What if I told you that you don’t need to eat vegetables or that fiber is overrated? You might not believe me, but I have an amazing guest here today who explains how our ancestors evolved eating fatty animal meat and that returning to a similar diet could do wonders for your health.

Shawn Baker is an orthopedic surgeon as well as a multiple world record holder in rowing. He’s trained with numerous Olympic athletes and world champions as well as collecting many titles of his own. Shawn has been on a strict carnivore diet for over two years after trying countless other diets. When I first met Shawn, it was clear to me that his diet had led to an impressive level of fitness and I had to ask him how he did it.

In this interview, we discuss what happens to our bodies when we switch to a diet based on animal protein and how that helps people train better at high intensity. Shawn explains how meat should be the centerpiece of your diet if you want to get all the essential parts of human nutrition.

Having looked into the anthropological evolution of the human diet, Shawn has found a way to place the focus on what he eats closer to the way our species actually developed. By reconnecting with the diets of our ancient ancestors, he has made countless benefits to his health and expertly explains how you can too.

Have you ever made meat a centerpiece of your diet? What changes have you experienced? Leave a comment on the episode page!

How a carnivore diet helps you train with less pain

The benefits of making meat the main focus of what you eat

Why you should put down the broccoli and grab a steak instead

Why fiber is not an essential part of your diet and can actually lead to health complications

Why we need to reframe the conversation about cholesterol

How meat can actually provide all the vitamins you need

The ways that our diets impact the global environment

In this episodeQuotes

“You’ve got to have a certain level of intensity to be effective, so that’s what I do. I don't necessarily do a lot of training. It’s pretty sharp and to the point. I don’t spend three hours in the gym. Some days it might be as little as fifteen minutes but when I’m there it’s usually pretty intense stuff.” [6:02]

“Meat is where historically our nutrition comes from. It’s what has really turned us into human beings.” [8:53]

“We went from well nourished with plenty of food, plenty of animal fat, to now when we’re scraping by with lesser quality food.” [15:30]

“People eating a plant-based diet have much higher requirements for vitamins and minerals than somebody who's not eating that way, than someone who’s getting the actual forms we need via animal-based nutrition.” [33:33]

“I don’t think that every person needs to do this. I think there are certain people with certain health issues who probably will benefit tremendously and that may be their lifelong dietary strategy.” [47:00]

Links

Find Shawn Baker online

Follow Shawn on Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

Meat Heals

Carnivore Tribe of Facebook

Animal Based Nutrition Network

Paleo f(x)™

Check out the full show notes for this episode here

Urban Wellness Clinic

Follow Emily & Urban Wellness on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube