INTRO My tirzepatide and carnivore diet

[whynotlxix]

I chose to give tirzepatide a shot since stress eating has made it hard for me to shed pounds. Having previously followed both keto and carnivore ways of eating, I'm aware they can help me drop weight fast. So I paired a carnivore diet with the calorie deficit that tirzepatide provides.

Near the end of May I placed my tirzepatide order, planning to begin on June 1st. Then I learned weekend shipping isn't available, meaning it wouldn't arrive on time. That got me thinking I truly wanted to find out how effective the tirzepatide was on its own. Yet I didn't want tirzepatide getting the credit for the carnivore diet pushing me into ketosis and flushing out all the water weight I knew would come off right away. Based on my past keto runs, I know my body easily sheds 10 lbs of water in the 1st week. So I went ahead and began my carnivore diet on June 1st anyway. For monitoring my weight loss I bought a digital scale that syncs with my phone for tracking. On Sunday, May 30th I weighed 320.3 lbs. My plan was to lose 20lbs the first month, 20lbs the second month and 10lbs for the months after that.

That week my tirzepatide arrived, and given the reports of constipation and diarrhea, I figured the start of the weekend when I'm off work would be the best moment to take my first dose in case any bad reactions came up.

My first shot, keeping in mind I have a needle phobia. I've had that fear since childhood. It started the first time I went to the dentist and my brothers tried to scare me, making it worse than it already was. Then I had a dream where everyone in town was chasing me with needles, so I ran all night long to get away from them. Not wanting to watch the injection. I tried to convince my wife to do it. That was a big no from her. So I asked a friend to shoot me, again I was turned down. So after about a 1 hour, of trying to psych myself up to do it, I finally opened the pack of needles. I prepped my injection site with an alcohol wipe, removed the needle cover to load the syringe with the vile. To my surprise and excitement, the needle was nowhere near the size they used to be on my uncle's, old, diabetes insulin syringes. I loaded the syringe with the 25 units and proceeded to inject myself, barely even felt the needle.

The following morning Sunday June 7th, I stepped on the scale, 306.4 lbs registered as my starting weight for the tirzepatide. 13.9 lbs dropped the first week due strictly to the carnivore diet and water weight loss that is typical of ketosis.

 

[skabrygo]

How are things going for you combining TR with carnivore?

I've been doing carnivore from the start of June, and I added reta 1 month back. Since last week I've clearly felt the food noisy restriction kick in, but from day 2 onward the bloating plus stomach-ache have been really rough.

I can't tell whether it's a bad batch of reta, the mix of reta and carnivore, or simply that my body reacts poorly to this pep.

Have you been getting any side effect?

 

[whynotlxix]

Since June 1st, combining carnivore with tirzepatide has taken 50.5 lbs off me. The only problem that came up: my lactose intolerance acts up more after dark, since food stays in the stomach for a longer time.

Because glp-1 slows stomach emptying, you have to pay closer attention to what you eat — certain foods will aggravate it further.

 

[whynotlxix]

skabrygo said:

How are things going for you combining TR with carnivore?

I've been doing carnivore from the start of June, and I added reta 1 month back. Since last week I've clearly felt the food noisy restriction kick in, but from day 2 onward the bloating plus stomach-ache have been really rough.

I can't tell whether it's a bad batch of reta, the mix of reta and carnivore, or simply that my body reacts poorly to this pep.

Have you been getting any side effect?

Another observation from being on tirz: leaner meats sit better with me. Seafood and fish went down fine, but I couldn't eat much rib eye.

 

[skabrygo]

whynotlxix said:

skabrygo said:

How are things going for you combining TR with carnivore?

I've been doing carnivore from the start of June, and I added reta 1 month back. Since last week I've clearly felt the food noisy restriction kick in, but from day 2 onward the bloating plus stomach-ache have been really rough.

I can't tell whether it's a bad batch of reta, the mix of reta and carnivore, or simply that my body reacts poorly to this pep.

Have you been getting any side effect?

