Shifting to carnivore isn't a weekend project—it's truly a month-long commitment. Your body needs time to adapt. First two weeks are rough: fatigue, electrolyte issues, digestive chaos. Many drop 5-10 pounds initially, mostly water weight. Sugar cravings can at times hit hard. Salt becomes your friend. Complete adaptation takes at a minimum 30 days as your system adjusts to processing only meat. The journey sometimes will be uncomfortable, but patience pays off.
Changing to a carnivore diet isn't for the faint of heart. It requires eliminating basically everything we've been told to eat. No grains. No fruits. No veggies. Just meats. The shift typically starts with removing the obvious culprits—grains, legumes, plants, and anything processed.
Josh “Trailvore” Koop
To help with gut impact people complain about, I suggest a slow gradual reduction of fruits and vegetables over a couple of weeks, while ruminent meat consumption ramps up to fill the energy void. By week four's end, you should be comfortably into meat or nothing. Unklike what you've been told over time, it's packed with every essential nutrient you need.
Many adherents prioritize high-quality meats from grass-fed and pasture-raised sources to maximize nutritional benefits. Can't argue with that. But if broke ruminent meats anywhere are best over anything else!
The body goes through hell in this monthy period. Seriously. It's shifting from burning carbs to burning fat. The first two weeks? Expect to feel like garbage. Fatigue hits hard. Electrolytes are dumped with water weight. The digestive system freaks out trying to handle all that protein and fat. Full adaptation takes about 30 days for most people. That's just how it is.
Trailvore
The shift isn't all doom and gloom. Many people drop 5-10 pounds in the first week alone. Water weight, mostly. Inflammation markers decrease for some individuals. Mental clarity improves. Blood sugar stabilizes. Digestive issues often disappear. But results vary. Obviously.
Challenges? There are plenty. Sugar cravings hit like a truck. The bathroom situation gets irritating as diarrhea impacts many if they switch too fast. Social situations can be awkward if you let them be.
The "keto flu" is real. Headaches. Irritability. Workouts suffer initially.
Nutritionally, things change drastically. Salt becomes your best friend. Water intake needs adjustment with all that protein. Smart people monitor their health markers. Weight, body composition, blood pressure—track it all. Before and after blood tests tell the real story. Energy levels fluctuate. Sleep quality changes. Pay attention.
