In the world of low-card diets that have amazing results, keto has been a great hit. How does the Carnivore diet compare? Which of these two diets has better outcomes? What are the differences? In this article, we will explore the differences and similarities of these two diets, and discuss why you should try one or both of them….

1. What Is The Keto Diet?

The ketogenic diet, or keto for short, is designed to switch your metabolism from glucose to ketones as a source of fuel. It was initially medically designed and clinically tested to help treat patients with epilepsy.
The ketogenic diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that shares many similarities with the Atkins and low-carb diets.It involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. This reduction in carbs puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis.

When this happens, your body becomes incredibly efficient at burning fat for energy. It also turns fat into ketones in the liver, which can supply energy for the brain.Ketogenic diets can cause massive reductions in blood sugar and insulin levels. This, along with the increased ketones, has numerous health benefits

2. What Is The Carnivore Diet?

The Carnivore Diet consists entirely of meat and animal products, excluding all other foods.It’s claimed to aid weight loss, mood issues, and blood sugar regulation, among other health issues.

This diet is however extremely restrictive and likely unhealthy in the long term. Additionally, scientific tests have not been carried out on it.

3. So, what are the differences between the Keto and Carnivore diets?

It might seem obvious in the sense that carnivore dieters only eat meat, while there is a little bit more flexibility in keto. But there are a few more details you should be aware of, especially if you have some experience with keto and its health benefits.

1. The carnivore diet is more restrictive

On the ketogenic diet, you are allowed to have some carbs. For the average person, this will be somewhere around 50 grams per day or lower. What this does is allow you to satisfy some food cravings, especially in the early days.
It also gives you just that little bit more flexibility when it comes to your meal recipes to add some vegetables for a bit more diversity. And then there is fiber which by and large is keto friendly because it isn’t counted as a net positive carb as most of it passes through your stomach undigested.

So, from digestion and micronutrient point of view, there are some advantages that keto has.

2. You experience more Cravings with the carnivore diet

As you start getting used to having an all meat diet, you will be cutting out all carbs and increasing fat and protein intake. It doesn’t take long before your body starts craving some starchy vegetables or even just a small donut for a little sugar rush.
Similar cravings are noted on keto, but because you have to avoid all plant-based foods, your body may start interpreting this as a symptom of starvation.

3. Meal Frequencies

Someone on keto is likely to eat more frequently due to the food choices and ready availability of the food. On a carnivore diet, one has to prepare the food and have it hot. This coupled with the lack of variety and effect of eating proteins reduces mealtimes to 2-3 per day.

4. Macronutrient Ratio

The macronutrient ratio on a ketogenic diet is 60% fat, 30% protein, and 10% carbs. This is a radical shift from the 20/25/55 ratio recommended by conventional nutritional science.
When doing thecarnivore diet, there isn’t a strict ratio to keep to, as it’s all about eating meat. You can eat as much meat as you want, with only a tiny, almost accidental, amount of carbs that may sneak in with some dairy products.

5. Supplementation

The total elimination of vegetables in the carnivore diet might require higher supplementation of essential vitamins and minerals than the keto diet, which allows for some.

4. And what are the similarities between these two diets?
   
   The Keto and carnivore diets have a lot in common, includingside effects, metabolic changes, and quite a few health benefits.1.The Keto FluThough called the keto flu, it can affect people both on the keto diet and the carnivore diet. Its symptoms are flu-like with of brain fog, muscle aches, nausea, headaches, and fatigue that generally last for somewhere between 1 and 14 days.2. Constipation One of the common questions is, “does keto diet cause constipation?” The answer is sometimes, and the same can happen on the carnivore diet as well. This is most often due to the lack of fiber, which may be something you need to supplement.
5. Fat consumption and fat burning
   In both diets, there is a significant emphasis on getting a lot of fat into your diet. As a guide, this would be around 60% of your daily energy needs, which is quite a lot. However, once your body switches to ketosis, all that extra fat will be transformed into fuel. Ketones are a different form of energy that result in a lot better cognitive functions and levels of alertness.
6. Metabolic Changes On both keto and carnivore, your body will switch from blood glucose to ketones for fuel. This metabolic process is called ketosis and is a vital function and feature of human evolution.5. Weight LossAs long as you calculate your calorie needs and stay below your daily threshold, you will trigger weight loss. By keeping the amount of dietary fat to below what you need, your body will go into a starvation protection mode and use up all those fat storage areas.The results can be rather drastic, and as long as you stick to the guidelines of keto and carnivore, you will notice a very steady and sustainable loss of weight.

