You've decided to go carnivore. Good. Now the question everyone gets stuck on: what do I actually eat every day?

It's simpler than you think. But "simple" doesn't mean "wing it." Having a plan, especially in the first few weeks, is the difference between sticking with it and falling off by Thursday because you're staring into an empty fridge at 7 PM.

This is the complete carnivore diet meal plan. No fluff. No $400-a-week grocery bills. Just a practical system you can start this weekend.

What Does a Day of Eating Carnivore Actually Look Like?

Here's a realistic day for someone eating around 2,000-2,400 calories. This isn't a bodybuilder template or a weight-loss crash diet. It's what a normal adult eating carnivore looks like on a Tuesday.

Morning (8-9 AM):

  • 4 eggs cooked in butter (320 cal, 24g protein, 24g fat)
  • 3 strips thick-cut bacon (180 cal, 12g protein, 14g fat)

Afternoon (1-2 PM):

  • Two 1/4 lb ground beef patties, 80/20 (560 cal, 40g protein, 44g fat)
  • Salt to taste

Dinner (6-7 PM):

  • 12 oz ribeye steak (900 cal, 66g protein, 70g fat)
  • 2 tbsp butter on top (200 cal, 22g fat)

Daily totals: ~2,160 calories, ~142g protein, ~174g fat

That's it. Three meals. All animal foods. You're full, your protein is dialed, and your fat-to-protein ratio keeps energy steady all day. If you're larger or more active, add another patty at lunch or more eggs at breakfast. If you're smaller, cut the steak to 8 oz.

Not sure exactly how much you should be eating? Our free carnivore calculator gives you personalized macro targets based on your size, activity, and goals.

What Are the Best Foods for a Carnivore Meal Plan?

Not all animal foods are created equal. Here's how to think about it in tiers, ranked by nutrient density and how well they support your energy on this way of eating.

Tier 1: Ruminant Meats (Your Foundation)

  • Beef: ribeye, chuck roast, ground beef (80/20 or 73/27), short ribs, NY strip
  • Lamb: chops, leg, ground lamb, shanks
  • Bison: ground bison, steaks

These should make up 60-80% of your food. Ruminant animals have the best fatty acid profiles and the highest concentration of bioavailable nutrients. Dr. Shawn Baker has been vocal about beef being the backbone of any carnivore plan, and the data backs him up.

Tier 2: Pork and Poultry (Supporting Roles)

  • Pork: bacon, pork belly, chops, shoulder roasts
  • Chicken: thighs (not breasts), wings, drumsticks
  • Turkey: ground turkey (dark meat), thighs

Good for variety and budget. The key with poultry is to always pick dark meat. Chicken breast is too lean to sustain you on its own. You'll be hungry again in two hours.

Tier 3: Seafood (Nutrient Boosters)

  • Salmon (wild-caught), sardines, mackerel
  • Shrimp, scallops, oysters
  • Cod, halibut (leaner, pair with butter)

Seafood is excellent for omega-3s and micronutrients like selenium and iodine. Dr. Paul Saladino often highlights the value of shellfish, especially oysters, for zinc and B12. You don't need seafood every day, but 2-3 servings per week adds nutritional depth.

Tier 4: Eggs and Dairy (If Tolerated)

  • Eggs: whole eggs, any style
  • Butter and ghee
  • Hard cheeses: cheddar, parmesan, gouda
  • Heavy cream (small amounts)

Eggs are one of the most nutrient-complete foods that exist. Dairy is more individual. Some people thrive with butter and hard cheese. Others get bloated, broken out, or congested. Test it. If dairy causes issues, cut it for 30 days and reassess.

How Do You Meal Prep on Carnivore?

Meal prep on carnivore is absurdly easy compared to any other diet. No measuring cups. No 17-ingredient recipes. Here's the Sunday batch-cook system that takes about 90 minutes.

