that sharp high of accuracy during fasts. Now we know that was just ketosis, and that’s what I’m getting now. I’ve only been a country fiddler for about 6 months, the songs are new to me. Half the stuff the singer pulls out during gigs is new to us, and next thing I hear is “fiddle solo!” I’m watching his chords, fingers flying, wow. ZC a huge help. This trio is me, hubby on bass, and the singer/guitarist. What a ride.

[robintemplin]

Beautiful! Glad you know how to get your leg cramps under control. Same way for me. But they’re less often and not as severe since going keto.
Let us know your poo report!

[robintemplin]

@Fangs Guilty confession: Hubby originally started keto with me and lost a LOT of weight. Then I went Carni and he went off everything and went crazy. He is a Snacker Supreme. All carbs. Much beefier these days.

Have to admit I like him better now… I think it should be a law that guys can’t fit into their wive’s jeans. Sure, I care about his health. But my mental health is important too, right guys?

[Azi]

Congratulations on your loss of inches thats awesome…
Good luck on your visit with your nutritionist keep us posted as to what they advise

[Karen18]

@Fangs so funny … cucumber mushy and lettuce all wimpy and brown lol. How come our steaks don’t get like that? hmmm don’t think I need an answer to that hhaha No wastage in this house!

@FrankoBear well done on your loss of inches, going in the right direction.
Why do managers feel that they have to ‘sweep clean’ … its a global phenomena lol. Dont they realise we all think of them as planks! I can’t tell you how many times our regimes have changed at work as new managers take over and think their idea is best, they don’t consult the staff on the ground floor and when they do they don’t listen! We always end up back to what worked years ago and some hierarchy goes off thinking it was all their idea and -oh how clever am I?’
Beautiful photo yet again. Wish I had a food camera and the skill to use it!

Well I had a reasonable sleep last night but back to work tomorrow so will I be able to say the same again in the morning?

I was struggling a bit with my stair runs this morning for some reason, my BP was elevated a tad bit from yesterday’s really low BP but more in line with what my BP normally is. I wasn’t sure whether I should head to CrossFit but as my heart rate recovered very quickly and I felt I hadn’t exercised I decided to go. It was a pairs workout and I paired with the young police guy who had a stroke just before me. He has his fitness back to a high level too and is an ardent CrossFitter and we did very well together. I wasn’t going to put myself under any pressure and was going to take it easy but I ended up pushing myself fully as per! Felt good though and coach was keeping a careful eye on us.

Came home about 1130 and by about 12.30 was eating a ribeye for my brunch. Another of the ones I sliced up the other day. Absolutely gorgeous and really enjoyed. Very tender.

Had a bit of cheese during the afternoon. I had got another rump steak out of freezer this morning and while it was airingout of the packet on the side i decided to cook some bacon so had a plate of bacon then cooked the rump in the salty bacon grease. Just felt i needed some salt. It was blooming loverly, I have got panfrying my steaks off to an art. Very very tender and rare, I could have sliced it with a spoon! And salty enough from the bacon fat.

Well as I said I am at work tomorrow, I have a 6 hour shift so will get there for 7am and leave at 1pm. I have been given the weekend off, they reimbursed me the leave I lost while recovering from the stroke. I think I will take a couple of herbal tablets an hour before going up and maybe I will be able to drop off to sleep as easily as I do when I don’t have work next day! have to be up at 4.45am.

[Jesty]

Boy can you guys eat!!

[Shinita]

@robintemplin: Mental health is very important indeed… But he should decide how he wants to look.

I never was attracted to fat people at all (well some girls can be very sexy even fat - sadly, not me not like I wouldn’t want to be slim for health then and I never cared about my appearance much - but not the men. not like I ever wanted a man, I am probably a demipansexual androgyn). Muscles look good but I always preferred slim, somewhat feminine boys. But with some proper build if it makes sense. Slim but still okay not pathetic. I struggle with English here but I am not into this modern pc-ness anyway. I can’t imagine why some people has problem with almost neutral facts.
So my SO looks good to me at 65kg for his 176cm though I start to appreciate more muscles now But he lifts now (only chest presses as it’s the only exercise I need his help and he is bored and does the exercise himself while I am resting. and he is stronger than me just a tiny bit and I use bigger weights in a single special shoulder exercise, we checked that once… sigh. I can’t even have the upper hand in the beginning when he is very untrained and I have years of experience. oh well, I only am in a race with myself) so it may be fine, our bodies may evolve with our changing aesthetics a bit

Vegs vs meat… We don’t have problem with waste in this household but plant prices shot up VERY spectacularly in the last years here. While meat didn’t do much except beef but that was too expensive for me anyway and it still wasn’t THAT intense. My pork is as cheap as ever, yay. Chicken drumsticks never have those awesome sales anymore but it doesn’t matter to me, it still way cheaper than pork but mostly useless to me.
I know we have a huge inflation all the time here but it really got out of hand lately…
I promised Alvaro I will eat even less vegs from now on Though it’s not so easy to lower my intake as it’s so tiny. Today I ate 40g leek but only because Alvaro doesn’t eat the very green part raw (I usually put it into some cooked dish but I won’t make it now) and I definitely won’t throw it out, vegetable is so expensive and precious but I never waste food anyway. It was nice in my scambled eggs (it may be green but more onion than grass) and as I eat 3 eggs like that every day, some variety is good.
Almost all my plant eating lately happen out of necessity, not because I desire them. I just can’t stomach anything else at that point easily. I have low-meat days now, I am not into meat at the moment but Alvaro will make beef stew in the weekend, we talked about it and he said he hadn’t eat too much meat lately so it’s fine. Yay.

Can I show my plate even if it has green stuff I wonder… I wanted to show my frikadeller… Nope. So no photo about that. But know that my frikadeller looked fab. It wasn’t THAT great as it turned out, some yolk and frying in lard just can’t balance out the leanness of the meat. Alvaro obviously loved it. It’s so great when I can make food for both of us at the same time…

I had duck neck soup, sponge cake muffin bread (I so, so love them but I wrote about my phase last time) with dry sausage and other things when I couldn’t eat more carni food. Oh and sour cream, I ate some with my scrambled eggs.

I will try to be stricter but my priorities are right and my primary goals are OMAD and enjoying my food enough to be able to eat enough… I still ate a bit too little today or we will see.
I don’t focus on my carbs much as no way I would go too high. But I better am careful, I am prone to go unnecessarily high (still keto) when I get bored of my food and/or fancy to make something interesting for Alvaro.
It’s good I have some leftover meat for tomorrow. And eggs are my love… Even though I don’t eat soooo many of them now. Hence the danger, low-meat, low-egg, it can’t end well if continues.

Oh! I feel healthy again (except my poor back sometimes… I need some specific exercise, my left shoulder is aching too often) and did my workout. I am a tiny bit weaker but my muscles are probably fine, my mood, willpower is worse, I don’t wanna try hard. BUT I did my workout and next time will be better!
I made some lazy quick shots, no good ones, blinding sunshine and no mood to play with settings but well, it shows how I see them myself, BLINDING sunshine, really It feels SPRING!!! Our daffodils have huge buds already!
And our first crocuses are blooming:

[robintemplin]

Mental health is very important indeed… But he should decide how he wants to look.

I agree, of course. He does get to decide. Just admitting I like beefy guys, and he aint one. Even when he eats all these carbs, he’s pretty fit, works out, etc.
Just has a bit of a belly. Me likey

[Shinita]

Carbs don’t necessarily ruin figures, Alvaro even slims down very easily eating them. He doesn’t work out much yet but he run and cycles sometimes and he has massive thighs IDK how he does it with his tiny weight but his thighs are very impressive
Okay he is 70kg now. It’s hard for him to stick to 65kg. He already is hungry a lot at maintaining this weight. Not very much but the 8.5-9 hours between breakfast and lunch is often too long for him. (I would starve so much with that timing.)

Sigh. I always was chubby. It gets boring. I really, really am hopeful about 2022. But I won’t try hard.

[robintemplin]

You do you, Shinita! That’s why we all love reading your posts!

[Azi]

Ribeye was my meat today but I ate it two hours early if was a big one and I ate it all and paid for it I felt stuffed over stuffed for about 30 mins

[Fangs]

@FrankoBear
so enjoyed your post and knocking off 2 in. is stellar! and Feb isn’t even over yet so you are truly getting results. Time on zc is key and you are putting in the time

work…ppfffttt…get involved only as you must, close your ears to the rest of it and forget it LOL best way to make it as stress free as can be.

Happy Birthday Mum!

@JJFiddle
you are right…I think it was the Bear that said originally that if you eat very lean, keep taking ox bile and keep ‘doctoring’ too much on the dreaded D while adapting you will just prolong the darn thing forever. Sometimes a short suffer is better than a longer one thru adaption

@Karen18, ohhh that 4:45am! know it so well. I am so glad I am early retired now HAHA

@Azi
very rare isn’t it for us to get that over stuffed feeling on our meats but there are a few times I can do it also just like you…annoying isn’t it LOL I remember old days feelihg like that alot, now the rare time I get it I don’t like it at all but nice thing is it does go away fast and isn’t as bad as feeling like a carby stuffed turkey on other foods.

----------------my ribeye was delish. only ate 1. filled me up enough where I didn’t want ribeye 2. I had last of the leftover chicken and a big beef stick and few slices of salami and a tin of sardines as meal 2…not ideal but I couldn’t handle another big steak. That baby is for first meal today. I defrosted some burger meat so I don’t eat low quality carnivore food as second meal like I did last night…best to always stay on good meat proteins instead of snacky type junk.

All good…marching into March and Feb is wrapping up and it seems all of us in the group are doing very well and enjoying our plan and getting changes and more better to come for all of us on this lifestyle!!

[Azi]

Got on the scale down another pound that makes 6 gone total …tonight’s food will be another ribeye … I seem to be doing well on them… and I really do enjoy them.

[Karen18]

@Azi well done on the loss. I love ribeyes too and so glad my freezer stash are very very tasty !

Well as predicted the sleep never came last night even after taking a couple of herbal sleep tablets! I was back downstairs watching a bit of first dates on TV then back to bed. Eventually drifted off but was very restless and up again for some loo trips. Up at 4.45am stair running which felt better than the day before which I always find when i do stair running so early in the morning. Then driving into work and thinking oooh the mornings are getting lighter! Spring is on the way. Still cold and a bit windy but weather meant to improve over weekend.

