Greg, who is 6’3″, put on 150 pounds in 20 years. In 2018, he weighed 397 pounds—a number that shocked him—only three pounds away from 400.
Greg was a long-distance runner and was very lean from high school into his 30s. Between a growing family and work, he had less time to run. Plus, his job as a computer scientist was very sedentary.
Before his weight gain, he followed a no-fat diet with lots of carbs based on Dr. Pritikin’s protocol. This worked while he ran. He continued to eat this way even while not exercising, and his weight crept upward.
Greg had high BP and an A1c between 5 and 6, which made him prediabetic; he had sleep apnea and used a CPAP; he experienced generalized and situational anxiety, especially when speaking in public; he had joint pain from old injuries and gout flare-ups that were almost continuous.
After the shock of his weight in 2018, Greg began to gather facts about keto, which was trending big at the time. He searched for medically sound information but did not make any commitment to change.
It wasn’t until January 2020 that Greg began keto. As part of his keto routine, he fasted for two to three days each month. Over almost 10 months, Greg lost 80 pounds.
After his initial weight loss, he saw improvement in his BP and A1c. The gout flare-ups had subsided so much that they were rare—one every 3 months.
Greg’s keto diet morphed into a more “ketovore” diet. He describes this as meat, veggies, and fasting. Eventually, Greg gravitated toward doctors in the carnivore community, and this led him to shift from keto to a more meat-focused diet.
Greg has been mostly carnivore for the last nine months. He lost another 60 pounds on carnivore, for a total of 140 pounds.
The carnivore diet satiates Greg, and he doesn’t have the urge to snack. He eats one meal in the evening—ribeye, ground beef, seafood, or chicken. He eats 80–90 percent beef and likes steak and eggs. He chooses the fattier cuts of meat and doesn’t need to add additional fat to his diet. He uses salt and, occasionally, electrolytes. Greg enjoys decaf coffee.
Occasionally he’ll eat some veggies, but he limits them because the plant toxins aggravate his joint pain. Greg says, “I don’t eat food if it has an ingredient list.” He finds the carnivore diet to be much easier to navigate than keto and more cost-effective, even with the price of beef, because there is so much he doesn’t buy now.
Greg has experienced amazing results on his health journey. The last gout attack he had was a couple of years ago—red meat is clearly not causing his gout. The dose of his BP meds has been decreased several times, and he thinks that on his next doctor’s visit, he will be completely done with them. His last A1c was 4.8, and while he is still on metformin, he believes that he will soon get off that as well.
Daily stress is much easier for Greg to handle now, although public speaking still makes him anxious. His mental focus is much improved, and he believes that he’s less distracted because he has fewer physical discomforts. And with less joint pain, he’s able to exercise using a rowing machine.
Greg is 60 and encourages people to make this change at any age. “It’s never too late.”
