The Stupidly Simple System I Use to Stay in Shape And Love My Body As An Empath At Age 40

red thong body love acceptance

Yeah but whadda YOU do?! 

I get that question from folks all the time, in person & online, when asked to give advice about getting in shape, protecting energy, & preventing self sabotage. 

I lay out a really simple, low-maintenance approach. It’s true — I don’t put much effort into all this health & fitness stuff. What I do, I do week-in, week-out, though. And it all starts with self awareness, self love, & frankly, not giving a f*ck what other people think or do.

So yes, over several decades, I have put in A TON of effort in total. It’s taken over 10 years to build the body y’all see today. But day-to-day, not so much. BECAUSE I’ve made it a lifestyle. I eat plenty of food (around 2000 cal/d on avg) & still enjoy occasional social alcohol in moderation.


I want you to look & feel fabulous as you get older, too, so strap yourself in for a typical, really low-maintenance week for me (that you can copy or use as inspiration) that helps me stay lean & healthy as an empath at 40.

Mapped out my daily routine here just for you in this IG post!

I Train for 5 Hours a Week, Tops

“Ah but you’re a nutritionist & single & have no kids, you can work out all the time if you want to?!”

Yeah, I could…but why the f*ck would I want to?

I’ve been working out for 30 years — believe me, the novelty wore off long ago. Nowadays, workouts are like vacuuming for me — a necessary thing I need to get done so things don’t get messy & I feel my best. We all wanna look good nekkid too!

I workout out for 4-5 sessions of 40–60 mins a week [depends if I get side-tracked by that work thing or extracurricular activities between sessions 🙂 ] Every muscle group gets hit with a wee dose of damage because I am too damn old to waddle around for days after some hardcore leg day or CrossFit workout. Upper body push/pull days & lower body glute/leg splits. Schedule varies with work schedule. (Routines, guides, & resources in link in IG bio)

training before and after

I Walk 15k Steps/d As A Target

Walking Is a True Health Hack. I have no desire to run at a medium pace for an hour or do hours of CrossFit WOD’s a day anymore, messing up my joints & hormones. If I need to get somewhere 5 miles away, I’ll drive. Thanks.

But I do plenty of brisk walking — 15k steps per day is my target. This has enormous payoffs on several levels:

  • Low-impact stamina-building.
  • Vitamin D for hormonal balance cuz I walk outside in the sun.
  • Clears my head & energy like nothing else does.
  • Torches tons of calories per week.

Takeaway for You

If you hate a particular exercise, please don’t force yourself to do it — there’s more than one way to skin a cat.

Walking is fantastic. Also, I have no idea how many calories cat skinning burns <opens Google>.

I Take & Use a Few Things To Thrive

You can easily find yourself taking handfuls of pills & powders daily because you think they’ll magically solve all your problems. They won’t if you don’t have your foundational success routine in place first. If you’re eating a varied & healthy diet (for YOU) & exercising, you don’t need to supplement with much at all.

There are a few things I take & use that help me thrive. You can find these along with discount codes in the link in my IG bio & highlights.

Complete Biohacking guide here!

Biohacking that helped me instantly feel better & reverse aging
cort-eaze nuethix formulations
  • Nuethix Utilyze digestive enzymes prior to meals for better digestion & absorption
utilyze
  • Nuethix GDA-Max before large meals &/or meals with carbs for better digestion, blood sugar control, & nutrient partitioning
gda max
red light
  • Infrared sauna – got mine off Amazon

Takeaway for You

If you’re taking tons of shit, do an audit & ask yourself, “What happens if I stop taking this?” If the answer is “nothing,” then save your $$

I Eat 2 Meals & Nothing I Don’t Like

I want to maintain my weight while eating enough to build a wee bit more muscle if I can. This means I aim to eat at my maintenance level in total each week. Use the TDEEcalculator.net to find yours.

I do what works for me, which is a form of intermittent fasting every day in windows that suit my work & social schedule.

  • coffee & plenty of water + Ultima Replenisher electrolytes
  • a big breakfast of protein & healthy fats after my walk or workout in the morning
  • a smaller meaty meal mid-late afternoon
  • fast overnight until the next day usually 12-18 hrs. No snacking
  • throw in occasional a large OMAD (one meal a day) on days I work a 1st shift & then a 3rd shift or if I’m just not as hungry

I don’t eat kale — it’s gross. I don’t eat veggies, fruit or fiber because I can’t break them down due to my Crohn’s disease (my whole story is documented in the link in my IG bio & highlights). Carbs & sugar I have a really shitty relationship with so I abstain. I don’t eat any food “because it’s healthy”, I eat what healthy food I like because I like it.

Takeaway for You

Start with the healthy foods you like. Base meals on those. Keep protein high for muscle retention & satiety. Avoid trigger foods, sugar, & junk.

Post workout breakfast. 1.25 lbs of *0% ground beef #meatbars Airfry. 380. 12 minutes. Did not consume the fat in the bottom of the airfyer to make it leaner.
meat bars guide
click for guide here

My Weekends Are Never A Shit Show

You could get in great shape if you gave up sugar, alcohol, & junk food & ate only grilled chicken & broccoli for meals for 12 weeks straight. But you’d also hate life & everyone around you, & after 12 weeks, you would probably binge off the rails.

80-90% for Health. 20-10% for Flexibility

Instead of quick fix, masochistic approaches to dieting, we can lose body fat & stay lean intentionally managing calories & eating healthy foods the majority of the time, say Monday to Friday, or 80-90% of the time, meaning things like:

  • High protein breakfasts (eggs, bacon, sausage, etc)
  • High protein lunches/dinner (meat, seafood, eggs, etc)
  • No-minimal sugar & snacks between meals (2-3 meals/day)
  • Intermittent fasting overnight (12-16+ hours) Do what works for you as far as eating windows.
  • Use carbs (fruit, veggies, oats, rice, etc) intentionally. Typically the more active, the more you tolerate. If they cause issues mentally & physically, you may do better abstaining.
  • If you like weekend/social flexibility, use wisely.

Takeaway for You

Controlling your weight long term: control portions & eat your protein. Remind yourself what makes you feel your best mentally & physically.

