It was a wet stroke when the Natalie West fitness coach pinched the flesh over his waist during his weekly weighing and said: “ We still have a lot of work to do. You should reduce your diet by 500 calories.
His words have devastated Natalie. 26 years old and preparing her first bodybuilding competition, she believed that she was in the best form of her life thanks to her exhausting daily training diet and her ultra-taught diet of thin fruits, vegetables and protein.
“ I ate zero fat, a lot of what I thought was healthy food, and I was doing the exercise all day, every day – I would even do two aerobic lessons in a day, so I was absolutely emptied to hear that I had to lose more body fat from my coach. This sent me to a descending spiral ”, says Natalie.
173 cm high (5’8), and weighing only 51 kg (112.4 lb), the mother of two, of MelbourneAustralia thought that she was the quintessence of good health.
She controlled what she was eating by weighing each piece of food, snacking on “healthy” treats like protein shakes and low fat rice cakes with honey and eating every three hours to brake her appetite.
“ I lived on a regimated and controlled diet with a cheating meal per week, however, as most of the cultists do, I fought that day, by faking pizzas, chocolate and pastries in my mouth because it was the only day when I was authorized in throat ”, she explains.
“My diet and my lifestyle were devouring and I was stuck in an unhealthy food preparation cycle. And if I put a few grams of fat, guilt, shame and more restrictions have followed.
“I saw food and exercise as a punishment, not food.
During her years as a super -light bodybuilder, the mother of two children from Melbourne, Natalie West, ate zero fat and did the exercise twice a day – so ate and drank alcohol on her “ cheat ” ‘
The Natalie libido fell, her rules stopped and she used to drink to numb her feelings of low self -esteem and self -esteem.
But alcohol came with a heavy price.
“Alcohol meant calories and sugar, so I went out and dances all night just to burn everything. Then I went home, slept and spent hours the next day for walking in Albert Park to burn more calories, ”she admits.
“It was absolutely exhausting. My diet and my body absolutely consumed me.
Natalie, who worked in a corporate sale role at the time, retired from bodybuilding at the age of 32 to become a competition judge, and said that it was not until the time that she realized how toxic the bodybuilding industry was.
Steroids are offered to most competitors – including me, but I have refused – and it is a controlling lifestyle, where competitors are on this unhealthy cycle of fasting, binging, loading on calories and again, “she told me.
“In addition, not to mention guilt and obsessive thought around the food and the accompanying exercise.
Natalie says she was “hungry” – or angry because of hunger – all the time, and in the world of bodybuilding, being weakened is a badge of honor because it shows your dedication.
Natalie says that she was “hungry” – or angry because of hunger – all the time, and in the world of bodybuilding, being weakened is a badge of honor because it shows your dedication
She therefore moved away from this “toxic” world and studied integrated psychotherapy, where she met her academic mentor which pronounced only seven words that changed her life: “You cannot speak to a hungry brain”.
“It was then that I achieved the power of food. It was a moment of bulb. I had just been diagnosed with the type 2 limit diabetes, and my general practitioner said: “We will keep an eye on this”, and I thought: “No, we will not do it, I take measures.” I realized that I was hungry my body and that I had been doing it for decades.
It was the turning point for Natalie, who, after hours of research, found a general practitioner who believed in the carnivorous diet – a diet rich in protein in which just animal products, eggs and dairy products are consumed.
Although the diet does not lack fiber and can cause vitamin deficiencies, those who follow it say that its advantages prevail over the disadvantages – in particular how it Reduces inflammation and considerably improves metabolic markers.
The diet, although not recommended by most doctors, is popular among alternative health communities, with defenders saying that it has changed their lives and even a chronic disease healed.
There are rigorous and rigorous research limited on the carnivorous regime; However, a Harvard study in 2021 in more than 2,000 people found participants in self-depressed weight loss, better metabolic health and a reduction in autoimmune symptoms.
“A thousand of the bulbs disappeared when I changed my diet to eat carnivore,” says Natalie.
“The first week was quite difficult, but after only two weeks, I had more energy, clarity, concentration and I felt in peace. After a month, my blood tests returned normal, my inflammation and my limited diabetes had disappeared.
Her diet would not suit everyone, but it worked for her.
For breakfast, she has seven eggs with ghee, followed by 500 g of meat later in the day.
She says that she does not feel the need for snacks, but instead of taking care of the transformed protein bars and rice cakes, she ate more eggs and cheese.
In addition to improving her physical health, Natalie says that the diet has also strengthened its mental health and propelled its libido into the stratosphere.
After discovering the carnivorous diet, Natalie has gained healthy weight, has more energy and said that her libido is “100% primitive”
“My libido came back with revenge and my desire returned. I feel 100% primitive, ”she reveals.
“Not only do I feel fantastic, but I gained weight. I am a healthier 60 kg (132 lb). Instead of punishing myself at the gymnasium for hours, I now go three times a week for 20 minutes to make weights.
“My body has now been self -regulated, and I exchanged alcohol, which is a pure poison, for sparkling water and meditation.
Natalie has been carnivorous for seven years. She does not eat fruit, sugar or vegetables at all, and has not touched alcohol for five years.
“I now have total food freedom. I only eat when I am hungry and no longer weigh what I eat. I no longer think of food.
Natalie is 53 years old now and says she has never felt better
“I put weight, I feel so much better and I have more muscle now than as a bodybuilder. If I had known the carnivorous diet when I was younger, it would have changed my life for the best.
Natalie, now 53 years old, recently completed her certification in nutritional psychiatry and help hundreds of men and women in the world as integrated psychotherapist in mental and metabolic health.
She knows that the carnivorous regime is controversial, but believes that society has been fed for decades on nutrition.
“With each study you hear about, it promotes sugar or says that saturated fats are fatal for us, remove the curtains and see where these studies come from.
“There is vitamin C in meat and organs, and as for those who say that we need fibers, well, it is not a nutrient. New studies show that saturated fats do not cause heart attacks and we need cholesterol to survive.
“The thrill that I got from my unhealthy lifestyle as a bodybuilder, I now have help other patients transform their mental and physical health by feeding the nutrients they need.”