hi djr_81
Many thanks for this and I would love to hear more about your journey where can I read about it in more detail? also I have a few questions if you don't mind?
Not a problem. Like the others I'm here to share my experiences and help others reclaim their health so ask away.
Link to my journal.1/ what selections of meat do you eat?
I mostly eat grassfed beef chuck with additional grassfed beef suet.
I also eat wild deer (venison) when available. I have a number of friends and in-laws who hunt it so have good availability to it. I'm actually going to start training with a bow this spring and hopefully be proficient enough to hunt in the fall. I might wait another year for the hunting though if I don't feel confident that I'll make a clean shot.
Lastly I try to get a good assortment of organs when I can. I personally enjoy heart, tongue and liver. I dry them out a bit until they're a bit tough on the outside but still moist inside.
2/ what are your sources of fat?
The intramuscular fat in the beef chuck (one of the fattiest cuts on the animal) with supplemental suet fat. I've eaten marrow fat before but prefer to supplement with suet.
3/ how often do you eat? / time of day? / quantities?
I eat twice a day most days. Lunch time (anywhere from 10AM-3PM, usually about 1PM) and dinner time (5:30PM-8PM, usually about 6:30PM). I try to not eat to late as I don't digest it as well lying down.
I've recently increased my energy output (exercising again which I'd stopped with the serious cold outside-I'm doing it inside now) so have had a commensurate increase in food in. I'm eating 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of food in a given day now. I was eating 1 1/2-2 pounds of food.
4/ how much water do you drink?
At least 48oz of water a day. I'll vary day to day but my body lets me know when I need more water.
I drink quite a bit of water in the mornings. I also drink throughout my workday. I try to avoid any water a half hour before or an hour after eating as I'm of the mind it impairs digestion somewhat.
5/ bowel movements- frequency/size/ease?
Really depends on fat intake and overall food intake to energy usage.
If I'm getting enough fat and not eating much more food than the energy I use it's a minimal bowel movement (I don't know how you'd estimate a size here-maybe if formed into a ball it's be a 2 1/2" diameter?)which comes out without much effort. If I'm not getting enough fat it's harder to pass but about the same volume. If I'm eating more than I need the bulk goes up.
I go to the bathroom once a day most days. Some days might be two or three times that day (if I ate too much in general or maybe ate to much fat). Some days I might not go at all.
6/ Energy levels- would you have the enegy to play sport or go to gym?
After adaptation and with enough fat, yes definitely.
The keto-adaption process is hard on the body and you'll notice diminished energy and performance. I tried to keep up my morning running schedule throughout my adaptation and this was too difficult. I did go out most days and get my run in but it was slower and more labored than usual. A few days I missed completely.
Now if I don't get enough fat I notice a marked decrease in energy and have more trouble keeping myself going with a sport.
I was doing regular (2-3 times a week) 13 mile bike rides around my town after work last fall with daily morning jogging/running and noticed no energy problems so it doesn't seem to be a concern.
7/ did you suffer from any liver pain?
I did very frequently as a result of my food allergies. I was frankly resigned to the fact that I was going to lose the function of it at some point in my life since the pain was persistent enough. It wasn't a sharp pain often, usually dull, but definitely there 50% of the time.
I have not had this pain at all since changing my diet.
8/ could you give me a typical days schedule from when you wake to when you sleep?
This is typical as of last week:
Wake - 7:00AM
Morning cycle on bike - 7:00-7:15AM
Morning prep (Cutting up food for lunch, possibly taking a shower, getting dressed, spending a couple minutes with my wife before work, etc.) - 7:15AM-8:15AM
Drive to work - 8:15AM-8:45AM (15 minute buffer for traffic
)
Work (includes lunch somewhere in there) - 9:00AM-5:00PM
Drive home - 5:00PM-5:30PM
Misc. (TV, reading, spending time with my wife, etc.) - 5:30-9:30PM (Dinner in there somewhere)
Bed - 9:30PM-10:00PM
Not a very busy life but my wife and I are homebodies who enjoy the simple things.
I am pretty keen on going zero carb but my main issues are dehydration, constipation and fatigue (almost bed ridden some days) I find water to be a poor hydrator and low sugar fruits to be very good but I really want to get of fruit altogether as it agrevates my condition. I definately agree with what you say about carb cravings being alleviated by fat and I experience this with coconut cream however it leaves me extremely fatigued so I want to get off it as well. The animal fat I'm eating (fatty meat, bone marrow) however doesn't seem to quench my thirst or kiil the carb cravings as well. Any suggestions? I not been able to get grass fed suet or mutton yet. I am also reluctant to drink water to close to meals as I don't want to dilute my hcl and hamper my already poor digestion which leaves me dehydrated for a few hours after i eat, especially if i eat lots of red meat. At the moment I eat two meals:
10-11am selection of meat, foul and bone marrow
6-7pm seletion of wild caught cold water oily fish
In between I will chew on a little celery (spitting out the pulp), have a cuccumber or maybe a bell pepper (all to quench my thirst)
Would aprecaite you help mate and perhqaps a few of the other zero carbers could join in.
In my experience you'll hydrate better with the water if it's got a bit of sea salt in it to help with your electrolytes. My house has naturally hard water so I don't add any to my water but when I drink bottled water I do tend to add.
You sound like you're in the throes of keto-adaption at the moment. I can't really suggest much that will make it easier other than letting you know I went through the same issues and you just need to persevere. It's going to be hard but the short-term misery is so much better than the long-term problems with the Candida overgrowth.
I do recommend that you do not eat any fruits or vegetables if you're fighting Candida. It's best to go all-out now and then add things back in when you are healed in the future (I'm strongly considering adding in some berries after a couple years but will see when I get there). I'd definitely cut out the coconut cream at the very least; so many on this board seem to have issues with it why chance it?
Is your first meal your large meal of the day? I'd make the large meal of the day the red meat meal as it's fattier and better for your healing IMO. If you want to have oily fish as your other meal by all means do so just make sure you're making the fattiest meal the big meal.