Courtney Luna | Carnivore Diet Candor: The Ups & Downs of Dieting | September 7, 2025 Ep. 23 - The Low Carb Consultant

Episode Transcript
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(00:11):
All right, guys, welcome back tothe Low Carb Consultant podcast
today. I'm excited to welcome Courtney
Luna, a former yacht chef turnedpassionate carnivore advocate.
Courtney transformed her life through a meat based lifestyle,
shifting from emotional eating, yo-yo dieting and low energy to

(00:33):
thriving with clarity, mental strength and sustainable health.
Today she shares easy carnivore and keto recipes, creative meal
ideas like carnivore pizza, which I love, and the emotional
freedom she's found while healing her relationship with
food. So Courtney, it's great to

(00:54):
finally meet you here and thanksso much for taking the time.
Yeah, thanks for having me. I'm excited to chat today.
Yeah, absolutely. And maybe before we we jump into
all the fun stuff, can you give the listeners maybe who, who are
not familiar with who you are quite yet, just a real brief
background on yourself and you know what, what took you down

(01:15):
this path? Yeah, so I'm 41 years old, mom
of two, married in Southern California.
And I I mean, Long story short, long history of yo-yo dieting.
And it wasn't until I would say even like 2010 where I got a
little bit closer to health withfinding Mark Sisson's primal

(01:37):
Blueprint. So got into Paleo, which led to
keto. And then so I guess it was
probably like 4 years ago, my husband was sending me Doctor
Paul Saladino's Tik Toks. And like we didn't say anything
like, and after a month I'm like, why are you sending me
these? Like should we not be eating
vegetables? That's so weird.
Like that goes against everything.
You know, we've been told he's like, oh, I need to like do a
little research. So you know, he goes YouTube

(01:59):
University does all his researchand and we're like, let's just
give it a shot because at the time I stopped doing what was
working for me, which was low carb keto.
I got caught, caught up in the anti diet culture BS where
they're like all foods fit everything in moderation.
You have to eat everything to have a good relationship with
food. And I was like, yeah, that
sounds amazing. Let's do that.

(02:19):
It essentially sent me on like afour month spiral, 4 month
binge. I gained 40 lbs.
So I was not doing well. So when he, you know, suggested
this, it took me a while to get there, but I'm like, let's just
give it a shot because I feel like crap.
You know, I'm almost 200 lbs. My mental health was in the
crapper like I was not doing well.

(02:40):
So we. Gave this time you were on keto?
You were on keto at this time before, correct?
Were on and off for seven years,then tried to eat everything in
moderation for that four months.So that's what kind of like put
me back up into, yeah, gave it ashot.
Had no idea all the health benefits I would get because I
wasn't really like following other influencers.
So I didn't really know what to expect.

(03:00):
I just, you know, was like, I just need to lose this weight.
It was just another thing that Iwas coming for, for the weight
loss. And it's been life changing.
My mental health, my acne, like all the things, it's just been
amazing. Yeah.
So, OK, so just to back up a little bit, so you were on and
off keto or low carb for a whilethere.
I think you said seven years andthen you were on like a four

(03:22):
month basically trying to figurething.
Yeah, kind of trying to figure things out.
Was there a specific moment whenyou flipped to carnivore where
you were just like like Oh my God this is it, I found it.
Yeah, it was probably even like a month in.
So since I was following Saladino, I started off eating

(03:43):
fruit and in hindsight, it's like my sugar addicted brain
just wasn't ready like to give that up.
So I did do that for about like 5 weeks and still like got a lot
of health benefits, but I was realizing that my like my mouth
still wanted blueberries after Iwas full and satisfied from a
rib eye. So it was, you know, 5 weeks.
I'm like, I think I'm just goingto try like strict carnivore and

(04:06):
ditch the fruit. But yeah, I mean, even like, I
would say like the first few weeks are kind of like wonky,
but after like the first like 30days, I was like, this is I'm
feeling massive changes, especially with my mental health
because I was still on Zoloft atthe time, but the dose was so
low that it I still wasn't feeling great.
So I was able to like notice that shift.

(04:27):
And yeah, so 30 days was great. 90 days got even better.
I feel like things even shifted even more.
Interesting, so how long has it been now?
Just full blown carnivore. Well, OK, so it would be May was
three years, but I'm I'm struggling lately, to be honest,
with being strict carnivore. It's like I tried to kind of

(04:51):
like add things back in and the sugar monster got me.
So it's hard, like it's hard to get back on track.
So I'm I mean, to this day, still occasionally we'll have
like a bite here and there of like my kids fruit, but it just
kicks up the food noise. Like that's just where I
struggle. The food noise is so quiet when

(05:12):
I have when I'm just eating strict carnivore.
But then it's almost like I selfsabotage like, oh, I'm doing
great. Let me just have a little bite
of this like it's fine. I just want to eat normal again.
My kids are eating it. Why is it so bad?
You know? So it's like this self sabotage
talk where I think that I can like handle these foods when
I've had so much self realization from eating this
way. Like I'm, I'm not a moderator.

(05:34):
Some people can like, you know, have a doughnut one day, go back
on track, not give it another thought.
I've learned that I'm, I'm an abstainer, so I should be
abstaining from these foods thatare triggering for me.
So, you know, just like alcohol,there's a reason why I don't
drink alcohol. And I, you know, like I think
there's a lot of, there's a correlation with food and sugar
for sure. Oh 100%.

(05:57):
I, I, I would agree with you. And obviously everyone's
different. They have their own little
triggers, you know, some, you know, like you said, some for
some people it's alcohol, for some people it's sugar, for some
people it's other things, you know what I mean?
Just out of curiosity, are therelike specific foods?
Like I think you were saying when you have some of your kids
fruit, it can kind of send you down a bad path.

(06:18):
Is there anything in particular that is like that like calls to
you when you're like strict carnivore and you know, if you
eat it, it takes you down? Is it typically fruit or is it
sometimes sweets like candy? And here's the thing.
So I'll say dried mango. It's not even that I'm like
eating awful things. Like on paper it's like, OK,
dried mango, it's a fruit. At least it's you know, a whole
food. It's not like Oreos or

(06:39):
something. But that to me is like candy.
So it's little things that I still feel OK feeding my kids,
but they like grab a hold on me and then I'm like, well, why am
I feeding this to my kids? Like am I ruining my kids?
Are they like, because I should see them being little like sugar
monsters with the the fruit, youknow?
So then, I mean, it's chaos in my brain lately, I'll just be

(07:01):
honest. Yeah, well, I, I would tell you
I've got 2 little ones too. I have a nine year old and a six
year old old daughter. And you know, maybe I'll, I'll
be asking your advice here in a quick second in regards to, you
know, your children, how you guys navigate food in your
house, what's available to them,what they can eat, what they can
eat. But you know, my wife and I

(07:22):
struggle not necessarily with myson, but with my daughter.
Like she, you know, she will sneak snacks.
You know, she, she shows, in my opinion, these are the
conversations I had with my wife.
She shows very early signs of like sugar addiction and like
binge eating. And I talked to my wife about
this and I say I want to nip this in the bud.

(07:43):
Like, part of me just we want tomake sure they have food
available for like school and things like that.
But part of me just wants to like, not buy any of this stuff
because I can see how it changesher attitude, her demeanor, how
she concentrates on like little projects.
Like it changes her. I wonder if do you have any of
those same problems in your house, out of curiosity?

