Werner with his dog Jack.
1. How long have you been eating a Zero Carb (No Plant Foods) diet?
Almost 2 years.
2. What motivated you to try this way of eating? Weight? Health?
Mostly health.
3. How long did it take you to adapt to a Zero Carb diet, both physically and psychologically?
Maybe about 2 months.
4. What books or people were most influential in guiding you to this way of eating?
Primal Blueprint and Atkins.
5. Do you eat only meat, or do you include eggs, cheese, and cream in your diet?
I eat only raw, grassfed beef.
6. What percentage of your diet is beef versus other types of meats?
100 % Beef.
7. When you eat beef, do you cook it rare, medium, or well done?
I eat my meat raw. Cooked meat gives me heart burn, but raw meat does not.
8. Do you add extra fat to your meat? (i.e. butter, lard, tallow)
I add 2 oz of melted KerryGold Butter to 8 oz of my raw beef.
9. Do you limit your meat consumption or do you eat until satisfied?
I eat until satisfied.
10. Do you eat liver or other organ meats? If so, how often?
No.
11. Do you consume bone broth? If so, how often?
No.
12. How many meals do you eat per day on average?
3 meals a day.
13. How much meat do you eat per day on average?
About 1 1/2 pound.
14. Do you eat grass-fed/pasture-raised meat, or regular commercially produced meat?
Only eat grass-fed.
15. Do you drink any beverages besides water? (i.e. coffee, tea)
Only mineral water from glass bottles.
16. Do you use salt?
Only salted butter, no extra salt.
17. Do you use spices?
No.
18. Do you take any supplements?
Yes. I Magnesium, Co-Q 10, and Fish Oil.
19. How much money do you spend on food each month?
About $250 a month.
20. Do you have any tips for making this diet more affordable?
If you eat only meat, and no buy anything extra, that alone will save you money. I used to spend much more when I was a vegetarian.
21. Do you exercise regularly? If so, how often and how vigorously?
I run and work out on a rowing machine. Daily.
22. What benefits have you experienced since beginning a Zero Carb diet? (i.e. recovery from illness, overall health, body composition, exercise performance, hormonal, mental or psychological, etc.)
My overall health and energy are much better. At 68, I feel better now than when I was in my 30’s.
23. What do you enjoy most about eating a Zero Carb diet?
The simplicity of it all … meat and water.
24. Do you have any advice for someone who is just beginning a Zero Carb diet?
Read lots of books and follow the zero carb groups on Facebook for support.
25. Are your friends and family supportive of your Zero Carb lifestyle? If not, how do you handle this?
I don’t know about being supportive. Most of my family don’t believe me.
26. Is there anything you would like share about this way of eating that I have not already asked you?
Do it for yourself … and mostly for your health and overall well being.
Werner running up the John Hancock building in Chicago.
Please visit my “Interviews” page linked at the top of this website to read the stories of other long time Zero Carb veterans.
If you are interested in meeting others who practice an All-Meat diet, please feel free to join us in the Facebook group “Principia Carnivora” for support.
Eat Meat. Drink Water. 
Werner, thanks for the interview.
I have a couple of questions:
1. Did you gradually come to eating raw meat to that, or did you just jump in and start eating it raw?
2. If you are eating meat raw, how do you determine that the meat is safe, and not contaminated with e.coli and other bacteria? [Sorry if this is a stupid question. This may be addressed on the Facebook forums, but I’m not on social media]
4. You say you began eating zero carb because of health. Were you having health problems prior to adopting the system?
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While we are waiting for Werner to answer your questions, I can tell you that raw beef is very very safe. There are quite a few of us in Principia Carnivora who eat raw beef and none of us have ever gotten sick from it. Most of us do not even eat grassfed, but regular supermarket beef.
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I was eating cooked meat, but then I read lots of post from other members stating they were eating their meat raw. So, yes, then I just jumped in. I love eating raw steaks, but I have to cut them in small pieces so I can swallow them Other than hamburger, raw meat is pretty tough to chew. I melt about a half stick of butter and then soak my meat in it. That way I get my salt and extra fat along with my meat. I eat only grass fed meat. As far as contaminated meats go, I read that your stomach acid will destroy any germs on it. I have eaten meats that past their expiration dates and were getting a funny blue color. But I didn’t get sick. No, I didn’t have any health problems, other than recovering from open heart surgery. I have an artificial aortic artery and valve. If I would have been eating a SAD diet, my new valve might not last as long. But with my all meat diet, I expect to live well beyond the 20 years the surgeon gave me. I can see other people not wanting to eat raw meat, but it really doesn’t have much flavor to it. I actually think it tastes kind of sweet when I eat it without any butter. And far as water goes, I love drinking fuzzy mineral water in glass bottles. I don’t drink anything else but water. And my age, 68 (69 come April 7), I have tons of energy and I sleep really great at night. I run daily and work out on my rowing machine.
