Carnivore Challenge Coming to a Close

Tomorrow is the last day of The Magic Bus carnivore challenge. This may be premature, but since I'm planning on total carnivory today and tomorrow, I thought I'd post my stats:

Start date: Feb 3
# of days in challenge: 26
Days carnivorous: 16, 61.5%
Days non-carnivorous: 10, 38.5%

So what were my non-carnivorous days? Well, a couple involved veggies - some celery along with Portuguese chicken wings (medium=HOT at this place, and celery with blue cheese dip is a necessity, IMO) and baby carrots while eating dinner with my sis, BIL, niece and nephew. Otherwise it was generally because I had a sugar-free pop - diet root beer mixed with heavy cream - or used cocoa powder in a cream cheese dessert. One day, I had blueberries in yogurt.

Which brings me to an interesting observation, at least for me: "junk" food has largely lost its appeal as a treat. I've always had a weakness for Cheetos and regular Ruffles - I love salty/crunchy, and now and then I like to bunker down with a movie or TV series and pig out on crap. I tried this twice during the challenge, and was surprised to discover that - gasp - I didn't enjoy it, which, to me, is the equivalent of the pope realizing he no longer cares much for god, and could happily go without.

Same with the "diet" drinks. I'd developed a bit of a habit, having one or two Coke Zeroes or SF Root Beers a day. As the month wore on, I found myself wanting water and teas. Sparkling water (my favorite is Gerolsteiner, a mineral water from Germany) replaced soda as my taste for a little something sweet faded into the background. I found I could take coffee, enhanced with a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg or a splash of vanilla extract, either unsweetened or with a little bit of stevia.

My meat meals were mainly rare steak with butter. I also had duck, chicken wings, pork ribs, roasted pork, sausage (no filler, just meat and spices), eggs and nitrate-free bacon. Almost all of my meat came from my organic butcher or local farms. Side dishes and/or dessert was either some form of cheese or a caffe creme - coffee with steamed heavy cream. All dairy products used were organic and locally produced. I'm very lucky to be able to get these in my grocery store.

I did not crave vegetables or fruit, save the one day when I really fancied some baby carrots. To me, this makes sense - in Ontario, we can get certain greenhouse-grown veggies year-round, but for the most part winter means root veggies. I love squash and beets and such, but I had no desire to use them and generally find myself wanting veggies and fruit in the late Spring-Summer.

Beef became my meat of choice, and then cooked rare or blue. Well-done meat was blecchh. I did up some beef ribs, and without sauce they tasted, to me, like death. I really don't like well-done beef. The idea of a pot roast really turned me off, and I was living on pot roast earlier this winter. Other meats were nice, for one meal - I had no desire to eat my leftover duck or pork. The idea actually turned me off. Rare steak, on the other hand, never lost it's appeal, nor did eggs.

Now - dairy. This was a challenge for me in other ways. I had added dairy back to my diet, but in relatively small portions. Some cheddar in an omlette here, some cream in a coffee there. This month, I ate more cheese and cream than I have in ages. What did I notice? Well, I had no reactions like I did at the start of my gluten-free endeavour - no sinus trouble or wheezing, no horrid gas. I did have a few pimples emerge. I've found that heavy cream and butter seem to be fine, but too much cheese can lead to gut pains. Minor ones, but they're there all the same. At the outset I was snacking pretty heavily on cheese and experienced some bloating. Cream, I can definitely overdo as well - again, too much and I bloat. It's different than my gluten-bloat, mushier rather than drum-tight. I wonder if it's something to do with the salt in cheese making me retain water, because my hands would get a bit puffy as well (and cheese started to taste pretty salty - I could never really detect the salt before). Regardless, I'm keeping dairy to a minimum from now on - small bits here and there, and coconut milk/cream in my hot drinks.