(08:05):
Yeah, so my kids are 7 and 5 S right there with you.
And the food situation with themis like touchy because I don't
want to create food issues. Like I I'm aware of the comments
they get like you're going to create eating disorders in your
kids. And of course I don't want that.
But I don't feel like that meansthat I need to be feeding them.
I always say Oreos. It's like my go to, but they

(08:25):
don't need to be eating all thisdrunk in moderation.
So I don't give them a just eating disorder Like that
doesn't make sense to me. So what we do is I feel like
everything in the house I want to be able to say yes to and any
treats, if they have them are going to be outside of the
house, which there's so many different ways I could go right

(08:45):
now. I will say we went to a friend's
house this morning and we do a little homeschool Co-op.
And so it was like setting up for pictures and like the kids
were going to have Donuts at theend.
And I'm like, like, why do we have to?
Why does everything have to revolve around food and why does
it have to be Donuts? So on the way there, I'm like, I
will give you guys each $5 if you don't eat the donut.
And my other kid, he's such a negotiator.

(09:06):
He's like what about 10? I'm like, I'm not going to do
10. Like it's your choice.
You know, if you if you want to eat the doughnut, that's fine.
But then we like talked about itwhere it's like, you know, we
shouldn't be. This isn't food, this isn't
nutritious. You should want to like take
care of your body and, and feel good.
And then so we kind of talked about like moderation because

(09:27):
I'm like, well, you know, would you eat rat poisoning?
Because he's like, I only have adoughnut once in a while.
I'm like, this is true. You know, So it was this whole
conversation about kind of essentially moderating doughnuts
and how he doesn't have them allthe time.
And then maybe this is like too much information for a 7 year
old, but I'm like, but if you'rehaving a little bit of rat
poison, you know, he's like, well, it's not this doughnut's

(09:49):
not going to hurt me right away.OK?
I'm like, OK, but if you have itevery day, then you eat all this
junk every day, you're going to get diabetes when you're older.
And that's when he's like, well,I don't have it every day.
I was like this whole thing on the way.
I'm like, OK, well, I don't wantto make it a big deal.
I'm like, this is your decision.I just wish you would make
better choices for your body. And Fast forward to just, you
know, a few hours later, which was just like 10 minutes ago,

(10:10):
when he's having diarrhea, I'm like, OK, see, this is the
choice from your, your donut. But I want to give them that
power and control to make their own decisions.
And that's why I just do like everything we have at the house
is yes, foods. And then if we're going to have
treats or they're going to eat things off plan, I mean, once in
a while I'll buy some like snacky foods that like aren't

(10:30):
ideal, but it's more like, OK, we're going out to dinner.
Some days I'm like, no, we're just, we're just having meat.
But sometimes I'll let them pickwhat they want just to like, I
don't know. I'm, I'm just hoping that's like
the balance to not screw them up.
Because like you said, I'm back to the original question as I go
off on this tangent. I do see a difference in their
behavior 100%. And I've even talked to a friend

(10:51):
who's a school teacher and she'slike, she's like, I've asked
some of the kids like what theirbreakfast was that day when
they're like crazy. And it's always like cereal,
like a kid that's having steak and eggs, you know, their blood
sugar is going to be a little bit more level.
Like I wonder because I if we homeschool, if my kid was in a
regular classroom, IA 100% wouldbe getting calls from the
teacher. He has ADHD, he can't sit still,

(11:13):
you know, and I just wonder how many kids are getting even
misdiagnosed with ADHD. But it's really just like their
diet too. I mean, you know what I mean?
So even mine that eats so good, he's still, it's almost like too
energetic. I'm feeling I'm feeding him too
good. Like, I need some like, lethargy
here, you know, to, like, calm him down.
Yeah. You know, you said something

(11:34):
interesting about like wanting them to make their own decisions
and learn. And that made me think of my son
because my daughter aside, my son can it can it's it's pretty
good overall with food and treats and and sugar.
And I would say we're kind of onthe same level as you based off
of what you're going through. But what's interesting with him

(11:55):
and what I noticed is when he eats something like say we'll go
to a movie and we'll let him have some sour patch kits
because he obviously doesn't have them that often.
But when he does have them, he does mention to us that he
doesn't feel that good and his tummy hurts and like couple
other things. And that's when, you know, my
wife and I say, like, OK, there's a reason why we don't

(12:17):
eat like this. And you know, we're OK with you
eating it every once in a while,as long as you're aware of how
you feel afterwards, because this is the type of stuff you
don't want to eat on a consistent basis.
And he typically says, OK, like I got it like, but my daughter
on the other hand, she'll, she'll, she'll crush all the

(12:37):
candy, even if she feels like crap, you know, she still wants
more. So like she's completely,
completely, like on a different level.
So, but I, I, I know, I, I, I can kind of feel your pain there
in terms of navigating these situations with kids because you
want them to be able to experience like being a child
and sometimes having a sweep here and there, but you also
don't want them to feel completely miserable after they

(13:00):
eat it, you know? Yeah, and that's why I'm even
frustrated that these foods exist because it just makes
parenting harder. Like if it could just be Whole
Foods everywhere, like that would be great.
But the fact that they're like candy and popcorn and this and
that, like exists. And then we have to battle it
and either help try and help them moderate or not.
But yeah, like teaching them proper nutrition.

(13:20):
I mean, the same thing. We're like, OK, listen to your
body. And later when you're not
feeling good, like This is why. Or even when they want a piece
of fruit, it's like, OK, let's pair it with a protein.
So we try and teach them why we're eating this and not just
no, you can't have it, it's bad have this.
Like we try and teach them a little bit about macros as far
as you know what they can understand.
But it's just frustrating because now we're starting up

(13:41):
soccer season and why do we haveto do snacks?
Can't we just all feed our own kids?
You know, like why do we have todo snacks?
And then it's just like appalling to see the snacks that
are being served and you know, we're Gatorade.
I'm sorry, my 3 year old who cuddled with me half of her
soccer game does not need a Gatorade.

(14:03):
Like she's okay. And so we'll like graciously
take the snacks and say thank you.
But they know like, OK, we're going to look in the bag in the
car and you're not having everything in here.
And my older kid now knows he's like, oh, red Gatorade, I'm
going to give it to Papa. I don't have red 40.
Or like, are there seed oils in this?
So they're aware, but they stillwant some of the stuff.

(14:24):
And that's why it's just so frustrating that like everything
has to revolve around food, like, and celebrations and
soccer games and this and that. It's crazy.
Yeah, it's, it's weird. It's weird that that that is how
a lot of our society works and how a lot of these events and
soccer games and things, birthday parties, all those

(14:45):
types of things revolve around the pizza and the cake.
I was curious because you mentioned that you homeschool
your, your kids. And I was literally thinking
about this the other day that, you know, and I've had the
pleasure of speaking with a lot of doctors that will absolutely
admit that they don't get there's barely any nutrition
counseling or schooling in medical school.

(15:07):
It's if at all, it's very little.
But I was thinking to myself like, OK, why don't we teach
kids like more nutrition in school?
Like when you think about it, what you ingest in your body,
right? Wouldn't that make sense?
Yes, we teach, we teach kids like reading and math and all

(15:27):
these other elements like history.
But it's like, wouldn't it make a ton of sense to teach our kids
and have a program in elementaryschool all the way up that talks
about food, how food affects your body, like, and certain
foods you want to eat and what you don't want to eat?
Like to me, that would make a lot of sense and being like a
homeschooling parent, I'm sure. I, I, I would assume, do you

(15:51):
have like, do you, do you ever put together like a nutritional
course out of curiosity for yourkids or like make that part of
the schooling? Because that's what I would do
if I was a homeschooling parent.I was curious if you throw that
into your curriculum. No, but that just reminds me,
somebody in my DMS was talking to me about that and how they
were thinking about doing creating some sort of homeschool
curriculum that did have to do with like carnivore and animal

(16:13):
based. Because yeah, I agree.
Like, but here's the thing, if they're going to teach that in
school, you know, what they're going to teach is just BS
anyways. You know, it's going to be that
I guess the pyramid is like outdated, but my play or
whatever the, the guidelines that they're using is still
going to be BS because I don't think a lot of people realize
that like what we're eating really affects us.

