{"id":185,"date":"2018-07-10T13:55:30","date_gmt":"2018-07-10T18:55:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bscmultisport.com\/blog\/?p=185"},"modified":"2018-07-10T15:05:21","modified_gmt":"2018-07-10T20:05:21","slug":"the-carnivore-diet-for-an-endurance-athlete","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bscmultisport.com\/blog\/2018\/07\/10\/the-carnivore-diet-for-an-endurance-athlete\/","title":{"rendered":"The Carnivore Diet – for an endurance athlete?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Background<\/h2>\n

I’d like to think that I am a fairly typical middle of the pack, middle aged athlete. \u00a0Like many, I started exercising to lose weight. \u00a0This eventually lead to running, triathlon, cycling, etc… and it worked! \u00a0I initially lost 70# but recently I have struggled with gaining and losing the same 20-30# every winter and summer and I’m tired of it.<\/p>\n

At the end of each season I sit down and evaluate what went right and what went wrong (you should be doing this as well!). \u00a0For the last 3 years the biggest limiters in my racing have been my weight and consistency. \u00a0I start each season at least 40# overweight, lose 20-30#, race overweight, go into the offseason, drink too much craft beer and eat too much bad food, balloon up, jump on the scale come January, realize I screwed up again, and buckle down. \u00a0I’m tired of this cycle. \u00a0It’s exhausting mentally and physically, and I can’t imagine it’s a healthy way to live.<\/p>\n

After two seasons of Ironman training I have to admit that I am burned out on structured training. \u00a0I thought that signing up for a crazy long race might inspire me to get out and ride my bike, but I was wrong. \u00a0Of course, the nasty spring we had in Michigan didn’t help, but if you can’t be motivated to get out and train for a 210 mile gravel\/off-road bike race, then there’s definitely something wrong. \u00a0After much contemplation I decided to take this year off and focus on hanging out with my family. \u00a0Our kids are getting older and already don’t want to hang out with us and my wife, the saint, has put up with 2 years of constant Ironman training. \u00a0I recently bought us kayaks and I think it’s time we put them to use.<\/p>\n

Why Carnivore<\/h2>\n

We were visiting northern Michigan over Memorial Day weekend and I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of the year. \u00a0I knew I needed to stay busy or I would sit around and drink beer, eat bad food, and watch Netflix (are you seeing a pattern?). \u00a0 I also knew that I needed to lose weight. \u00a0If not for my athletic career, then for my health and to ensure I would be there to walk my daughter down the aisle (as she likes to remind me). \u00a0 I’ve always been a proponent of self-experimentation and have tried just about every diet out there. \u00a0 I’ve had my greatest success with a Paleo diet, specifically a low carb, high fat diet (LCHF). \u00a0Unfortunately I had ignored that style of eating the past few years as I was training so much I felt like I needed carbs. \u00a0With nothing on the schedule for the foreseeable future I decided to start looking into a Keto\/LCHF diet. \u00a0I did some research and found some amazing success stories along with a few studies showing that it’s a healthy way to eat and a great way to lose weight. \u00a0I am also intrigued by the stories of people reversing their Type II diabetes with nothing more than diet as a close family member struggles with that. \u00a0LCHF lead me to some interesting websites and eventually I came across the Carnivore diet.<\/p>\n

What is the Carnivore Diet<\/h2>\n

It’s perhaps the simplest diet I can possibly write about. \u00a0What is it you ask? \u00a0Eat only animal based products, mainly meat. \u00a0Fatty cuts are better than lean cuts. \u00a0It sounds crazy, right? \u00a0Well, BSC is right up my alley so I’ve decided to give it a shot. \u00a0I generally do best in black\/white situations when it comes to diet. \u00a0When there are shades of gray I tend to allow myself an indulgence here and there, which eventually leads to me falling off the wagon completely. \u00a0This diet is as simple as can be… \u00a0Did what you are about to eat have a mom or a dad? \u00a0If so, then go ahead and eat! \u00a0 Plus, how hard can it be to eat ribeyes, t-bones, burger patties, etc?<\/p>\n

The Results<\/h2>\n

The big result from this experiment is that I was down around 15 pounds in 30 days. \u00a0Sure, some of that was water weight, but the same can be said for most weight loss programs. \u00a0 Overall this was the easiest diet I have ever followed. \u00a0My average day looked like this:<\/p>\n