How many meals do I have a day on the carnivore diet?

Two meals. 

Because a carnivore diet is so satiating, most people find that eating two times a day, or even once per day (known as OMAD) works better than three meals per day. 

This also makes time restricted eating much easier by allowing for a more compressed eating window with less meals.

Should I fast?

I practice intermittent fasting every day. 

Studies show that to trigger autophagy, which is the body's process of reusing old and damaged cell parts, you need to fast for at least 16-18 hours. 

The timing of your fast is also paramount. Autophagy only begins when fasting in alignment with your circadian rhythm–in other words, it must take place overnight. [3] 

What is 16:8 or OMAD?

I skip breakfast to reach 16 hours of fasting, triggering autophagy. 

Every day, I eat my first meal around 12 pm to 2 pm and my last meal around 6 to 8 pm. 

This is a type of fasting is called 16:8 intermittent fasting. That is, for 16 hours, you eat nothing, and for the remaining time, you have an 8 hour eating window to consume all your calories. (Eat your two meals within the 8 hour eating window.) 

On many days, I find myself so satiated I only eat one meal a day. (OMAD) 

How much meat should I eat on the carnivore diet?

As Carnivore Doctor Ken Berry says: "Eat Until You're Comfortably Stuffed" 

Berry points out that “feasting” is how our ancestors ate. Food was only fresh for a short period of time, and it was highly nutritious. There was no such thing as overeating.

For every 100 lbs you weigh, aim for at least 1lb of meat per day. With liver, aim for 0.5oz daily (2-3 oz per week).

Will I have diarrhea or constipation?

Most people notice a change in bowel movements, with diarrhea expected in the diet’s early stages. 

Once the body acclimates to the amount of protein, bouts of constipation are common, as fibre is no longer a part of this diet plan. 

If you experience constipation, consider a magnesium supplement to resolve this or as I did, continue to eat Avocado and Coconuts until resolved, a dietary source of fibre. 

Will I get Protein Poisoning?

If you do not eat enough fat on keto/carnivore, you will overload your body with protein causing your body to turn protein in to sugar, resulting in potential “protein poisoning”–this is a serious and even deadly condition. So remember this rule of thumb: Fat, not protein, is your primary source of energy on a carnivore diet.

Always eat fattier cuts of meat. I even acquire fat trimmings from my local to eat. 

How much fat to protein should I eat on a carnivore diet?

The Carnivore diet macros ratio is about 50 to 75 percent fat, 20 to 35 percent protein, and 0 to 5 percent carbs. 

To hit these macros, prioritise fatty cuts of meat (chuck, ribeye, chicken thigh), fatty fish (salmon, sardines, anchovies), and eggs.

If eggs enflame you which they do to me, avoid eggs. Eggs are quite a common allergen in eczema sufferers. 

How can I get enough fat on a carnivore diet?

These fatty staples will help you meet your carnivore diet macro goals:

• fatty cuts of steak, preferably from grass-fed sources.

• Bacon and pork belly are great ways to boost fat when you're doing carnivore diet on a budget.

• Other fatty keto meats.

• Butter.

• Tallow.

• Lard.

• eggs.

• Creamy carnivore cheese.

The issue for me is I am allergic to butter, cream, cheese and butter. So I struggled to incorporate sufficient fat levels into my diet. 

That is why I opted for an Animal Based Diet - Lion Diet hybrid as I explain in the Carnivore Diet module. 

The standard macronutrient distribution ranges (AMDR) for a standard American diet are 45–65% of your daily calories from carbs, 20–35% from fats and 10–35% from protein. 

So with this in mind, taylor your diet so that it optimises your health. 

You don't want to be consuming excess cheese, cream or butter if it inflames you. 

See my Simple Carnivore Diet meal plan above. 

How can I get enough fat on a Lion Diet?

The best way to protect against protein poisoning on the lion diet is to choose fatty cuts of meat like ribeye and short ribs. Though a bit of a gray area, you may also want to increase fat content by adding beef tallow. 

The ideal fat to protein ratio on a keto diet (remember that a lion diet is a version of keto), is 3:1. That means that if you consume a 2000 calorie diet you're getting 1500 calories from fat, and 500 from protein. Remember that 1 gram of fat has nearly 2x the amount of calories as protein.

How to balance my Potassium to Sodium intake?

Roughly 1:3

The ideal ratio of sodium to potassium intake is roughly 1:3 — that is, potassium intake would ideally be around three times our sodium intake.

Potassium is an essential electrolyte that is found higher in plant foods than in animal products. This makes it an area of concern for people on an all-meat carnivore diet. 

The truth is, animal products contain plenty of potassium. So for most people, getting enough potassium on a carnivore diet is not a challenge.

See my slides on electrolytes

Will I Get Scurvy? What about vitamin C?

This concern is based on a mainstream dietary fallacy that meat contains no vitamin C. In fact, when eating a carnivore diet of at least 1000 grams (2.2lbs) of fresh muscle meat alone, you will exceed the amount of vitamin C you need to prevent scurvy (vitamin c deficiency).

Is the Carnivore Diet safe?

Conclusions: "Contrary to common expectations, adults consuming a carnivore diet experienced few adverse effects and instead reported health benefits and high satisfaction. Cardiovascular disease risk factors were variably affected." 

Behavioral Characteristics and Self-Reported Health Status among 2029 Adults Consuming a “Carnivore Diet”