6hr shift listening to prisoners droning on. That and people coming in interrupting and talking loudly … for ages … frazzled my head and I had to go make myself a brew just to get away lol… I know any excuse for a brew lol. I finished at 1pm and was soon home and in my pj’s resting up. Off to bed very shortly!

This afternoon I had some cheddar cheese, 5 thin slices of smoked ham, 2 small cooked chicken thighs and just had a ribeye steak. Idn’t bother with a photo 9f the steak because you can scroll up the last couple of days and see the same size ribeye off the same chunk of meat lol. Don’t want anything else, rather full but not stuffed. Very rare I feel stuffed. I was thinking about that this morning and that i was always feeling stuffed before this woe which I guess was because the meat and ‘2 veg’ don’t really bode well together in the gut ultimately causing the bloated feeling as they fight for heads pace along the digestive tract! Of course if the steak is ahead then the veggies just rot behind it causing the gasses to build up. I think eating as slowly as I do also helps because it gives my brain plenty time to tell my gut that I am full. I rarely put too much on my plate now. I know if it is in front of me I will want to clean the plate but if its not and I am still hungry I can always cook some more … I rarely need to cook any more now.

Well as 8 said it will be a very early night and hopefully will get some good sleep. CrossFit tomorrow morning and the start of the CrossFit Open competition. I wasn’t going to enter this year partly cos of my blip and partly cos I was struggling with the app to register. Anyway one of the coaches talked me round on Friday and told me to register through the website so I did… I am so easily persuaded lol I have had a look at tomorrow wod and it looks a good one… no bar work just wall walks DB snatches and box jump overs amraps in 15 mins. Looking forward to it now. Then there will be 2 more weekend wods to complete. I did it in 2018 &19 and was proud of how well i did and the coach said this will be a good guage for when I do the games again next year to see how much I have improved … said I can look back and say 2022 was just after the stroke and this is where I am now! He said there’s no pressure from anyone … I had to laugh because I will put pressure on myself lol.

So will catch up with everyone again tomorrow. Night night carnifam x

[Alecmcq]

Weird outcome of carnivore: very rough skin I have had on my knees for years has decided to fall off. Not all at once, but I noticed today lots of skin coming off leaving lovely new smooth skin underneath! Wow!

[robintemplin]

You go girl!

[Alecmcq]

One of my Feb goals was to eat 12 different meats. I am up to 9, and have just got some venison salami so I am now up to 10. Think I may struggle to get the other 2.

[Juells]

Hi everyone! I started carnivore three days ago after reading a lot about it. I lost 40 lbs on keto between Nov 2020 and Mar 2021 and have kept it off. I would like to lose another 40, kick my joint pain to the curb, gain lean muscle, plus myriad other side benefits along the way. No real issues so far, but I tend to fat adapt pretty quickly.

I have a hard time eating animal fat and organs . I’ve been using butter and some Avo oil for extra fat and take freeze dried liver capsules. I eat ribeye, eggs, pork chops, and 85/15 ground beef mainly. Any tips for learning to eat fat and organs? Thank you, and I look forward to the journey!

[Alecmcq]

Any tips for learning to eat fat and organs?

Fat: take it slowly, eat a little and see how you react. If OK eat a little more. I love meat fat: sweet!!

Organs: I eat pate. You’ve got to be careful what’s in the pate, but a well made pate is mostly organ meat.

[robintemplin]

I think you can slowly work up to liking fattier meats. (Fatty brisket makes me break out into song)

But I’ll never eat organs. Nope. Can’t make me. Not gonna happen. More power to those who do! But i just can’t and I have done really well on carnivore since switching from keto. Not really a conscious decision… just kinda naturally slid into it and feel fabulous. I love keto tho too. Just found my current happy place. Fat, Yay. Organs, gag.

[JJFiddle]

Hi everybody, long and good day here.
@Karen18 good luck in your competition! Will be looking forward to hearing about it!

You guys can really put down some food. I hardly even finish a steak.

@Juells having done keto, you will love the progress you see in this woe. Today is my 45th day on Carni. I’ve done low carb and keto for over 12 years, OMAD for 3 years, but in contrast, progress on so many levels in carnivore. You’ll like this group too, no nonsense compared to so much of what you read on the net and fb.
On keto I ate so many different kinds of food, I probably had food sensitivities like nuts, different veggies, etc that I wasn’t ever aware of.
Your 40 lb loss last year is phenomenal, and the fact you kept it off.

This morning I made my raw dog food, looks like 23 days worth and only about $9 expenditure. She loves liver treats so I dry liver and feed it separate, as well as chicken breast. I was proud I got it all done, foil wrapped, and frozen.
Shopping day. Lots of good meat! Beautiful rib eyes, boneless beef ribs, wild Texas boar, raw jumbo shrimp. It’s about the same price as all those veggies were, now I buy minimal produce as hubby is easily pleased and doesn’t require all the variety I used to buy.
We ate at the brewery. Big rib eye for me with mineral water, quite good. He wishes I’d drink beer with him and eat more food. I wish he wouldn’t take so long messing around with so many dishes! But it’s partly my fault, I give him my side orders
Tonight I finally cut up all the brisket and pork butt and put it in the freezer (forgot to snap a photo before bagging it all.) Heated & devoured a couple slices of the brisket while I was at it.

Looks like I’ve pulled in my belt about 6 notches since starting carni - that’s about 30 lbs I think. Have completely stopped gabapentin for the sciatica and arthritis, and my knees are better.
@Alecmcq I’m not surprised your skin is healing, all that good fat is so good for your connective tissue! Congrats.
@fangs Ty! I think it’s slowly improving. Ox bile rocks!

(raw dog food)

[Azi]

Yep I try to eat a min of 1lb of meat for my one meal…
I want to keep my protein up so i dont lose hair haha lol sometimes its a bit over and it’s a bit much…

[Fangs]

@Karen18
that will be a wild competition, comparing the old you against after your medical issues. Don’t go hurting yourself now K! That is an order

Sounds like work is getting that annoying factor…I am not a super loud busy blah blah blah type person either. One perk to working my farm, I loved the animal noises, never liked a herd of people noises HA

@Azi
another one bites the dust, another bites the dust, and another one gone, and another one gone, another bites the dust…as Azi bites the ribeye Happy you are getting results!

@Alecmcq
yea our skin is our biggest organ and can easily show us big changes. It can rash out while we adapt or it can clear up very fast and change as we eat carnivore…I even had a mole just fall off me. I was thinking of hitting surgery to get that thing whacked off cause it hit my back part of my bra strap and was annoying as heck, one day I got out of shower, wiped my back and bam, this little ol’ brown/black thing was on the ground, size of a dime and I was like, WTH? Hit the mirror and checked, my mole sluffed right off. Amazing. Never would I think that would happen but it sure did Very happy your new carnivore skin is wonderful

@Juells
Welcome, carnivore on strong!
You truly do not have to eat organs if you don’t like them. Charles Washington, Kelly Hogan and just tons of others never eat them and those 2 are like 20 yrs into zc and Kelly is like 13? yrs now so…they are flourishing and you will too without them. I tried the dried organ pills, very expensive and I don’t think they did one darn thing for me. Rather put that money on meat and seafood but I do know alot of carnivores do take them but alot of them also just buy liver, cut into small small pill size hunk and freeze. Pop out a couple and swallow. Boom, liver done. I don’t even do that tho.

So organs, research the internet and there are of course tons of ways to cook each of them but in the end, not many of us are organ crazy, but darn if ya get @Naghite on the site to chat organs with that, that person is an organ magician Defintely is eating and enjoying all the organs.

@JJFiddle
6 notches on the ol’ belt! You are doing so wonderful JJ

love your dog food and I know your dog loves you because of that effort put into that food!

I loved your eating out story. Oh yea…I gave all those sides to my hubby also. He would be surrounded by plate after plate of food and on part of the table would be my 1 glass of water and a plate with just meat on it…funny I can so see you guys just like that! Longer ya go the more he won’t even eyeball ya anymore, eventually eating out like that becomes the normal again and all is good and calm at the table

------------being back on ribeye again for a few days. I gotta tell ya, something magical about that cut of meat for me personally. Feeling body good!

today is another 1 lb. ribeye to start day. Second meal, got burgers

I have alot of NY Strips and Tbones in freezer thru sales cause I fell in love with them again, now I want ribeyes again HA so I will feed slowly the family the other steaks, I am hitting grocery for ribeye stock pile and just love my food as I always do!

End of month coming fast…are we the ‘March of the Carnivores’ again next month like we were last year…or new title? Anyone got thoughts?

Zc on strong all!

[Karen18]

@JJFiddle great to hear how well you’re doing on this woe. Also your weight loss, wow and health benefits, wow fantastic news you must be feeling amazing with those differences. Well done
Smiling about your hubby wishing you ate more lol, doesn’t he like eating alone hahaha. Mind you I eat really slowly and when I am out for a meal with my daughter and her hubby they eat far more than me with all the veggies and sides etc and they still finish before me. I like to savour my meat only fayre

@Fangs I would have loved to listen to the herds … much better than loud people … I just want to tell them to put a cork in it lol can’t let my BP go up so it is better I just go make a brew hahaha.
Funny how we go off to other meats every now and again and when we return to beef its just an ahhh feeling… you can just taste the benefits.

Well I got a fair sleep in last night. Went to bed at 7pm and was probably asleep by about 7.45pm after playing some solitaire. Then awake just after 9pm. Went downstairs cos I realised I’d got the heating on, thought I had just put the hot water on but no so I switched it all off and went back to bed. Got to be on the button, just had notification from British Gas that the bills go up by 54% in April woke a few times and popped to loo but managed to get back to sleep. Dreamt a lot which is normal and woke up before 7am. Alarm was set for 7.45 but I got up about 20 past 7 and got on with stair runs. Off to CrossFit for the CrossFit Open Games and was in heat one. I had cooled down abit from the stair runs by the time we started the Open but still think I did okay. We will see how I faired against everyone else in the masters by Monday night. Masters is over 55’s and you can either do it rx’d or scaled. I did rx’d as I don’t see the point otherwise. The only difference between under 55’s and over 55’s is the weight is slightly less, all the other moves are same. It was very gassy but really enjoyed it and it was nice to have the atmosphere again after covid put a hold on everything for so long. I love doing it but I love even more cheering everyone else on when its their heat. I lost my voice hahah when you look at the workout it doesn’t sound hard but those wall walks were a killer and you have to get your chest against the wall in the top of the movement. Lots of rules for each exercise and you have to get them correct else you get the dreaded ‘NO REP’ and no one wants to have that said to them haaha its soul destroying!