Health & Fitness Tips As An Empath

Tips that have helped me to eat well, stay fit, & release negativity before self sabotaging & over eating:

  • Minimize Sugar & Processed Food As Much As Possible: Although you may crave carbs & sugar (as well as alcohol), they will destabilize you mentally & physically. This makes you more susceptible to absorbing unwanted energy & self sabotaging. These kinds of hyperpalatable foods are like drugs, leaving you wanting more.
  • Prioritize Protein: Protein stabilizes everyone. It gives a sense of grounding & satiation. Get protein at every meal, at least 30g. Big reason many food addicts thrive, lose weight, & heal on carnivore.
  • Rest: Sleep. Solitude is your best friend to energetically rest & reset. Go take a restorative walk in nature.
  • Eat Alone & Mindfully: most of us empaths need to avoid outside energy & distractions when eating. It allows us to have full presence, chew thoroughly & savor our food which helps us feel true hunger & satiety cues. This aids in avoiding over eating & thus weight gain.
  • Manage Your Emotions, Time, & Energy: Managing your emotions actually frees up the energy you’re spending on things that do not serve you. Emotions are messengers. They alert you to boundaries being crossed. If you’re like I was, that is what made me want to stuff my face with donuts, cookies, cake, chips, cereal, crackers, & ice cream & then throw it up. I was suppressing emotions & giving my time & energy to everyone else. UNTIL I realized that self loathing & sabotaging behavior meant staying sick, broke, & lonely AF.
  • Move Your Body: Walk, go to the gym, get out in the sunlight, connect with friends. We cope with stress, including loneliness, by using dopamine-triggering substances & behaviors as a means of avoiding painful emotions & self-awareness. But if we make a commitment to living a kick-ass life, then moving the body will get the dopamine flowing, reconnecting us to what we truly enjoy, like our friends & families. I will reiterate again, walking is a GODsend. If in doubt, go walk!

Final Thoughts

Most of adult life isn’t about finding new answers, but unravelling the web of misinformation we pick up over the years.

Here’s the truth about exercise & eating well — it’s a lot simpler than it sounds. The more you eat well & exercise, the stronger you’ll get, the better you’ll feel, and, the more you’ll enjoy it. Then it becomes you & your lifestyle.

When people ask my fitness regimen & I respond with “I workout 4-5x per week for 45-60 minutes & walk 15k steps per day.”…I get, “I could NEVER find time for that!” or “How long do you have to do this for? Are you losing fat or on a diet?”

I shake my damn head. Because, society has programmed us that exercise & eating healthy are short-term things to lose weight for an event or to fit into clothes – not a LIFESTYLE.

Like reps & weight, they’re merely tools to build a fulfilling life. On their own, they’re meaningless. I started counting intentional moments & habits. I no longer log hours of workouts a day, binge & restrict food from a place of self loathing, or find myself obsessed with chasing a smaller body. You can’t live a BIG life chasing a SMALL body on an EMPTY tank & TIRED soul.

oxox Coach K

bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, body transformation, & adapting to a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, Brand Growth & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

If You’re An Empath And Struggle With Weight Loss And Food Addiction You Need To Read This

woman grabbing fat thigh obesity

Lost & found are from the same box. I’m an empath. A highly sensitive person when it comes to environments, emotions & other peoples’ energies. I like to eat alone.
Maybe you can relate too.

I spent decades with food triggers, gut issues, constipation, bloating, G.I. bleeding, unexplained weight gain & disordered eating.

empath weight loss before and after
I’ve lost 55lbs and put my Crohn’s Disease and bulimia in med-free remission via the carnivore diet.

I grew up hearing shit like this:

“You’re just too big to be a cheerleader, hon.” -cheerleading coach, middle school

“Pretty girls are in the front, you’re in the back.” -a mom, childhood birthday party pictures

“Well, you’re just not polished enough.” -recruiter, job fair in college

“I’m sorry I cheated, I like you, it’s just, she was prettier.”
-someone not even worth mentioning here LOL!

Naturally I’d be lying if a part of me didn’t want to tell these people of past chapters of my life they can suck it

People will teach you how to love well by hurting you. They will teach you how to love yourself by not loving you back. Life will teach you evolution & growth thru pain & stagnation.

Hell, crispy airfryer #meatbars were discovered by me being late to work & literally throwin the shizzle my nizzle in the airfryer basket.

meat bars lilbitoffit katie kelly carnivore

This world is made up of a plethora of different people with different priorities with different life situations all 50 shades of f*cked up.

You’re not alone, the difference is how you react to what life throws at you.

Here are things I do & had to learn to do throughout my journey to be my healthiest. They often times are perceived as being rude for those who don’t understand special digestive needs or people who are extremely highly sensitive & empathetic.

The hard truth is, it’s hard to learn to love yourself for being different. So let’s raise awareness on this especially if you’re stuck in self sabotaging cycles!

  • empath weight loss before and after
  • if you're an empath & struggle with weight loss & food addiction you need to read this

Empaths Are Prone To Addictions

My Take?
Empaths are more prone to addictive behaviors. More importantly, what can we do about the unproductive behaviors, habits, & addictions we struggle with?

We literally feel what others are feeling, which can be a good thing — or not so much. When it’s good it’s fucking great! In fact we amplify those high-vibe emotions which is why so many people seek us out for support.

The downside, it seems, is that we absorb “negative” or low-vibrational emotions. Emotions are energy vibrating at different frequencies, by the way. Joy and love, for example, are high-vibe while guilt and shame are low-vibe. These vibrations impact our vitality, our mental state & quality of life.

When we don’t know how to effectively & efficiently process all that energy, we act out or we hold it in. Neither is healthy. When we hold it in, sometimes that takes the shape of a physical illness & other times it’s mental. Either way that shit gets stored somewhere — in our bodies or our brains.

We then have a toxic build up of low-vibe emotions stored in our entire being, making us feel like crap.

Why Empaths Over Eat

Food is medicine. It can stabilize your sensitive system, but it can also throw it off. I’ve observed in my 18 years of working in healthcare & as a nutrition coach as well as in myself, that overeating & food addictions are common among empaths.

Food addiction is an uncontrollable craving for excess food for which many diets & weight loss programs often don’t succeed. Frequently, the specific addiction is to sugar or carbohydrates, which is a BIG reason I adopted the “carnivore” WOE (way of eating) for both my Crohn’s disease & disordered eating. I’ve lost 55lbs & put my Crohn’s & bulimia in med-free remission for over 4 years.

Excess weight can be a way of armoring yourself to stop absorbing other people’s stress or disturbing behavior. Putting on added pounds can make you feel more grounded, & it can act as a buffer against negativity. But reaching for junk foods for a quick fix, is a short-lived & unhealthy solution that gets addictively repeated.

Diets often fail for sensitive people because they are unaware that they are eating (& overeating) unhealthy foods to protect themselves from overwhelming or negative energy. When I point this out to my empath clients who are struggling with overeating, it’s a life-changing insight for them.