My appetite took a serious dive - no surprise to anyone familiar with low-carbing, as this tends to happen when insulin levels are low and blood sugar is steady. This came about even more so when I quit eating much cheese. Cheese, for me, tends to make me feel less sated. Meat and fat? I'm good. I've been eating in an intermittent fasting-style for well over a year now (eating one or two meals a day within an "eating window", and going anywhere from 15-22 hours between meals), and found that I could push my eating window later and later. I just wasn't hungry. The last few days I've started dinner not because I was starved, but because it was 6 or 7pm and I'd not eaten anything! And lest anyone think I am turning in to some calorie-counting anorexic, fear not - I make those meals count, baby. Yesterday's meal, for example, was around 1,900 calories (and met or got close to the RDA for most nutrients, not that I put much stock in the RDA - but that's a whole other post!) It's quite easy, eating a high-fat, moderate protein diet (which is what low-carb diets are, ideally) to get enough energy.
In fact, that's one thing I've had tons of - energy! I spring out of bed with no trouble, and have stopped using my alarm clock. I wake up between 7-8am (that doesn't mean I get out of bed, of course!) feeling totally refreshed after going to sleep between 11pm and 1am. Some nights I forced myself to go to bed, because I was still alert and spunky. I try to get a good amount of sleep though, especially after reading Lights Out: Sleep, Sugar and Survival. Even on nights that I wasn't tired, I was able to fall asleep easily once I got into bed and relaxed. I think meditation helps with that, though I wasn't practicing it much this month.

And the best thing about all this? I am down another pound as of this morning to my lowest adult weight EVER - 113lbs. I'd landed at 114lbs for a bit, then jumped up to between 116-118lbs after holidays (water weight, mainly). I shed all that, plus a pound of bodyfat. Yup, I'm awesome. Anyone who's ever lost weight will tell you that the last 10lbs or so come off really, really slowly and, in some cases, can be a struggle to lose. According to all the weight-loss calculators floating around out there, I should be eating anywhere between 1,100 and 1,500 calories to lose weight (and I have gained weight on 1,500 calories, eating vegetarian/low-fat/lots of starch - while working out regularly). While I think that calories do count, to a point, seems for many of us it's the type of calories that count more than the amount. (Note: I haven't worked out in two months - that pound wasn't "burned" off through exercise.)

So although the challenge is almost over, I intend to keep up with most of it. I'd let quite a few "filler" foods into my life, and I see now that I really don't need them other than as a once-in-a-while treat. I am going to explore more ways of preparing meats, including organs - I have a beef liver and heart to pick up from the market today, as well as some oxtail and beef cheeks. I also may eat more fresh fish - my BIL picked up some live trout at the supermarket, and what a HUGE difference in taste/texture than frozen fillets! And yes, I'll still eat veggies and fruit - but I really see them in a different light now, especially since I've been reading up about them. Expect more posts on this topic.

But next - another Magic Bus challenge! In March, I am combining two challenges: the Kitchen Clean challenge, and the 90% Fat challenge. I will post the rules on the 1st.

Note: the picture was taken by a former colleague of mine during her trip to Kenya. Now there's something you didn't see in The Lion King! Amazing, eh?

Carnivore Challenge Update - The Cheese Eggwich

So I've done 6 days of carnivory so far, and it has gotten easier. My appetite, which was out of whack there, seems to be back to normal for the most part. I know I need more fat, which is hard when you're keeping dairy down, so I may up my egg consumption. They soak up a LOT of fat.

And I now have the best way ever to eat eggs - a cheese eggwich. This comes from Stanley "Bear" Owsley, who made an unforgettable stop in at Active Low Carbers back in February 2006 - his thread, "The real human diet is a totally carnivorous one", caused a huge stir. I'm not going to comment on that - if you're curious, have a read through (but be warned, there's almost 4,000 replies!), though I will say that this guy has eaten nothing but meat, with some eggs, dairy, spices and coffee thrown in the mix, for over 47 years. If you're curious about carnivory, or really, really hate vegetables (maybe you're a supertaster?) he's the guy to talk to.

Here's Bear on the cheese eggwich:

The -wich story. A ham 'sandwich' could be called a ham 'breadwich'. In this way you can construct various names for other meaty dishes by substituting something else for the bread covers.