Came home later than usual on a Saturday cos of cheering all the other heats and had brunch of smoked ham and cheddar cos I forgot to get the steaks out before going out this morning… will eat those later.

[Shinita]

It’s not a must to eat organs… But you may try out different ones from different animals to see if you like some of them. But it’s okay not to.

Oh, I am envious, I would LOVE to eat fat (okay, I do it, I just focus on keeping it as low as possible and my added fat close to zero) but I eat way too much fat from my eggs and meat sometimes and I like other items as well. You probably eat leaner meats or less food than me… Yeah, pork chops, that’s extremely lean, I can’t even eat it without bacon or some other trick… I like egg yolks too but I really do my best to eat more whites to balance out my fatty meats… Whole eggs are pretty fatty too especially when eaten in a way where some added fat is included, I never use much but it can add up and help with eating more fat. There are nice fatty dairy items but you didn’t mention them so I guess you have some reason for it. Maybe focus on a bit fattier meat, just what is still enjoyable and comfortable for you. I have a range, I can enjoy leaner and fattier meats alike (lean is a problem but there are ways to have some) so when I need to change my fat intake, I try to focus on the right kind. And just because I find some cut too lean, it doesn’t mean another cut with a similar fat content wouldn’t be nice, it’s odd but happens…

And if you ask me, butter is such a joy to eat! I don’t eat it all alone anymore and only a little as it’s one of the things I must avoid as much as I can if I want to lose fat but it’s so great Many people put butter on some leaner (or even fattier, I can imagine that) meat, I don’t but I have my 99-100% eggy muffins I use as bread… I doubt I will ever not want buttery sandwiches. I never really liked sandwiches despite being charmed by some ingredients in it but it turned out I just disliked the bread. Without bread (well, with my egg bread muffins :D) they are wonderful. I even add some dry, very fatty sausage so yeah, eating enough fat isn’t a problem for me… mmm, fat. I just don’t eat it all alone, I eat it with meat unless it’s an egg dish. There are some cute egg dishes with lots of fat - I don’t go there as eggs are already so fatty only a bit is okay but each to their own, mayo and egg benedicts are popular among normal people while me, the huge fat lover can’t stand their fattiness… I tolerate very fatty meat better.
So… There are options, hopefully you will find your way. But if your body can’t handle much fat in the beginning or ever (I had that for a short time), you can simply eat higher protein, lower fat if that works better. Way easier to do when one doesn’t need a ton of calories.

[Septimius]

I have a hard time eating animal fat and organs . I’ve been using butter and some Avo oil for extra fat and take freeze dried liver capsules. I eat ribeye, eggs, pork chops, and 85/15 ground beef mainly. Any tips for learning to eat fat and organs? Thank you, and I look forward to the journey!

As the others have said, don’t sweat it. If you don’t want to eat organs, don’t.

I found there was a real difference in the taste of organ meat when I bought directly from a farm compared to a butcher (and again, a butcher compared to the supermarket).

I eat liver, but I eat it very sparingly - once every few months. I let my body tell me that I fancy eating it. If I do that, I really enjoy it. It’s definitely not something I schedule for every day or every week.

When I first went carnivore, I did eat pate. Check the ingredients carefully, but that can be a useful tool.

I don’t know if some of it is transition. I would eat the meat on my steaks when I started, but I wouldn’t eat the fat in the pan. Nowadays, I roast meat and I always pour the drippings into a container. Sometimes I use them for re-heating leftovers, sometimes I use them to scramble eggs in, but most of the time I just eat it with a spoon before I eat a meal.

Also - welcome, good luck! Hope you enjoy the journey!

[Septimius]

Looks like I’ve pulled in my belt about 6 notches since starting carni - that’s about 30 lbs I think. Have completely stopped gabapentin for the sciatica and arthritis, and my knees are better.

[Shinita]

I had liver almost every week in the beginning… Now I got bored of it so it will be a few times a year I suppose… I dislike most other organs and I am choosy with liver too, only some animals work and only sparingly as it has a strong flavor.

Oh we totally forgot to make chicken liver and heart stew (it’s a thing here), it should be happen soon! February is my “stew month” but of course stews are nice any time, it’s not like I do proper carnivore anyway. Our stews are close enough to carnivore for me and provide some very nice variety, I can’t eat roasts all the time. That’s one reason I ate liver so often, I fried liver between roasts, better than depending on processed meat too much for days. I typically eat processed meat like liver: sparingly so that wouldn’t be a viable option anyway.

We cook beef stew today. On open fire, probably. Weather is okay, not too windy, not too cold though not as nice as I like when walking outside while still not being 100% healthy (I felt so but went out and nope).

[Fangs]

British Gas that the bills go up by 54% in April

HOLY COW girl that is a shocker. wow.
we are getting slammed the same way here. It ain’t no joke on rising costs, they can be crippling for many across this planet as it is going down right now! ugh
My next worse I heard is that a company, Heinz Corp. Food Group is planning on like a 30-40% increase on all manufactured items around May, grocery store is gonna shoot up even higher on products. Luckily I don’t buy much of their crap anymore, but darn if seafood like my beloved crab legs and lobster is now priced out of my life. I tell ya!

Karen I send you such big congratulations truly on how you came thru your medical crisis and how you kept all your positive attitude and healing benefits and more to keep on, keep on being you. Your attack of CrossFit still and your routine in your life is amazing to me for what you have been thru…you are a true hero to me on what it is like to go thru such bad hard medical times but come out shining like the rose ya are after it all. You are an inspiration to me point blank and I love learning how you come thru it all with such lightness to your situations and I gotta say, you rock K! I appreciate your sharing so much with us on how your life has gone down More power to you and keep on reaching out further as you do…you are Karen doing so much after a tough hit, I love that about you!

but I wouldn’t eat the fat in the pan. Nowadays, I roast meat and I always pour the drippings into a container

yea I did this also. chicken fat grease, omg no way, then I hit into cooking chicken and slapping that grease all over my chicken, omg so good. lol, and any meat seared or roasted, yup it was used and loved on meat…one thing I won’t touch still is rendered fat from hamburger meat. That fat from hamburger goes thru me like lightening, something I can’t handle still to this day, I drain and throw all hamburger grease point blank…after that ALL fat is fair game in any pan at all times

[robintemplin]

BELT NOTCHES!!!
Should be bold all caps. Big news. You are getting after it!

[robintemplin]

Congrats on getting it done and finishing strong. You really are an inspiration! Not inspiring enough to get MY rear to cross fit, but I am cheering you on, just like you did the other contestants. So happy for you.
Are you the type that now needs a new goal in sight?
Oh wait… that new goal is retirement! LOL

[Karen18]

@Fangs That is such a lovely thing to say. thank you.i guess not much one candidate when faced with such a wake up call except maybe wallow in it but I am ever the optimist. I just think I’ve been given another chance and I have to make the most of it and I can only do that if I am fit enough to continue doing the things I love doing. … all done for selfish reasons lol … joking aside I have to say this carnifam is so supportive in all aspects of life.

@robintemplin we have another 2 comp wods to do over the next 2 weeks. Used to be done over 5 weeks with 5 wods but this is much more manageable with work and other commitments.

@Septimius I do same thing with the fat … I have numerous little pots with different fats in sitting in the fridge, some have a mixture as quite often I will just use the same pan for cooking different meats in one after the other… how I am not sick I will never know… of course you can bet if I cooked for someone else like that they would constantly have the trots … hahaha I would blame it on any veggies I had to cook for them

Nearly forgot… had a lovely ribeye and a sirloin steak for dinner plus I have had a couple of chicken thighs. The beef is so yum… the thighs were so so… 8 prefer hot chicken I think.

I was feeling a bit knackered by this afternoon but the sun was shining so I put all the cordylines and little odds and sods o
Back outside. Wasn’t feeling up to re potting the date palm and fatsia so they are sitting patiently waiting for me to get round to it. Monday perhaps though its meant to be raining. My daughter and I are taking my son Ben out tomorrow so I doubt I will have the time when I get back. I have hard boiled some eggs so I have back up if wherever we stop to eat doesn’t cater for me lol

[Shinita]

Why would one get sick when eating mixed fats? Is it some human thing I never heard about yet? People are so odd and sickly, seriously.

I usually have only 20-30g or less rendered out fat any time. My meat mostly keep the fat in and the little it loses becomes some nice sauce in the oven pan and I eat it with my leaner bites. But I have a tiny bit sometimes and I use it for making my scrambled eggs. That’s nice, zero added fat usage…

But as I don’t have enough fat for that and anyway… I stop buying that extremely fatty processed pork but I need something else. Some bacon type thing just not the thing they call bacon. Some properly fatty and meaty pork belly piece… Just a little to act like fat and fun in my scrambled eggs or extra fattiness for my leanest meats. I still live my scrambled egg phase but I am less excited about it now and started to skip days or else I will get bored of it and what could I do then? I need my eggs and my 3 scrambled eggs as my first (or second if I have soup) course of my first (and hopefully last) meal is sooo convenient. Especially if it has something in it, like bacon or the almost-bacon (but today I used 10g sausage. Alvaro always uses that just more. its flavor is very intense, it’s very fatty too and I can go way lower). We only call “bacon” a specific item, either thin slices or little cubes. I never fully figured out what I can call bacon rightfully.

Alvaro deemed the weather not good for open fire but he made the beef stew. Poor thing complained that it takes AGES to cut the meat, it had lots of garbage parts too, leg can be like that sometimes, it seems. Well, the lower leg. We will try thigh, I saw some last time, it was pretty and just somewhat more expensive than the lower leg… But the stew was very tasty and the meat is tender after 1.5-2 hours. But 4 pounds of meat (if I get round numbers in pound and not in kg I use pound) makes a very tiny stew… Alvaro expressed his opinion about it being tiny only for a carnivore but I told him that he really should know after living with me for decades that if I added carbs, I would need to eat even more stew (or some other fatty protein) to balance out the hunger inducing carbs. He still can’t wrap his head around my inner workings, I don’t really understand the logic of my body either but I am kind of used to it already.
Of course it still give us a few meals but only because we eat a lot of other things and anyway, I just meant it has a very small volume, not that one needs to eat it up to get satiated. It’s pretty satiating, I know that. Once I ate 600g beef and an egg yolk and was perfectly satiated for a day.
We will see what happens now, I plan to eat mostly beef stew and some eggs in the next 2 days. And I finish my duck/fish soup too. It just happened, okay? But it’s not bad.

