Before adopting the carnivore way of eating, Zoe described her life as an “eat less, train more” diet. Like many people, Zoe grew up eating the Standard American Diet. As an adult, she worked in the fitness world and often worked out 7-9 times a week. Zoe describes her prior way of eating as very restrictive and obsessive. The amount of restriction she put on herself led to overeating.
After a couple of years of “eating like it was my birthday every day,” Zoe gained weight. She is 5’1” and describes herself as small-framed. So weighing close to 130 pounds put a lot of stress on her body. Zoe has also struggled with intense bloating, which she thought was normal. She also states her hormones have been imbalanced since she was sixteen. She had never had a regular menstrual cycle and often felt the effects of PMS.
Like many other carnivores, Zoe first started on the ketogenic diet. Zoe says she heard about keto from social media and decided to try it. Zoe felt great during the first four months but acknowledged she was still working out too much. Though Zoe had lost some weight, her hormones struggled to become balanced. She was also still experiencing some bloating, and overall she felt her health could still be better. During her keto diet, Zoe was more obsessed with food. She felt her days completely revolved around macros and when and how much she was allowed to eat.
She first heard about the Carnivore diet after listening to an interview with Kelly Hogan. Kelly is known for her testimony of balancing her hormones by adopting a carnivore lifestyle. At first, Zoe thought eating meat only sounded crazy. Then she began to listen to Dr. Shawn Baker and, out of curiosity, joined the World Carnivore Tribe. Two days later, she committed to following the carnivore diet for 30 days.
Zoe says that days 4 through 9 on the carnivore diet were the hardest for her. She experienced extreme exhaustion and issues with her gastrointestinal system. However, her bloating disappeared once Zoe passed day nine, and her energy returned. She even noticed she began to have a regular menstrual cycle for the first time as an adult.
What started as a 30-day personal challenge has become Zoe’s way of life. She eats all animals, including beef, chicken, fish, eggs, some dairy, coffee, seasonings, and lots of butter. Though some people may find carnivore restrictive, Zoe feels the carnivore diet is liberating. She doesn’t find herself obsessing over meals or controlling her life with macros. She also works out much less these days and listens to her body.
Zoe says her most significant takeaway from carnivore has been that she now eats when she is hungry. She also eats what she enjoys, such as bacon and butter, instead of following what her macros say she should eat. She says her biggest win has been teaching those around her about the benefits of eating animals. Her daughter, who used to be a vegetarian, is now experimenting with eating meat because of Zoe’s example.