Are You A Food Empath?

I asked myself these questions to navigate through confusion & find answers & clarity as far as the right diet & coping solutions:

  • Do you overeat when you are emotionally overwhelmed?
  • Do you turn to sugar, carbs, & junk food to self-soothe discomfort, boredom, or a difficult emotion?
  • Are you highly sensitive to the effect people & food have on your body?
  • Do you get mood swings, brain fog, or feel toxic from sugar, caffeine, sodas, junk food, or specific foods?
  • Do you have food allergies, gut issues, & intolerances such as to gluten, soy, plants, fiber, artificial ingredients, etc?
  • Do you feel more protected from stress when you are heavier?
  • Do you feel energized by healthy, non-processed food?
  • Are you sensitive to certain foods? Feel better on certain foods?
  • Do you feel more vulnerable to stress when you are thinner?

If you are an empathic eater, you will need to pinpoint energetic stressors that trigger overeating such as a draining coworker, an argument with a friend or family, kids, or feeling rejected. Train yourself to clear the stress as soon as possible to balance your system. Avoid using food as a numbing coping mechanism. I walk & keep my mind occupied instead.

An Empath’s Survival Guide

Tips that have helped me to eat well, stay fit, & release negativity before self sabotaging & over eating:

  • Breathe: When you feel stress, immediately focus on breathing slowly & deeply. This releases negative energy. Holding your breath out of fear traps toxicity in your body.
  • Hydrate: Water purifies you. Drink filtered or spring water, especially when you’ve been exposed to negative energy & have the urge to overeat. Consume at least 1/2 your body weight in oz daily. Get in adequate electrolytes. Take a bath or shower. Water washes away impurities of all kinds.
  • Minimize Sugar & Processed Food As Much As Possible: Although you may crave carbs & sugar (as well as alcohol), they will destabilize you mentally & physically. This makes you more susceptible to absorbing unwanted energy & self sabotaging. These kinds of hyperpalatable foods are like drugs, leaving you wanting more.
  • Prioritize Protein: Protein stabilizes everyone. It gives a sense of grounding & satiation. Get protein at every meal, at least 30g. Big reason many food addicts thrive, lose weight, & heal on carnivore.
  • Rest: Sleep. Remove yourself from your busy routine. Regularly. In his book, Willpower Doesn’t Work, Benjamin P. Hardy talks about “enhanced environments” — one that will have you uber productive & one that will allow you to completely reset. If we don’t give ourselves these two distinct environments, everything blends together & we never really disconnect, nor do we really get satisfying results from our work. We stay stuck in the in-between, dissatisfied & seeking something to make us feel better. Solitude is your best friend. Go take a walk in nature. Eat alone & mindfully.
  • Restore & Release: Self Love. Where there’s suffering there is a lack of integrity & self love. I’m not talking about moral uprightness here. I’m talking about the state of being whole. Part of the human condition is that we come with soul wounds, past trauma, & conditioning. Our job is to heal & reintegrate the perceived “unlovable” parts of ourselves so we can live connected to Self, Source, & each other. The parts of yourself that you’re angry or ashamed of are the source of your suffering. The whole world is “coping” with this dis-ease. Empaths feel that pain & powerlessness. Seek therapy.
  • Manage: Your emotions. Your time. Your energy. I know it feels like you don’t have the time or energy so you turn to what’s easy & convenient. Managing your emotions actually frees up the energy you’re spending on things that do not serve you. Emotions are messengers. They alert you to boundaries being crossed. What boundaries of yours are not being honored? Do you even know your boundaries? The lack of knowing & enforcing boundaries is causing you more work, frustration, & stress than you can manage. If you’re like I was, that is what made me want to stuff my face with donuts, cookies, cake, chips, cereal, crackers, & ice cream then throw it up — UNTIL I realized that behavior meant staying sick, broke, & lonely AF.
  • Move: Your body. Walk, go to the gym, get sunlight, connect with friends. We cope with stress, including loneliness, by using dopamine-triggering substances & behaviors as a means of avoiding painful emotions & self-awareness. But if we make a commitment to living a kick-ass life, then moving the body will get the dopamine flowing, reconnecting us to what we truly enjoy, like our friends & families. Oh, and that workout high & lookin good nekkid too!!

Final Thoughts

Addictions can be distracting or completely destroy your life. Empaths are not meant to be average. Stop trying to be normal. You were born with an extraordinary gift. When you learn to use it, your life will light the fuck up. If you don’t know what your gift (or superpower) is, you are missing out on the best life has for you. You will likely fall into the dark hole of suck to cope with feelings of failure & being misunderstood. Don’t let that happen. If you’re there now, don’t worry, there’s a cure.

I used to be addicted now I am aligned.

My addictive behaviors took on many forms over the years. In my twenties I partied my ass off for close to a decade & wrecked my health.

At one point that fix was tied to the attention of men. Another time I couldn’t get enough shopping. Then there was food, specifically sugar & carbs, that were controlling my life. I was bulimic to boot on top of self hate.

For me, being free of addiction was not possible until I got clear about what I am here to do, how to eat right for me, get healthy, & simply do shit I love. I made a commitment to be the badass I’ve always believed I could be, but now there’s a passion & purpose attached to it.

Food can be a source of energy or depletion. You want to develop dietary & lifestyle habits that serve your sensitivities rather than aggravating them. Then you can maximize the energy you receive from food & people, & environments & minimize the protective defense mechanism of empathic over-eating. With these tools to protect & ground yourself, you won’t have the same cravings that used to undermine your best intentions.

Thank you for reading & I’m honored you allowed me to share my story & add value to your lives!

With love,
Oxox Coach K

All guides, resources, recipe books, coaching & more HERE!

bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers

Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, body transformation, & adapting to a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, Brand Growth & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

Looking Better Than 99% of People Over 40 is About This One Thing

fit blonde woman over 40

I tried every program possible to get in shape in my 20’s & 30’s & I still felt like sh*t. I didn’t “look like I worked out” & had low energy. My gut was a dumpster fire.

I constantly had ‘projects’.

Keto for 30 days. CrossFit competitions. Fat loss cuts on a never ending cycle. Cold showers for… well… I didn’t last long with that one, to be honest. Brrrr. Not my thing.

It seemed this kind of dopamine hit, short-termism was “fine” for me in my 20’s. (I turn 41 this year.)

After 40 your body starts arguing with you a little, you wise up (hopefully), & learn a few things by, frankly, doing a lot of dumb sh*t. Things that don’t work as well as they once did.

