Chapter 3: Carnivore’s Dawn

Chapter 3: Carnivore's Dawn

A Last Beat in 2022

Standing at the kitchen counter, I sliced through the deep red of a ribeye, the marbling promising energy, clarity, and renewal. The sizzle of the steak hitting the cast iron was my new symphony, a primal overture to the next phase of my journey. By 2022, as detailed in my previous chapter, I’d already conducted a radical transformation—100 pounds shed through keto’s disciplined rhythms. But something remained elusive, a final fog lingering between the notes of my existence. At 74, I wasn’t yet the man I wanted to be—my mind still held traces of haze, my energy wasn’t as steady as I craved, and I refused to settle for anything less than the vitality I knew I could reclaim. I’d spent decades solving puzzles as an award-winning author, former CPA, and entrepreneur—building a securities firm I sold to HSN, coding an accounting package on a TI 990 Model 1, and outsmarting IBM’s Outlook and Exchange protocol. This feat sparked their $1 billion Linux investment. My mind, honed by dual majors in literature and business at UT Austin and a CPA at SMU Cox, had written songs for Pompeii Records, weaving melodies as effortlessly as I untangled financial systems. My passion for biotech and longevity, sparked by years of studying resilient survivors like those of the 1720 Plague of Marseille, drove me to keep pushing. I refused to end up like my father, his vitality drained by illness, his days reduced to pills and weakness. I wanted to reclaim my clarity, joy, and zip—not just for myself, but to inspire others through my writing. The simplicity of the carnivore approach called to me—meat only, no carbs, a primal setlist stripped of complexity. This was my next movement in the age reversal symphony, a bold shift to the most fundamental instrument: animal nutrition in its purest form.

==========

Why Carnivore?

After keto’s success, many would have maintained the course, satisfied with the extraordinary results. But the detective in me sensed more evidence to uncover, more clues to follow. The CPA in me saw the balance sheet still carrying small debts to optimal health. The musician heard notes still slightly out of tune. Keto had been revolutionary—the high-fat, moderate-protein, low-carb approach had transformed my body and mind, bringing me to 100 pounds down. But research led me down a path of questioning: what if the small amount of plants I consumed held me back? What if the occasional nuts, low-carb vegetables, and berries were subtle saboteurs of my ultimate potential?

Dr. Shawn Baker’s compelling accounts of strength and vitality on an all-meat diet caught my attention. Paul Saladino’s meticulous breakdown of potential plant toxins—lectins, oxalates, phytates—resonated with the scientist in me, aligning with my lifelong fascination with biotech. The growing carnivore community shared stories of mental clarity that surpassed even keto’s remarkable effects. Their anecdotes weren’t just compelling; they harmonized with my experience of incremental improvements when I leaned heavier into animal foods. Most convincing was the evolutionary logic—humans thrived for thousands of generations as apex predators, prioritizing energy-dense animal foods. Our digestive systems, teeth, and nutritional needs all pointed to a design optimized for meat consumption, with plants as survival foods rather than optimal fuel. My goal to avoid my father’s health fate and achieve peak clarity and vitality gave urgency to this experiment. I wanted to be present, sharp, and alive—not just to defy aging, but to share my journey as an author and inspire others. So began my carnivore experiment—not as a diet, but as a return to the most fundamental human nutrition, a homecoming to the foods that built our brains, muscles, and resilience across millennia.

==========

My Carnivore Setlist

Morning opened with four eggs, yolks still soft, swimming in grass-fed butter—a gentle introduction to the day’s nutrition. Lunch might be a simple arrangement of sliced ribeye, prepared the evening before, eaten cold with a sprinkle of salt. Dinner became my main performance: a perfect ribeye, sometimes salmon with skin crisped to a delicate crunch, occasionally ground beef transformed into patties seasoned only with salt. The simplicity was startling after years of complex meal planning. My shopping list condensed to a few lines: eggs, beef, salmon, bacon, butter, tallow. My kitchen time has been shortened—no chopping vegetables, measuring portions of various foods, and calculating macros beyond ensuring adequate fat intake.

The first week brought expected adjustments—my body, accustomed to some small amount of carbohydrates even on keto, protested briefly with fatigue and cravings. But by day ten, something shifted. I woke with unprecedented clarity, as if someone had wiped clean a window I hadn’t realized was smudged. Energy arrived in steady waves throughout the day, without the subtle afternoon dips I’d grown accustomed to; I’d forgotten they weren’t natural. Social situations required new choreography—restaurant outings became exercises in simple requests: “Ribeye, please. No sides. Just the meat.” Friends’ dinner invitations prompted gentle explanations and offers to bring my own food. But the surprise was how little this mattered against how I felt.