Another observation from being on tirz: leaner meats sit better with me. Seafood and fish went down fine, but I couldn't eat much rib eye.

That's a fair observation. Every day I have rump cap that's been cooked over a wood fire, Brazilian style. Eggs and cheese are also part of my intake, but that rump cap is the centerpiece.

I realize reta pairs better with leaner meats, yet on carnivore most of the nutrition you take in comes from fat. How are you handling that trade-off?

Something I've noticed: if I'm parked at the office all day, the bloating and discomfort are worse than on days when I stay moving. And where I used to eat 1 meal a day, I'm now dividing it into small portions, which I guess is pretty expected.

What does your diet look like? Is it just meat, eggs and cheese?

 

[whynotlxix]

skabrygo said:

whynotlxix said:

skabrygo said:

How are things going for you combining TR with carnivore?

I've been doing carnivore from the start of June, and I added reta 1 month back. Since last week I've clearly felt the food noisy restriction kick in, but from day 2 onward the bloating plus stomach-ache have been really rough.

I can't tell whether it's a bad batch of reta, the mix of reta and carnivore, or simply that my body reacts poorly to this pep.

Have you been getting any side effect?

Another observation from being on tirz: leaner meats sit better with me. Seafood and fish went down fine, but I couldn't eat much rib eye.

That's a fair observation. Every day I have rump cap that's been cooked over a wood fire, Brazilian style. Eggs and cheese are also part of my intake, but that rump cap is the centerpiece.

I realize reta pairs better with leaner meats, yet on carnivore most of the nutrition you take in comes from fat. How are you handling that trade-off?

Something I've noticed: if I'm parked at the office all day, the bloating and discomfort are worse than on days when I stay moving. And where I used to eat 1 meal a day, I'm now dividing it into small portions, which I guess is pretty expected.

What does your diet look like? Is it just meat, eggs and cheese?

I start the day with eggs and sausage, and lunch typically gets skipped since work keeps me occupied and I don't feel hungry. For dinner it changes: now and then a ⅓ lb burger patty plus a couple servings of cheese, fish (salmon, cod, tilapia or tuna), chicken, or steak and eggs. Still, as you mentioned, it becomes more noticeable when you're sitting, and I do construction so I'm mostly active.

 

[skabrygo]

whynotlxix said:

skabrygo said:

whynotlxix said:

skabrygo said:

How are things going for you combining TR with carnivore?

I've been doing carnivore from the start of June, and I added reta 1 month back. Since last week I've clearly felt the food noisy restriction kick in, but from day 2 onward the bloating plus stomach-ache have been really rough.

I can't tell whether it's a bad batch of reta, the mix of reta and carnivore, or simply that my body reacts poorly to this pep.

Have you been getting any side effect?

Another observation from being on tirz: leaner meats sit better with me. Seafood and fish went down fine, but I couldn't eat much rib eye.

That's a fair observation. Every day I have rump cap that's been cooked over a wood fire, Brazilian style. Eggs and cheese are also part of my intake, but that rump cap is the centerpiece.

I realize reta pairs better with leaner meats, yet on carnivore most of the nutrition you take in comes from fat. How are you handling that trade-off?

Something I've noticed: if I'm parked at the office all day, the bloating and discomfort are worse than on days when I stay moving. And where I used to eat 1 meal a day, I'm now dividing it into small portions, which I guess is pretty expected.

What does your diet look like? Is it just meat, eggs and cheese?

I start the day with eggs and sausage, and lunch typically gets skipped since work keeps me occupied and I don't feel hungry. For dinner it changes: now and then a ⅓ lb burger patty plus a couple servings of cheese, fish (salmon, cod, tilapia or tuna), chicken, or steak and eggs. Still, as you mentioned, it becomes more noticeable when you're sitting, and I do construction so I'm mostly active.

That doesn't come across as a particularly lean way of eating at all . Still, I reckon your point stands — staying active matters most. Construction was my line of work as well, though things changed lately: my Australian residency came through, so I left the job and I'm heading off on a big road trip around Australia, picking up doordash work in the bigger cities as I go. By office, what I actually mean is the car.