[robintemplin]

Note to self:
Add “I’m a bit knackered” to my list of good words to use, stolen from Karen.

[robintemplin]

And you should know when I read you, I hear Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins. Spit, spot!

[robintemplin]

And…
“Though we adore men individually, we agree that as a group they’re rather stupid.”

“Close your mouth please, Michael. We are not a Codfish.”

“Though we adore men individually, we agree that as a group they’re rather stupid.”

Dang. Now I need/get to go watch it again.

[Azi]

I still throw a ton of fat away I grill my meat that
doesnt get cooked in my new oven even then i cook it on a rack …so yeah I constantly throwing fat out…
I do keep some in the
Fridge so if got leaner meat or frying something I got fat to add…like cooking deep fried fish
I’ve never been one to eat added butter although i did start to try it,tasted ok but out of habit I just reverted back to none.
If im eating ground beef now thats another story I’ll add butter to it…or otherwise it’s sour cream and cheese.

Another day of ribeye steak and omad …tomorrow I’m going to change it up to lamb shank I don’t want to get sick of rib eye I got some flanken ribs for next week…
The weather in florida has been warming up in the 80s the wind hasnt been too bad and the pool being set to 90 has been amazing being able to swim both day and night…and bought an outdoor speaker so i can play music and do some exercises in it…

[robintemplin]

That’s living!!!

[Jesty]

Note to self:
Add “I’m a bit knackered” to my list of good words to use, stolen from Karen.

The English language is wonderful and full of funny expressions. You can also find some great Cockney rhyming slang meaning the same things.
So instead of saying “I am knackered,” Cockneys would say “I’m cream crackered.”

[Bubby1]

Hi Guys, omg it’s been months since I last posted on here… I hope everyone is doing OK… @Fangs I am so sorry for your loss My condolences to you and your family. I had a quiet Christmas and new year. I had a keto break for two months but now I’m back into the swing of it. I had a moment of insanity and attempted vegan for 6 days, and it almost drove me bonkers… Well I already AM bonkers… but this was a whole new level. So now, I’m keto… But not carni… Hmmmm, I feel like I’m thread crashing but I just wanted to say hi to all. It’s been a long hot summer and I’m damn glad it’s almost over… I have an ultrasound and blood test happening this week as I have been having digestive issues, the doctor suspects gallstones. I’m not sure but it isn’t surprising considering all the stomach surgery I’ve had when I was in my 20s. I do read on here a lot but didn’t know what to post. @Shinita and I create art and stories together and we are also parcel buddies. I’m waiting on a parcel she sent me and I have another one to send her. We do this thing where we use stickers and make hillarious comics with them… Full of adult and dark humor, but it’s fun… Happy new year everyone…

[Septimius]

I predominantly eat minced (ground) beef these days, so I think that’s where I’m seeing much more fat than I used to.

I don’t save pork fat - but I did save my chicken fat this time and blend it into chicken broth to make a thicker soup, and that worked really well.

[Fangs]

@Bubby1
thanks for your condolences B!
gallstones and digestive disorders, yikes. Good thing you are getting tests required to get yourself squared back to better health. Sending you big hugs and hope you do well thru all of it!!

----------------fast one, busy day happening
this and that and add in another of that or this HA

today is simple with a ribeye as first meal, I have some pork ribs for second meal.

off and running

and March is running at us full speed, any names for our thread or are we gonna just March into Carnivore’ our thread moves fast, so back later to try to catch up with ya’ll

[Shinita]

For some reason I like my broth not too fatty… But my chicken never produces (much) fat, there is 10-20g in the oven pan, that’s it. The same with pork, actually (per 1kg, maybe). Pork shoulder is quite fatty but the fat mostly stays in.

Once I had a fatty piglet and once mutton, well those produced huge amounts of fat A piece of mutton, not big, I have a (big) mini oven… And I got half a pound! Too bad it’s tallow so I can’t eat it, yuck. But the birds liked it, the cats got some too…

I almost have balance but I need a tad extra fat so I buy a box (IDK, a bit below 1kg?) of lard per year in the pig farm shop. I use a little coconut oil for my pancakes (as there is a big chance for them to become dessert ones) but normally I use lard or some very fatty pork for my scrambled eggs and that’s it. I got very good at avoiding added fat in most dishes. Even my baked things has little or none (cookies would need much but I rarely make cookies and never on carnivore. well I have those carni biscuits but they aren’t good and I depend on cheese there as I have serious limits when it comes to flour - well, dry matter - in carnivore). My normal dishes are typically without any added fat, scrambled eggs being the one big exception. Oh and stews but Alvaro makes them so I forgot, I rarely eat stews anyway. Roasts don’t need fat, maybe produce a tiny bit, soups are the same, sponge cakes don’t even need to be fatty, what else do I cook on carnivore…? Oh fried liver, that uses a bit. I started with so much and still less than the recipes. For some reason, Hungarian recipes are very often extremely heavy-handed with fat. I saw fried liver recipes with more fat than liver. And once I saw a brownie recipe (okay, I am not familiar with that thing, I suppose it’s normal for it to be almost totally fat but I can’t eat such things)… I omitted 250g butter and some chocolate and it still was quite fatty… Sometimes I wonder how people eat and live, they do so odd things from my viewpoint. And I LOVE fat. But I have my limits. I don’t understand the mayo hype either. That’s WAY too fatty. (And not enough eggy. But I know I am a maniac if it comes to eggs.)

It’s only 2pm and I go back to OMAD as I messed it up again yesterday… Weekend days often do that. Poor tiny beef stew will run out tomorrow and I didn’t even start to eat it properly. Soon

I haven’t drunk any coffee today! Yay.

The weather is cold, almost frosty. Now we got sunshine again but I am not very compelled to go out. I hope it changes soon as I NEED my big walks but I just couldn’t bring myself to go out… Still better than hot summer, sure but I am spoiled by lots of sunshine and warmish winter days so I am waiting for a really lovely day. But whatever happens, I go out tomorrow and visit poor pasque flowers already. (Well okay, not poor, they have a nice time and couldn’t care less if I lay my eyes on them.)

[Septimius]

Yes, I always skim my broth and normally drink it without, but I fancied a change.

I am wondering whether to skim my broth and store the fat, or whether to not skim this next time I make a batch. Maybe half and half.

[robintemplin]

Happy you have found your way back! Not surprised you had digestive issues with veggies, after having been keto or carni. Oh well, that’s how we find our best path forward. Good for you. Any friend of Shinita’s is a friend of mine.

[Shinita]

You are so sweet

Sadly, poor girl had digestive issues before her vegan period and it’s not like she didn’t eat some vegs before.
But I don’t know why she forces keto when gallstones and fatty food are bad together, allegedly… I am super lost at health problem things, I just googled a bit and well, that’s not very reliable. Maybe I should ask my aunt but she isn’t perfect either, she just worked for many decades as a physician. She worked way more than a normal person, too many hours a week and way beyond retirement age. She was a hero and I almost never saw her as a kid, we had to go to the hospital at Christmas to talk a few minutes… She always spent all holidays there as she had no kids unlike her coworkers. And she didn’t even get rich as this isn’t that country…

Meanwhile I had my 2 close meals, yum. It was a low-cal day (this far? I would like to avoid late night eating though), I got satiated very easily. The beef stew is quite nice but nothing exceptional and it was a bit much work… Oh well, variety but we will try another, nicer cut next time!
I rendered out some tallow from the bad parts. Maybe I won’t feed it to the cats, it gets the “pork skin treatment” and we will see. I can’t chew it so I ground it and mix and eggs and meat and spices and fry it. It may be nice. I LOVE pork skin that way, it gives me an experience I can’t get from eggs and meat alone.

[Bubby1]

@robintemplin Thank you oh I just have digestive issues in general. It’s from too many years of abusing drugs and alcohol. I am 5 months sober and almost a year clean though. I’ve had issues with my stomach since 2010 when I had a perforated stomach ulcer from consuming too many over the counter pills. I had sepsis and a million problems including a colostomy bag for 6 months. My stomach was never the same again, but booze is a huge no no for me now… It could kill me. I do prefer animal products though, I eat some plant stuff but I certainly had trouble with no meat, it made my problems even worse. You are sweet, and yep @Shinita is a gem. She got me through so much in the past few years.

[Karen18]

Day out with my daughter and son and had a great walk albeit at a rate of knots … I think Ben must have been hungry cos he was way ahead of us and I guess we were just fortunate it wasn’t one of our longer walks … just over 3 miles. Beautiful sunny mild day, quite warm in the sunshine but quite a muddy trail. Then we had a super lunch in a very calm and relaxing cafe. I had a cheese omelette with a couple of rashers of bacon separate as for some reason I don’t like it cooked into the omelette.

Before coming home we stopped at a farm shop and I picked up some mutton and 2 Barnsley lamb chops. I had one for dinner, it was like a double chop so was quite big. Very nice and tender. Never heard of a Barnsley lamb chop before and wonder if it is called that after where the lamb was reared? Anyway tasty chop.

Did my stair runs this morning before going out.

[Azi]

Todays omad food was lamb but instead of shank I went with 2 Australian lamb shoulder chops…
I have another couple of meals left of these in fridge to cook…

[FrankoBear]

so enjoyed your post and knocking off 2 in. is stellar! and Feb isn’t even over yet so you are truly getting results. Time on zc is key and you are putting in the time

Ferocious Fix Feb has been a success. A small blip with an AF episode as my body was possibly oxalate dumping. Looking back over 4 weeks I can see the mental injury that can happen to people who measure daily, especially on weight scales. Overall, since January 2nd, 2022 the belly circumference has shrunk by 7cm, and the clothes fit tests are showing overall better loose distribution. Fasting blood glucose is still too high at 6.1 mmol/l (110mg/dl) while I am working through this course of medications for joint pain management. Interestingly blood ketones are 0.2 mmol/l, indicating I am in a low insulin state. I think fortnightly measurements might be a better mental health risk management strategy for tracking measurements, and to avoid any stress of disappointment. People are biology, not mathematics. Biology wobbles. I’ve learned that from the stories we have told over the past month.