(16:33):
Like they really do think we should be having everything.
And maybe like, you know, the Oreos and the cookies in
moderation, but that's still they, they consider it part of a
diet because you need to like have that be part of the
balance. Like it's just madding.
Even, you know, going back to when I was on medication for
anxiety and depression, like my doctors, they weren't talking
about, Oh, what's your diet like?

(16:54):
I don't think they realize that what we're eating like affects
the brain. Like if you're eating a an
inflammatory diet, your brain's going to be inflamed and that's
linked to depression and anxiety.
But yeah, I agree with you. I mean, you're not going to go
to a gas station and get diesel if your car takes, you know,
regular gasoline. So why are we putting these
foods in our body that some of these things aren't even like

(17:16):
food? Like I feel like we can at least
have a common ground. Like I don't think everyone
needs to be carnivore, but can we at least eat a Whole Foods
diet, You know, single ingredients like the majority of
the, the country in the world isnot doing that.
So to be, yeah, teaching our kids nutrition, I wouldn't trust
anything that the school would teach my kids about nutrition

(17:37):
because they're going to tell them they need to have 7
servings of grains, you know? So I really think that's going
to be up up to us to teach that at home for sure.
Oh, 100% I agree. And yeah, like you, you made a
good point. It's like, yeah, the the food
pyramids outdated, but they would come out with some, you
know, government regulated dietary plan that's going to

(17:57):
include grain and cereals and pastries and stuff like that.
It's just like, no, that's exactly the stuff that they
don't need to be eating. Like to your point, if it was
like a Whole Foods based approach, right, it doesn't
necessarily have to be carnivore, but if it's a Whole
Foods based approach, that wouldbe a that would honestly be a
really good start. That would that would basically
in childhood obesity if you wereable to implement a program like

(18:20):
that and then just let it run for years.
Yeah. And you know what, I I don't
know how much is public and how much has just been like in these
private calls that I've been on.So I don't know how much to say.
But I know that there is people in works of like trying to get
new nutritional guidelines out and there was supposed to be
like a low carb option, but apparently something was leaked

(18:42):
and the low carb option wasn't on there.
And so this is like new like I still haven't dug into it.
Like I haven't read all these messages yet, but that was in
the works and apparently it might not even be an option now.
So which is just absolute ridiculous.
Like I feel like people need to know there's a lot of people
that don't know that the way they're eating, like you're

(19:02):
having type 2 diabetes and you're doing that to yourself.
I, I think a lot of people don'trealize that that's because of
the diet you're eating. So, you know, having this, you
know, low carb option put out there.
So they even understand that that is like, you know,
something they can turn to, likethings just need to change.
Like I'm all for sorry I'm like off on tangents today but I'm

(19:24):
all. For I've got another question
here for you. So I, I want you to keep going
because I and I don't want to. I have a feeling we might get
slightly political here, but I have a question based off what
you were just saying. So please continue.
No, I was just thinking like, OK, I love like what Vonnie is
doing food babe. Like she's in there trying to,
you know, get the the food dyes removed and that's amazing.

(19:45):
But can we do, I don't want to negate what she's doing because
people are going to still eat that.
But can we just go a step further and try and teach people
proper nutrition? Like that's great that your
Froot Loops don't have red dye in them, but we shouldn't have
Froot Loops anyways, you know? So that's like been kind of
frustrating too. We need to look at like the
bigger picture. Sure, 100% agree.

(20:05):
And again, I don't necessarily want to get too off topic here
because I want to get back to you and, and your weight loss
and all those types of things because that's what I really
want to focus on. But I do think this is important
that we're talking about this because, you know, I think these
are some of the things that RFK is trying to implement because
he has a lot of like Paul Saladino, Gary Brecca, he has a

(20:27):
lot of these biohacking influencers, low carb ish
influencers in his ear. And I think they are trying to
push forward a little bit betterof an agenda than what is
currently going on. Is that what you were referring
to a little bit earlier? Yeah, yeah.

(20:47):
And there's definitely like, I think we're on the right path.
Like good things are, changes are being made and that's
wonderful, but it's still, I don't know.
I don't even know. I'm just thinking like just
there, we need to like zoom out a little bit.
And I know people are still going to eat Fruit Loops.
So yes, that's great that there won't be dyes in them.

(21:08):
But like, let's expand a little bit and just teach people how
they should be eating anyways. And that shouldn't include Fruit
Loops regardless if there's, youknow, food dyes in them or not.
Like we need to just, you know, teach proper nutrition instead
of these. I don't know.
I don't want to negate what they're doing because it's still
great. Agree.

(21:29):
Agree. Yeah.
And maybe we'll we'll, we'll come back to that.
I did want to shift back to because I saw online.
So when you did initially go carnivore, you had a pretty
significant weight, weight loss,right?
It was around, I want to say I think I saw something like 55
lbs. Was that accurate or?
Yeah, it was like almost 60 lbs.So I was on Women's World and it

(21:50):
said 60 lbs. And it's like, oh, I was almost
there. I was supposed to be at 60 lbs
by the time we did that shoot, but it was technically.
Like the cover of Women's World?The magazine?
Like in the grocery aisle. Yeah, so I wasn't in on the
cover, but like my, the name of my article was on the cover, but
like, I feel like such a liar, but I didn't mean to.
So it, it's been said 60 lbs, but it was really like, I think

(22:12):
57 or 58. But I mean, to be honest, we're
kind of drifting away from that number right now.
Like I need I need to get my things in check because the
scale is going the wrong way lately.
Well, maybe we can figure it outbecause I had a question here to
you. Because when you initially got
that weight loss, was there one specific thing that you felt

(22:33):
like you did to ultimately achieve that?
Because I know you also healed acouple other things like you
mentioned Zoloft, like I think you healed some like mental
health, depression things as well.
But do you at all remember one specific thing that you were
doing? Was it just the consistency?
Yeah, I, I was definitely consistent.

(22:55):
I know in the beginning I was eating like I, I was tracking my
macros because I in the beginning I'm like, I don't even
know like what to eat, like how much I want.
I want to make sure I'm eating enough, not too much, you know,
I had no clue what I was doing. So I'm like, I'm going to track.
So I was around 1800 calories. I was equal parts fat and
protein, so lots of burger patties and I was having like

(23:17):
some fruit in the beginning, buteven after that still having
some dairy. So I lost the 45 lbs pretty
quick. I mean, nine months, I guess
that isn't like super quick, butit felt easy.
And then that 45 lbs, I mean, I was stalled for a year and it
took me a while to get like the next 10 off.
And even then, like, so I've just kind of been in this wonky

(23:39):
place and I don't know, maybe it's hormonal perimenopause, one
could argue lack of consistency,but it it's just hard to get off
that last like 1015, especially like as a woman, like, you know,
you guys I swear can lose 30 lbsovernight.
It's pretty irritating. Yeah, my wife doesn't like that.
Yeah, well, this is what's funnyand This is why I kind of

(24:00):
brought this up because I've hadSo I had Brett James on, which
I'm pretty sure you are familiarwith.
You guys are like girlfriends. Yeah, we were just talking about
you a few minutes ago in our. No, I was saying I was coming on
this pocket. Yeah, we talk everyday.
We're obsessed with each other, pretty much.
Yeah, she's, she's fantastic. Love her.
She's, she's so energetic and, and, and awesome.
And I was also, so I was chatting with her about this and

(24:22):
I was chatting with Zane Griggs about this the other day too.
And he was, he was talking about, we were basically talking
about like all, and this is my $0.02 on a lot of these diets.
And I don't know what your thoughts are, but I'm going to
toss it out like low carb, keto,carnivore, high fat carnivore,

(24:42):
fasting, intermittent fasting. Like in my opinion, these are
all just tools. They're all tools that we need
to be able to learn. We should learn, but then
leverage these tools and, and, and kind of flex them cyclically
so we can move past plateaus because our body will naturally
want to adapt. That's like basically what our
body does as human beings. That's all we've done.