6. Increased physical and mental energy
   One of the significant benefits of ketosis (whether keto or carnivore induced), is that you will have a lot more readily available energy. And the nature of ketone-derived power is that it doesn’t regularly spike as glucose does.

5. Bottom Line: Which Diet Is The Better Option For You?

In the whole keto vs carnivore debate, it really shouldn’t be a question of which one is better. The choice of which one to do is a personal decision. Keto works better for some people while carnivore works better for others. It might be advisable to try both to find out which suits you best. Switching up also allows you to reap the benefits from both.
In the short term, though the carnivore diet seems to have a lot of positive testimonials and works similarly to the ketogenic diet, we’ve to accept the fact that the ketogenic diet presently has more clinical evidence than the carnivore diet. However, we can expect more studies to be done on the carnivore diet as well in the not so far future.

References

1. Kiss my Keto (2018): Keto vs. Carnivore Diet: Which One is Better? Retrieved from
2. https://www.kissmyketo.com/blogs/keto-basics/keto-vs-carnivore-which-one-is-better
3. Carnivore Style (2018): Keto Vs Carnivore. Retrieved from https://carnivorestyle.com/blog/keto-vs-carnivore-diet/
4. Healthline (2019): All You Need to Know About the Carnivore (All-Meat) Diet. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/carnivore-diet

The Carnivore Diet is the new trend that has seen people feeling better, healing disease, and performing at new heights. Of all the people who attempt the carnivore diet, a large segment is those that move from keto dieting. Keto to Carnivore has become has become the natural progression. From bad diet, to Keto to Carnivore. In this article, we will take you through how to go through this progression in the most painless way.

1. How easy is it to move from keto to carnivore?
   While the Keto and Carnivore diets are similar in many ways, there are some critical differences one needs to be aware of when making the transition.Unlike the ketogenic diet, there are no macronutrient ratio preferences in the carnivore diet. You just eat meat. And because you’re not eating any carbs, you’ll likely reach ketosis on a carnivore diet.The process of going from a SAD (Standard American Diet) to a Ketogenic diet is a tough transition where one needs to get“fat-adapted”. Fortunately, the transition from keto to carnivore does not involve this phase as it has already happened.

   Listed below are some of the things they might actually go through:

