I'm at the "This Sucks" stage

(Bob M) #21

Are there any carbs you can eat for SIBO? Something like sweet potato? Some carbs might help.

I think I had SIBO at one time, but never got tested. I think I’m over it by fasting a lot mainly and keto when not fasting.

(Allie) #22

Sounds like my diet.
Ground beef is cheap, and I have my own laying hens.

I’ve been making the beef into burgers and playing around with different spices for variety, don’t know if this is an option for you.

#23

and this is why you will fail overall.

you put your performance vs. your nutritional healing on an eating plan so you will lose long term point blank. Your body is first to give you the second which is what you desire but the time involved you won[t allow so??

just the way I read it and if wrong then sorry on my post but telling ya like I read it.

(Montrell Carter) #24

That may be convenient for someone sitting on their behind, but what I do is how I make money for my family. Secondly, I’m on this diet for a specific reason: to kill SIBO. If it does that then I haven’t “failed” anything. Thanks for your input, but no.

(Montrell Carter) #25

Just curious, can you feel/taste a big difference with your own hens? I’ve been thinking about keeping some myself.

(Montrell Carter) #26

Well, in theory, carbs feed it. The real culprit though is fiber. I too had some relief when I was eating primarily meat and vegetables, but I made 1 crucial error: psyllium husk powder. Trying to be a “good boy” and eat my fiber like we’ve been told lol. The bacteria love fiber, so they didn’t die even with limiting carbs. For me, carnivore is the next logical step in eliminating it. Beyond throwing pills at the problem that is. I also know some people that got over it fasting like you did.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #27

But if that’s how you get your food, then how would you get your coffee intake? :rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #28

And now a serious comment on the thread: Myself, I have no problem with your using a carnivore diet as a short-term treatment for what ails you. My guess is that it will help the SIBO, and that you will be able to return to your regular diet soon (without the psyllium husk, of course!). :grin:

But the performance hit you are complaining of is part of the normal adaptation to a carnivore diet, and that adaptation period takes longer than you are likely going to be on carnivore. So you’re just going to have to write it off as a cost of treatment. But in that, you are lucky; if you needed to be on carnivore permanently, you’d be faced with a real dilemma, since I doubt your CrossFit income could cope with six to twelve months of sub-par performance, am I right?

In any case, I’m glad you felt safe coming here to vent. Please keep us updated with how you are getting on.

(Montrell Carter) #29

Right, this has been a very specific experiment because of my limited window for competition. My coach has been fussing at me nonstop for changing up my diet while in training lol. That said, as stubborn as I am and as much as I hate to let anything beat me, I’ll be returning to it for at least 6 months when I can afford to have crappy training sessions for a while. We’ve actually been talking about getting our own cattle and hens (small scale, just for our own consumption). I’d have to acquire some butchery skills of course…

(Allie) #30

Massive yes, they’re so much better quality as my hens are better fed and cared for than hens in commercial farms. Mine are all ex-commercials and it’s easy to see egg quality improving as their recovery progresses and health improves.

#31

I was listening to a podcast with Amber O’Hearn the other night where she talks about antibiotics having a negative effect for her digestion; I have a lot of sympathy for what you’re experiencing.

The only other things it might be worthwhile suggesting is changing up the fat/protein ratio. When I did this, it was driven entirely by cravings so I’m guessing if this was required, you might have felt a desire to change the macros naturally.

For me, I had a period of time where I couldn’t get steak with sufficient fat on it and I felt strung out - but your ratio sounds really good. I guess the alternative might be to see if it’s worth experimenting in the other direction, with 80/20 beef perhaps?

The only other thing that springs to mind is whether you’re eating enough. The traditional calorie calculators don’t always seem track with expenditure on carnivore, particularly if you’re highly active. So if you’re feeling lousy, maybe you’re undershooting compared to your expenditure?

There’s another recent thread here about someone eating approximately 4000 calories and being unable to gain weight on carnivore - so your expenditure might be higher than you think, and insufficient fuel (even if you are already eating a lot) might be making you feel lousy?

But I do think the gut issues you’re experiencing could be the problem - which I realise is not the answer you’re hoping for.

(Kirk Wolak) #32

Your metabolism can take 6-12 months to switch.
Imagine you have a hundreds of millions of cells that all need to be taught to burn fat, not sugar.

It didn’t happen overnight to get where you are at.
And consider changing your workouts to focus on letting your body learn to produce enough energy. Also, strenuous workouts can produce glucose spikes. Reducing the effectiveness of the diet, but generally considered healthy.

Give yourself some grace. It’s okay to work out less intensely, and learn how to gage your energy requirements. Good luck. But working out less, while you body learns to burn fat is the key. It took me many months to get to the point that I could walk a marathon (fasted). And I failed the first 2 times I tried. My liver could NOT make enough ketones. Eventually I got through it… But for me, it was a “rest of my life” View that helped the most!

(Joey) #33

@milorc I’m saddened to hear of your digestion difficulties. It can really ruin your outlook, energy, and motivation. You deserve kudos for getting as far as you have.

Hopefully you can muster enough conviction to stay the course in hopes it ultimately works for you. Every n=1 experience is unique. There’s nothing magical about 30 days.

Best wishes!

(Edith) #34

You may want to check out Shawn Baker. He is carnivore and incredibly athletic. He eats a crazy amount of meat each day. You might not be eating enough.

If I recall, in another thread you mentioned you had been low carb previously? If I’m remembering that correctly, you’re probably fat adapted. If that is the case, I would definitely considering increasing your food quantity.

(ALISON PICKERING) #35

oil-packed tuna with some lemon or vinegar and seasoned pepper. Eat as a spread on chicharrones (4505 makes the best ones - at Costco). When I’m sick of beef and eggs this is very satisfying.