Eggs and cheese can make two kinds of -wich, the cheese eggwich and the egg cheesewich. The eggwich has eggs on the outside, and is a hot dish- the cheesewich has cold poached or fried egg between thick slices of cheese, good for a bag lunch. We are going to describe how to make the first one, usually eaten as a hot lunch or brekky:

In an 8 in (20cm) skillet with butter (Scanpan Ceramic Titanium is best) on low heat, break three eggs and break their yolks.

Add a very light sprinkle of chilli powder (like Texas Gunpowder, which is dried jalapeña) and fresh grind on a little black pepper (don't over-do the peppers). Other spices can be experimented with, but the two peppers do just fine. Layer on thin slices of cheese, like cheddar, Jarlsberg etc.- enough to cover the eggs.

Break on top, two more eggs and break their yolks. Carefully see to it that the cheese is covered with egg. Add some more butter. Watch closely and when the bottom eggs are just jelled, carefully flip the mass over, cook for a short additional time and serve.

It will take some practice to get it right, but once you do, it is easy and a true delight. It is one of our favourites around here. Properly done, the melted cheese is nicely sealed between two layers of egg, with a pleasant colour on the outside. Kids love it.

In fact- everyone loves a cheese eggwich.

I made mine in a very small cast iron pan. I used two eggs for the bottom, and sprinkled on onion and garlic powder, crushed red pepper flakes, and mixed ground peppercorns. Once the bottom firmed up some, I lay thin slices of cheddar and mozarella cheese overtop and then added another egg, mooshing it about until the cheese was covered. My pan was too small to flip this in, so I finished it under the broiler.

WOW. I mean, seriously wow. It's very different from a cheese omlette - I can't say how, exactly, but it is. When you cut into it, the cheese oozes out from the middle - fantastic. Mine was more like a layered quiche, because of the pan I used - if I wanted something flatter that I could pick up, I'd have to go bigger. But there's all sorts of possibilities with this. Next time, I'm going to add back bacon, or maybe ham.

Everyone loves a cheese eggwich - try it and see why. Thanks Bear!

Carnivore Challenge Gets Cheezy

It is February 10th, and I have managed 4 days out of 6 on the Magic Bus Carnivore Contest. Not too shabby. Days I haven't stayed totally carnivorous have been due to some salsa, or wanting a diet pop (something I'm trying to cut back on, and this is helping) or, like on Friday, wanting celery to dip in blue cheese alongside spicy chicken wings. I've had no junk food this month (save a couple diet pops), carbs have been super low. Alls well.

BUT...

Something's fishy, and it ain't fish. As much as I hate to admit it, dairy is causing a slight ruckus in the ol' system. Not much, but some. Got a few pimples, some bloating and puffiness. Took some magnesium last night to clear myself out (in case I'm a bit backed up - don't really feel I am, but might be) and I woke up feeling really, really nauseated.

I've been eating way too much cheese and cream. Waaaay too much. More than I've eaten in at least a year. I'm not much of a snacker, but quitting smoking had me somewhat peckish, and I'm just getting back to my usual eating schedule now. So Since this started, I've been snacking on cheese throughout the day, plus I've replaced my usual coconut milk with cream in my tea and, since I can't bear to see good organic heavy cream go bad, eating whipped cream on it's own or making super-creamy nog and coffee drinks. This is what got me last night - copious amounts of cream (though, to be fair, it was on it's last "good" date - may have been slightly off, and that's what made me feel sick?)

Regardless, I'm taking my punches like a woman and backing away, slowly, from the dairy. I'll still eat it, but nowhere near as much. I am learning to like my tea black (I learned to like it without three tsp of sugar, so how hard can this be), and remembering that, with some foods, the poison's in the dose. One can have too much of a good thing, dammit.

So we'll see if cutting back lets me dump the 2lbs of water I've been holding on to since this challenge began! We'll also see if I can manage to get creative with eggs. Carnivory can get a tad dull, so I'm seeking out ways to make meat and eggs delicious - different spices and herbs, mainly. I could eat a grilled steak with butter over and over again, it's true, but I figure this is a nice opportunity to branch out and learn more about cooking meat. We are including very low carb seasonings/sauces in this challenge, like hot sauces and such - maybe now's the time to learn some good West Indian techniques!