Appreciate it, brother. You've pointed me in a useful direction about what's going on in my situation

 

[Doon]

Back when I followed keto/carnivore, I dropped 84lbs, but there were moments when carnivore felt too limiting, despite how much I enjoyed it.

Since starting tirzepatide, I've felt drawn toward eating more carnivore-style, yet I wasn't sure how that would pan out. Rib-eyes are a favorite of mine, though I can see how the fat might not be beneficial. What I'm noticing is that the calorie deficit I'm on now includes far more carbs than I'm accustomed to, and it leaves me tired.

 

[whynotlxix]

Doon said:

Back when I followed keto/carnivore, I dropped 84lbs, but there were moments when carnivore felt too limiting, despite how much I enjoyed it.

Since starting tirzepatide, I've felt drawn toward eating more carnivore-style, yet I wasn't sure how that would pan out. Rib-eyes are a favorite of mine, though I can see how the fat might not be beneficial. What I'm noticing is that the calorie deficit I'm on now includes far more carbs than I'm accustomed to, and it leaves me tired.

I really do like combining tirzepatide with carnivore. The key is to watch for your body's fullness signals while on tirzepatide, and once they hit, you're done eating. Ribeye is still on my plate—I just keep the serving smaller and pair it with other foods.

 

[Yeahok_rtrd]

Across the handful of keto stints I've done before reta, I figure I dropped roughly 80 lbs altogether. The catch with keto and carnivore, though, is that keeping them up past a few months is rough, and they lean toward shedding pounds rather than being a way of eating you can hold onto long term without a ton of effort. Honestly, pairing carnivore with a glp1 seems like a solid route to fast, big losses, but I'd have concerns about running low on energy and losing muscle.

Do whatever works for you, but the pattern that just about everyone here previously dropped weight through those diets yet wound up on this forum anyway suggests they're short-term fixes for ongoing problems. Over the long haul, a balanced diet in a deficit will likely do more for you, and ideally the habit of tracking macros plus the consistency needed to hit them day after day (glp1 or not) would be far simpler to maintain once you reach your target and come off the peps.

My starting point was close to yours, I believe the scale read 316.4 when I began weighing myself every day after week 1 on reta. Week 1 and 2 brought about 10 lbs of loss, and since then it's been a steady 3.1-3.3 lbs per week. Just past 2 months in, I'm 36 lbs lighter. Daily intake for me is 200g protein, 140g carbs, and 50g fat, plus strength training 3-5 times per week. Some muscle will surely go during such a long cut, though lifting and a high protein intake should keep that to a minimum. What I'm aiming for is reaching my goal weight, then tapering off reta as I move to maintenance macros, and afterward keeping my weight in check by still tracking macros and working out.

Forbidden foods don't trigger cravings for me, since I'm free to eat anything I like provided I don't wreck my macros. At social gatherings I never stress about finding something to eat, because I can simply have what's available without derailing my diet, so long as I don't overdo it.

That's my two cents. Best of luck whichever route you go with!

 

[mamapucci5221]

I realize it hasn't been long, but since beginning this way of eating, have you gotten your cholesterol checked? The amount of fat involved worries me about my cholesterol going up. That's what happened to me back when I followed Keto.

 

[skabrygo]

Yeahok_rtrd said:

Across the handful of keto stints I've done before reta, I figure I dropped roughly 80 lbs altogether. The catch with keto and carnivore, though, is that keeping them up past a few months is rough, and they lean toward shedding pounds rather than being a way of eating you can hold onto long term without a ton of effort. Honestly, pairing carnivore with a glp1 seems like a solid route to fast, big losses, but I'd have concerns about running low on energy and losing muscle.

Do whatever works for you, but the pattern that just about everyone here previously dropped weight through those diets yet wound up on this forum anyway suggests they're short-term fixes for ongoing problems. Over the long haul, a balanced diet in a deficit will likely do more for you, and ideally the habit of tracking macros plus the consistency needed to hit them day after day (glp1 or not) would be far simpler to maintain once you reach your target and come off the peps.

