Tracy is a fitness and nutrition coach who lives in Frisco, Texas. She is a cancer survivor who has overcome several health problems with the help of a meat-based elimination diet.
The Downfall of a Whole Food Plant-Based Diet
She grew up eating the standard American diet and contracted mononucleosis at age 17. This resulted in a number of chronic immune issues. Tracy ate a “whole food plant-based diet” for 15 years, which resulted in gut problems that her doctor said were irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Tracy says this diagnosis wasn’t helpful because it “was a code word for ‘we have no idea what the hell is wrong with you!”
She became a fitness trainer and nutrition coach and “did cleanses,” but she still experienced lots of bloating, constipation, and fatigue. Tracy’s symptoms were so severe that she went to the ER several times, “looking eight months pregnant and they would say, ‘oh you know, drink some Metamucil, eat more fiber, eat low fat.” She would later realize that fiber was causing her to bloat and damage her intestines.
The Devastating Effects of Cancer and Conventional Health Advice
“10 years after I had some of those digestive problems, I had my appendix out, and then ten years later, I ended up being diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and I was the poster child of health and fitness.” Tracy felt let down by the medical system and mainstream health advice because “I did all the ‘right’ things, and I still got cancer.”
She endured 28 chemo and radiation sessions and had to wait to heal because she was irradiated so badly. “I ended up having to have a permanent colostomy bag, so that was devastating.”
Tracy still experienced symptoms and discomfort after her cancer treatment. She did get some improvement from fasting but found her gut health never really improved completely. “So I was diagnosed then with SIBO, small intestine bacterial overgrowth, of which they say about 80% of ‘IBS’ sufferers have SIBO, right?”
The Discovery of the Carnivore Diet
Tracy found a protocol that included the first two weeks of being on a carnivore diet. She found that she didn’t know how to cook a steak but started following the protocol.
The results happened quickly: “I’ll tell you what, I felt amazing… I have never felt so clear-minded. I think it was so many years that I didn’t even know I was suffering from brain fog, but all of a sudden, it was like the veil came down, and I felt like I could see things so much clearer. A lot of my inflammation was gone, I felt leaner, my stomach felt better, and that was 2019.”
Benefits of an Animal-Based Diet for Tracy
Since her body is now burning ketones for fuel, she has found that her energy is much more stable. Tracy practices intermittent fasting and eats eggs, avocado, raw cheese, steak, or burgers at night. “I really love a ribeye!”
Tracy has found the diet that her body needs, saying, “I just feel better when I stick to an animal-based diet…my energy is better and…when I’m eating that way, I’m able to function at a higher level.”