(25:03):
We've evolved on planet earth and we've adapted and that's
what our body constantly wants to do.
It searches for homeostasis. And when I was talking to Zane
Griggs about was all these dietsat some point run their course
like because your body will loseweight and then everything kind
of regulates and, and, and levels out and you'll get down
to a body fat like your body doesn't care, right?

(25:25):
If you've got 10 lbs to lose, ifyou care, but your body wants to
just run as effectively and as as efficiently as possible.
So for like the last 10 lbs, I was curious, like, did you ever
try flexing in like higher protein, more moderate fat, low
carb? Didn't do any of that.
I was just curious if you had leveraged that at all at any

(25:46):
point to kind of move through these sticky points for you?
Yeah, definitely. And then I think it works and
then I get burnout of tracking and being in weight loss loss
mode and like trying hard because I feel like it's hard
for me. Some people are like, Oh my God,
I forgot to eat all day. Like no, like this is like a
conscious effort to like not I could easily be 500 lbs.

(26:08):
I'll just put it that way, even on carnivore.
So yeah, then I, so I would do that and then I'd kind of be
like, OK, like I'm either burnout or you're just like, oh,
this is going great. So let me like not do this.
And and then the scale goes backup.
So yeah, I mean, I think those definitely help, but then you
have to like stick with it and not self sabotage like I do.

(26:29):
Yeah, yeah. And that, that, that is the
tricky part for sure. Well, and I was curious too,
because on your Instagram profile and YouTube, like
obviously you share a lot of different recipes that that you
make it like, is that one way? Because I feel like I feel like
the biggest problem people have with carnivore, the main thing
that I see is that it's too restrictive.

(26:52):
You know, that that's typically what I hear the most is, oh, I
can never eat like that. I need a salad or I got to do
something else. And what I find is in this, what
I found when I did carnivore fora long time is that honestly,
it's it's not restrictive at at all.
When when everything kind of levels out, it's very easy and
it's almost what's the word I'm looking for.

(27:12):
It's it's so simplistic to just eat like meat and eggs.
You don't have to think about what's for dinner.
But I do understand for some people that that can get boring.
Is there at all like a go to recipe that you make that's like
maybe your favorite that you maybe toss out to people that
have those thoughts about carnivore being restrictive?

(27:35):
Yeah, I would say like bacon cheeseburger soup is one of my
favorites, even if you're not carnivore, like you would love
it. It's fabulous, if I do say so
myself. Yeah.
And it's in my book, but it's also I've shared it online.
So if someone doesn't want to grab my book, just Google
Courtney Luna bacon Cheeseburgersoup.
It's super easy. Double the recipe if you want
leftovers. I have a pizza recipe out there

(27:58):
that's called carnesa, so you could search Courtney Luna
Carnesa. That's amazing too.
And yeah, I mean, honestly, those are like my go TOS.
We'll do a lasagna once in a while.
But yeah, I mean, it was kind ofmore for like some people thrive
on just having burger patties and steaks, but some people need
a little bit more and my kids need a little bit more like

(28:19):
they're they're not going to want to steak all the time.
So I wanted to do like differentflavors and textures.
But of course that it still comes from an animal, so still
considered carnivore. And yeah, it just keeps it a
little, you know, more creative and fun.
And when you're feeling a littleburnout on just the simplicity,
but the simplicity is so nice. Like, I will say, I'm not making
pizza every day. You know, we are eating just

(28:41):
simple cuts of meat. But sometimes you just need to
shake things up a bit. Totally.
And I feel like this is one of the things that my wife hates
about me is that I can eat the same thing over and over and
over again. Like I literally have the same
thing for lunch every day. I have the same thing for
dinner. I make like a little protein

(29:01):
yogurt with Greek yogurt and I literally eat those three things
on, on repeat. Like I, I, I would probably
share more of my food on Instagram, but to be honest with
you, it would be 3 posts and it would be done well.
I'm curious. What are you eating then?
So you're not carnivore anymore,right?
Just low carb or? Yeah.
So, So what I do is I kind of flex these different diets

(29:26):
throughout the week. So like for instance, like today
I had for lunch I had a chicken breast, a burger Patty and
roasted carrots. I eat that for lunch every
single day during the week, Monday through Friday, that's
lunch every single day for dinner.
Like last night I had a pound ofground beef, some shredded

(29:51):
parmesan on top and I might throw on like a little pico de
Gallo. So it was a little carnivore
ish, but is it technically carnivore?
I, I, I would say no. If you're, you want to count the
little pieces of tomato and onion on on top.
And I put on some Greek yogurt and that was it.
That, that that's what I ate that day.

(30:12):
And then I have at after every single night.
I should make a post about this.My wife tells me I should make a
post that about this. I make a yogurt for dessert, so
I'll do 2. It's there's 70 grams of
protein. So I'm like very much a high
protein guy. So I'll do 2 servings of Greek
yogurt in a bowl. I'll throw in, you know, that

(30:32):
prime protein, the equip protein.
Yeah, I'm a big fan of Yeah, huge fan of that.
Basically has four ingredients. That's why I love it.
Throw in some of that. Throw in some.
I do the vanilla. OK, peanut butter.
I do the do peanut butter and yogurt.
Oh my. God they have a peanut butter?
I didn't even know. Sure do.
OK, you that's that's an easy sell on me.

(30:56):
So I'll do that. And then I'll throw in like
another scoop of like collagen, collagen peptides.
It's like another 10 grams of protein.
And then depending on where I'm at and what I've eaten that day
and what I've had for dinner, like sometimes I'll throw in
some peanut butter, Sometimes I'll throw in some like frozen
blueberries, mix it together andthat's what I eat.
But there's 70 grams of protein in that bowl alone.

(31:18):
And that is literally what I eatabsolutely Monday through Friday
that that rotation does not change.
It hasn't changed in two years. That sounds amazing.
So you say during the week? Sorry, I don't mean to start
interviewing you, but I'm just always curious, No.
So do you go crazy on the weekends then?
I don't, I wouldn't say I go crazy.

(31:38):
I, I, I definitely wouldn't say I go crazy.
I but I will let off the gas a little bit.
Like if we go out to the movies,my kids want some sour Patch
kids or popcorn. I need some sour patch kids or,
or popcorn. So I definitely approach it with
like an 8020 kind of mindset or maybe like a 9010 for going out

(32:02):
to dinner. Like for instance, we went out
to dinner. It was a holiday weekend last
weekend we went to Maggiano's. I never eat Italian food, right.
And it's another side separate story about how going out to
dinner with your kids is, is so not worth it at all.

(32:24):
But we went to Maggiano's. Yeah, it's, it's, it's, it's
like a, it's the biggest scam going out to dinner.
It's never, it's never fun. The foods not delivered fast
enough. It's never that great.
And it's just like the kids are whining and crying.
It's like, why are we spending money to do this again?
It's like every time we go to dinner, we're like, let's just
stay home and cook anyways. So we go out to Maggiano's and I

(32:45):
ordered, I ordered a like fettuccine Alfredo dish, like
something I wouldn't I, I haven't eaten.
I probably haven't eaten that inmaybe five years easily, maybe
even more than that. I was like, OK, we're out to
dinner. I felt like crap.
And we also got dessert afterwards.
We also got dessert. We all split like a little cake.

(33:06):
So we went to town. That was like a big time cheat
meal, right? I felt like absolute trash after
that, but it also kind of servesas a friendly reminder why I
operate the way I operate and why I why I kind of do the
things I do and, and how I eat, how the way that I eat, you know

(33:27):
what I mean? So yeah, so I'll, I'll let
myself go just a little bit crazy sometimes on the weekend,
but it's it's never like that crazy.
And I'm assuming it's probably like not triggering for you then
like are you a moderator? Like you can get back on track
then. Like cuz for me if I went and
had a bowl of pasta I feel like that would just spiral me and
like I I'd be eating pasta everyday.