The Sunday Cook (feeds one person for 5 days):

Batch 1: Ground Beef Base

  • Brown 5 lbs of ground beef (80/20) in a large skillet or Dutch oven
  • Season with salt only
  • Divide into 5 containers (1 lb each)
  • Total cost: ~$25-30

Batch 2: Slow Cooker Roast

  • Drop a 3-4 lb chuck roast in the slow cooker with salt
  • Cook on low for 8 hours
  • Shred and divide into 4 portions
  • Total cost: ~$15-20

Batch 3: Hard-Boiled Eggs

  • Boil 18-24 eggs
  • Peel and store in the fridge
  • Grab 3-4 per day as snacks or meal add-ons
  • Total cost: ~$6-8

Daily Assembly: Pull one container of ground beef, slice some chuck roast, grab a few eggs. Heat and eat. Dinner is the only meal you cook fresh, usually a steak or pork chops.

That's the whole system. No Tupperware towers. No recipe blogs. Cook meat in bulk, portion it, reheat it.

What Should Your Weekly Shopping List Include?

Here are three shopping lists at different price points. All feed one adult for seven days.

Budget Plan (~$65-80/week):

  • Ground beef 80/20: 7 lbs ($28-35)
  • Eggs: 3 dozen ($9-12)
  • Butter: 1 lb ($4-5)
  • Chuck roast: 3 lbs ($12-15)
  • Bacon: 2 lbs ($8-12)
  • Salt: already in your pantry

Mid-Range Plan (~$110-140/week):

  • Ground beef 80/20: 5 lbs ($20-25)
  • Ribeye steaks: 3 lbs ($30-40)
  • Eggs: 2 dozen ($6-8)
  • Butter: 1 lb ($4-5)
  • Salmon fillets: 2 lbs ($16-22)
  • Bacon: 2 lbs ($8-12)
  • Pork chops: 2 lbs ($8-10)
  • Cheddar cheese: 1 lb ($5-7)

Performance Plan (~$150-180/week):

  • Ribeye steaks: 4 lbs ($40-55)
  • Ground beef or bison: 5 lbs ($25-35)
  • Wild-caught salmon: 2 lbs ($18-24)
  • Eggs: 3 dozen ($9-12)
  • Beef liver: 1 lb ($4-6)
  • Lamb chops: 2 lbs ($16-20)
  • Butter and ghee: 2 lbs ($8-10)
  • Sardines: 4 cans ($6-8)
  • Bone broth: 2 cartons ($8-10)

Money-saving tips that actually work:

  • Buy ground beef in 10 lb tubes from Costco or a local butcher. Saves 20-30% per pound.
  • Get a chest freezer. Buy full or half cows from local ranchers at $5-7/lb for the entire animal.
  • Eggs are the cheapest high-quality protein per gram. Use them freely.
  • Chuck roast is criminally underrated. Slow-cook it and it tastes like prime rib for a third of the price.

How Do You Calculate Your Macros for Carnivore?

Carnivore isn't about counting every gram. But knowing your ballpark numbers helps, especially if you have specific goals like fat loss, muscle gain, or athletic performance.

General guidelines:

  • Protein: 0.8 to 1.2 grams per pound of your goal body weight. A 180 lb person aiming for 170 lbs should target 136-204g protein daily.
  • Fat: Enough to feel satisfied. Most people land at a 1:1 to 2:1 fat-to-protein ratio by calories (not grams). If you're hungry between meals, you're not eating enough fat.
  • Carbs: Zero or near-zero if you're strict carnivore. Trace amounts from eggs and dairy don't count.

How to tell if your macros are right:

  • Steady energy from morning to night = you're dialed
  • Crashing at 3 PM = probably not enough fat at lunch
  • Always hungry = eating too lean, add fattier cuts
  • Gaining unwanted weight = cut back on added fats (butter, tallow) slightly

If you want exact numbers customized to your body, use our carnivore macro calculator. It takes your stats, activity level, and goals, then builds a personalized target. It takes about 60 seconds.

What Are Common Meal Plan Mistakes?

After working with hundreds of people starting carnivore, these are the mistakes I see destroy meal plans every single time.

Mistake 1: Not eating enough fat

This is the number one killer. People come from the "lean protein" world and fill their plates with chicken breast and 93/7 ground beef. Then they're starving by 2 PM, white-knuckling through cravings, and blaming the diet. Fat is your primary fuel on carnivore. You need it. Cook with butter. Choose 80/20 ground beef. Pick ribeye over sirloin. Your energy and satiety depend on it.