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Thanks for your comprehensive reply, Werner!
I’m not quite there as far as raw goes, but it’s very intriguing
to hear about the experience of others eating it.
Who knows, one day I, too, may take the plunge!
Thanks again to Werner and Esmee for this interview.
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I started with raw grassfed hamburger. I melted some Kerrygold butter in a small glass bowl and added some hamburger in small chunks. Then stirred it up. The salted butter covers any taste the meat might have. To this day, I can’t get enough of the wonderful taste of raw meat and butter.
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Try it you won’t regret it!
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I was eating cooked beef before I switched to raw beef. I read lots of post from other members about eating raw beef, so I started out with hamburger. I liked it and haven’t look back. I also read a post that your stomach acid will take care of any bugs in the meat. I eat some beef one day that was turning blue and smelled funny. I didn’t get sick from eating it. I didn’t have any health problems prior to eating meat and drinking water. But I did have open heart surgery to replace my aortic artery and aortic valve. I want my new parts to last as long as possible. I feel better now since eating raw meat and have lots of energy.
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Hi Tante Leonie … I started eating raw meat by eating a little of raw hamburger. It really has no taste and then I just jumped in. For a long time, I was eating only grass fed meats, but now I buy all kind of steaks and pot roasts. I cut them into little pieces and then add them to melted butter with two raw eggs on top. Stir and enjoy. I never worry about contaminated meat. I always figure my stomach acid will kill any bugs. I started zero carb 2 1/2 years ago after I had open heart surgery for a new aortic artery and a new aortic valve. I plan on having my bovine valve last longer than the 20 years they promised me. Other than the surgery, I really didn’t have any health problems. But now that I eat only raw meat, raw eggs and butter .. once a day … I feel so much younger than my 69 years.
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That’s quite a switch! Vegetarian to an all beef raw diet.
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About 10 or more years ago, I was vegan and fruitarian. I have my dentures to prove it. That diet ruined my teeth and at one point, I was so weak, I could hardly do my job and my running was to the point where I was ready to give it up. Now I can still run and I work out on my rowing machine. I have no weakness, never get sick and have tons of energy.
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I have a same kind of dog, like your friend. What get this beauty From you To eat?
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Jack will eat anything. Since my meat is pretty expensive, I will let him lick the bowl clean. My wife feeds him hamburger once in awhile. We try not to feed him too much. He is a big dog.
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I usually do a combo dinner… I usually start off with 6 to 10 ounces of raw ground lamb… then have a small medium rare steak…
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I used to eat lots of raw eggs and drink HWC, plus cheese. But once I started by eating raw hamburger, I switched to all beef. Now I eat about a pound of grass fed hamburger each day. And I also enjoy various cut of beef .. again raw .. cut in small pieces and soaked in butter. I seem to be thriving on beef only and the meat being raw has made a big difference in how I feel and my energy levels. All my beef comes from grass fed cows and my water is mineral water in glass bottles.
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I used to eat different things of animal origin. But eventually I gravitated towards a beef only lifestyle. All my meats are from grass fed cows and I always add butter for extra fat, because my meat is usually low in fat. And I drink mineral water from glass bottles.
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Great interview,, best wishes and congrats with your new way of life .
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Werner, thanks for a wonderful interview.
How lean is your beef?
I eat 1 1/2 pounds of 73/27 generic beef per day. I have been adding enough butter to keep my fat to protein ratio 2:1. And drink only bottled spring water.
Thank you. We are close in age and my heart is crapping out.
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I’ll be 70 come April 7th. 3 years ago, my heart was crapping out too. But I had open heart surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm and replace my aortic valve with a bovine one. Since then I was eating zero carb. Now I’m eating one pound of raw beef, two raw eggs and one stick of melted butter once a day. I weigh 128 lbs at 5’6″ and I feel great.
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