Oh, and I'm not going to post my Fitday anymore...because I can't be bothered to track my food! Been there, done that. It annoys me. Basically, my fat will be high, protein adequate, carbs super low. Let the calories fall where they may!

Cholesterol - What, Me Worry?

This whole carnivory challenge has got a few people asking me if I'm worried about what eating all this meat/fat will do to my cholesterol. The super short answer? Nope. Not at all. If I was eating grains, or an otherwise high-carb diet, then I'd worry, but more about my triglycerides in that case (and the size of my LDL). It's been shown time and time again that, in most cases, "good" cholesterol increases (and "bad" cholesterol decreases) on a low-carb diet, which is what I'm doing anyway, all the time - I just also happen to be experimenting with eating animal foods exclusively.

So what's the slightly less short answer? There is more and more evidence that cholesterol levels really aren't indicative of health problems, at least not insofar as we've been led (instructed?) to believe.

From Dr. Briffa's blog:

As with saturated fat, if we really want to make a judgment of the true impact cholesterol has on health, we need intervention studies – studies in which cholesterol levels are lowered and the effect of this assessed. In 2005 a meta-analysis of 17 studies in which subjects made dietary changes explicitly to reduce blood cholesterol levels was published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Overall, these studies brought about a 10 per cent lowering of cholesterol levels. Despite this, the amassed results showed no reduced risk of death, neither in healthy individuals, nor even in high-risk individuals who had a history of heart attack or stroke. Basically, taking dietary steps to reduce cholesterol levels (say by reducing saturated fat intake) has not been proven to save lives.

From Dr. Barry Groves:

Because of the propaganda, you can be forgiven for thinking that cholesterol is a harmful alien substance that should be avoided at all costs. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Cholesterol is an essential component in the body. It is found in all the cells of the body, particularly in the brain and nerve cells. Body cells are continually dying and new ones being made. Cholesterol is a major building block from which cell walls are made. Cholesterol is also used to make a number of other important substances: hormones (including the sex hormones), bile acids and, in conjunction with sunlight on the skin, vitamin D ₃ . The body uses large quantities of cholesterol every day and the substance is so important that, with the exception of brain cells, every body cell has the ability to make it.

Cholesterol may be ingested in animal products, but less than twenty percent of your body's cholesterol needs will be supplied in this way. Your body then makes up the difference. If you eat less cholesterol, your body merely compensates by making more. Although the media and food companies still warn against cholesterol in diet, it has been repeatedly demonstrated that the level of cholesterol in your blood is affected very little by the amount of cholesterol you eat.

You can spend weeks pouring over articles and studies published by members of THINCS:

The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics (THINCS) is a steadily growing group of scientists, physicians, other academicians and science writers from various countries. Members of this group represent different views about the causation of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease, some of them are in conflict with others, but this is a normal part of science. What we all oppose is that animal fat and high cholesterol play a role. The aim with this website is to inform our colleagues and the public that this idea is not supported by scientific evidence; in fact, for many years a huge number of scientific studies have directly contradicted it.

You can also read one of several great books on the subject by Anthony Colpo, Dr. Malcolm Kendrick, Uffe Ravnskov or Gary Taubes (whose book "Good Calories, Bad Calories" should be on everyone's reading list).

Basically, total cholesterol levels have little to do with causing heart disease. High HDL - the "good" cholesterol - is protective. High LDL - the "bad" cholesterol - is only bad if the actual particles are small and dense, and accompanied by high triglycerides (how fatty acid molecules circulate in the bloodstream) and low HDL. In the late 80's, a lipid metabolism specialist named Ronald Krauss conducted seven clinical trials to explore the relationship between this type of cholesterol profile and diet - and he found that diets lower in fat and higher in carbohydrates tend to produce this effect. In fact, the lower the fat, the higher the incidence of small, dense LDL. And the higher the saturated fat, the fluffier and larger the LDL - meaning, saturated fat (yes, that "artery-clogging" animal fat) is protective against the type of cholesterol that...well, clogs arteries.