Mistake 2: Undereating overall

Some people treat carnivore like a calorie-restriction diet from day one. Don't. During the first 4-6 weeks, eat whenever you're hungry. Your appetite will self-regulate once you're fat-adapted. Trying to force calorie restriction during adaptation makes the transition miserable and often leads to quitting.

Mistake 3: Overcomplicating it

You don't need carnivore recipe books. You don't need to make "carnivore pancakes" with egg whites and cream cheese. Steak. Ground beef. Eggs. Bacon. Salt. That's the meal plan. The people who succeed long-term are the ones who keep it dead simple. The ones who fail are usually the ones trying to recreate their old diet with animal-only ingredients.

Mistake 4: No meal prep system

Monday motivation is great. Wednesday at 6 PM with nothing defrosted, you're ordering pizza. The Sunday batch-cook system above takes 90 minutes and eliminates this problem entirely. Prep or fail. Those are your options.

Mistake 5: Skipping electrolytes in the first month

Your body dumps sodium when you cut carbs. If you don't replace it, you'll get headaches, fatigue, muscle cramps, and brain fog. Then you'll blame the diet instead of the easily fixable electrolyte gap.

Do You Need Supplements on a Carnivore Diet?

Meat is the most nutrient-dense food on the planet. A well-constructed carnivore meal plan covers almost everything. But there are a few gaps worth addressing, especially in the first 90 days.

Electrolytes (non-negotiable for the first 30-60 days):

  • Sodium: 5-7 grams per day. Salt your food generously. If you're active or sweating, add salt to your water (1/2 tsp per 16 oz).
  • Magnesium: 300-400mg daily. Magnesium glycinate or citrate before bed. Most people are already deficient before starting carnivore.
  • Potassium: 3,000-4,500mg daily. You'll get most of this from meat. Supplement only if you're cramping despite adequate sodium and magnesium.

Optional, depending on your plan:

  • Vitamin D: If you're not getting regular sun exposure, 4,000-5,000 IU daily is a reasonable baseline. Get your levels tested to know where you stand.
  • Omega-3 (fish oil): Only if you're not eating fatty fish 2-3 times per week. If salmon and sardines are in your rotation, skip this.
  • Organ meats vs. supplements: If you eat liver once a week, you don't need a multivitamin. If the thought of liver makes you gag, desiccated liver capsules are a practical alternative.

What you don't need:

  • Fiber supplements (your gut adapts, give it 2-4 weeks)
  • Vitamin C supplements (fresh meat provides enough to prevent deficiency)
  • Protein powder (eat real food)
  • Pre-workout (black coffee and a steak works better)

Your 7-Day Carnivore Meal Plan

Here's a full week you can start with. Built around the mid-range shopping list above. Adjust portions to your size and hunger.

Monday: Eggs + bacon / Ground beef patties / Ribeye with butter

Tuesday: Ground beef scramble with eggs / Leftover chuck roast / Pork chops

Wednesday: Bacon + hard-boiled eggs / Ground beef / Salmon fillet with butter

Thursday: Eggs fried in bacon grease / Chuck roast reheated / Ribeye

Friday: Bacon + eggs / Ground beef patties with cheese / Lamb chops

Saturday: Big brunch: eggs, bacon, ground beef / Skip lunch / NY strip steak

Sunday: Eggs + leftover steak / Sardines + hard-boiled eggs / Slow cooker roast (prep for next week)

Notice the pattern: it's boring. That's intentional. The most successful carnivore meal plans are repetitive. You're not eating for entertainment. You're eating for fuel, recovery, and health. Save the creativity for your hobbies.

The Bottom Line

A carnivore diet meal plan doesn't need to be complicated. Pick fatty cuts of ruminant meat as your base. Add eggs and bacon for variety. Cook in bulk on Sundays. Salt everything. Eat when you're hungry.

The people who succeed on carnivore aren't the ones with the fanciest meal plans. They're the ones who keep it simple, stay consistent, and don't quit when week two gets uncomfortable.

Start with the budget shopping list. Do the Sunday batch cook. Follow the sample day. Adjust from there based on how your body responds.

That's all there is to it. Now go buy some ground beef.

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