So to avoid wasting time on dumb stuff, if you want to:
get in shape
lose weight
look & feel younger than your age
You gotta change & flow in alignment with your season.

Look around you. You won’t see many folks over 40 in great shape & full of energy for the majority. I’ve worked in healthcare in radiology & as a nutrition coach for 18 years. I see it everyday. People younger than me, in worse shape & health because they don’t take care of themselves. Because 99% of people struggle to do something that can’t be found in their social media feeds and Google searches…

…consistently show up & master the big rocks to true transformation, health, & fitness.

Here’s how I do the damn thang. Enjoy!

  • fit blonde woman over 40
  • Looking Better Than 99% of People Over 40 is About One Thing

oxox Coach K

Minimally Optimal Effective Dose

What is M.O.E.D. ?

I noticed after turning 40 my physique & health were actually getting BETTER by doing LESS & simply focusing on enjoying my workouts while staying consistent af. The Minimally Optimal Effective Dose meant doing just enough to move the needle & improve your health, fitness, & body shape as I got older.

For any age, it is better to nail consistency week-in week-out than to only manage to do something much higher maintenance for weeks, while hating life, being desperate to stop, & eventually giving up & falling into bad habits.

I’ve noticed as I’ve aged, if I push it too much in the gym I get puffy, inflamed, gain weight & experience fatigue as a negative stress response vs if I take it “easier” on my body with lifting, simple movement & keeping my heart rate at a more moderate pace.

My workout M.O.E.D. methodology: 45 min-1 hr of resistance training 4-5d/wk paired with short bursts of cardio + daily walking (I get 15k steps/d).

Slice & dice it any way you want, do what works for you. You can do two 20 minute workouts a day, 1 long workout, etc.

This will:

  • build strength & muscle
  • improve cardiovascular fitness
  • help you burn body fat & transform your body shape in no time

You can fit this in every single week because you haven’t had to turn your busy work & family life upside down.

Zone Training Basics

zone basics training

Training zones allow us to understand which energy systems & muscle fibers we use at a given exercise intensity level.

There are 6 zones. Zone 1 is the lowest intensity (for example, sitting on the sofa to watch Netflix), while Zone 6 is the highest (for instance, all-out sprinting).

  • Zone 1: Energy source mainly used: fat (and oxygen)
  • Zone 2: (easy jog; relaxed biking). Energy source mainly used: fat (and oxygen)
  • Zone 3: Energy source mainly used: fat trending into carbohydrates
  • Zone 4: Energy source mainly used: carbohydrates
  • Zone 5: Energy source mainly used: carbohydrates
  • Zone 6: (all-out sprinting). Energy source mainly used: carbohydrates trending into creatine phosphate.

**The fuel type you burn to create ATP changes with exercise intensity. In zones 1 & 2, you are primarily burning fat. In Zone 2, you also exercise at a level that optimally stimulates your cells’ mitochondria.

The Benefits of Zone 2 Cardio

Why do I spend much of my physical activity time in Zone 2 cardio?

First, I want to increase the number & efficiency of my mitochondria. In Zone 2, I maximally stimulate my mitochondria to produce ATP (energy). Your body will create more mitochondria in response. With more mitochondria, I can create more ATP through fat oxidation.

As you work in Zone 2, your body will get better at burning fat for energy. You may lower your risk of health problems such as insulin resistance, cancer, & dementia.

I do Zone 2 training to improve my health & longevity. I also have more energy throughout the day, I’m not as sore, my mental clarity if better, & my heart rate has lowered.

I get my heart rate up higher 2-3 times a week but no longer redline my CrossFit workouts daily like I used to.

staying fit and healthy made simple

Healthy Eating & Fat Loss M.O.E.D.

80-90% for Health. 20-10% for Flexibility

You can still lose weight after 40. Yes, I do feel the levels of indulgence we could get away with in the past bite us in the ass pretty quickly. <weeps quietly>.

Instead of quick fix, masochistic approaches to dieting, we can lose body fat & stay lean using the minimally optimal effective dose of dietary effort — intentionally managing calories & eating healthy foods the majority of the time, say Monday to Friday, or 80-90% of the time, meaning things like:

  • High protein breakfasts (eggs, bacon, sausage, etc)
  • High protein lunches/dinner (meat, seafood, eggs, etc)
  • No-minimal sugar & snacks between meals (2-3 meals/day)
  • Intermittent fasting overnight (12-16+ hours) Do what works for you as far as eating windows.
  • Use carbs (fruit, veggies, oats, rice, etc) intentionally. Typically the more active, the more you tolerate. If they cause issues mentally & physically, you may do better abstaining.
  • If you like weekend/social flexibility, use wisely.
carnivore diet food list

Energy Boosting, Stress Reducing, Biohacking

Sleep & Walk more while balancing hormones.

The people I meet over 40 who have boundless energy & seem younger than their years all have a few things in common:

  • they are conscious of managing stress
  • they prioritize their sleep & get outside in the sun
  • they understand the importance of hormonal balance

Ultimately all those things are interconnected.

  • Sleep helps you manage stress & regulate hormones
  • Reducing stress helps you sleep & keep Cortisol low which again regulates hormones
  • Keeping hormones balanced improves mood, energy levels, libido, & metabolism

So what are the tiniest, simplest yet most effective steps for us to achieve all that? 2 simple habits:

  • Fit in as much walking as you can each week. This reduces stress, helps you sleep, builds stamina, burns calories, & lifts your mood.
  • Prioritize sleep by getting 7-8 hrs/night. Avoid screens, alcohol, & heavy meals before bedtime.
Looking Better Than 99% of People Over 40 is About One Thing
Link here
bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers

Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, body transformation, & adapting to a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, Brand Growth & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

7 Fat Loss Mistakes That Are Keeping You Stuck

lose body fat woman pinching belly fat

Misconceptions & confusion that are most likely holding you back…

Like these: “I am not losing weight on the scale but am losing inches. Is this working?“ & “Muscle weighs more than fat”

Which isn’t actually true.

A lb of muscle weighs the same as a lb of fat. Just like a lb of chicken breasts weighs the same as a lb of ribeye…YES, one is fattier than the other, but a lb is a lb.

The more accurate way of saying this & probably what most people mean when they say this is “Muscle is more dense than fat.”

When you’re losing inches but not weight, this means that your body is going through what’s called recomposition or you’re losing body fat, which takes up a significant amount of space, & you’re left with a greater proportion of muscle, which takes up less space (i.e., more density)

This is actually a great sign due to the positive changes your metabolism & overall health are undergoing as you continue to build muscle!