1. While on Keto, one gets the“Keto Flu.”When transitioning from Keto to Carnivore, there is a somewhat similar process that can either be called the “Carnivore Flu“or the “keto flu”.
2. Loose stools are common and here’s why. As the major difference between the keto and carnivore is consumption of vegetables, fibre intake is severely affected. This may lead to significant change in bowel movements. Whilefiber is not necessary for healthy digestion (and can be causal of digestive issues) it does impact bowel function. Absorbing water, creating bulk, and regularity, fiber lets the colon to get lazy.A major function of the colon is to reabsorb water. Since fiber does most of this work in a diet high in plant-based foods, the colon gets lazy. It quits doing its job. It’s like a muscle that hasn’t been worked out. It gets weak.Going from a Ketogenic Diet to a Carnivore Diet results in a drastic change in fiber intake. And since the colon hasn’t gotten a good workout in a while, and is now being asked to do its job, it’s lost some of its capacity. It needs to “on-ramp.”  During this “on-ramp” water gets through.
3. Your stool is also not as frequent as it used to be. This is not constipation. You are just not making all that much stool as meat gets majorly absorbed and leaves little waste behind.
4. Fiber is food for bacteria in the large intestines.Bacteria love fiber. They ferment it and create the gases that make you unpopular at parties.Removing fiber makes some of these bacteria unhappy. There is research that shows that the microbiome can signal hunger and cravings as the bacteria do everything they can to get you to feed them before they die.We know very little about the microbiome. Most of what’s written is pure speculation. Research is lacking. But this is a “re-balancing” of gut microflora might actually be a good thing.
5. As your body gets used to doing without carbohydrates, you are likely to experience intense cravings. It advisable to eat more meat when the craving strikes. Many people that come from a Ketogenic Diet are use to maniacal measuring, counting, and testing.In this state, when they are told they can eat meat until satisfied, without measuring or monitoring, the flood gates break loose.The key is to let the appetite re-regulate and normalize. Let the body fuel up on the nutrition it needs and desires. Be in it for the long haul.After a time the appetite regulates and the cravings disappear. In fact, all you will want to do is eat a steak. Everything else seems non-satisfactory.
6. On the flip side, some people experience a lack of appetite.Meat is satiating. Protein is satiating.This can lead some people who transition from Keto to Carnivore to under-eat. Then comes the fatigue, the low energy, the crabby mood, the key is to eat.Early on, hunger is not the only signal to listen to as to when to eat. If you are tired, dragging, and crabby– eat2. How can you prepare to move from Keto to Carnivore?So, you are now ready to make the transition. What do you need to do?1. Analyze what you have been eating
   If you don’t already keep a food journal, then start immediately, ideally with an app like Noom. This will help you how much nutrition you get from plants as opposed to meat.
   
   2. Calculate how much of your calorie intake is from plants

   
   Now that you know how many calories you take in from meat and plants, you can determine how much you need to make up by replacing plants with animal products. If you’re at a healthy weight, then stick to the same calories.

   But if you still have some way to go to reach your weight loss goals, then consider reducing the calories a little more. I have found that the amount of all meat diet weight loss is higher than on keto. And the meat seems to keep me full for longer, so I can reduce my calories more efficiently.

3. Gradually replace greens with meats
   It is much easier on your body if you make the transition gradual, say over a period of 7-10 days.

4. Eat from a larger array of meats
   It is very difficult to constantly eat the same thing, even if it’s a delicious ribeye steak from grass-fed beef cooked in butter, you can quickly get sick of it. The best thing you can do is switch between beef, pork, chicken, fish, and organ meat for your meals.This also has the added benefit of providing a more diverse range of vitamins and minerals.

Monitor your ketone levels

As you gradually switch to more meat, you should notice an increase in ketones. You can buy devices, and test strips that measure these levels in your urine and they are reasonably accurate.

It’s a good indicator that you’re moving in the right direction. You should also start testing several times a day and keep track of the measures and note down what kind of mood you’re in. This can be a very motivating exercise, as generally speaking you’ll be in a better mood with high levels.

3. Are you now confident enough to make the transition?

In the whole keto vs carnivore debate, it really shouldn’t be a question of which one is better. They definitely complement each other. In case you are completely new to it all, then start with keto and after a few weeks transition to carnivore on regular on and off cycles.

The two major transition symptoms in switching from Keto to Carnivore are bowel changes from a lack of plant material and fiber, as well as appetite swings. Being aware of these and having a game plan and commitment to overcome these issues is key to a successful transition from Keto to Carnivore.

If for some reason you are struggling to commit to this lifestyle, then reducing your carbs is a good health move to make.

References

1. Kevin Stock (2018):How to go from Keto to Carnivore. Retrieved from https://www.kevinstock.io/health/how-to-go-from-keto-to-carnivore/
2. Carnivore Style (2019): Keto vs Carnivore Diet – Which One Is Actually Better? Retrieved from https://carnivorestyle.com/blog/keto-vs-carnivore-diet/
3. Perfect Keto (2019):The Carnivore Diet: Can Eating Only Meat Supercharge Your Health? Retrieved from https://perfectketo.com/carnivore-diet/