Even so, cholesterol isn't the cause of heart disease. Sure, there's a correlation - just like there's a correlation between fires and firefighters. Just like firefighters rush to the scene of a burning house, cholesterol rushes to the scene of arterial damage to do some patching. In both cases their presence indicates a problem, but not that they were the cause of that problem.

There's so much information to cover that I can't really do it justice here, especially when people much smarter than I have done such a fine job of it already. If you're concerned, I highly suggest reading up on the subject. I think you'll find that the real concern isn't cholesterol, but the mainstream information we've been spoon-fed for far too long. Knowledge is power. MSN Health and Oprah, unfortunately, aren't knowledge. Not most of the time, anyway. If you really want to learn about your body, you've gotta dig a little deeper than Primetime.

Carnivory Challenge Update

2 days carnivorous. Today, no - had some salsa :) Tomorrow, I've got a nice order of meat coming from Beretta Organic Farms - steaks, bacon, sausages and other good stuff - so I'll have more variety to choose from. Makes carnivory easier.

Here's yesterday's menu (click on it if you can't see it in detail). I was seriously nibbly. Better cheese than cigarettes.


And today - salsa, cocoa and a square of dark, dark choccy. Though, since tea and coffee aren't counting against carnivory in this "contest", can I squeak cocoa past? I'll have to confer with the judges on this one.

Note the 5 - yes, 5 - slices of processed cheese. Normally, I don't "do" processed cheese but today, in a fit of enthusiasm, I decided to try making taco shells out of them. How? Basically, you melt them in the oven or microwave til bubbly, then remove and hang over a rolling pin to cool and harden. It is best to do this on parchment paper, which I did not have. So I just bunged the cheese on a silicone sheet and let 'er melt. Unfortunately, the point at which the cheese goes from melty and bubbly to blackened and burnt comes quickly, and I was left with a crusty, gooey mess of cheese. So, as with all other failed kitchen experiments, I ate them anyway. Not bad.

What did turn out, however, were the little cheese crisps I made from organic cheddar - make little piles of shredded cheese on parchment paper/silicone baking sheet, and bake at 350 or so til they melt and bubble. Scrape 'em off, cool on a paper towel, and they're ready to go.

Someone asked me about cholesterol while doing this challenge. Well, that's a whole post in and of itself, and will have to wait until tomorrow! Suffice to say that cholesterol isn't something I worry about, based on my research and understanding of the subject.

My brain is still running a tad slow - all this damn fresh oxygen! It's a bit like being buzzed all the time. But it's really interfering with my ability to write; to communicate at all, actually. I vary between grunts and giggles. Quitting smoking is a total trip. It's not as severe as last time, since my relapse was only about 2 months or so - last time, I was totally oxygen drunk and tripped over my words for a week. This time, I'm just kinda goofy and it's fun.

Yep...I said fun. Quitting smoking does not have to be so hard. It's not at all like "they" tell us it is, what with "hell week" and all. Nicotine is an extremely addictive drug, it's true - but the actual withdrawal from it is so slight, smokers barely notice it at all. Think about it - do you wake up in the middle of the night to smoke? Or do you go 6-9 hours a night without smoking? Your body starts to withdraw within an hour of smoking your last cigarette, depending on how quickly you metabolize nicotine. Even then, the actual feeling of withdrawal is slight - it's like being hungry, kind of, a slightly empty feeling. Maybe a flutter here and there.

What's hard is the mental aspect - if you're convinced that smoking is something you enjoy and can't be without, then you'll crave it. If you change the way you think about smoking (and learn WHY you smoke), the mental aspect becomes a non-issue. That's why this book is so, so amazing - it's a whole new way of looking at smoking, one that I'd not ever thought of. If you smoke and want to quit, or know someone who does, get this book.

Smoke-free Carnivory

Well it's done - I am officially a non-smoker again. Finished the Allen Carr book yesterday afternoon, smoked my last cigarette, and haven't wanted one since. No withdrawal, no cravings, nothing. Slightly irritable, but not much more than usual really. Very happy to be back to normal.

I did, however, have a bit of the munchies. I was watching the second half of "Dexter" (Season 1) and felt the urge to nibble - so I munched out on cheese. Thanks god dairy is okay with me again (so far), because carnivory would bet a little dull without it.