Muscle is the organ of longevity & metabolically taxing. This means that the more muscle you have on your body, the leaner you will be. The less muscle you have, the less efficient your body is at using the calories you consume on a daily basis & the greater decline you will have in your overall health.

The scale can be a useful tool to show long-term trends but it doesn’t give you the entire picture. Additionally, fluctuations in your scale weight can happen for SO many different reasons that have absolutely NOTHING to do with body fat gain or loss.

With that, here are 7 fat loss misconceptions that are most likely keeping you stuck!

Hope these deets help!

7 Fat Loss Mistakes That Are Keeping You Stuck

You Can Spot Reduce Fat

Doing 200 ab crunches to reduce belly fat is commendable for effort, but you are naïve if you think you can dictate your body where to lose weight.

When you get into a caloric deficit, you will naturally begin to lose weight. This weight loss is global, it’s not isolated to 1 specific area of the body.

You train muscles to make them bigger, your body will decide how much body fat will cover those muscles. What you can do is, eat whole, nutrient dense foods the majority of the time & exercise regularly.

These 2 combined actions will give you the best opportunity to lose fat, & over a period of time, give you an opportunity to lose that extra stubborn body fat!

girl lifting weights spot reduce fat

Weight Loss vs Fat Loss

This vitally important difference is often overlooked. Fat loss means exactly what it says — the reduction of body fat.

Whereas, weight loss can be a combo of a loss of both fat & muscle. Realizing the difference is crucial!

You really don’t want to be losing any muscle. Muscle burns cals, & gives your body that much desired shape. This shape is truly accentuated when you only lose body fat. Your body composition will improve & the appearance of your body will look leaner & fitter.

When you lose both muscle & fat, then a case of “skinny fat” occurs. Essentially, you just become a smaller version of your overweight self, you don’t have any real shape because you don’t have any muscle.

You think you are doing great because you see the scale moving down, but not realizing that any muscle you have on your frame is being used as fuel & gonezo.

weight loss vs fat loss woman with a tape measure

Under Fueling & Protein Problem

Under eating + over exercising = bone loss, muscle loss, & a hot mess for women, hormonally & metabolically. Osteoporosis may seem like an older person’s problem, but what we do before we hit 50 sets us up for our later years.

Under eating is part of the problem. Many women I work with, especially those over 25, are not eating enough protein.

Restrictive, chronic low calorie diets & excessive fasting, concern me. Skipping breakfast & eating only once a day mean many women are missing out on vital protein (& fat) if meal quantities aren’t large enough.

We underestimate the protein we need, especially if we’re active. Repair & regrowth of muscle mass & recovery build a healthy, lean physique. We need protein for “tone”, & if we’re not careful when we lose weight, we’re actually losing muscle instead of fat.

Life compounds on itself. Building strength, protecting our bones, good digestion, & learning to eat right for our bodies before 40 & beyond is crucial.

For most, .8-1.2g of protein/lb of body weight or goal weight if you have more to lose (or even 1.5g/lb for some more petite, leaner, active women) is appropriate. Choose what’s right for you.

bowl of meat protein

Cheat Meal Problems

First off, food shouldn’t be viewed as something you earn or burn. The very life force that fuels you should not be something you feel the need to have to CHEAT on. If it is, you’re doin something wrong.

Cheat meals should be kept to a minimum in general. Also, avoid letting a cheat meal snowball into a cheat day or week or fuck it attitude completely. This scenario quickly undoes any of the good work you have done.

A cheat meal that is high in cals, carbs, and fat, can be a problem. Fat & carbs are converted into body fat with very little energy used in the process. Protein has a higher energy expenditure level during the digestion process.

Drinking alcohol with a high fat cheat meal is throwing fuel on the fire. Alcohol blunts fat burning, which will accelerate the body’s tendency to store fat. It also makes you sluggish, disrupts sleep, & can take away your zest for working out!

cheat meal woman binge eating

Guessing Caloric Intake & Expenditure

This is for my “I don’t need to track my food but things aren’t working” crew. My reply when I hear this, “Okay, what are your maintenance calories & how many are you consuming right now?”

Normally, I don’t get a definitive answer. Specific macros & diets don’t make you fat in & of themselves, it’s when you intake more calories than you expend over a consistent period of time that will make you fat.

You need to figure out your total daily energy requirement (TDEE), which is basically the calories you need based off how active you are on any given day.

It can fluctuate daily, but when you figure it out, you will know how many you need. Avoid guessing. The people who continue to guess, are normally the people with high levels of body fat, struggling with every diet known to man.

Develop healthy habits & educate yourselves. There are tons of tools to help you like counting macros. Make a mental & physical lifestyle change.

before and after weight loss transformation photo

Cardio Is Better For Fat Loss

The problem with cardio only options is that they don’t optimally build muscle. So, when your body burns fuel, it’s not only burning fat, it will also use any muscle tissue you have for fuel.

When you only do cardio, there is a strong possibility that you will become either skinny or skinny fat because you aren’t building any muscle.

Muscle is metabolically active, meaning it burns cals throughout the day to maintain itself. That’s why it’s hard to put a definitive number of how many cals you can burn with a resistance training workout.

The burning continues long after the workout, something you just don’t get from many of the cardio options.

Ideally, you build your exercise program around lifting weights & sprinkle in cardio for cardiovascular benefits, stress management, & to be intentionally used as a lever or fat loss.

cardio vs weights better for fat loss fit woman barbell

Carbs & Fat Make You Fat

Regardless of the macro or diet, if you burn more calories than you intake, you shouldn’t put on fat, it’s that simple.

Body composition may look different depending on your diet, health status, inflammation, hydration, etc.

Having said that, you should keep processed carbs to minimum. Processed carbs are calorie dense & easy to overeat with very little nutritional value. The majority of your carbs, if you choose to consume, should come from unprocessed, low to no sugar options.

Food should be protein & healthy fat focused. You need protein & strength training in your life.

Figure out your total daily energy requirement (total number of cals you will burn based off activity) & maintain around this number the majority of the year for optimal health & fitness. The diet is up to you. I like the TDEEcalculator.net

carbs and fat make you fat fit girl flexing in mirror

How I’ve been able to maintain my 55lb weight loss

I maintain the same habits & commitments to myself as when I was losing weight because I want to be the healthiest, happiest, & strongest version of me I can be. You must make a lifestyle change.

I don’t let the scale determine my success or worth. I know the scale will fluctuate naturally with sleep, stress, food intake, hydration, workouts, etc. I do not cut food & punish myself when it goes up. I stay consistent & take it simply as data to help me.

