From VA Nutrition Classes to Keto-Carnivore Freedom
Two years ago the VA ordered me—Charlie, a veteran pushing sixty-eight—to repeat its standard nutrition course because my weight had crept to 262 pounds. The lesson was the same as always: “Calories in, calories out.” I followed the guidelines, counted portions, and ended every day ravenous. The scale barely budged and my A1C climbed to 6.1. When one shoe suddenly refused to fit over a swollen foot, the clinic warned that type 2 diabetes was next and suggested, once again, the same nutrition class.

I decided to take responsibility for my health. After an eight-day water fast meant to dodge so-called “keto flu,” I transitioned first to a ketogenic regimen and then, after discovering Dr. Shawn Baker’s work, to a strict keto-carnivore diet. That November blood draw shocked the staff: despite eating virtually no food for more than a week, my LDL and triglycerides were high, so the team insisted I stop fat and meat entirely and start medication. I pointed out the obvious—my elevated numbers appeared during total fasting, not meat overload—yet they blamed the food I wasn’t eating. I called them quacks and walked out.

Learning More Than the Doctors
During the months that followed I read voraciously until I understood triglycerides, LDL transport particles, and the inflammatory havoc wrought by refined carbohydrates. My knowledge quickly outpaced the VA nutritionist who could not explain a triglyceride in basic biochemical terms. Meanwhile the numbers that mattered—weight, blood pressure, waistline—plummeted. By summer I cruised comfortably between 210 and 217 pounds. Dizzy spells that once demanded a snack every three hours vanished; now I can fast for days without fatigue.

Eggs, Meat, and the LDL Controversy
Daily logs reveal a heavy reliance on eggs alongside beef, lamb, pork and butter. My pre-med son, armed with current biochemistry coursework, agrees that LDL is merely a transport vehicle and not the villain VA pamphlets portray. I forwarded short explanatory videos to the dietitian, only to hear, “I can’t believe you trust a chiropractor more than us.” Trust? No—new research over old dogma.

Electrolytes, Mountain Summits, and a New Life at Seventy
By tracking intake almost every day I uncovered one personal key: maintaining generous electrolytes with potassium chloride, magnesium and calcium powders prevents the cramps and dizziness that plagued my early weeks. I sprinkle potassium chloride like salt to reach several grams daily.

Eighteen months after that first fast I had regained the energy of my forties. Surgical knees and a replaced hip no longer ache. I summited three Alberta peaks last summer, row sculls on Calgary’s reservoir, and handle demanding construction work rather than returning to a cubicle. Blood pressure that once hovered at 150 ⁄ 90 now reads 120 ⁄ 70. Triglycerides are half their former level; HDL is up; LDL is down. My physician—speechless over the cuff reading—could only murmur “Wow.”

I maintain a simple routine: fry two eggs in butter each morning, shower them in hot sauce and melted Swiss, wipe out the cast-iron pan, and repeat the ritual for supper. Living alone makes the keto-carnivore template effortless: shop the meat aisle, skip the restaurants I can’t afford, and relish brain fog lifting every dawn. At seventy I feel sharper and sturdier than I did at sixty.

​A decade ago I feared passing out during midnight bathroom trips; today I bounce from bed thanks to balanced electrolytes and steady ketones. I plan to spend my next chapter coaching others through the maze of conflicting advice the VA still dispenses. Trial and error taught me what the pamphlets never could: a decisive commitment to keto-carnivore living unlocks health results that pills only promise.

Disclaimer: These testimonials are from people who shared their success stories on keto carnivore diet which is Revero’s nutrition therapy method. They are not from actual Revero patients. Clinical results are not guaranteed and outcomes are specific to each patient.