My starting point was close to yours, I believe the scale read 316.4 when I began weighing myself every day after week 1 on reta. Week 1 and 2 brought about 10 lbs of loss, and since then it's been a steady 3.1-3.3 lbs per week. Just past 2 months in, I'm 36 lbs lighter. Daily intake for me is 200g protein, 140g carbs, and 50g fat, plus strength training 3-5 times per week. Some muscle will surely go during such a long cut, though lifting and a high protein intake should keep that to a minimum. What I'm aiming for is reaching my goal weight, then tapering off reta as I move to maintenance macros, and afterward keeping my weight in check by still tracking macros and working out.

Forbidden foods don't trigger cravings for me, since I'm free to eat anything I like provided I don't wreck my macros. At social gatherings I never stress about finding something to eat, because I can simply have what's available without derailing my diet, so long as I don't overdo it.

That's my two cents. Best of luck whichever route you go with!

Only 3 months in, but I can already say nothing beats carnivore for how simple it is to stick with. Before this, I spent roughly a year tracking macros and rotating carbs — that was miserable. Weighing, measuring, preparing tons of different foods...

These days it's just grabbing a few steaks and tossing them on the fire. The more time I spend on carnivore, the more I enjoy steaks and the less I crave carbs.

I take reta mainly to keep impulses in check. Pizza, chocolate, ice cream — I don't actually need them. What I get is more like a sense that I've earned the right to do something bad after being good for a stretch. It's simply an urge to break the rules! And yes, reta does help with that

 

[whynotlxix]

Yeahok_rtrd said:

Across the handful of keto stints I've done before reta, I figure I dropped roughly 80 lbs altogether. The catch with keto and carnivore, though, is that keeping them up past a few months is rough, and they lean toward shedding pounds rather than being a way of eating you can hold onto long term without a ton of effort. Honestly, pairing carnivore with a glp1 seems like a solid route to fast, big losses, but I'd have concerns about running low on energy and losing muscle.

Do whatever works for you, but the pattern that just about everyone here previously dropped weight through those diets yet wound up on this forum anyway suggests they're short-term fixes for ongoing problems. Over the long haul, a balanced diet in a deficit will likely do more for you, and ideally the habit of tracking macros plus the consistency needed to hit them day after day (glp1 or not) would be far simpler to maintain once you reach your target and come off the peps.

My starting point was close to yours, I believe the scale read 316.4 when I began weighing myself every day after week 1 on reta. Week 1 and 2 brought about 10 lbs of loss, and since then it's been a steady 3.1-3.3 lbs per week. Just past 2 months in, I'm 36 lbs lighter. Daily intake for me is 200g protein, 140g carbs, and 50g fat, plus strength training 3-5 times per week. Some muscle will surely go during such a long cut, though lifting and a high protein intake should keep that to a minimum. What I'm aiming for is reaching my goal weight, then tapering off reta as I move to maintenance macros, and afterward keeping my weight in check by still tracking macros and working out.

Forbidden foods don't trigger cravings for me, since I'm free to eat anything I like provided I don't wreck my macros. At social gatherings I never stress about finding something to eat, because I can simply have what's available without derailing my diet, so long as I don't overdo it.

That's my two cents. Best of luck whichever route you go with!

I needed to shed 50 lbs within 3 months for health reasons, and the carnivore approach alone wasn't enough to get the weight loss going. Once month 1 wrapped up, I moved into keto, then after month 2 I went back to eating regular foods. By the 3 month point I had reached my target, landing at 50.5 lbs down. These days I'm losing roughly 2.5 lbs weekly, which works well for me. I came to this site hoping to pick up more knowledge about reta, since I'm getting ready to move from tirz over to reta.

As for why I'm making the change: I had been paying the full amount via an online clinic, then figured out I might save a bit or quite a lot, but they messed up my monthly dose in a way that would have lowered my tirz dose. That left me needing to locate a replacement. So as my tirz dose goes down, I'll stack reta to compensate and ideally remain at a lower dose.

