CARNIVORE FASTING GUIDE

Fasting has become extremely popular and especially so for those who follow the carnivore diet. Fasting seems to happen naturally to most people on carnivore as their nutritional requirements balance out and feelings of hunger subside.

While the carnivore diet has it’s benefits, fasting also seems to have health benefits when done right, including the reversal of type 2 diabetes, increases in muscle mass and it can speed up weight loss.

INTRODUCTION | BENEFITS | TYPES OF FAST | SIDE EFFECTS | GET STARTED | FAQ | RECIPES, & MEAL PLANS

What Is Fasting?

The first thing to note about fasting is that it’s not starvation. Starvation is involuntary whereas fasting is voluntary. It’s controlled.

When done correctly, fasting shouldn’t be too uncomfortable and should certainly be controlled. For example, food is available but you choose not to eat it for health or spiritual reasons.

Fasting, while it can seem unusual to people who hear about it for the first time, is actually a part of normal everyday life. If you’re thinking, it doesn’t sounds normal to you, then, like millions of other people just like you, you’re probably not leading a normal life.

You see, having access to an unlimited amount of food is not normal. No other species in the animal kingdom has this. Only humans. And we’re the ones who are sick.

Abstaining from food because there is no food available is actually what’s normal. So much so that we have built in biological mechanisms that enable us to benefit from fasting.

Disclaimer: While fasting on the carnivore diet has given thousands of people amazing results, there still isn't enough research on the diet to fully understand how it interacts with medications.

If in doubt, always seek advice from a medical professional.

Benefits of Fasting On Carnivore

The most talked about benefit of fasting is weight loss. But weight loss in itself often comes with a whole host of benefits all on it’s own. Aside from weight loss, fasting can also lead to:

• Increased fat burning
  
• Lower insulin
• Improved blood glucose    
• Improved cholesterol
• Increase growth hormone
• Improved mental clarity
• Reversal of type 2 diabetes
• Increase life span
• Reduced inflammation

TYPES OF FASTING

There are many types of fasting or more specifically, lengths of fasts that you can do to get different benefits. The type you choose for you will depend on your current health status and goals.

16:8 FASTING
Also called time restricted feeding because you limit your food intake to an 8 hour window and abstain from food for the remaining 16 hours. Half of that time, you sleep through. This type of fasting is done daily and is a great starting point for most carnivores.

20:4 FASTING
As the name implies, this cuts your eating window down to only 4 hours, with 20 hours of fasting. While it seems a bit more hardcore than 16:8, most metabolically healthy people can handle 20 hours of no food quite comfortable.

24 HOUR FASTS
This is a meal to meal fast. For example, you finish dinner and don’t eat again until dinner the following day. When done regularly, this is called One Meal a Day or OMAD for short.

48 HOUR FAST
This is often referred to as 5:2 fasting. Five days of eating and two days of restricted calories. Usually 500 calories per fasting day. This method of fasting has a lot of scientific support in terms of health benefits.

ALTERNATE DAY FASTING
Similar to 48 hour fasting except you have 500 calories every other day and eat normally on your non fasting days.

36 HOUR FAST
At 36 hours we’re moving into therapeutic fasting territory. Therapeutic fasting essentially means you’re fasting to fix or prevent serious health issues. Most healthy people don’t need to fast for longer than 24 hours but some people with certain health issues can benefit from this type of extended fast.

Side Effects of Fasting

Most carnivores tolerate fasting without any issues at all. In fact, a lot of the side effects of fasting listed below don’t impact carnivores as much due to their insulin sensitivity. But if you’re new to carnivore or fasting, here’s what might happen and how to fix it.

HUNGER
Probably the most common side effect for obvious reasons. On carnivore, you might find, especially during the adaption period, that you go through periods of time with little to zero hunger at all. If you do feel hunger, ignoring it or distracting yourself with a walk can help.

HEADACHES
If you feel a headache coming on, your electrolyte balance may have been disrupted. Some salt water can be a quick fix but if you still don’t feel too great after salt water, it might be time to break your fast and try again another time.

FATIGUE
Some fatigue can be normal, especially the first few times you fast, but it shouldn’t be excessive. If your fatigue feels a bit too much, break your fast.

DIGESTIVE ISSUES
The most common digestive complaint is constipation which makes sense when you think about it. If you go to the toilet every day of your life for years and all of a sudden you don’t need to go, you’re constipated? Probably not. If you have no food in you, there’s no reason to go to the toilet.

How To Fast For Carnivores

Getting started with fasting as a carnivore is very easy. If you don’t naturally fall into some kind of fasting regimen all by yourself, you can choose the right fasting protocol for you and your goals.

Either way, if you’re new to fasting, be sure to wean yourself in slowly. Start with a 16:8 then a 20:4 and move on to a 48 hour fast should you choose to. Remember, there’s no shame in breaking a fast if you don’t feel great for any reason.

FASTING FOR WEIGHT LOSS
The first step to fasting for weight loss is to ask, do I even need to fast? Sure, you might be in a rush to get rid of excess weight but fasting can often lead to a massive reduction in metabolic turnover and make it even more difficult to burn the fat.

If you’ve been on the carnivore diet for some time, or you’ve fasted previously, a fast will likely help you lose some extra pounds, but if you’re just starting out on carnivore and never fasted, give your body some time to adapt and adjust to your new way of eating. Consider fasting after 2 or 3 months.

FASTING FOR MUSCLE GAIN
There’s quite a bit of research on the benefits of fasting for muscle gain. In particular, for its increases in Human Growth Hormone (HGH). Fasting for increase HGH doesn’t typically need to be any longer than a 16:8. Any longer and you can break the number one rule of muscle gain, a calorie surplus.

FASTING FOR HEALTH
When it comes to improving your health in the shortest time possible, the 5:2 fast takes the cake. It has the most evidence to back up the benefits and is also quite manageable for most. Extended fasting periods also show to have some extra benefits but are only recommended for the more experienced faster.

carnivore FASTING FAQ

You likely have a lot of questions which we’ll do our best to answer here;

MY WEIGHT LOSS HAS STALLED. HOW COME?
It's not unusual for weight loss to stall if you've just started or have even been fasting for some time. Think of it from nature's perspective. You less food and less frequently than you did before. Your body isn't sure when the next meal is coming. Why would it let go of your fat stores so easily. It would make more sense to down regulate your metabolism and keep those fat stores in case your already difficult eating habits become more difficult. Don't fast so hard and see what happens.

CAN I EXERCISE?
Of course. It might be difficult at first so just take it easy. But eventually, training fasted can become a normal part of your daily routine.

MY BLOOD GLUCOSE IS HIGH WHEN I FAST. WHAT GIVES?
Your body produces glucose and insulin all day, every day. Around 4g per kg of body weight. This is normal and can actually up-regulate in some people when they fast.

CAN I LOSE MUSCLE MASS?
You certainly can depending on the duration of the fast and how your body deals with that. If muscle maintenance or gain is your goal, you might be better off using the 16:8 fasting protocol. This gives you more than enough time to get the calories you need each day while still getting the benefits from fasting on the carnivore diet.