(33:47):
So the way that my mind works isA so I felt like trash after I
ate that and then B, I'm like excited to get back on track.
Like it's, it's not necessarily I have this guilty feeling or I
feel like I feel like a fat ass or anything like that.
That's not how I feel. But maybe there's a little bit
of that to where it's like, I can't wait to get back on track

(34:08):
and eat my normal way the next day because AI don't like the
way that I feel. And B, to the point I was
getting out a little bit earlier, it was just so not
worth taking our kids there and spending all that money for for
to get to just to get like underwhelming food.
You know, it's just like across the board.
It's just like, yeah, so I wouldsay it's easy for me to get back

(34:29):
on track just because it's like I, I don't like the way that I
feel, but I do feel a little slightly gross afterwards.
No, I feel that. And just to add to the kids out
to dinner thing. So last weekend we went.
So my husband recently made somelike massive career changes.
So we went out to a restaurant. It's called Mastro's.
I think they're they're not justhere, but it's expensive and

(34:50):
that's somewhere we would never normally go.
But in my mind, I'm like, OK, we're going to channel some like
good money energy. Like we're going to go to this
nice restaurant. And my kid barfed when we got
home. And I don't know if it's because
he was eating bread and he had some like calamari, but he was
throwing up. I'm like, you know, he threw up
everything like a steak dinner. I'm like, you were throwing up

(35:11):
hundreds of dollars right now. Like the one time we like
splurge and he's barfing up everything.
I'm like, OK, that never again. Just eat at home.
Yeah, like, like, I think the word is overrated.
Going out to dinner really is overrated.
You pay a lot of money. The food you get is basically
cooked in a bunch of seed oils and crap and you feel like trash

(35:32):
afterwards. It's like we paid for that.
We paid for that. My son is sick.
Like we paid for that. Like, I I hear you, man.
I hear you on that one. I wanted to go back a little bit
earlier about, you know, we weretalking about carnivore and some
maybe some misconceptions aroundit or what people think being a
too restrictive. Like on your end, what do you,
because in my opinion, I think people look at as as too

(35:55):
restrictive, but on your side ofthings, what do you feel like
you're what you feel the biggestmisconception is with people
coming into carnivore or lookingat the carnivore diet and having
thoughts on it. Yeah, I mean, in regards to the
restriction, like for me, like the restriction equals freedom.
Like me right now having some bites of my kids food here and

(36:17):
there like that doesn't make me feel good.
Like, and it's not even like I feel bad mentally because I'm
not supposed to have this. Like, no, like my clothes aren't
fitting. I don't feel like motivate, like
I just kind of feel in a funk and I just don't feel good.
So eating, you know, restrictivemakes me feel my best and and
ask someone, you know, that has like digestive issues, like them

(36:39):
going to the bathroom 10 times aday, eating crap that's not
restrictive, but dialing things in and eating proper nutrition,
like that's really good. So yeah, I think that's like the
main thing. And in a way, like I feel like
I'm one to talk since I'm like totally not on track right now.
But when I am, it's good. You know, like, I need to stop
being such an addict where I want these other things because

(37:01):
then it's just a vicious cycle when I'm eating strict
carnivore, like my mind is so much more quiet.
You know, it's just, it's peaceful and I feel good.
My body starts feeling better. And I just feel, I don't know,
like the light in your loafers. Like I feel very heavy in my
loafers right now and I don't like, feel my best.
But when, like when you're eating good and you're feeling

(37:23):
good, you're also mentally like,oh, like this is good.
Like I'm on the right track. I'm feeling good.
And it's very motivating. So yeah, I just, I'm hearing
myself talk. I'm like, what am I doing?
I need to like I'm going. To ask you right now what,
what's, what's holding you back?Because, because I know you
asked me earlier, like, you know, can you eat that pasta and
then get back on track the next day?

(37:43):
And I think really the answer I was searching for was, I want to
start feeling good as quickly aspossible, you know, And so I
guess my question is, you know, how good you feel?
What, what do you think? The one what?
What do you think The thing is that's that's holding you back?
We're just getting back on tomorrow.
I honestly think it, it's like the, the sugar addiction really.

(38:03):
I feel sometimes like I am such an addict.
Like I'm four years sober. I don't drink or do drugs
anymore, but I feel like a drug addict sometimes with it.
Like a few months ago and I eventalked about this on a video,
but we, it was when I was intentionally adding carbs back
and I'm like, let's just give ita shot and see how I feel.

(38:24):
And there was one night where I was telling my husband, I'm
like, you, you need to go to yogurt land right now.
I'm like, do not tell me no, go get us some yogurt land.
He's like, okay, like it's kind of like sometimes like it's kind
of fun to like cheat together like that.
But I mean, those behaviors, that's what I was doing when I
was gaining 40 lbs in four months.
Like I was in the McDonald's drive through getting a Mcflurry
every night when the kids are bed in bed, because it's like I,

(38:47):
I didn't even have the control to not.
So I feel like if someone's likean addict and some other aspects
of their life, I think they'll understand that it's like an
itch you can't scratch or it's like you got to scratch that
itch, I guess. And just like working through,
like if you know, if there's a donut right here, you know, just
working through that, like, oh, I shouldn't have it.
But like once you've had the taste, like you want that and

(39:11):
it's so hard to just shake. But that goes away when I'm
strict carnivore. But if I'm having things here
and there, then it's just it's chaos.
I yeah, I and I hear you. I it kind of reminds me of a
conversation. So I had Doctor Sarah Zaldivar
on. She's a carnivore Dr. You
probably heard about her. The majority of our podcast was

(39:35):
talking about dopamine and like,being able to rewire the brain.
And what she was telling me was,I don't know, I can't remember
the exact way that she framed it, but she said, what's even
more powerful than like giving into the addiction and the
fastest way to rewire your brain.
And I know this is obviously hard for for for anyone to do

(39:57):
that has like any sort of addictive personality.
But it's like that one time where he wanted your husband to
go to Yogurtland and your brain is telling you like.
Tell, tell, tell hubby to go to yogurt land right now.
If you deny yourself that one time, what you do is you
basically start laying down thatfirst pathway to break that

(40:21):
cycle. And that's all you need to do is
that one time is actually more powerful than continuously
giving in to dopamine or Yeah, that's exactly what she was
saying. So I it just kind of made me
think like in the past when you have run into those types of
things, is there at all can you remember like a thing that you
might have done to help break the cycle and get you back on

(40:43):
track? Yeah, I mean, I know a lot of
tips on what to do, but sometimes it's like you don't
care. Like you're like, you literally
don't care because the addictionis so strong.
Like, it is like super wild. But yeah, like in the moment you
can just like, sit with your feelings.
How uncomfortable is that? You sit there and you're like,
Oh my gosh, I really want to go get yogurt land right now.

(41:04):
And the feeling is so strong andit's so hard to fight it, but
I'm going to fight it. I'm just going to sit here and
I'm going to feel uncomfortable because you're not hungry for
it. Like it's not like you're,
you're here starving and there'sno steaks.
Like it is, like you said, like a dopamine thing and you're
wanting that dopamine hit. So yeah, if you can just sit
through the emotions or, you know, just know that the

(41:24):
cravings can come in waves. So you can do something to
distract yourself, you know, do something else to get your
dopamine hit. Like do some squats, do some
push ups, go for a walk in the moment like you could have.
Like I like bubbly water some because it's always like your
mouth wants something. It's not like you're necessarily
hungry, but have a pinch of salton your tongue, have a bite of
butter. But yeah, I love Zaldivar and

(41:46):
everything she's sharing. And it's like her stuff is like
raising your baseline dopamine. And so we've chatted a lot and
she's she's helped me here and there with some ideas and what
not. But yeah, it's 100% a dopamine
thing because it's interesting. I don't know, like maybe this
isn't appropriate to talk on to your channel, but I'm like, OK,
how do you reverse engineer cocaine?