 

[Yeahok_rtrd]

whynotlxix said:

Yeahok_rtrd said:

Across the handful of keto stints I've done before reta, I figure I dropped roughly 80 lbs altogether. The catch with keto and carnivore, though, is that keeping them up past a few months is rough, and they lean toward shedding pounds rather than being a way of eating you can hold onto long term without a ton of effort. Honestly, pairing carnivore with a glp1 seems like a solid route to fast, big losses, but I'd have concerns about running low on energy and losing muscle.

Do whatever works for you, but the pattern that just about everyone here previously dropped weight through those diets yet wound up on this forum anyway suggests they're short-term fixes for ongoing problems. Over the long haul, a balanced diet in a deficit will likely do more for you, and ideally the habit of tracking macros plus the consistency needed to hit them day after day (glp1 or not) would be far simpler to maintain once you reach your target and come off the peps.

My starting point was close to yours, I believe the scale read 316.4 when I began weighing myself every day after week 1 on reta. Week 1 and 2 brought about 10 lbs of loss, and since then it's been a steady 3.1-3.3 lbs per week. Just past 2 months in, I'm 36 lbs lighter. Daily intake for me is 200g protein, 140g carbs, and 50g fat, plus strength training 3-5 times per week. Some muscle will surely go during such a long cut, though lifting and a high protein intake should keep that to a minimum. What I'm aiming for is reaching my goal weight, then tapering off reta as I move to maintenance macros, and afterward keeping my weight in check by still tracking macros and working out.

Forbidden foods don't trigger cravings for me, since I'm free to eat anything I like provided I don't wreck my macros. At social gatherings I never stress about finding something to eat, because I can simply have what's available without derailing my diet, so long as I don't overdo it.

That's my two cents. Best of luck whichever route you go with!

I needed to shed 50 lbs within 3 months for health reasons, and the carnivore approach alone wasn't enough to get the weight loss going. Once month 1 wrapped up, I moved into keto, then after month 2 I went back to eating regular foods. By the 3 month point I had reached my target, landing at 50.5 lbs down. These days I'm losing roughly 2.5 lbs weekly, which works well for me. I came to this site hoping to pick up more knowledge about reta, since I'm getting ready to move from tirz over to reta.

As for why I'm making the change: I had been paying the full amount via an online clinic, then figured out I might save a bit or quite a lot, but they messed up my monthly dose in a way that would have lowered my tirz dose. That left me needing to locate a replacement. So as my tirz dose goes down, I'll stack reta to compensate and ideally remain at a lower dose.

Absolutely, seems like you've got it all sorted out.

 

[whynotlxix]

Yeahok_rtrd said:

whynotlxix said:

Yeahok_rtrd said:

Across the handful of keto stints I've done before reta, I figure I dropped roughly 80 lbs altogether. The catch with keto and carnivore, though, is that keeping them up past a few months is rough, and they lean toward shedding pounds rather than being a way of eating you can hold onto long term without a ton of effort. Honestly, pairing carnivore with a glp1 seems like a solid route to fast, big losses, but I'd have concerns about running low on energy and losing muscle.

Do whatever works for you, but the pattern that just about everyone here previously dropped weight through those diets yet wound up on this forum anyway suggests they're short-term fixes for ongoing problems. Over the long haul, a balanced diet in a deficit will likely do more for you, and ideally the habit of tracking macros plus the consistency needed to hit them day after day (glp1 or not) would be far simpler to maintain once you reach your target and come off the peps.

My starting point was close to yours, I believe the scale read 316.4 when I began weighing myself every day after week 1 on reta. Week 1 and 2 brought about 10 lbs of loss, and since then it's been a steady 3.1-3.3 lbs per week. Just past 2 months in, I'm 36 lbs lighter. Daily intake for me is 200g protein, 140g carbs, and 50g fat, plus strength training 3-5 times per week. Some muscle will surely go during such a long cut, though lifting and a high protein intake should keep that to a minimum. What I'm aiming for is reaching my goal weight, then tapering off reta as I move to maintenance macros, and afterward keeping my weight in check by still tracking macros and working out.