I prioritize health & how I feel with food, workouts, & movement. My mindset determines my reality. I know I cannot hate myself thin, happy, strong, successful, & fulfilled. The inside determines the outside physically & mentally. Movement & lifting are always priorities no matter what age or season I’m in.

I eat simple, easy, basic af food that serves me best physically & mentally. I stick to meat, eggs, animal fats, seafood, & dairy in moderation. My gut/carnivore story is in the link in my IG bio for more info on specific diet needs & gut healing solutions. You can find that blog HERE.

I am patient & consistent af. I know body change & health take time. I leave room for flexibility. I do not cheat, earn, or burn my food. It is fuel, not a treat.

how i maintained my fat loss plan

Thank you for allowing me to add value to your lives!

questions about fat loss

Coaching FAQ’s, guides, recipe book, discount links & resources HERE!

oxox Coach K

bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers

Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, body transformation, & adapting to a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, Brand Growth & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

Coach K’s Hopeful Gut Healing and Body Transformation Guide: From Disordered Eating, Fat Loss, Recipes, Crohn’s Disease, Food Addiction, Biohacking, Habits, Mindset & More

IBS vs IBD lilbitoffit hopeful gut healing guide

5 years ago, I wrote a journal entry about my ongoing struggle with Crohn’s disease, binge eating, unhealthy addiction to exercise, & poor body image.

I detailed longstanding struggle with my seemingly endless appetite & f*cked up addiction to stuffing huge amounts of food in my face, struggling with gut flares & drowning in a black cloud of self loathing & frustration.

I had no “cures” as of yet, but I was now out of the closet getting REAL with living in a “haunted house.”

Since writing that entry, I chose to turn that pain into something constructive. I created a community here simply sharing my life in hopes of helping others living a similar nightmare.

I wrote a super informative blog on my healing & carnivore story here that will answer the majority of your questions what I went through transitioning & how I healed via a meat based, “carnivore” lifestyle.

I’ve received hundreds of messages asking about the journey of recovery from disordered eating, poor body image, food addiction, orthorexia, & Crohn’s disease.

Living decades with these devils on my shoulders since the age of 8, I’ve learned a lot.

After going “carnivore” with diet & changing my perspective on health & fitness, I never binge & am healthier than ever at 40 years old & med free in remission.
I want the same for you.

How did I crack the code? Brain dumped as many resources as I could in this blog for you.

First, I stopped looking outside myself for solutions, online & advice from friends, doctors, & latest fads. Instead, I decided to compassionately look inward & get curious on what life & fitness meant to me.

I started observing myself to understand my thoughts & actions.

I found without exception, I binged in response to 3 different situations that left me hungry physically & mentally:

  • When “restricting” & trying to eat like everyone else instead of ME
  • When avoiding an emotion or lacking purpose
  • When neglecting my own pleasure & needs

My priorities now are: Great food in the form of animal based nutrition — quality sleep & exercise — simple joy & inner peace.

I’ve learned to consider fitness a lifestyle I love, not a chore.

A CHAMPION means to be someone that loves the work of becoming one more than the idea of becoming one.

Hope these tips help you! Feel free to swipe, tag, save, & share any post of mine on IG freely! That’s all that I ask of you is to share anything that has helped you or will help someone else! What’s mine is yours!

***Disclaimer: This is in no way, shape, or form medical advice, I am simply sharing what has helped me***

HELPFUL GUT HEALING BOOKS AND RESOURCES
  • IBS vs IBD lilbitoffit hopeful gut healing guide
  • hopeful gut healing guide lilbitoffit

BIOHACKING GUIDE (ROUTINES, PRODUCTS, SUPPLEMENTS, & MORE)

  • BIOHACKING AND ANTIAGING GUIDE

ULTIMATE MEAT & MACROS EGUIDE

  • Ultimate Meat and Macros Guide lilbitoffit

COOK WITH COACH K CARNIVORE RECIPE BOOK

  • cook with coach K carnivore recipe book
  • HELPFUL GUT HEALING BOOKS AND RESOURCES

HELPFUL PRODUCTS & SUPPLEMENTS GUIDE

  • lilbitoffit's product and supplement guide

You could have picked a bunch of other people to follow & allow influence into your lives, but you chose me. Thank you for giving me a platform & portals to share with you my thoughts, experiences, & life through my lens. Thank you for being my most incredible supporters & being part of my digital family. Cheers to many more years of health, happiness, abundance, community, & choosing to live life on our own terms!

OXOX Coach K

Contact: katieokelly2@gmail.com

5 Changes That Helped Me Lose The Weight + Carnivore Diet FAQ’s

5 changes that helped me lose the weight + Carnivore diet FAQ's

Y’all wanna know what most people get wrong when it comes to dieting in general?
Not dieting.

I remember feeling like sh*t, no energy no matter how many coffee or Bangs I shoved down my pie hole, chronic constipation, bloating, no body comp changes – THAT was my normal back in the day.

I committed every sin I’ve talked about here on the interwebs. I used to CrossFit my a$$ off hours a day 7 d/wk on 1500 calories, eating sugar & diet foods which were wrecking me mentally & physically.

I wondered why I could never recover or look “jacked” like other female athletes that weren’t working “half as hard” & eating 2x as much.

Fast forward today, my 40 yo self finally fit the puzzle pieces together & learned not to fear food, not to see it as something I had to earn or burn off & simply eat food that made me feel good.

I’m 5’1, 105lbs. I workout 5 d/wk, I lift & CrossFit, I walk a lot, AND I eat ALOT. I avg 2000 calories most days, primarily ground beef & eggs.

You can read about how I healed my gut, quit binge eating, lost 55lbs & put my Crohn’s disease in remission via the Carnivore Diet HERE. It’ll answer your questions & hopefully give you hope to heal yours too!

Reminder, maintenance calories are how many calories we can eat in a day & maintain optimal body function without seeing any changes to muscle & fat composition. In other words, chillin like a villain. 

You can swipe, save & share this post on IG here!

  • 5 changes that helped me lose the weight + Carnivore diet FAQ's

Not sure what to do?

I have a whole Meat & Macros EGuide in the link in my IG bio that will give you your answers! With recipes & dedicated sections to disordered eating, dieting, and reverse dieting for any diet camp!