(42:08):
OK, Because when someone, so I've heard where to do cocaine,
it like it flips a switch where you don't want food, like you
don't want to eat it. So it's like, what is it doing
to your brain? Is it just a dopamine thing?
Like so I just find it's interesting that it's something
going on. It's some sort of chemical.
I so I'm assuming just like dopamine, but it's it's

(42:28):
interesting how it's just it's aswitch.
It's weird. Yeah, I think there's some
hunger blunting effects with it for sure.
It's like, and I, and I can say this because when I, when I was
prescribed, it's the same thing with like methamphetamines, like
Adderall. So I was, I was on Adderall.
I was prescribed Adderall when Iwas in like early elementary

(42:51):
school, you know, I think it wasman.
No, I was originally prescribed Ritalin when I was probably like
in the first or second grade andI took and then I flipped to
Adderall when I was in high school.
The doctor flipped me on Adderall and then I took that
till I was about 30. So I was medicated every single

(43:14):
day with Adderall. And the one thing that I noticed
because it, it basically it madeyou not want to eat anything.
And I think like the, the methamphetamines kind of work
like that. They just turn off the hunger
signals and I don't know why they do that, but I was what was
happening when I was in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade, what was

(43:37):
happening. And This is why the doctor
ultimately flipped me to Adderall.
And again, like this was a long time ago.
My mom didn't know any difference.
Like there's no way I'd let my, I have my kids on Adderall ever
at this point, But I was going through these binge eating
episodes when I was in the 6th, 7th and 8th grade because the
Ritalin wasn't strong enough. It would wear off towards the

(43:58):
end of the day. And I was like, mom, you know,
let's go to McDonald's, let's dothis, let's do that.
And I was slowly starting to gain weight.
So by the time I was in the eighth grade, out of nowhere, I
was like the fat kid in the in the friend group, you know what
I mean? But again, going back to but
these, these substances, I thinkthey just have very strong
hunger blunting effects that like kind of flip, flip your

(44:22):
brain to focus on other things instead of food, you know, But
people use Adderall for like weight loss.
Not good. But you know, I think, I think
that's why because it's, it's similar to cocaine, I think in
that way. Yeah, it's doing something
because I trust me, I have Googled this.
I'm like, how do I reverse engineer what this is doing for
people? And yeah, it's doing something
with your hunger hormones and like the ghrelin.

(44:42):
And yeah, it's doing something to, like you said, blunt, that
it's interesting. While we're on this topic, I
want to ask your thoughts on this.
What do you think of GLP ones? OK, I have a lot to say.
I when initially when they came out, I am like, that's
ridiculous. You're taking the easy way out,

(45:02):
just put in the hard work, blah,blah, blah.
And then I have friends that have started taking them because
they were putting in the work and doing carnivore and
carnivorean harder and they couldn't get the, you know, the
1015 lbs. Off the last 1015 lbs but I've
learned that it's more than that.

(45:23):
So I'm just going to use my friend Adrian for example,
because she's the most like outspoken about this Adrian
Gledhill. So, you know, did all the things
carnivore starting fast lion diet still couldn't lose like
the last 1520 or 30. I think it even was when she
started it. She like I think she said she
lost like 15 lbs in two weeks. Like she's like, I was just

(45:43):
constantly peeing. So it's like obviously that's
not fat, but it's you're losing all this inflammation and she's
like, I was tracking my food. She's like I wasn't even eating
any less. My my calories were the same yet
I lost 15 lbs so. She was just losing water weight
mostly. Yeah, and like inflammation.
So she also has like some mold stuff going on and she's like,

(46:04):
my brain felt alive again. So it's interesting what it's
doing because it's not just for weight loss.
They're using it for addictions too.
They're using it for people thathave gambling addictions,
alcohol addictions, and it's like turning that switch off.
So I find it fascinating. I'm also Googling how do I

(46:26):
reverse engineer that? And you know, so there are ways
that you can try and naturally increase your GLP one because
I've always joked, oh, you don'thave an Ozempic deficiency.
It's like, well, you kind of do because it's the GLP one and our
body makes that. So I find it fascinating.
I am still like, I probably won't ever do it to be honest.

(46:46):
Just there's something that there's just a little doubt
there because it is a pharmaceutical, but it is I, I
am jealous of people that are onit because it, they just have it
easy now. It feels like, you know, they,
they can have some things and not be strict carnivore, have
some things and that food noise is off and the desire to overeat
isn't there. They're not binging anymore.

(47:06):
They've lost their weight. Like on paper it sounds like
really appealing. So I have changed my tune to be
less judgmental about it becauseI am seeing the the other
benefits that it's bringing. That being said, I probably
won't do it for myself even though it is tempting.
I do think about it often. Yeah, they're, they're, it's

(47:29):
interesting. It I've got a lot of thoughts on
it. I, you know, I think the, the
way it's prescribed because I follow like a lot of like
biohackers and a guy named Jay Campbell, I don't know if you're
familiar, he's like a big testosterone guy.
He's like the testosterone guy on the Internet.
So you, you might not follow himobviously, but the, the doses

(47:52):
that they prescribed in like in like a traditional medical
setting are high, very high. What he is saying is you can
almost micro dose these, these GLP ones and and then you won't
get the the benefit, you won't get the side effects because
basically the, the main side effect is muscle mass loss,

(48:16):
right? Because people are just not
eating and they're not hungry and they're they're losing a lot
of muscle mass, right? So what he was saying is you can
get a lot of benefits just by micro dosing these.
And I don't know what your thoughts are on that.
But there I think there are waysto go about about it going
through like if like I use Merrick Health, for instance,

(48:37):
for like telemedicine. So I do like peptide stuff
through them. But I was talking to a guy over
there and he was like, yeah, a lot of people, to your point,
use these for gambling addictions, pornography,
alcohol, I mean, you name it. Because it does shift that
dopamine in the brain in regardsto like wanting more of whatever

(48:58):
it is that you have an issue controlling.
But he was saying the amount that they are prescribed in a
traditional medical setting is just way too high and that's
where people run into issues. You do them in small micro
doses. Yeah, agree.
And I, yeah, I probably should have mentioned that too.
So that's what Adrian is talkingabout to micro dosing because
yeah, what the doctors are giving out is, you know, 7.5 or

(49:21):
whatever and they're talking about like even like .5 or .25.
So yes, micro dosing these things that like the stomach
paralysis and the blindness and whatever is happening at regular
doses and that's like not an appropriate dose that yeah, the,
the micro dosing would be where it's at.

(49:41):
So I know we're already coming up here on time things, things
kind of flew by there. I I mean, I thought this was an
awesome conversation. I say, let's make a pact.
What are your thoughts on makinga pact?
Right when we're off this episode, you get back on track.
OK, well here's the thing. Now this is where my mind goes
lately. I'm like, what is back on track?

(50:03):
Because I have so many opinions in my head and I see other
people's comments that we shouldn't be strict carnivore,
that we need to be flexing in and out and it's not good for
our hormones and our thyroid. But then you hear other people
that are very pro carnivore and saying that's not true.
So I have so many different opinions that that's why I'm, I

(50:26):
almost have a hard time getting back on track because I'm like,
what if that's not right? Like maybe I should once in a
while flex out and then I flex out and then I spiral.
So that's kind of like the conflict that's going in my head
is there's just so many conflicting opinions.
But then I look back and like, OK, well, right now what I'm
doing is not working and carnivore was working.

