Animal!

By the time my column about my yogurt era was published, that era was already so over — replaced by my salted-egg chicharon era. Whew.

Of course my body reacted to the salted-egg chicharon even though it’s pork. It’s the salt in the salted egg, plus the sugar that softened the salty taste. The bagoong that accompanied the kare-kare on Friday didn’t help at all. Inflammation and water retention pa more.

“Listen to your body” is the advice from carnivore doctors and coaches. So I listen. I notice and observe how food affects me: what makes me sneeze, makes my lower legs swell, gives me skin allergies, inflames my joints, causes headaches, increases my blood pressure, etc. I keep a food log to monitor all of these.

I also have a blood pressure log that includes my day’s activities, so I’ll have clues about what might be affecting it. Stress, anyone? 

My body weight now hovers in the higher 120s and lower 130s in pounds. I want to believe it’s all muscle. Haha. I can dream, can’t I? My goal weight for this year is much lower than that, but I’m not going to starve on my way to that goal.

Last year when I fasted for three straight days, no thanks—or thanks?—to my gastroenteritis scare, my weight went down to 119 pounds. I had no appetite then; fasting became easy.

But I have an appetite now. I want to eat. So why punish myself with extended fasting?

Beef, pork, bangus belly, salmon, eggs, salt, butter, and water are what I currently eat at home. My body reacts negatively if I add anything else. Eggs are in and out of my diet because sometimes I blame them for my rhinitis and skin allergies, though those are probably caused by my “occasional” high-carb intake. Operative word: occasional.

There are also times when bangus belly and salmon are off my home list because I get bored of them. I don’t order fish anymore when I eat out. But I do order chicken when I want to find out if the resto’s version is delish.

There’s this proverb: “You can’t blame the wind for the mess it made if you’re the one who opened the window.” Hot weather enters the room if the windows are open. Hmm. In other words, I can’t blame the eggs for what the carbs did?

I’ve been a low-carb dieter for more than four years now, and I’m currently transitioning to carnivore. Before this, I was never able to stick to any diet for so long. But the carbs’ side effects are always enough to convince me to return to a carnivore diet. That’s the reason I’ve stayed with this diet. It’s like playing pickleball and knowing how to avoid getting hit by the ball.

Yes, four years of dieting and it remains a struggle. No wonder GLP-1 injections have become popular for their fast weight-loss results, much like how instant coffee and instant noodles are popular for the instant gratification they provide.

To each their own in the health journey. What works for me may not work for others since a carnivore diet limits food choices to animals only. That’s why when I’m asked what my diet is, my reply is, “Animal!”