You can book a coaching call with me! Coaching FAQs are HERE

Some things you may not want to hear:
⁃ A healthy body loses body fat & any weight you gain in the process of gaining health is weight you needed to gain.
⁃ It may take years to get the body you want going through numerous periodization cycles.
⁃ There is a cost to being a certain level of lean. That athletic body you covet just may weigh more than you think.
⁃ Unless you’re a newbie & never worked out before or dieted, fat loss takes a calorie deficit, muscle gain takes at least maintenance & more likely surplus. Pick one.

If you refuse to eat more when you need to restore your health, you have far pressing more important issues than looking good in a bikini.

Keepin it real,
Coach K

bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, CrossFit, & adapting a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & personal life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

http://www.instagram.com/lil_bit_of_fit

What Does 30 Grams of Protein Look Like?

what does 30 grams of protein look like

Increasing your protein intake has been a challenge for many, me at one time included. A higher protein diet not only supports a lean body & muscle retention, but also improves satiety, helps with binging & overeating, increases overall calorie burn, supports recovery from exercise, & improves bone density.

How much protein do I need?
When calculating individual needs, I’ve found that 1 g of protein per pound of body weight if within normal range or goal body weight each day has worked well for those who are active and working out. 

Because protein needs increase when someone is in a caloric deficit, ample protein is critical for those aiming to lose weight or body fat.

At minimum, I recommend each person aim for at least 30 grams of protein at each meal. This target is a perfect amount to help steady blood-sugar levels, reduce cravings, & support energy levels. It also helps you to reap the benefits of protein throughout the day vs cramming just one large, protein-heavy meal at the end of the day (e.g., dinner) which can hinder your digestion & sleep, making you feel crummy.

So what does 30 grams of protein look like?

Swipe, save & share this resource on IG!

To read more about how I healed my gut, stopped binge eating, put my Crohn’s in remission, & lost 55lbs via the Carnivore Diet HERE!

  • what does 30 grams of protein look like

oxox Coach K

bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, CrossFit, & adapting a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & personal life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

http://www.instagram.com/lil_bit_of_fit

99% of People Don’t Know About These 5 Tiny Habits That Put Fat Loss on Autopilot

99% of People Don’t Know About These 5 Tiny Habits That Put Fat Loss on Autopilot

My poor body image to the point I remember putting a belt around my tummy rolls in middle school under my jeans so I looked thinner. I needed to “suck it in” then maybe they’ll be nicer to me. 

I remember being as young as 8 comparing my body to skinnier girls in class. I thought restriction was the only way to weight loss. 

I feel your pain if my story resonates with you too.

Yes, research has concluded that a “calorie deficit” is the only way to lose fat. It is science, but we are emotional creatures & they play a huge role in our habits, which become us.

Many fitness experts & diet gurus come up with complicated diets, workout plans, & supplement stacks that require a lot of work, & frankly, are unnecessary. I know for me, if it’s not easy, I ain’t gonna do it. My time, energy, & mental real estate are too important to worry about unnecessary things.

I’m sure you’ve heard the mantras like “eat less, move more” & “no pain, no gain.” Seriously, if it sounds hard, do you think people will be more likely to stick with it?

In short, this silliness & overabundance of info out there have forced many of you to choose inaction, which isn’t helping you to move the needle forward.

Self-discipline & willpower can be weak on any given day, leading us to make bad eating decisions & eventually fail at reaching our fat loss & health goals.

Plus, we can’t deny the fact that various foods influence hunger & hormones to varying degrees — so not all calories are equal.

When I embarked on my fat loss journey, over time, I realized if I adopted a simplicity approach, I was more likely to stick with it because:

“What’s simple & attainable on a daily basis IS SUSTAINABLE.”

So I created 5 simple concept habits that require minimal effort but go a long way in making fat loss automatic — meaning you don’t have to rely on restriction, self-discipline & willpower which result in basically life sucking.

Enjoy these cheat sheets & I hope these help you on your way to SUCCESS & LOVING YOUR BODY!

  • 99% of People Don’t Know About These 5 Tiny Habits That Put Fat Loss on Autopilot

If you questions about how I healed my gut & lost 55 lbs via the carnivore diet, I show you how here in a detailed personal blog on my journey !

how carnivore healed my crohn's disease and binge eating

If you need some hand holding, I’m here to listen. Coaching & resources in link in my IG bio. If you’re serious about making a real (EASY) change, would it be crazy to book a call with me?

oxox Coach K

bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, CrossFit, & adapting a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & personal life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

http://www.instagram.com/lil_bit_of_fit

Hard Truths Why You Struggle With Food & Fitness

hard truths why you struggle with food & fitness

Let’s start at the beginning.
Because we know the statistics.

We know that obesity has quadrupled since the 1950s.

We know that diabetes has increased from around 1.5 million people in the 1950s to over 34 million today, 90% or more of whom have type 2 diabetes, which is preventable.

We know that roughly 50% of American adults have cardiovascular disease and 70% of American adults are on some kind of prescription medication.

We know that we get 1.5 to 2 hours less sleep per night than a hundred years ago.

We know all of this stuff, because we are constantly bombarded with these statistics, hammered over the head with them until they lose their meaning.

But what we don’t talk much about (& we should), is the inner root cause of WHY these statistics exist.

“Losing weight” or “getting in shape” repeatedly score the top ten of people’s New Year’s resolutions. If you, too, have declared that you “finally want to get fit in 2023,” then it’s time to look at where you’re at.

Have you changed? Or have you given up on your fitness goals again — like so many years before?

If you have been trying to become a fitter, healthier version of yourself & repeatedly failed, you might need to come to grips with a few uncomfortable fitness truths.

If you take them to heart & act accordingly, you are well on your way to becoming the fittest & healthiest you can be. Let’s dive in!

Save & share! What’s mine is yours!
As Deepak Chopra says, “No one owns anything.”

oxox Coach K

All antiaging, biohacking products and discount codes here!

Coaching, Guides, Codes, & Resources Here!

  • hard truths why you struggle with food & fitness
  • hard truths why you struggle with food & fitness
bio carnivore lilbitoffit katie kelly indiana fishers
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, CrossFit, & adapting a carnivore diet lifestyle.

Katie also has over 17 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & personal life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!

You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com

http://www.instagram.com/lil_bit_of_fit

Why The Carnivore Diet Isn’t Working And Tips On How To Get Real Results

Why carnivore may not be working for you! We assess both the higher fat approach & the higher protein approach.

SWIPE SAVE & SHARE THIS POST!


Highly asked question the past few weeks & it is #worldcarnivoremonth 🙌 These are based upon my personal & client experiences.

**DISCLAIMER: I want you to find an approach & WOE (way of eating) that makes YOU feel AMAZING no matter what it is. This is simply for education & sharing my experience why certain approaches may not be working for you.