The physical transformation continued beyond what I thought possible after keto’s dramatic effects. The scale registered another ten pounds gone, bringing my total loss to 110—a number I’d considered impossible only years before. But more striking was the change in composition. The last hiding places of fat—around my lower abdomen, beneath my chin—surrendered to this primal approach. Interstitial fat, which softens definition even in lean individuals, melted away, revealing contours I hadn’t seen since youth. Shirts that had fit well after keto now draped differently, as if tailored specifically to my frame. Veins appeared on my forearms and calves, physical evidence of a body carrying less unnecessary burden. At 77, my reflection showed a man not just thinner than his former self, but fundamentally reshaped, as if carved from different material altogether.

==========

The Science Behind the Meat

The skeptic in me—the analytical CPA who demands evidence for every claim—needed to understand the mechanisms behind these changes. How could eliminating plants, considered health foods, produce such profound effects? Inflammation emerged as the central character in this scientific story. While containing beneficial compounds, many plants also harbor defense chemicals that have evolved specifically to discourage consumption—nature’s security system. Lectins, found in highest concentration in grains, legumes, and nightshades, can trigger immune responses in the gut. Oxalates from leafy greens can form crystals in sensitive individuals. Phytates bind to minerals, potentially limiting absorption.

By eliminating these potential irritants, the carnivore diet creates an environment of minimal immune activation. For someone like me, with decades of less-than-optimal eating behind me, this respite allowed healing. Blood tests confirmed what I felt—inflammatory markers dropped, sometimes to levels typical of individuals decades younger. Metabolic health found new stability. Without carbohydrate intake, my insulin remained consistently low, preventing the energy storage that contributes to aging. Steady blood sugar translates to steady energy and mood, without the subtle peaks and valleys that punctuate most people’s days.

Perhaps most significant for age reversal was the promotion of autophagy—the cellular cleaning process where damaged components are recycled, promoting renewal at the most fundamental level. Combining zero carbohydrates and naturally occurring intermittent fasting (I comfortably ate just two meals daily) created ideal conditions for this rejuvenating process. Nutritional density played a crucial role, too. Organ meats—liver, heart, kidney—offered concentrated sources of vitamins and minerals in their most bioavailable forms. B vitamins, zinc, selenium, and complete protein with all essential amino acids supported cellular repair and function. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the absence of fiber seemed to improve my digestion rather than hinder it.

Dr. Ken Berry’s work provided context for these experiences—his clinical observations of patients reversing chronic conditions aligned perfectly with my trajectory. The growing research on ketogenic metabolism offered mechanistic explanations for the mental clarity: ketones as a superior brain fuel, bypassing the glucose-dependence that becomes increasingly inefficient with age. This wasn’t just diet as sustenance—it was diet as medicine, fundamentally altering the trajectory of aging at the cellular level.

==========

My Melody Reclaimed

The technical benefits—weight loss, improved markers, enhanced energy—paled against the true victory. One evening in late summer, I sat on my back porch, the day’s heat softening into twilight comfort. I’d just finished a ribeye, the satisfaction of a simple meal settling in, when I felt a profound shift. The clarity I’d been chasing—the mental sharpness, the steady energy, the joy of feeling fully alive—was no longer a distant note. It was here, now, resonating through every fiber of my being.

I’d been a detective, cracking my code—a musician tuning my life, a CPA balancing my wins. The haze was gone, and a ledger closed. At 77, I stood renewed, my mind as sharp as quicksilver, my energy steady like a perfect rhythm, my joy a melody I’d thought belonged only to my younger years. This was age reversal in its most valid form—not just the recovery of physical youth, but the reclamation of essential clarity, vitality, and presence. I knew this transformation wasn’t just for me; as an author, I could share this journey, inspiring others to find their path to renewed health and joy. My goal to avoid my father’s fate had been surpassed—I wasn’t just surviving; I was thriving, a living testament to what’s possible when you rewrite the aging narrative.

==========

The Road Ahead

Carnivore wasn’t the final destination, but a critical waypoint—the foundation upon which I would build my complete approach to age reversal. The diet cleared the slate, creating an optimal baseline from which to explore targeted supplementation, which is the focus of my next chapter. With inflammation minimized and metabolism optimized through carnivore, supplements could work as intended, without fighting through the fog of dietary interference. The journey would continue with scientific precision, adding compounds strategically selected to address the hallmarks of aging: NAD+ precursors to support mitochondrial function, adaptogens to modulate stress responses, and peptides to enhance cellular communication.

But carnivore taught me the most important lesson of my age reversal journey: the power of subtraction. Modern approaches to health often focus on what to add—more superfoods, exercise variations, and supplements. Carnivore showed me that frequently removing irritants, complexity, and non-essential elements yields the most dramatic results. At 77, stripped to the essentials of human nutrition, I found not deprivation but abundance—energy, clarity, and joy. The primal approach revealed that sometimes, moving forward requires stepping back, returning to foundations long forgotten in our modern cacophony of health information. The melody was clear now. The following movements awaited.