(50:49):
So maybe I do need to go back? I think I've got some ideas
here. Let's we're going to we're going
to figure this out. So and this is what I was
talking with Brett a lot becauseI know she was, you know,
chatting with doctor Kilts and and Maria Emerick about
different, different things in her life that she's got going
on. But what if you were to what if

(51:12):
you were to start off high fat carnivore just to like get you
back in that way of eating and then flex in throughout the
week, moderate fat, higher protein meals.
So I don't know how many times aday that you eat, if you eat
like three or two or one or whatever, but you would flex in

(51:33):
a high fat carnivore meal for for one meal.
And then you would flax flex in a more moderate fat, higher
protein meal for the next meal. And that will keep you full,
right? The protein is the satiating
macronutrient. The fat is the the satisfying 1.
And that could help you get backin.
And then as you're progressing and back on track, what you
could do is systematically lower, lower the fat.

(51:57):
And I know a lot, a lot of carnivore people are not going
to want to hear me say that, ButI, I can't tell you how many
people I've, I was talking to you about, I was talking to
Craig Emerick about this. Like he has so many people
coming to him from high fat carnivore that are like putting
on weight and their blood markers are completely like out
of whack and their insulin resistant.
And it's like a lot of times they just drop the fat, go
higher protein fixes it, fixes the majority of the problem.

(52:18):
But you can, and this is what I was talking about flexing these
diets in, but do it throughout the week.
So have a high fat day, have a high, high protein day, have
another high fat day, have a have a high protein day until
you're kind of going down the road, right?
You kind of get going, build some momentum, and then you can
based off where you're at or whatever it is you want to go.
Let's say you want to lose weight.
I would just go higher protein, moderate fat until you get to

(52:40):
where you're at. And then you want to flip the
macros back, you know, because Ithink high fat carnivore is
really, really good. I do, but I don't think it's
great for weight loss. This is exactly what I was
talking with bread about, right?I think high fat carnivore is
very good for healing. Like a traditional ketogenic
diet is great for a lot of like mental health, depression, all
those types of things. But the problem is like we were

(53:03):
talking about this at the beginning, the body adapts,
right? Hormones will regulate.
But if you're looking for, if you're looking at the diet for
weight loss, it's like when you're eating that much fat, the
body's not going to want to tap into stored body fat.
If the fat, if the fat coming inthrough the diet is too high,
the body's going to sense that you're in a very abundant food
environment and it has no reasonto tap into stored body fat to
lose the weight. So you got to flip the macros.

(53:25):
I don't know what your thoughts are on that, but that's what I
would do. No, and I agree and this is
stuff Yeah, Brett, she's going to love hearing her name
throughout this. I'll have to tell her.
We talked about her. That's what we talk about like
all the time. Like we're constantly like
talking to other about her food and what we're doing and what
should we do and this and that and questioning things.
And yeah, I like she tried high fat for a little bit and is back

(53:46):
on like the higher protein. And yeah, that's what I was
doing for a while, lowering my fat had some good success and
then kind of like fell off of that.
And here I am with the scale backup.
So yeah, I think there's like, like you said, there's different
times for things like I lost 45 lbs with being equal fat and
protein, like 130 grams of fat, 130 grams of protein.
So that worked out good for me until it didn't.

(54:08):
And then I I had to lower the fat and then I tried the higher
fat. So it's kind of like, I feel
like we do need different thingsat different times.
But yeah, 100% agree with what you're saying with the higher
fat and moderating or no higher protein and moderating the fat a
little bit, at least for this last few pounds.
But then it's like, then you seeOllie Hogan eating like 300

(54:29):
grams of fat and she's, you know, thin as a rail.
So it's just interesting how ourbodies are different too, and
what they're needing at the time.
Totally, and this is exactly what I was talking with Zane
Griggs about. It's like I think what people
need to be comfortable doing. And this is again, one one of
the reasons why I think nutrition should be taught in
school at a very young age. And then every single grade,

(54:51):
right is what you ingest in yourbody over the course of your
life is like really important. You should try different diets
like try keto, try carnivore, try high fat carnivore, try
these different diets because we're all different and we
everyone's body is a little bit different and reacts to them
differently. But you should try all these
different diets like protein sparing, modified fast, all

(55:15):
these different things to see what your body ultimately
responds well to. And then you know, you've got
the tools in the tool belt, right?
You know, based off where you'reat in your life or if you get on
track or what you want to do, you can, you can take out the
right tool when you need it and know when to flex it.
You know what I mean? And, but I think the problem is
people don't want to consistently change their diet.

(55:36):
That's the big thing. People don't they, they want to
set it and forget it and they want to be on something and then
they want to be on it for as long as possible because it's
easy and convenient. But the problem is, again, the
body adapts. So I think what the the trick
here is people need to get comfortable changing and flexing
different diets to ultimately get what they want out of their
body. Yeah, I agree.

(55:57):
I agree 100%. I had some rapid fire questions
here. I know we're coming up here on
time, so I have this rapid fire question section that I
sometimes like to do with guests, so maybe this might
stimulate some carnivore ideas for you on your end.
OK, if you had to eat only one carnivore meal for the rest of
your life, what would it be? Gosh, that's really hard.

(56:22):
I mean, I would say like one of my pizzas, but then if you're
going with just like a cut of meat, I would say rib eye.
A rib eye. Yeah.
That that's it's it's it's on. It's so hard to turn down a good
rib eye, man. A grilled rib eye.
Yeah, with some like butter on it.
Yeah, that's dinner tonight. I have a whole pack from Costco
in the fridge. Yeah, I, I would either go rib

(56:45):
eye or honestly, I could probably eat steak and eggs for
the rest of my life. Like that's, that's an easy,
that's an easy one there. OK, Top three habits someone can
implement today to breakthrough a weight loss plateau.
OK, I would. If you're tracking, I would
shake up your macros like you said.

(57:05):
If you're higher fat, I would lower it.
If you've been a little too leanup your fat a little bit, make
sure you're eating enough. I would get outside.
I would get morning light. I would stay off your phone at
night, stay off your phone in the morning and really like work
on your circadian rhythm. And I would get some movement
in. Definitely get some walks in if

(57:26):
you can. I would lift heavy weights or
even just doing somebody weight,But we need to be lifting heavy
weights, especially as women, especially as we get older.
We need it for our bone density.We need it to protect our
muscles if we were or protect our bones if we were to have a
fall, We want that muscle to protect itself.
And that's going to change your body composition.
And I'm saying this knowing thatI need to get back at that too,

(57:50):
because I surprise, surprise, I'm so inconsistent with my
workouts. But I know getting back into the
gym and lifting weights, it alsohelps you make better decisions
with your food. And it just changes the body
composition like the weight could, the scale could stay the
same. I wouldn't even focus on the
scale. I, well, I would still, you
know, weigh yourself, but I would take before and after

(58:11):
photos. I would take measurements
because, yeah, lifting weights is where it's at.
OK, fine. I'll listen to my husband.
He's been trying to get me back to the gym and he's always
right. So yeah, I think that's the main
thing is lifting. 100% I'm a bigworkout guy.
We, my wife and I, we got a garage gym and that that's our
like our go to therapy. My morning therapy session is

(58:33):
strength training in the gym. So yeah, I I totally am on board
with you there. What's the most shocking change
you experienced when you cut plants completely out of your
diet? That no gas or bloating.
Like I think we are so used to being just so gassy throughout
the day. And especially, Oh my gosh, the

(58:54):
low carb tortillas I used to eatand I'd have four of them
because I can't moderate and there's 12 grams of fiber for
each one. Like the stomach pains.
But yeah, I think we're just so used to being gassy.
And if you cut out the plants, there is no gas.
It's wild. And if you go super strict and
like don't even have seasonings,like there's not even a smell
when you go to the bathroom. So I will say even if you have

(59:15):
seasonings like then that smell kind of comes back, but it's
just wild. Like what?
Only eating meat and animal products, dairy, you know all
that. Like what that does for your
digestion. Like it's wonderful. 100% agree
100% and these are the spicy conversations that I have with
my wife because she is she doesn't eat the same way that I
do. She used to be a nutritional

(59:35):
therapy practitioner, so she hasher own thoughts on diet and
what women should eat and how men should eat.
You know, she says that we need to be eating completely
different. And I'm not going to argue with
her on that. But you know, she, I probably
shouldn't say this on the podcast in regards to her, her,
her tummy troubles. But I do tell her I was like,

(59:57):
hey, if you're having tummy troubles, like cut the plants
back, girl. Like I promise you.
Yeah, you'll, you'll. Yeah, 100%.
What's the one food you've neverlet your kids touch and why?
Oh, that I've never. Yeah.
I mean, I would say like, I don't think my younger one has

(01:00:22):
had soda, but does she even knowwhat it is?
I don't even know. But it's not so much like you
weren't allowed to have that. Like I've just never been a big
soda drinker. But now, I mean, even though
they've had some stuff like I feel like the red dye 40, like
that's, that's like a hard line.Like if you have a cupcake at a
party, that's fine, but you're not picking the red one.
But they've had it in the past. But now I know that.

