All Natural????

[Rambo]

In 2019 I went on a Ketogenic diet. It worked fantastic for me. I was as fit at 46 as I was when I graduated high school, maybe more so. My acid reflux that I had taken meds for over 12 years was gone, no more meds or Roland’s. And it transferred well into my back country hunts, although ver expensive. My energy level was high on the mountain. The next three years I was super fit and felt great. Admittedly though, I was growing tired of my keto meals and was beginning to cheat much more often in the last year.

Last fall I came home from an unsuccessful, crowded Colorado elk hunt a bit dejected and decided I was going to eat “normal” for a month or so. That month turned into three and about 14 pounds of weight gain. But the worst part was that my acid reflux / indigestion was back with full force. So I started back on Keto mid January and even though my indigestion is gone, I am still gaining weight. Not a lot, but not going down.

This has me thinking about a football coach that I had in high school. He was in his upper 50’s and in stellar shape. The man was ripped. When asked he told me that his first year of college he decided that if it didn’t previously have a heart beat, grow in the ground, or from a vine, it would not go in his body. 100% natural. He said he only cheated once about 3 years into it when he went to a wedding and tried a piece of cake. He said he felt like he had the flu for nearly a week after that cheat and never looked back. It worked for him.

So my question….. has anyone tried an all natural diet like this? Did it work for you? How was your energy level? And if so, what did your meal plan look like on the mountain? This would obviously be much lower carbs than a normal diet but I am concerned that without the fats that I have lived on for so long, my energy level may drop.

Anyone with opinions or expertise, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

 

[Loper]

I like this idea. I was pretty strict (though not 100% perfect) in natural food last year about 6 months leading up to my hunt and felt great. I even went on a 7 day cruise and stayed true to my eating choices. Day after day I would train and I don’t recall having low energy, at least not in a consistent basis.

After my hunt, I began cheating and then the holidays came and i kind of threw my diet out the window. I guess I told my myself that since the hunt was over I could relax some. I’m still working out regularly but I don’t have the energy that I did 6 or 9 months ago. I was actually thinking yesterday that I need to cut out all the crap I’ve been eating and get back to being more regimented with my eating.

I like the method your coach took. I think I’m going to use this to be my guiding principle. Your post is now the catalyst to get me back on track, starting today. Thanks!

 

[bdan68]

Sounds like you might want to try the carnivore diet. It's the most natural diet there is for humans. See the carnivore thread in this forum.

 

[Rambo]

I’ve done some reading on Carnivore and plan to do some more. My wife’s biggest complaint with my Keto diet was planning meals that I would eat that the rest of the family would too. Debating if Carnivore would gain me any ground in that category.

Thanks for the suggestion though, it may just be what I try.

 

[P Carter]

I’d say talk to a nutritionist. 14 lbs in 3 months…it seems as though that should come off pretty quickly by just reducing calorie intake. But I’d ask a qualified person who studied this stuff and makes a living doing it, rather than hunting threads on the internet that are based on what would generously be called pseudoscience… My two cents.

 

[eamyrick]

I’ve tried everything. The only thing I have found personally sustainable is to quit demonizing available food and just count the overall calories you eat. I don’t eat honey buns but I’m not beating myself up over tacos. Weight loss is super simple. Less calories in. If the “diet” doesn’t work long term or if you are miserable you are going to be back in the same boat.

 

[*zap*]

Good healthy food for most part and some chocolate cake maybe 5x a month. I am on chicken/cheesy rice/broccoli for 80% or so of my intake for 2-3 months. Plenty of whey protein drinks also. Seem to be loosing fat and gaining a few pounds, strength is up also.

 

[insanelupus]

One of the things that helped me was tossing the idea of "going on a diet". Such a statement leads to the conclusion someday you will go off the diet.

I made the decision I was going to eat well, avoid heavily processed foods (with allowances on occasion), drink more/plenty of water, keep calories in check, eat plenty of protein, and make good choices.

All of those things are choices and needed new habits. Still a work in progress but progressing.

Best of luck.

 

[CCooper]

I went on a mode last year of a paleo/ carnivore'ish meal plan. By cutting all carbohydrates and eating predominately meats and vegetables and watching macros I figured out I was fat deficient. I started adding an avocado and almonds to my diet daily and trying to eat fattier meats which got my macros back in check. I like the thought of not eating anything with more than 1 ingredient if I can. Sometimes easier said than done because tacos.

 

[khart_6882]

This is pretty much how I eat about 95% of the time. I do eat cheese which some could consider processed food but I love it and it doesn’t seem to have any ill effects. I cut out all dairy for 14 days and didn’t notice any difference.

Meals are simple, you have the worlds largest cookbook in your pocket. Tons of times I’ve done a google search of some main ingredients I have in the fridge then add Paleo to the end of your search and you’ll get a ton of recipes that don’t include any processed crap. I eat lots and lots of beef because it’s delicious and because of the high fat content. As for chicken it’s mostly just the thighs, if I eat the breasts they’re in some sort of casserole with some other source of fat (usually bacon). Lots of Johnsville hot Italian sausages I that I pre cook on Sunday evening and throw in my lunchbox throughout the week, along with 2-3 heavily salted soft boiled eggs. I don’t eat breakfast besides on the weekends with the family. Weekdays it’s just a few cups of black coffee until around noon, then lunch then dinner around 6.

When we have wild game for dinner I will always add a side of some sort of potatoes. The meat is so lean that since I’m not getting any fat I add carbs. Gotta get energy from somewhere.

Hope this helps!


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[lamarclark09]

Actually many people are talking about the Carnivore diet these days. So maybe it will be a good option for you as well because I have heard many people getting excellent results from it. My personal experience with it is very limited for now so I’m not sure. Plus there are some diets like the Dash diet and paleo diets too. You can look into it and decide for yourself.