I stayed on plan and benefited. My joint pain has eased and physical activity is improving. I was out in the sunshine with shirt off for 23 of the 28 days. I’ve walked Billie the Labrador daily in the beautiful rural and wild environment in which we live. I had 26 good nights’ sleeps. I have had some good sessions of drawing/sketching meditation and filled a few pages of the visual diary. And of course there is the writing. the journaling as the term has now become therapeutic; 31 posts in 28 days.

The plan remained 2MAD, NoFUN, 16:8 (unless I was hungry and I would have breakfast in the morning), eggs and bacon, coffee and cream, beef dinners with bacon or fish sides.

Last night’s meal is worth noting. I had a small piece cold eye bacon (the eye part) sandwiched with smoked salmon to start. I fried up some finely diced bacon in some tallow and added it to 500g raw beef mince (ground beef), some duck liver pate, drained 120g canned mackerel, 3 raw pasture-fed chook eggs (they could also be boiled for this ‘recipe’), I massaged it all together with my clean hands in a big mixing bowl until it was thoroughly combined. Added some salt (to taste). I don’t know the recipe for steak tartare, but this might be a surf’n’turf version. I washed my hands and grabbed a fork (very civilised, I could have gone caveman on that bowl). Then I ate “raw” beef and eggs, it was delicious, my body said “YES!”, but I ate savouringly slowly, and about 200g into the massive meat bowl (forget your modern world packaged protein shakes, this was the real deal), everything, all the signals, said stop. Fully satiating, gentle stop. It was a wonderful meal and eating experience. Mrs. Bear was aghast. I made the remaining ground beef mix into patties for the freezer and for cooking up tonight. I reckon you only get one raw go in terms of food safety. But I wonder if that mix could be fermented into a sausage form?

We had a few days with clouds. the seasons are shifting. But when the clouds moved away they left blue behind them (that’s my family’s local beach from a different angle).

[JJFiddle]

I love tartari! ! I used to play at a Russian restaurant and the chef would make it for me. There were times I’d buy a lb of hamburger and eat it on the way home.
“Mrs. Bear was aghast” cracked me up! Mr. Fiddle would be the same

Enjoyed reading all today’s posts. I have been reading but not posting but I’m here and so far on track this day 47. More protein sparing modified fast these days, lower fat Carni. Yesterday and today, chicken breast tenderloins rolled in egg and Parmesan and air fried. They needed baconnaise! Oh well, there went the lowfat.
Still struggling with digestive issues. I’m giving pure Carni 90 days, til April, then we travel to the East coast, to Virginia, and if I am still “trotting” I may have to add other foods (but would be ketovore, keto’s in my blood). I can always try again.

[JJFiddle]

I’ve been reading again this morning. One article says D can last 2 to 3 years, and all articles say if you have it you need carnivore even more. Also that eating lower fat can actually cause it because anything over 30-35% protein is too much and borders on rabbit syndrome (too little fat). So I’m soldiering on. Lousy genetics aside, I have yet to see one other method, medical or otherwise, that promises to reverse inflammation and arthritis.

Mom’s red leather jacket fits!

[robintemplin]

Work it, girl!

[Shinita]

anything over 30-35% protein is too much and borders on rabbit syndrome (too little fat)

It makes no sense, rabbit starvation syndrome requires close to no fat…

Yay for the jacket, looks nice!

Meanwhile we have HUGE snowflakes, it’s the strongest snowing we had this winter! Of course, March is near, why wouldn’t we get much snow? For some reason, March is often snowy here. Just for a bit but still. A few years ago the 15th of March brought thick snow…
So we have colder days again and I postponed my big walk again…

I am super satiated today, I start to suspect beef had some insane satiation effect, beyond pork… Or I just have this phase but these always align and I know different meats have very different satiation effects…
Whatever, I still can’t afford even the cheapest beef often so I stick to pork and eggs, they aren’t bad either, I just need to keep my OMAD.

I will bring photos (stew and snowfall) later.

[Fangs]

@FrankoBear
that was one of THE best posts I have read from you…one walking this journey all into this lifestyle and truly finding an individual path that suits them against all the ‘blah blah blah’ out there to sway us off our eating lifestyle. I am over the moon happy for ya FB and key being, there is ONLY more better to come.

While we never can change it ‘all’ with an eating lifestyle change, we sure can ‘see thru real eyes’ of what our life path needs to change to suit us better as we see more clearly. Baby steps in directions you want to go to live your best life on the terms you personally desire…that is WHAT life is ALL about

99.9% of us live trapped. not a doubt about that.
but at some point, I swear on carnivore we find ourselves, see what we need in our lives to make it fullfilling and also find ways to make it ‘ours’ personally, on our terms. I know I wanna join that 1% that ‘does them’ and thru a healthy body and healthy mental clarity we achieve thru our body/mind and soul changes do we truly find massive benefits in this WOE!

You start March. You title it. You keep this going for all of us who are doing so well and changing so much thru small baby steps of corrections we require in our food intake and lifestyles that we all know we want and support each other on our path

you said: Fasting blood glucose is still too high at 6.1 mmol/l (110mg/dl) while I am working through this course of medications for joint pain management--------------never be alarmed here. You are not on some SAD menu scale testing factor and you are carnivore now. You are a new you There is not a ‘norm’ established for our lifestyle at all so what we base info on is not us…plus read on adaptive glucose sparing again and know you are not in some ‘bad level’ at all in full truth of the big carnivore picture here. You are not ‘old testing’ anymore, you are in a new realm of what is normal in real life off every plant carb, icky food intake ya know…so…just a word of thought on this and I will go check into zc info and find out more of course.

Your walking toward raw and primal shows you are changing alot and you keep going forward to suit you at all times! Carnivore on strong like you are doing FB!!

@JJFiddle
do not read WAY too much on others. You ain’t them Simple as that. You keep making small changes that work for you and when you hit a more good scenario you roll with it, take some OTC etc as you need. Our guts will never be on some time schedule we wish. It heals as it needs so key being, TRUST YOUR GUTS and just keep moving forward…believe me time on this lifestyle changes everything.

You put a ‘to hit’ schedule on you. April for a trip. I so get that but in the end, if you backtrack into keto to ‘do something’ for ya, it could be worse ya know or it could help but one doesn’t know til one does just that BUT key being sometimes keep that forward faith in the plan you are tackling for longer term great benefits will walk you thru some tough times.

just some thoughts on it to consider…in that we all have to live for us but we also much reign in our instant gratification expectations of what it takes for healing for each of us too.

this is all just a chat…beauty of support groups are we hear from all of us, our personal thoughts on ways forward, and advice chatted can be absorbed a bit or it can be thrown away cause it doesn’t suit you…but in that chat we can find big truths sometimes. I know chatting out everything I went thru coming into zc from very low carb was a massive change and I walked thru tough times for sure but looking back, all the people on plan who chatted with me told me one thing, forward movement, don’t go backward and it worked for me. Not everyone of course, but for me it was what sent me forward toward such greater health so…again, just chat on it all LOL

Fab pic of you in that red leather jacket!!!
I love that jacket length, love the butt a bit covered, my ‘red’ which is more burgundy leather jacket is shorter cut. That jacket you got on is the bomb! love it!

[Juells]

Thank you, everyone for your responses! I work two jobs, so I can’t check in as often as I’d like.

@Alecmcq @robintemplin I was thinking that going slow with the fat was the way to go. I love the fat marbled into the meat, just not the 1/2 inch of pure fat on the outside. I got some organic, pasture raised beef tallow, and I really like that. I do have some heavy cream and butter, so I think overall (with the tallow) I should be good.

@Shinita Were you trying to eat less fat because of weight loss or because of how your body handles fat. So far I have no problems with high fat, but I do want to lose 35 to 40 pounds, so not sure if I’m sabotaging that.

@Septimius Excellent idea to save the drippings! I didn’t even think of that. My nonie would take me to task over that. She always had a jar of drippings next to her stove, and she made the most delicious meals!

@JJFiddle Do you think your raw dog food would work with cats? Would you mind sharing your recipe? If not, does anyone have a good recipe for cats? I’m so happy to hear your results with carni after doing keto, CONGRATS! I was trying to force as many veggies into my 20 g of carbs every day. That was the only thing I didn’t like about it. I got great results, then hit my sticky plateau and couldn’t seem to break through.

@Fangs That makes me feel much better! I do balk at spending the money on those supplements. I read so many great reviews on the products about all the reversals of disease and chronic conditions, but none of them seem to be doing carnivore, so they may be moot. I do like your frozen “pill” idea. I may try that and see if it makes any kind of difference.

So far I made it through the diarrhea phase with only one instance of thinking I needed to pass gas, but it was the other. Not pretty. Now, everything is normal. The last couple of days I’ve had so much energy it was almost detrimental. It’s hard to think clearly when your brain is going 125 mph. I was also pretty annoying with my non-stop diarrhea (pardon the pun) of the mouth. I just couldn’t shut up. Still trying to get my sleeping pattern in order, but I know that will come with time. My cat eats at 5 in the morning, and before I would just go back to bed. Now, I’m wide awake and feel like I’ve already had my coffee. That is truly weird. For the last two nights I have had zero joint pain which is incredible. I was taking ibuprofen every night for hip pain, shoulder pain, and I felt like I was getting carpal tunnel syndrome. I am super happy about that. Thank you again, everyone, and I am very excited to see the changes that I’m sure are coming!

[Juells]

Looks fabulous!

[Juells]

Thank you for this! I am so focused on the diet, of course, I’m only 5 days in, but what a great reminder that life is balance, and mental and emotional needs are just as important. Your massive meat bowl sounds like the perfect health food, but I can’t do raw yet. I’m going to keep working on going from medium rare to rare. What a gorgeous picture! Looks like heaven. Congrats on your success!

