Josh recalls being morbidly obese as a child. Family meals consisted of lots of carbs—bread, pasta, rice, and potatoes—along with bowls of sugary cereal for snacks. At 12, Josh had back pain from carrying excess weight. In high school, he weighed 330 pounds.
Josh developed sleep apnea in his early twenties, and waking up gasping for air terrified him. Another red flag was a fainting episode at church. The ER told him it was “normal,” but Josh didn’t think so. He also didn’t think his lightheadedness while walking was normal. He developed mid-back pain, low back nerve impingement, and overall joint pain. As a young man, he knew he had to make changes or his health would worsen. He started by eating a whole-food diet— lean protein, potatoes, and lots of green veggies—and walking.
These lifestyle changes helped Josh lose 100 pounds.
Josh’s joint pain, nerve impingement, and mid-back pain continued, especially after lifting weights. He’d have to skip the gym for a few days and see his chiropractor. He also experienced fatigue, bloating, and gastrointestinal issues.
Josh began a keto diet to help him heal. He lost more weight, going from 210 pounds to 190, but at 6’0, Josh didn’t feel strong at this weight. Initially, his back pain and energy improved, but that was short-lived. Josh ate about a pound of meat a day, lots of veggies, avocados, nuts, seeds, and vegetable oils.
Keto snacks drove Josh’s sugar cravings and caused bloating and GI disturbances, which perpetuated his joint pain. Eating so many vegetables made his bloating worse, and he had a lot of gas. He thought it was normal to be bloated.
Josh learned about the carnivore diet from his chiropractor, who uses it to reduce inflammation. He watched Dr. Baker’s content and was curious about the diet. To address his remaining problems, he began eating meat and eliminated seeds, keto snacks, nuts, and plants.
Josh’s health has improved dramatically since beginning carnivore almost a year ago. His joint pain is gone, and while he has developed mid-back arthritis, the carnivore diet is also helping. His right knee has been injured twice in the last year, but he has no pain or discomfort when he eats carnivore. He no longer has nagging pain or soreness in his low back from lifting patients as a physical therapy assistant.
And Josh is performing well at the gym, gaining more muscle mass than when he ate keto. Other notable improvements are stable energy and better alertness and concentration.
Josh eats about 2.5 to 3 pounds of meat daily. For variety, he eats ground beef, steak, pork, and some liver. Eating a big breakfast of 6 to 8 eggs and a pound of meat lasts him all day. He makes his own bone broth and sometimes eats cheese and butter. Occasionally, he’ll have fruit. Josh heavily salts his food, and it seems to be sufficient. He listens to his body; if he’s hungry, he eats more.
Initially, giving up keto treats was hard. It was a mental game—”I can’t have this food.”
Josh finds that eating to satiety and focusing on how good he feels on the diet and how bad he feels when he cheats calms his cravings.
Finding meat deals, mixing up ribeyes with cheaper cuts of meat, and not buying any extras makes eating carnivore affordable.
And Josh says it’s sustainable. “I love it. I feel better than ever. It’s been a good year of letting my body heal.”
