I Owe You An Apology: I Got Carnivore Wrong
In a Nutshell
The speaker apologizes for wrongly insisting carnivore is "all about fat" (or "fatavore"), as optimal fat-to-protein ratios vary by healing stage, body fat levels, and goals—e.g., 55% fat/35% protein when overweight (using leaner 95/5 beef), 70% when lean/maintaining (ribeye, butter), 75% for mental health, and 80% for therapeutic ketosis. Fat is measured by calories (9 cal/g vs. 4 cal/g protein), so even ribeye is 55% fat despite fewer fat grams than protein. Ratios evolve (e.g., more dietary fat as body fat depletes); use tools like GKI for tracking, and consult practitioners.
These notes were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
I want to apologize for some information about carnivore that I got very wrong. I've been eating a proper human diet and talking about it on my YouTube channel for over 3 years. I've repeated something that in retrospect led people down the wrong path.
I've been eating a proper human diet for 3 years. I'm down over 100 pounds since my heaviest. I overcame IBS, arthritis, gout, horrible depression, and reversed my congestive heart failure.
I have been saying since the beginning, carnivore is all about fat. I repeated many times it should be called fatavore because fat, fat, fat. It is all about the fat. You've got to get more fat. You should be eating more fat. Really, fat is all that matters.
Fat is critically important for carnivore, but there's nuance. The advice I was giving may have led some people to think it's all fat all the time, and that's all we need to worry about. That is really not true. It depends on the stage of your carnivore journey and your why or goals for doing carnivore.
For example, if you have cancer or major depression, it can be beneficial to maximize fat and get into a deep therapeutic level of ketosis. It should be less about maximizing fat and more about getting into that deep therapeutic ketosis.
The problem is when we say this is just fat, fatavore, all about consuming tons of fat. It's not true depending on what part of the journey you're on.
When I first started carnivore and was 100 lbs heavier than I should have been, maximizing fat isn't necessarily the best strategy. Why? Because my body has fat to burn. My body can say, 'Am I going to burn the fat on the body or the dietary fat that I'm eating over and over again?'
Depending on your goals and what part of your journey you're on. That's why I always tell people who say, 'I want to know exactly what you ate today,' why does that matter? Why does the ratio of fat to protein matter what I'm eating right now? Unless you're doing this for the same reasons I'm doing it, and you're at the same part of my journey, it doesn't matter. What I'm eating today is different than what I ate day one, month one, year one. I'm on three years now. It's constantly changing.
To help visualize this, I put together a tool. This is a web page I created.
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Your carnivore fat ratio is not one-size-fits-all. At healinghumanity.life membership site, we help people struggling on a path to healing.
Fat and protein ratios change as you heal. Your needs on day one are not your needs on day 365. That's why carnivore isn't as simple as people say, and why I apologize for calling it fatavore and leading people to believe it's just fat all the time.
As your body fat goes down, your dietary fat needs go up. As fuel from body fat takes away, you need to add more.
Illustrative only; individual results vary. Work with a metabolic health practitioner when changing things.
What does 70% fat mean? It's 70% by calories, not by weight. Fat has more than twice as many calories as protein (9 calories per gram fat vs 4 calories per gram protein).
Even a modest amount of fat on your plate, like in a ribeye, makes up a large share of total calories.
Real-World Examples
- Ribeye steak: 15g fat (135 fat calories), 28g protein (112 protein calories). Fewer fat grams than protein grams (15g vs 28g), but 55% calories from fat.
- 80/20 ground beef: 80% lean meat, 20% fat by weight. 18g fat (162 fat calories), 61% fat, 39% protein by calories.
Key takeaways: Ribeye has fewer fat grams than protein grams. 80/20 ground beef is already 61% fat by calories, not 20%.
Find your scenario. Each stage of your healing journey calls for a different approach, and also what you're doing carnivore for. Some people start lean with an autoimmune disorder.
Scenario 1: 100 Pounds Overweight (Stored Fat Provides Energy)
Dietary fat from food can be moderate.
Approach:
- Prioritize protein. Adequate protein preserves muscle mass, especially over 40.
- Many cut protein too much while increasing fat.
- Use fat for satisfaction, to get over cravings.
- Understand your starting point. Keep carbs low.
Recommendation: 55% dietary fat, 35% dietary protein from food.
Food Examples: 95/5 ground beef (less fat than I did initially; I maximized fattiest ground beef at start).
Scenario 2: Lean and Maintaining (No Body Fat Reserves)
Choose fattier cuts. Add fat deliberately: butter, tallow, beef fat. Stored reserves no longer significant.
Recommendation: 70% dietary fat, 30% protein.
Food Examples: Ribeye steak, 80/20 ground beef, butter (top pick), whole eggs (62% calories from fat, 38% from protein).
You may start overweight and later become lean, requiring change.
Scenario 3: Brain Health or Mental Health (Depression, Anxiety)
Higher fat intake supports sustained ketone levels for therapeutic ketosis. Consistency matters more than peaks.
Recommendation: 75% dietary fat, 25% protein.
Food Examples: Ribeye steak, butter, beef short ribs, egg yolks (crispy egg yolks, discard whites to increase fat %).
Scenario 4: Therapeutic Ketosis (Medical Supervision)
Very high-fat for therapeutic purposes. Monitoring essential. Work with doctor, metabolic health practitioner, coach. Use glucose ketone index (GKI) as guide. Protein carefully calibrated.
Recommendation: 80% dietary fat, 20% dietary protein.
Food Examples: Beef short ribs, pork belly, beef tallow, butter.
Recommendation: Keto Mojo meter tracks blood glucose and ketone levels. Most useful for understanding how food affects metabolic state. Use GKI to see if approach works or need to adjust protein/fat.
Chart shows: Day 1 different from Day 100, Day 1,000. Fat to protein changes.
Sincere apology: I got something wrong about carnivore. It's not all fat all the time. Fat is important, but there's nuance, a journey, ratios, macros change as body evolves and depending on goals.
Leave a comment: Did you mess up your fat intake on carnivore and what did you do to dial it in?
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