[Fangs]

the products about all the reversals of disease and chronic conditions, but none of them seem to be doing carnivore, so they may be moot. I do like your frozen “pill” idea. I may try that and see if it makes any kind of difference.

yea do you of coure but put that money into fresh meat/ fresh seafood, fish and fowl you love…THIS HOLDS ALL you require for nutrients.

you got thru the D adaption in good shape but the OLD ‘never trust a fart when ya start ZC’ is a real thing we all say when we start

did you say only 5 days zc or how long? are you younger? just wondering in that if you adapted thru quicker and feeling so much better off plants, then you are either more metabolically correct and good changes comes faster to you OR you are dumping some plants our of your system you were eating that truly were a massive allergen to you and you are feeling much improvement over a shorter period of time thru this elimination.

whatever it is, more power to you!!! your body is showing you changes and you are in good form so you keep on going, believe me, only better comes

great post

[Juells]

the OLD ‘never trust a fart when ya start ZC’ is a real thing we all say when we start

Yeah, 5 days. I’m 54, and have done keto on and off for a few years. I always adapted quickly, and I think that’s just my physiology. I naturally gravitate toward meat, take after my dad’s side, and my sister is the same way. My mom has real problems with keto and is struggling with carnivore, but she’s not a big meat eater, doesn’t eat red meat at all. I do think I react very negatively to plants. I believe you re the fresh meats and seafood. My cat now runs into the kitchen when he hears pans clanking cuz he knows he’s getting good stuff! Trying to get him off the SAD cat diet too. Thanks!

[Azi]

Yeah I had the D for months but often it was only once a day and I figured I’d rather that than constipation…even now after a year if I alter my fat ratio alot it will return for a few days then back to normal…
I like higher fat ratio over pmsf because that messed up my satiety and left me almost binge eating and constantly grazing, leading to my body grabbing every bit of everything and gaining weight…taken me months to undo that and try and get my Satiety back…
So I do hope you get it sorted…I found I couldn’t do melted butter it would go right through me but solid was ok… couldn’t do cheese alot it would constipate me… so trial and error is your friend.

[Fangs]

yea once a meat hound always a meat hound and I am one and WE can gravitate right to eat, an all meat menu…geez, like that is hard for a meat hound LOL

your cat, just google ‘raw or meat based cat’ dietary and there are tons of people feeding cats raw. Heck my barn cats ate raw all the time, the mice and birds and baby bunnies they nailed, all meat on their plates for sure so it is simple and SO much great info out there on feeding cats carnivore and your kitty will be a fan!!

[Juells]

Much more awesome to chomp down on a tasty ribeye or ginormous hamburger patty than force down a huge salad and feel like crap for hours. Thanks for the cat tips! After just 5 days, he won’t touch canned food. Gotta get on that.

[Fangs]

your cat is gonna adore you!!

I had to make my salads SO damn big for any satiaty and then I had to load them with like grilled chicken to even pretend ‘I ate anything’ lol and then like you, for me the lettuce etc was a D focus on mushy butt…omg my guts say THANK you every darn day I started zc cause I remember bathroom trips in the old days, for years now I just thumb my nose at that ‘crap’ I used to have to handle LOL

what comes out of us tells us OH SO much

[Karen18]

Up a few times in the night but for all that nit too bad a sleep … for me lol. Did my stair runs then decided to go to CrossFit. It was a last minute decision but as I am at work tomorrow I won’t be able to do the Tuesday class which I enjoy cos its CV based with a bit of gymnastics. Anyway it was Bar work which I just got on with and actually the workout wasn’t too bad and I enjoyed it. All my anxiety issues that get in the way and I usually end up enjoying it!

Stayed a bit longer to cheer on the last of the open games guys and then had my brunch about 12.45. I had the second of the Barnsley lamb chops and it was every bit as nice as yesterday’s chop.

Ate a bit of cheese which wasn’t great and then cooked a ribeye which was yummy delish.

I am at work tomorrow so let’s see if I can get to sleep this evening! Got to be up at 4.45am again. Its an 8 hour shift tomorrow but I am not sure I will stay to do it all as the 6 hour one last Thursday did me in. The OH has said it takes as long as I need so I will go with that. I got really wobberly on Thursday and don’t want to feel like that tomorrow.

May have a hard boiled egg before I go to bed.

@JJFiddle the jacket is looking good and appears to be a good fit too. You obviously didn’t have to ‘squeeze’ into it!

The ribeye looks smaller than it was because the plate its on is a rather big dinner plate.

[Shinita]

Were you trying to eat less fat because of weight loss or because of how your body handles fat.

The former. Except in the very first days of carnivore when I get nausea, I never had problems with much fat. I had a day over 300g fat lately and it was fine as always… But my energy need is small. I shouldn’t even eat 150g fat regularly… And that’s so minimal… I LOVE fat.

I have my tastes, most of my favs are 65-70% fat but I have some other items so I can change my fat percentage. But my fat intake is the important thing… If I eat once, I am okay even with a bit more fat. But if I eat twice or more… I just can’t eat lean enough to avoid eating too much.
And while eating lean is hard for me (I mean 60% fat or something… I have my limits. I needed extremely much specially chosen carbs to bring my fat below 50% a few times in my life. as far as I know as I rarely tracked my carby days. of course it still was very much fat, way above my normal fat intake now just not in percentage).

Even after I slim down (if I ever), I should minimize my fat intake as I dislike overeating, it’s wasteful and not healthy even though I can’t gain fat or just super slowly, no matter my woe.

I like higher fat ratio over pmsf because that messed up my satiety and left me almost binge eating

I still wonder what would happen to my satiaty on low-fat carni… I am simply unable to try it. It’s hard enough to find leaner food I am willing to eat but with much effort I can do that for a little while. But then evening comes and I MISS fat. It’s not hunger, it’s clearly craving fat. I have the same with eggs and don’t have it with meat. I still could go without meat for decades I am sure if I could replace it with something similar nutritionally. But I can’t. It’s fine, I like meat but I don’t crave it ever. I probably would miss it if I did a vegetarian month though Since I started carnivore, I only had very short periods without meat and it only happened rarely as I usually just skip my normal meat and keep my tiny processed meat when I get bored of meat.

But I start to get really curious… I seem to stop eating protein between 200-250g and crave fat instead but what if I still don’t eat fat, what happens to my satiation? I guess I would starve due to well, starvation, too few calories if I kept my fat truly low. But I may try out lowish-fat with unlimited protein…

I work on eating leaner so maybe my time will come. My sponge cakes have twice as many whites than yolks now and I can enjoy pure egg white ones too… I had lean fish multiple times lately as well and some low-fat dairy is edible too. I will do experiments

Much more awesome to chomp down on a tasty ribeye or ginormous hamburger patty than force down a huge salad and feel like crap for hours.

Obviously. I avoided both for decades, there are so so many other options to eat, after all… I was a vegetarian (and then almost that as I had meat a few times a year, never at home) who disliked salads and green leaves They didn’t harm me, I just feel green leaves grass-like.
Anyway, a salad (unless it’s some abnormal one with lots of protein and fat) isn’t a meal while meat can be. For us it totally can be. My SO couldn’t eat a low-fat meal unless it’s a dessert (and too fatty desserts are exceptions). I eat meat with eggs myself but I could eat it alone. Not my rich stew, though

Apropos stew. I ate this today, among others (I had more eggs, not surprisingly from me):

It seems a bit too much eggs but there are more stew underneath. It still was too much so there are leftover eggs I will eat with my leftover stew tomorrow. But I needed these not very fatty egg things with my very fatty and flavorful stew.

It was a 2MAD day but my eating window was 1.5 hour (this far?) It’s good. Yesterday was worse, I kept nibbling. I just couldn’t eat much at once but my satiation can’t accept 1-2 small meals. It was fine as I still avoided overeating. Beef is my super satiating item

AND! After such a long time! Alvaro came and informed me about the beef farm having beef again. I thought we are poor for that But well, we actually buy beef occasionally and as prices did their weird things, the beef in supermarkets isn’t any less expensive than the awesome farm beef. AND!!! They have organs and brisket now, it’s great, they often just had normal cuts before! And it’s not some fancy young calf or Hungarian grey so it’s the cheaper kind but still so nice from properly kept cattle… The organ is even cheap I want to try spleen and heart and liver, I ate liver once before and I liked it and the other two can’t be bad either. We buy brisket and some lower leg. If we already go all the way there (gas isn’t cheap either), we buy a decent amount of beef (not much but we don’t eat much beef), I have lots of space in the freezer now.

Yay. You guys talk SO MUCH about brisket, I am super curious since ages!

And well, the snow with unusually huge snowflakes. I got enthusiastic and made zillion photos, I just can’t show fewer than this

The great tits just kept eating…

[robintemplin]

Oh… those are nice! Glad you feed the birdies. Love giant snowflakes like that!

[JJFiddle]

Thanks @everybody! The jacket definitely didn’t fit on the 1st, and I didn’t really expect it to now, surprise surprise!
Thanks @Fangs for repeating to everyone that “you do you,” carni’s not a cookie cutter woe regardless of the fact that certain rules apply. I don’t expect I’ll go back to keto full blast in April. It would probably disturb my digestion and I’d have to start over, OMG! Eating and living like this is many times easier than eating “normally” and a zillion times easier than keto with all the fussy little recipes. (hubby says he eats “normally,” that couldn’t be farther from the truth!)
For my meal today I had salmon, sous vide and seared in a little duck fat. I made Carni hollandaise - egg yolks and bacon fat. Took a probiotic and lipase/bile twice today. I cooked a lb of fish but only seared about 4 oz and it was plenty. I even squeezed lemon on it and damn if I couldn’t even taste it! After all that.
Later in the day took the other bile/lipase and ate a boiled egg as I was hungry!
D may be calming a little… Hard to say.
@Juells I went to the Natural Dog website in Jan 2020 and studied everything they had on how to make raw food. There is a huge difference in dogs and cats - cats are obligate carnivores and should never have grains or even veggies. I had 4 cats maybe 10 years ago, keeping them for my daughter for 3 years, and I did the research at the time. They wanted people to order fresh killed rabbits on dry ice and grind it ourselves which would have cost a mint!
But now, if you go to a store like Loyal Companion, you can buy frozen raw cat food. Out here in Texas I can’t get it so I make it.
Also, read Pottenger’s Cats, about a multi generation experiment with raw vs cooked cat food. Eye opening!

[JJFiddle]

@Shinita your pics are like winter postcards! So beautiful!

[Azi]

Today food was lamb chops and a bit of beef shank cos I was still a bit hungry…down half a pound on the scale today.

