Dietary Elitism Always Backfires

We’re making perfect the staunch enemy of good because, well… It’s 2024 and reasonability has left the building. 

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We, the messengers of the benefits of an animal-based diet, are really screwing up the message.

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It probably started with the internet, and progressed with social media… a place where people learned they could say whatever they please to whomever they please, void of decency or nuance, without the fear of consequences like getting punched in the mouth. This has led to polarization and lives lived in echo chambers where people are not exposed to opinions that differ from their own. This, in turn, has created a whole new type of activist with a brand of activism that, well… is asinine at best. 

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Just like overemotional environmentalists are doing themselves no favors in gaining allies by gluing themselves to the street, destroying priceless art, and otherwise being disruptive to those whose minds they seek to change, we carnivores have our own militant approach and tend to eat our own when they don’t subscribe to said militance.

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How dumb is that?

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You see, at The Fittest, we’ve seen countless lives changed through lifestyle changes that incorporate the 9 Ancestral Tenets. We’ve seen people who were upwards of 500 lbs who switched to a nose-to-tail diet and are now running marathons and powerlifting. We’ve seen people who were told they’d be on psychiatric medication for life only to find animal-based eating rendered them without the need for meds anymore. I could talk about the emails we get all day from people whose lives are better than ever, but you get the point. This stuff works. 

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Usually, these changes are gradual, not immediate and severe. If you weighed 5 bills and I told you that you had to change everything about your life RIGHT NOW without any compromise, it’s almost certain you’d be intimidated and next year at this time, you’re still dressing out at 500 plus lbs. Why? Because militance doesn’t usually work. It’s just not a good tactic, especially with people who already feel defeated in life. They need encouragement and the room to gradually get better at things; to make small steps… you know, that cliche about a 1,000 mile journey starting with a single step.

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So, for some people, switching from Coke and Cheetos to Diet Coke and pork rinds… that’s an epic win, which is important to note and reminds me of one dumb conversation that exemplifies exactly what is broken within the carnivore community and how we’re clearly no better than vegans and environmentalists. Names won’t be named, but it was between 2 very high-profile folks in the animal-based nutrition space (and I was banned from commenting on Instagram for 7 days for being the adult in the room).

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It went something like this:

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A purveyor of an electrolyte drink posted an advertisement on Instagram as so many brands, including The Fittest, do. An influencer who shall remain nameless jumped all over the ad talking trash about the fact that the drink has maltodextrin in it. The electrolyte drink people explained that it’s a nominal 4mg of the stuff and that it makes it palatable enough for people to actually consume the product. This is when the influencer/activist became even more rude than commandeering an Instagram ad and asked how the drink people could claim the beverage has 0 calories when 4g of maltodextrin would be 16 calories. She said, “the math ain’t mathing.” I interjected and very kindly explained on behalf of the drink people whose product I’ve never even tried, that 4mg and 4g are very different things and that’s why her math just wasn’t “mathing.” I explained that 4mg is actually only 0.016 calories rather than 16 and that such a nominal amount is inconsequential, especially if it allows people to get a meaningful amount of electrolytes that they wouldn't otherwise get. For stating such a nuanced opinion with correct math, I was reported numerous times, evidently for being a rational human being who explained things in a way that didn’t subscribe to the norm of being a polarizing asshole. I served a 7-day comment ban for the offense of being adequate at division and multiplication. 

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I’ll be clear that social media doesn’t mean enough to me to worry about the consequences of being reasonable in my “adulting.” A week where I don’t get to opine on other people’s posts isn’t of much concern or importance because, well… I’m a grown man with a wife and kids and better things to do anyway. 

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What I was, however, perplexed by is the fact that people were so angry about the notion that we needn’t make perfect the enemy of good. My insinuation that it’s ok to live in a gray area where we just make iterative improvements in pursuit of betterment induced anger in grown ups to the point where they thought reasonability should be silenced. But you don’t get to silence me here, ladies and gentlemen. I’ll say what I want. 

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And what I want to say is:

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People are taking Ozempic and eating Cheetos. We can fight the good fight together against Big Pharma, Big Food, and Big Government instead of arguing over 0.016 calories in a damn drink. We spend 4.5 trillion bucks a year in America on chronic, preventable medical conditions and we’re arguing over 0.004 grams of sugar? That’s the wrong argument. 

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In fact, if we’re in a place where that’s all we have left to argue about, the world is already winning. Everyone would be healthy, jacked, and tan.

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Take my opinion however you like, but over here at The Fittest, we’re not playing the game. If you’re damn near perfect, we'll help you pursue perfection, but if you’re struggling to get off the couch and put down the Doritos and Bud Light, we got your back there, too, and will help you at whatever pace will make changes.

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That’s how we roll.

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