Summary of my experience in a shot glass:

– I personally do better on a higher, optimal protein approach. I’m an avid exerciser, crossfit athlete, lift weights, & live an active lifestyle. I want to build & maintain as much muscle as possible.

– I have Crohn’s disease & don’t have a gallbladder, my fat threshold is lower (means I can’t eat as much fat) than someone with a gallbladder who digests & absorbs fat well. Thru personal experience tracking food & experimenting for DECADES I discovered when I ate higher fat over 150g/d, my digestion was terrible, I had slow motility, constipation, inflammation, & gained weight.

– I am lactose intolerant. Dairy causes gut upset. I can’t add large amounts of butter & cheese to increase fat without gut upset & inflammatory. I also don’t digest pork & bacon fat well in larger quantities without digestion & histamine issues.

– I lived decades with disordered eating. I had shades of bulimia & anorexia. I’m a volume eater, which means I feel more satiated & “safe” on higher volume foods like meat vs low volume food like fats & oils. It is difficult for me to feel when I’m full on high fat, which leads to overeating, emotional stress & thus, weight gain. Self awareness is everything!

Thank you for allowing me to express my experiences & hope they help you!

If you need additional help, I would be happy to listen & assist. 

👉Coaching FAQ’s in link in IG bio🤗

Why you may be feeling bad on carnivore

I’ve found throughout my 3+ years on carnivore that most people feeling crummy typically have a few things in common: electrolytes may be off, you’re not enough food, increased glucose & insulin numbers, & low ketones.

You can check these with a simple glucometer from your local drug store, amazon, a continuous glucose monitor (CGM like Nutrisense, link in my IG bio, discount code: lilbitoffitCGM10), or a Keto mojo which checks both glucose & ketones.

If you’re eating too much protein, the excess can signal the liver to use protein as a fuel via gluconeogenesis instead of fat. This can cause your glucose numbers to rise & ketones to drop. If you are metabolically healthy & more active, you can still thrive, feel good, & lose body fat on large amounts of protein — I am one of those types of individuals, but not everyone fits that profile or protocol.

Tips, signs, & things to think about

Meal Timing & Food Quantity Matter

Calories & quantity still matter no matter what diet. So this is why saying, “Eat all the meat you want!” isn’t the best approach or message. The type of food you eat matters in terms of digestion. Ex: processed meat vs whole food or you may have allergies/histamine responses to certain meats & dairy. Macro ratios matter like high fat/mod protein vs higher protein/mod fat. Try spreading meals & protein quantities out equally through the day. Experiment!

Satiety Cues

If you’ve struggled with disordered eating/chronic dieting & can’t “feel” true hunger/satiety cues, slow down when you eat. We should be able to distinguish between true physical hunger & emotional hunger & habits. Meals should be large enough to keep you full for 4+ hrs. High fat carnivore can pose a challenge to volume eaters & lead to overeating. Make sure to get quality sleep always!

Blood Glucose & Ketones will Vary Person to Person

Lifestyle, health status, & activity level matter when it comes to both set of numbers. People who are highly active, avid exercisers, athletes, & fully fat adapted may not have high ketone numbers because their bodies are efficient at utilizing fat & ketones as fuel & there may not be as much concentrated in the blood. I am one of those people. I lift, CrossFit, & get 15k steps/d & still lost 20lbs with ketones averaging around .6. My glucose also tends to run around 85-90 fasting.

On the other hand, if you are more sedentary & getting higher blood glucose numbers & low ketones, this could be an indicator you’re consuming too much protein & not enough fat, maybe your meals are too large at a sitting, maybe you can try different fasting windows to get these to optimize. I find our largest meal should be post workout for most for optimal recovery & digestion. I’ve seen the best fat loss results tapering meal sizes later in the day, fasting 12-16 hrs overnight.

Fasting

Once fat adapted, it is natural to lean more towards longer fasting periods. I can easily fast 20 hrs. If you fast & feel great & your numbers improve, fasting may be beneficial & more aligned to you & your lifestyle. I find more sedentary people do better with fasting & longer periods of fasting.

In contrast, if you are highly active, an avid exerciser, athlete, lifting weights, getting 10+k steps/d, & live a higher stress lifestyle, overly fasting can do the opposite & put more stress on your body causing glucose numbers to rise & fat gain in many cases. Hormones matter, be good to them & work with your body.

Fasting too long, over caffeinating, & over exercising while eating too little can also cause higher glucose numbers due to excess stress & a rise in cortisol. You may need smaller more frequent meals & shorter fasting windows to balance blood glucose & hormone levels.

80/20 or higher fat carnivore

May NOT work great for you if:

  • You have trouble digesting high fats. For ex: I don’t have a gallbladder & cannot optimally tolerate digesting large quantities of fat without digestive issues like reflux, slow digestion, constipation/diarrhea, & nausea.
  • You are lactose(dairy)&/or egg intolerant. Often times egg yolks, butter & dairy like cheese are added to meals to increase fat, If you cannot digest these well, they will cause challenges & inflammation.
  • You are active, an avid exerciser, or athlete lifting weights & focusing on muscle building. We typically have protein higher requirements to build & maintain this tissue.
  • You are a volume eater & cannot feel full or satisfied on a higher fat approach which makes it hard to sustain, adhere to, & leads to overeating.
  • You feel sluggish, digestion is off, & start putting on excess body fat with higher quantities of fat.

Experimentation & data tracking is the only way to know!

Higher protein/mod fat carnivore

May NOT work great for you if:

  • You are more sedentary. Your protein & calorie needs are likely lower than a more active person.
  • You are encountering higher fasting glucose numbers & lower ketone numbers consistently.
  • You don’t feel well eating higher protein quantities. For ex: low energy, constipation, high fasting glucose numbers, low ketones, peeing more frequently, lethargic, slow motility digestion(feeling like your food is just sitting there & vice versa for high fat too), ravenous hunger, never feeling full & satisfied, excess thirst.
  • You’ve tried higher protein & aren’t seeing any fat loss results. It may be time to switch it up & try a higher fat approach. You may need a diet break or try fat cycling higher fat days in with lower fat days.
  • You simply may need to eat more & reverse diet if you’ve been chronically under eating. To increase calories on a carnivore approach, you have to increase your fat. Don’t fear the fat! Experiment!


You can read more about how I healed my gut, disordered eating, & fat loss story here. This will answer the majority of your questions as well as provide products & supplements to help!

Happy carnivoreing!

oxox Coach K