Forbidden foods don't trigger cravings for me, since I'm free to eat anything I like provided I don't wreck my macros. At social gatherings I never stress about finding something to eat, because I can simply have what's available without derailing my diet, so long as I don't overdo it.

That's my two cents. Best of luck whichever route you go with!

I needed to shed 50 lbs within 3 months for health reasons, and the carnivore approach alone wasn't enough to get the weight loss going. Once month 1 wrapped up, I moved into keto, then after month 2 I went back to eating regular foods. By the 3 month point I had reached my target, landing at 50.5 lbs down. These days I'm losing roughly 2.5 lbs weekly, which works well for me. I came to this site hoping to pick up more knowledge about reta, since I'm getting ready to move from tirz over to reta.

As for why I'm making the change: I had been paying the full amount via an online clinic, then figured out I might save a bit or quite a lot, but they messed up my monthly dose in a way that would have lowered my tirz dose. That left me needing to locate a replacement. So as my tirz dose goes down, I'll stack reta to compensate and ideally remain at a lower dose.

Absolutely, seems like you've got it all sorted out.

Thanks, I'm on it. There are still other things I haven't figured out, but I'm picking them up as I go.

 

[Shittersfull]

Nice work on dropping all that weight. It's good to have another carnivore in this space. Before I found glps, carnivore helped me shed 40 lbs. It turned my pre diabetes around and my cholesterol got better. For those it suits, it's fantastic. Throw a glp into the mix, and the process gets simpler still. Glad you joined the forum. Looking forward to seeing you post.

 

[RaptorChicken]

whynotlxix said:


I decided to try tirzepatide because I'm struggling to lose weight do to the fact that I stress eat. I've done both keto and carnivore diets before and I know I can lose weight quickly with them. So I decided to combine a carnivore diet and the calorie deficit from the tirzepatide.

I ordered my tirzepatide towards the end of May thinking I would start it June 1st. Then, I found out they don't ship it over the weekend, so it would not be there in time. Which gave me the thought that I really wanted to see how well the tirzepatide actually worked. But I didn't want to give the tirzepatide credit for the carnivore diet kicking me into ketosis and dropping all the water weight I knew that I would drop instantly. From my previous experiences doing keto I know my body drops 10 lbs of water weight in the 1st week easily. So with that I still started my carnivore diet June 1st. To track my weight loss I purchased a digital scale that connects to my phone for tracking. On Sunday, May 30th I weighed 320.3 lbs. My goal was to drop 20lbs the first month, 20lbs the second month and 10lbs for the following months.

That week my tirzepatide showed up and with the reviews of constipation and diarrhea I figured the beginning of the weekend when I'm off work would be the best time to take my first dose in case of any adverse reactions.

My first shot, noting I have a phobia of needles. I have had that phobia since I was a kid. From the first time I went to the dentist and my brothers decided to try and scare me, makeing it worse than it was. Then having a dream that everyone in the town was trying to stab me with needles, so I was running all night long to avoid them. Not wanting to watch the injection. I tried to talk my wife into it. That was a big no from her. So I asked a friend to shoot me, again I was rejected. So after about a 1 hour, of trying to psych myself up to do it, I finally opened the pack of needles. I prepped my injection site with an alcohol wipe, removed the needle cover to load the syringe with the vile. To my surprise and excitement, the needle was nowhere near the size they used to be on my uncle's, old, diabetes insulin syringes. I loaded the syringe with the 25 units and proceeded to inject myself, barely even felt the needle.

The following morning Sunday June 7th, I stepped on the scale, 306.4 lbs registered as my starting weight for the tirzepatide. 13.9 lbs dropped the first week due strictly to the carnivore diet and water weight loss that is typical of ketosis.

Click to expand...

I had my 2nd shingles shot not long ago, so I get what you mean. Every injection used to leave me nearly bawling like a small child. Luckily, the needles for this are very small. One tip for shots: move your toes around. It calms you down and distracts you from the needle. It took me roughly 45 years to figure that out.