(01:00:45):
Yeah, totally. Yeah, I don't know.
That's a hard one for me too. I mean, I think the seed oil
things are big and they're just so Dang hard to avoid,
especially if you're going out to eat.
But if we were talking about this earlier, if birthday
parties could just stop giving like cake and maybe give
something else that would like make everyone's life easier

(01:01:08):
after a birthday party, that just needs to stop being a thing
100%. What are three mistakes you see
most people make with their dietthat stops them from reaching
their goals? Three mistakes, like in
carnivore specifically. I would, I don't know, that's

(01:01:30):
tough. I would say some people say they
don't eat enough, which is just so wild to me.
I've never been an under eater, but I see people that are just
not eating enough and then once they eat enough, then they're
like breaking through these weight loss stalls.
So that would be a thing which Idon't totally understand.

(01:01:51):
Gosh, what's hindering them? I would say knowing yourself, if
you're an abstainer versus moderator, you know, going I, I
definitely see like how you're eating some things off plan and
that's fine. I would just be wary for some
people that it could be like a slippery slope.
Like for me, when we were keto, it was like cheat meals every
weekend. Like that was just a thing.

(01:02:11):
That's what everyone in keto did.
And my cheat meal would lead to a cheat day, cheat weekend.
So I think just being mindful about even what you're eating,
if you're if flexing with some carbs and maybe like keep it
like non triggering like an avocado or kimchi or you know,
something that's not going to besweet and triggering cravings

(01:02:35):
for you. I don't know if I can think of
another one. You're making me use my brain
today. Another mistake someone's using.
I don't know. I can't think of another one,
no. That's fine, the last one here
is if someone feels stuck and unmotivated, what 3 mindset
shifts or actions can they take right now to get momentum back

(01:02:57):
on track? OK so this is like what I need
to tell myself too. Exactly.
Exactly. Go for a walk, go for a walk,
get some sunshine outside. Like and I've kind of fallen off
of that honestly, because it's been so hot here and it's just
like going outside. Like I even have my weighted
vest sitting right here next to me.
I love going for a walk in a podcast.

(01:03:17):
And I haven't been doing that because it's just been like so
uncomfortably hot. So no excuses like get some
steps in at the gym. What else can you do?
I think self talk is so important and I find myself
struggling with it. You know, I'm looking in the
mirror. I'm like, oh, like, I don't feel
good. Like I'm not doing great.
I'm I'm this and that. So like telling yourself that,

(01:03:38):
like, oh, I'm not doing a good job.
I'm not on track. I'm this and that.
Like that's not good. Like, so we need to like shift
our mindsets. Talk nicely to yourself,
practice gratitude and, you know, just get your mindset
right. And what was the initial
question if you're feeling off track?
Yeah, yeah. So if someone feels stuck and

(01:03:59):
unmotivated, what 3 mindset shifts or actions can they take
right now to get momentum back? OK.
So yeah, I would just, you know,focus on making the next bite,
right? So I think for me, I'm an all or
nothing person. So it's like if you had
something like in the morning, it's off plan.

(01:04:19):
It's like, Oh well, the whole day's ruined.
I'm just going to eat all the things and then I'll try again
tomorrow. So that's probably not a helpful
mindset to have, you know. So if you make the next bite,
right, so get back on track for the next meal, don't wait for
the next day. Don't wait till Monday.
Like do it now. And yeah, do it now.
Even with exercise, don't wait till Monday to start your diet.
Do it now. I like, I like that.

(01:04:41):
I like that phrase right there. Make the next bite right.
I heard someone else, I don't know who I heard say it, but
yeah, I, I it, it hit. When I heard that too, I thought
it was great. Yeah, no, that's a good one.
So what what's coming up for you, Courtney?
Like what's on the horizon for you before we wrap up?
I mean, not necessarily any likeprojects, probably never doing a

(01:05:04):
cookbook again. That was intense.
We I do have an event in May, someet stock 2026 and then in the
Smoky Mountains. So we still have tickets
available. Come, come hang out with us.
It's going to be like it's goingto be huge.
It's going to be massive. So that will be amazing.
But honestly, we're hitting the road in January.
We are ditching our house, so weare moving into our van.

(01:05:27):
We are going to go travel acrossAmerica, do some camping, do
some Airbnb's, and honestly thisjust like came to life like over
the last like week or two. So which is like chaotic.
It's going to be amazing, but it's going to be wild.
That's awesome. Yeah, yeah, that's way awesome.
How how long would you guys do that for?
I mean, it's all up in the air. So like I said, my husband made

(01:05:49):
some career changes, so now he can work on the road and we can
just do what we do on the road. So we're open to maybe even
seeing other states that we would maybe want to live in.
But I would say we'd probably come back to California because
we do just have it so good with like the weather and it's not
very buggy. Like I'm very like Goldilocks
with situations like that. But yeah, we're just going to go

(01:06:12):
show the kids the States and notreally an end insight maybe by
maybe at least come back home for the holidays.
So, but yeah, we're just kind ofgoing to just see where the wind
takes us. Very cool.
Well that I mean, when if you when would you guys do that?
Is that that sounds like it's soon.
Is that in like in a couple weeks or?
In a month, mid January. Oh, mid January.

(01:06:35):
OK. So like basically beginning of
the year? Yeah, so a few more months and
yeah, we'll be documenting on social media, so.
Very cool, very cool. Well, Courtney, this was
fantastic. Where where can people find you
online, get in contact with you,all that good stuff.
Pick up the Pick up the cookbook.
Yeah, thank you. So my book Carnivore in the
Kitchen, it's on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Target, Walmart.

(01:06:59):
It's in some select Barnes and Noble.
So you know, use the store locator before you go into one.
But Amazon is usually like the cheapest and let's see, I'm on
all the platforms. It's Courtney Luna, TikTok,
Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest. There's like recipes on
Pinterest. I have a free private Facebook
group as well. If somebody you know wants

(01:07:21):
community and support. Did I say YouTube?
So I do some like vlogs and stuff over on YouTube too.
So like more like longer videos,yeah.
You have a great, you have a great channel there.
Thank you. So yeah, I'll be shifting a
little bit to incorporate our van life next year.
But yeah, anyone can just slide into my DMS on Instagram and say
hi and I'd love to connect with anyone.

(01:07:42):
Absolutely. Well, again, I appreciate your
time, Courtney. This was fantastic.
And thanks guys so much for listening to the Low Carb
Consultant podcast. We'll catch you guys on the next
one. Thank you.

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Courtney Luna | Carnivore Diet Candor: The Ups & Downs of Dieting | September 7, 2025 Ep. 23

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Courtney Luna | Carnivore Diet Candor: The Ups & Downs of Dieting | September 7, 2025 Ep. 23