@Shanita eating lean for me was like eating skinless chicken thighs or pork tenderloin or really lean beef it didn’t keep me full for long Id make a batch of pmsf bread to help but that was prob all the butter that helped … then not long later I’d be snacking and grabbing another piece of chicken or another slice of beef…

[Fangs]

good post Azi
in that every time carnivores ‘graze’ like that it means their meal is off.
so grazing is a sign of an issue on fat/protein balance for sure for each of us. good info to mention on this lifestyle.

HEY GUYS I STARTED MARCH INTO MARCH CARNIVORE NEW THREAD…jump on when ya can!!

[robintemplin]

Great name!

[Fangs]

lol I tried

[Shinita]

Chicken doesn’t satiate me at all even with all the skin… But I will experiment with some leaner pork one day… While not going too low with fat as I need calories and it wouldn’t be a good idea to eat 400g protein (I have no idea if I could do it. I probably could once but I am very very sure that I never did. I automatically stop before 250g even on my highest-cal, hungry days).

in that every time carnivores ‘graze’ like that it means their meal is off.

What is that when I just get satiated super quickly, after a few bites? I had that yesterday. I ate 5 meals between 16:30 and 23:00, it was annoying I think my food was good, not too lean, not too fatty, I just couldn’t eat much at once. WHY I have this sometimes? Normally I can eat well but sometimes I have these zillion tiny meals… I don’t even know what should I do, eat some super dense bites to boost my calories? But dense food probably doesn’t satiate me longer term either, i.e. I would get hungry anyway… But maybe less… Oh well I will focus on my first meal better… I still don’t wanna track often, it’s bothersome and probably doesn’t help anything at this point.

[Karen18]

Blimey I drifted off to sleep quite quickly last night but awake ever 2 hours and restless in between. Up at 4.45am for work. Stair runs done, bath and at work for 6.45. Did 8 hours today. Now off till 15th yay.

Got home at 4pm and had first meal of day which was cheese and chicken wings and a bit more cheese.

Oh shock of all shocks … drum roll lol

1st of 3 rounds, next round next Saturday

[Azi]

That’s awesome congrats

[robintemplin]

WHAAAAAT??? DRUMROLL INDEED!

[Fangs]

What is that when I just get satiated super quickly, after a few bites? I had that yesterday. I ate 5 meals between 16:30 and 23:00, it was annoying

well it can go 2 ways. Only you know which one fits your issue.

1 is that you are just not really hungry at all. You are more nourished, your body is healing well, you are doing ok and finding that your body hormones and more are truly balancing out and even tho your mind is kinda saying eat, your body once you start eating is saying, nah, you don’t need this…so we end up kinda grazing our way thru the day with smaller bites of food and THIS is an OK thing.

2nd is that you are not nourished well. Your body is needing something. Even tho you can’t eat much you still are finding that need to eat all day long cause your body is sending that signal that it needs something but you aren’t sure what that is ya know. But mostly people can feel this…I can feel it when I shift off my 2 meals per day and when I start to graze I know I need to go and eat a big ol’ ribeye steak and hoof it down.

I think you are number 1 because you said you are getting satiated very quickly. That usually means you kinda wanna eat a little, but aren’t truly that hungry and just eat small thru the day to satisfy your body in a way but this is an OK thing.

number 2 when we graze and feel under nourished we usually have that gnawing feeling of ‘needing something’ but not sure what it is and we should eat bigger and fattier then.

but the way you posted, I think you are in that number 1 category and it is a normal flux. It comes and goes like you said I think you are A-ok

[Naghite]

Hi Fangs - thanks for the callout and thinking of me

@Juells - happy to give suggestions if you decide to take the leap. Offhand, start with either cow tongue (pressure cook for 80 minutes) or heart (bake in over at 350 F and 5-10 minutes a side depending on thickness) as they are normally available, easy to prepare and relatively tame for the pallet.

[JJFiddle]

@Shinita well, it can take awhile to get over any side effect of adaptation but it will hopefully be worth the trouble. I haven’t seen any kind of plan that promises to reverse inflammation, except this one.
Your crocus pics are so sweet!

Today is day 55 and very little D, I tried a pure protein day to give myself a bit of a break. Got some smoked turkey breast at the food store, smoked just yesterday. I should smoke a turkey breast myself - it was quite good but mine would be better.
At lunch we had sous vide chicken that I started lastnight and cooked 9 hours. So tender! I just ate the 2 wings. Put a tiny amount of mayo but it didn’t do much for me.
Tonight, more of the smoked turkey. So hardly any fat today and who knows, I might get a few hours uninterrupted sleep tonight!

@Fangs - and the beat goes on… The whole process starts with providing care, then taking charge of her passage, picking up ashes, managing the funeral, the house, the stuff, the estate. With us, I did the physical care, then visits and the ashes and funeral and stuff, my sister did the house and the estate work. It is a lot! And now, we’re suddenly the older generation.
Blessings, we’re all with you and thinking of you. You will get to the other side of this!

[Fangs]

Blessings, we’re all with you and thinking of you. You will get to the other side of this!

thanks so much JJ!!! I see the other side, just gotta walk thru the crazy to get there

I am in all control of mom and dad’s ashes cause both brothers don’t care…in that we don’t require a ‘memorial’ service and all that so I am the one who will handle Dad and Mom on my terms, and both brothers said do whatever we want, we don’t need to be there etc? which is fine, but I feel like that final closure in my hands is a very good closing I require and I will do just that. Appreciate your kind thoughts!!

[JJFiddle]

@Fangs ours was similar in that my sister and younger brother are in the NW with no desire to come back to Texas or revisit Mom. My brother in Tucson came, and SO many people attended the memorial at the vets cemetery, even though it had been 10 months since her passing. It was heatwarming to say the least. The pastor from our little ranch church came and spoke about chrysalises and butterflies, and I had the 2 musical people from there playing and singing, then Mom treated all the guests to a fine dinner. So what if my sister and brother wouldn’t travel? Pah. We had wonderful closure.

So, question: carnivore cookbook (Carnivore 2022 by John Davis MD), which I’ve read in the past few days, includes many spices and herbs, like a hamburger/egg/cream/cheese bake with taco seasoning, several dishes with fresh rosemary and thyme, garlic, etc.
I’ve been very careful to keep it to just salt. What do y’all think and do about this issue?

Ham and eggs for BIL before his departure this morning, so I had a little breakfast. Not usual. They have left for the airport.
Later we’ll have chicken.

No D (or anything) since the night before last! Maybe too early to judge. Day 56 so dadgummit, I feel like it’s time.

[Fangs]

I’ve been very careful to keep it to just salt. What do y’all think and do about this issue?

those are 1000% about you and not one other person in that if a some suit you then great and as you tip toe longer, your wanna have a condiment taste will change.

I loved burger with some taco meat seasoning thrown it for like 2 yrs and then it was omg I hate it now and dumped it.

our condiments for taste work for us for a bit, to get us ok on a tough lifesyle change til we personally might find it works against us.

remember, taste is taste in a shake of a spice mix etc…it is not your meal in any way.

so do you on this one for what it takes on taste but always be open to change and more as you feel on it all.

NO D, hmmm your keep on keeping good thoughts to go now ! maybe a adaption/heal change coming, hope so!

[Shinita]

Let’s hope D is over! Or at least gets more rare or something.

like a hamburger/egg/cream/cheese bake with taco seasoning, several dishes with fresh rosemary and thyme, garlic, etc.
I’ve been very careful to keep it to just salt. What do y’all think and do about this issue?

I always thought being strict is the best if you are fine with it… If one can handle spices and feel miserable without them, I would think adding them is a good idea, at least until it changes.
And in between… Up to the person
Spice is like coffee to me on carnivore: plant so not actually carnivore but if it helps… But my default attitude is only salt is that works. It usually work. I can’t imagine why I would add anything to my roasts - except tasteless chicken, I add spices to that but almost never eat it. If my meat needs spices, it’s probably not good, tasty meat. Or I just miss something fancier, I like stews but don’t need them very often.
As we know here some people gets basically SICK when adding even these little plant matter, they clearly should avoid that.
I loved garlic (rarely used it) but I lost interest after my first garlicky roast, ew. I prefer raw garlic but what could I use it for? Maybe some traditional meatball thing I actually never make…
I don’t see the charm of herbs except for some non-carni dishes with tomato puree.

But if I need to eat lots of scrambled eggs for some reason (I don’t but sometimes I like the other simple egg dishes even less), I tend to add something that contains spices. But a good lard and more meat than eggs when I am bored with eggs should handle it.
But each to their own! I am okay with spices in carni dishes, I have problems when they start to use sweeteners (and I have very very close ties with sweeteners, I just don’t consider them carnivore AT ALL. it’s almost like honey, it’s opposite carnivore to me). It would be soooooooooooo easy with sweeteners But I have a mission. I often fail the “no sweetener” rule of mine nowadays (it was easy in the beginning) but not always as I would do if I would allow them. I can’t train myself without properly strict rules and I definitely don’t allow sweeteners on my default woe even if my default woe isn’t or won’t be exactly carnivore.
Spices often has sugar in them, by the way. One should be careful - or ignore the super tiny amount as I do that with some of my sausages (proper ones don’t have any but you know food industry and I can’t stick to anything close to carni without any sausage ever).

But we often can’t be super strict. That’s for people who can gladly eat meat without problem forever. I need more variety. And I am sure the tiiiiiiiiiiiny little things I allow on my default woe don’t harm me. (And anyway, it’s better than abandon very low-carb - or even the impossible “forcing myself into strict carni and suffer for long and possibly all my life (not physically but still)” other route.)

As Fangs wrote, we easily can lose our interest in spices and other stuff. I doubt I ever will if it’s the amazing paprika, how anyone can live without it, I hardly can imagine… But garlic didn’t last any time and I have a ton of herbs I can’t do much with as it’s a completely pointless stuff to me. And I am just an on/off ketoer still. But having carni times still changed me. But maybe I am a simple one and never really needed spices with my meat, I just never made meat before carni. It’s possible as I started to eat meat without complicating it with much spice. Meat has meat flavor, it should be enough with some salt… Most of the time.

[JJFiddle]

@Fangs @Shinita thanks so much!! Y’all answered my question SO quick!! I have been seeing that people respond differently and this is not a Bible class LOL… it’s an evolution. I really appreciate you!
Another interesting thing is that my coffee is changing. I went down to a 5 oz grand lungo with no cream, then would drink a little and ignore it, and now, a plain lungo (2 oz) with 2 or 3 oz hot water added. Anything stronger and it’s just unnecessarily bitter, any more volume and I’ll lose interest after a few sips. So now it’s more like coffee-tea, lol

[robintemplin]

Things are called the ‘Spice of life” for a reason. I season the heck out of everything. All the spices, just nothing sweetened. Always have, always will. I don’t worry about it. And I don’t think anyone is going to revoke my official carnivore badge over it. Lol

[Shinita]

All the spices, just nothing sweetened.