So what did I eat yesterday? Well: 2 fried eggs with havarti melted on top, 2 bratwursts with leftover cheese sauce, egg nog (heavy whipping cream, egg yolks, some cinnamon/nutmeg), whipped cream, cheddar and mozzarella cheese for snacking. And I tried to track in Fitday, I really did, but the idea of portioning and weighing out cheese just didn't appeal to me. So this is missing several ounces of cheese. I don't really rely on Fitday for accuracy anyway.


I am holding steady at 114lbs, and I don't really expect much more to melt off without getting back to strength training. But who knows? I'm not aiming for a certain macronutrient ratio, just want to see where I tend to fall naturally and what effect this has, if any, on my body/weight.

I also want to see how I feel on all animal foods, both physically and mentally.

Maybe it's the increased oxygen getting to my brain, but I am just not very writer-y today. Apologies. I will keep posting my progress with this, if only to keep myself accountable. Let's hope I'm more entertaining tomorrow.

Carnivore Challenge!

The Magic Bus, one of my favorite food forums, is holding a February Carnivore Contest. The aim of the contest is pretty obvious - to see how many days we can go eating carnivorously. The eating rules are as follows:

* any part of any animal (muscle, flesh, fat, organs, bone, whatever)
* VLC dairy (butter, cheese, cream, cream cheese, sour cream, etc.)
* eggs
* herbs, spices, seasonings, salt, VLC sauces (hot sauce, etc.)
* water, tea, coffee

* no vegetable oils, mayo, salsa, bbq sauce, etc.
* no half & half
* no coconut oil/milk
* no vegetation (except herbs, spices, seasonings, sauces)
* no artificial sweeteners
* no wine/alcohol

Since I was a bad gal over the holi-daze (and haven't been all that great this month either), this is a super-duper chance to get back on track and eat normally. I've been drinking way more diet pop than I'd like, and sneaking in too many non-food cheats (damn those Cheat-os and their zesty pseudo-cheeziness). So, it's meat, meat and more meat for me. Oh...and cheese, of course.

I'm elated to report that dairy products, at least so far, are sitting quite well with me. I suspect my gut has healed up. No more little dairy-related accidents for this gal ;)

So for the month of February, I'm going to eat and post meat! Menus, recipes, and hunks of carnivorous info. I just placed an order with a local farm so I'll have lots of flesh around - grass-fed beef, chicken wings, belly bacon. All easy stuff, because I want to make this as painless as possible and lately, I've been too damn lazy to do much grand cooking. Nitrate-free organic hot dogs? Sounds good to me. I just have to *gasp* skip the ketchup.

I am also going to track my calorie and macronutrient intake. Not that I really want to - I am so over weighing and recording every morsel that passes my lips - but I'm curious to see where I end up and what effect, if any, it has on my weight and/or body composition. As of this morning, I am 114lbs, my lowest adult weight ever (highest: 140lbs. Thank you, low carb!). Nothing wrong with that, but I still have excess body fat I'd love to shed and I am hoping that this, combined with some strength training and maybe a little HIIT, will melt the rest away for good. If I get around to it, that is. It's winter - and I'm a real bear in winter. As much as I love the snow, I tend to hibernate.

The time seems right to make changes, and that first involves a confession: after two years smoke-free, I relapsed over the holi-daze. I know, I know. I've been smoking again for almost two months, and bloody miserable about it.

I mean honestly, it's ridiculous. I avoid gluten, and other foods, like the plague and it's no problem. It's not as if I'm at a party and I see other people gathered outside on the patio eating buns and feel I have to join them. I don't keep a pita in my purse and eat little chunks of it every hour or so. But smoking? It doesn't even TASTE good. If I want to kill myself, I might as well do it with a croissant or Black Forest cake and get some enjoyment out of it. So as of tomorrow, that's done and over with. Cigarettes=gluten, in my mind. I am re-reading my Allen Carr book, and feeling positive and excited about breathing again. The only thing smoking in my house is gonna be my cast iron grill.