I semi-accidentally (I had leftover sponge cake dough where I used gelatin, I think I will stop that) made a coffee egg jelly 2 days ago… I didn’t even add all my dessert spices just a bit vanilla and a hint of cocoa and it was almost a perfect little dessert. I ate sweets galore lately (not compared to my old days but… at least compared to my carnivore-ish days?) and still, I was borderline okay with my unsweetened coffee dessert. And albeit my coffee isn’t particularly bitter, it is coffee… Still. It was okay. Not exactly sweets but a nice treat.
It’s amazing that my training stays with me even if I ignore it for a while.

I am very, very stubborn about training myself out of sweets but it’s not so easy. At least I don’t really miss it on carnivore as long as I am not bored with my normal food, it’s a big help. But I don’t even want to fall back if something happens… I want to have a choice.

[Septimius]

So, question: carnivore cookbook (Carnivore 2022 by John Davis MD), which I’ve read in the past few days, includes many spices and herbs, like a hamburger/egg/cream/cheese bake with taco seasoning, several dishes with fresh rosemary and thyme, garlic, etc.
I’ve been very careful to keep it to just salt. What do y’all think and do about this issue?

I think you’ve had some good answers so far.

I did the same as you; went salt-only. I thought about it for a long time, and then I decided against adding anything back in, figuring that I’d already done all of the withdrawal - and I didn’t want to accidentally add something back in that triggered a weird craving in me.

Most of all, I was very focused on trying to get my satiety signals in check. I figured that it would be harder to overeat plain meat than it would be to eat meat that had a spice rub to make it ‘tastier’.

So those would be the major considerations for me - do I think there’s anything in the spice rubs that could trip me up (e.g. look for hidden sugar etc)? And, do I think that changing the taste of the meat will affect (positively or negatively) how much of it I can eat?

But most of all, you should consider whether you want to make that change. Would it make sticking to carnivore easier for you in the long run? Do you think you’ll enjoy your meals more and feel happier? Then go for it. If you’re worried about it setting off cravings or messing with your satiety signalling, then maybe hang back.

[robintemplin]

Good point…. I don’t use spice mixes… almost always have some sugar or it’s cousins. But I sure go for my basil, and rosemary, and oregano. I don’t have any issues with cravings, thankfully. If I did, I would back off for sure.

[JJFiddle]

Thank you @robintemplin, @Septimius, @Shinita. Those are valid considerations, and also provide some wiggle room. Getting a meal in a restaurant, just a “plain” streak or hamburger patty for instance, you’ll probably eat some other spices or herbs besides salt, but like @Fangs says, it’s just a shake of seasoning, makes very little difference.
So I think for now and at home I’ll keep doing what I’m doing at least till I know for sure I’m adapted.
Someone said, I’m an experiment, this woe is something I’m trying on to see what the results are on my body. So I’ll keep the controls as regulated as I can until a preliminary result is evident… Then I’ll make taco casserole, lol, and I’ll recognize how it affects me.
Meanwhile, NO meds now (from 3), just the basics, Mg, Vit D, 5-HTP, melatonin, probiotics. That right there is major.

[Karen18]

When I first went keto and then moved on to carnivore I always used a few spices, especially on my steaks. I don’t bother now and tend to eat meat plain, not even salted since my stroke. I went off spice a little bit. Mind you I am happy to eat it like at the Brazilian restaurant recently. All the meats had been marinated or basted in some sort of spice and the taste was delish. Also the pork loin chops i pick up at lidls are basted (but don’t have excess sauce or juice in the pack so they don’t even look as though they have been basted) This morning I cooked some chicken thighs in the slow cooker and I did think about putting some spice in with it as they were skinless ( they were reduced price and I knew they would just be a brunch or snack) but decided against it and they were really quite nice just plain so I was glad I didn’t bother. Taste really has changed dramatically since going carnivore and I am guessing since not adding spices I have let go of a lot of food related issue… just eating to live. This Morning programme cookery bit were doing one of my old favourite carby desserts and I did think to myself … I could just taste that (but not literally lol, I am so passed that) … but I know it was the root of all evil for me as when I had one, I would then have to go on to eat the lot then I would be angry with myself for eating them all !

I had a crap night last night, woke at 3.30 and took a couple of hours to return to sleep. At 5.30am I cancelled my CrossFit slot and thought I should be able to get back to sleep now … and I did! Just shows when things get on you mind during the night … they say either write them down or at least sort them out so you remove them from your thoughts … feeling like you’ve dealt with it makes such a difference. I had bacon after the tuna last night with still being hungry and I am certain that was the bogie in the night!

So up and stair running even though I felt tired, my back was stiff from lifting all the bags of compost yesterday afternoon so it eased that off thankfully. Chicken thighs into the slow cook pot and left to get on with it. I never eat brunch till between 11-1 so wasn’t in any hurry. I was surprised they were cooked just right 2.5 hours later, by 11.30 so I ate 3 and I have 2 left in case I am hungry tonight before bed. It is a rare thing for me to feel hungry at that time…I think when I eat at that time it is usually because I just fancy something and not through hunger but last night I knew I needed to fill a void in my tum.

They don’t look too appetising and I find it strange that I prefer skin on now especially after years of removing it! As I said earlier my taste has changed and keeps changing … my foody evolution !

I have taken a ribeye and pack of 2 rumps out of the freezer for later.

[Shinita]

I eat to live AND to enjoy the hell out of it, of course, it never should change!
Meat and spices, it’s an interesting thing. Sure, spices can be interesting here and there but as I have read about too much food related things from vegans and ketoers and everyone else, it seems that people consider meat with spices tasty while plain meat not so much? It’s odd to me (unless the meat is an inferior tasteless thing) as the real flavor I very much appreciate in meat is meat flavor. And it has it either way. So adding spice rarely makes my food better. Maybe it adds variety, I like that but it’s an occasional thing, not needed every day when I just want a 8-10/10 meal without any fuss. (In rare cases I am fine with 7, I am just hungry and joy is less important as I almost always have it anyway, skipping it for 1-2 meals is fine.)
I always thought vegans don’t know meat or only met bad ones or too used to plant flavors, it was later when I met ketoers being into marinades and gravy and whatnot. I just don’t understand why I would put work into it when it doesn’t make my meat better… But they are clearly different.
To me, the changes in the oven or pan are the thing that enhances my meat. I rarely like boiled meat but if it’s fried or roasted very, very well and it gets not just tender but colorful… Oh that treatment is great for meat and vegs alike. I even loved my scrambled eggs brown in the past but now I enjoy them moist.
But I still dislike meat without salt. A lot of it nowadays. I start to feel even my eggy sponge cakes need salt as the second ingredient now… Though I rarely eat them alone so it’s not a serious problem. I still think this is due to my seriously reduced processed item consumption (I almost never eat any cheese either).

This Morning programme cookery bit were doing one of my old favourite carby desserts

It’s a YT channel for us, history and food, mmm… I totally wanna make some, not that old recipe as the texture isn’t what traditional here but a similar but nostalgic one (with raisins as Alvaro told me he always had it with raisins. the traditional recipe has NO raisins at all but we learned that there was an old british version with raisins, wow, I never knew that was a thing!). It’s a training and I think it is pretty harmless. I am very very very used to baking sweets for Alvaro without touching them. It’s trickier with rare stuff but I have a momentum now and I don’t feel any desire to eat it, just an irresistible desire to make it. Just like the cake today, I just had to do it but Alvaro was fine with it.

It’s a new thing, feeling some mostly harmless compulsion to bake something without eating it. I didn’t have it years ago. I liked experiments and while my curiosity was the drive, I still wanted to eat it too. I used to say, I only can cook food I am willing to eat. It changed when our diets got way too far from each other but not just willing to cook something I won’t eat but feeling a desire to do so… That’s moderately new. I like baking bread but it still wasn’t a desire, I just didn’t mind despite the more than minimal work. I still don’t cook some proper food using more than a few minutes unless it’s my food too. Baking is different.

[robintemplin]

For years, I had trouble staying asleep. And so I always jot down things that are on my mind, before I go to bed. it’s like I tuck my worries or daily details in for the night so I don’t have to worry about them. It would be funny to go back and read those lists now. It would also be a great realization of how short my lists are since retiring. Last night’s list consisted of ‘return library book’ and “buy meat”. Lolol

[robintemplin]

I understand enjoying cooking something you won’t eat. I love to cook something ‘naughty” more my husband. The only difficulty is not sampling it for seasoning or taste. Not even a nibble. No can do.

[Shinita]

Oh I am used to cooking without tasting. I have the recipe, I measure everything so it will be fine.

Our tastes are slightly different anyway. He needs a bit more sweetness (just a tad. we feel sweetness about the same but I don’t expect my desserts to be really sweet all the time. unsweetened coffee or chocolate? just fine) but I already wrote in the parentheses that he expects his cake to be sweet. And he is just fine with lots of rice flour while I don’t like the taste of starches… And while the poppy seed cake is pretty much low-carb (with the obligate raisins. it’s super hard for a cake to get away with NOT having it. sugar musn’t be present. flour is totally optional for a cake. raising are a must for all), it’s dry and I don’t consider it right. So taste tests wouldn’t be useful. But with the same recipe, nothing can go wrong unless some ingredients aren’t always the same. But he can handle some quality wavering even then and I take notes if I know the problem. So it works just great without anything tested I only taste certain new things and it I want to be very good, things with lemon juice as their sourness varies a lot. But usually not. I like more sour things anyway

A nibble wouldn’t be a problem for me though. Or even a slice, there are still some optionally tempting simple cakes (they are fruit cakes, obviously. certain things never change like my love towards fruits). And off days. I don’t touch them now I just baked a nice big one again. Just a quick thing, I enjoy it, he enjoys it and the vast number of jars on my cupboards gets decreased. It’s an important mission, I need all his fruit eating skills not to get flooded with them.

Erm sorry, I go away now and won’t come back here… I hope I promised not to talk about fruits in the March one, not here…