So… a nutrition professor from Kansas State University decided to go on a rather interesting
diet, consisting mainly of nutty bars, powdered donuts, and twinkies.
Dubbed the “Twinkie Diet,” he was able to lose 27 pounds in 10 weeks.
The point he was trying to make is that if you wanted to lose weight, you just have to
count your calories.
Considering that he burns roughly 2600 calories per day, the professor decided to eat 1800
calories of mainly junk food daily.
And voila, he did in fact lose weight, and anecdotally, proved that his hypothesis was
true.
You’re probably wondering, “Hmm, I wonder if this would work for me?”
The short answer is… yes.
As dearth and unimaginable as it might sound, the theory behind calories in and calories
out has been relentlessly shown to have some merit to it in many studies.
And if you assume that calories simply mean the amount of food you eat, then it makes
much more sense when you say, “if you want to lose weight, you just need to eat less.”
But it doesn’t mean that for people wanting to lose weight, they should be doing the same
Twinkie Diet.
Problem is, today’s media and society has become obsessed with the number on the scale
that it blatantly ignores many other health factors.
It just doesn’t boil down to a single number.
In all honesty, doing such a diet is rather pointless.
Yes, it’s true, that you can in fact lose weight eating nothing but junk.
But you will do so at a cost…
…Such as the lack of nutrients.
In terms of macros, junk food consists of heavy amounts of processed sugar and saturated
fat.
Two things of which, when consumed chronically or in excess, has been connected to health
diseases such as atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes.
It’s also missing an abundance of protein, the number one macronutrient needed to build
any considerable amount of muscle when paired with training.
Worse yet, muscle breakdown during weight loss will increase since you don’t have
enough protein to fend it off.
And don’t forget micronutrients.
Vitamins and minerals, although not significant factors of weight loss, are still needed for
good health and to prevent malnutrition.
Vitamin and mineral deficiency is no joke, causing a wide range of health issues.
Ahem, to name a few: Parasthesia, hypothyroidism, confusion, cheilosis
aka lip fissures, fatigue, loss of memory, anemia, pale skin, depression, hair loss,
rashes, numbness, cramps, decreased strength output, and, arrr scurvy.
And the professor knew this can be an issue, and that’s why he was smart enough to at
least supplement his junk food diet with a multivitamin supplement, a protein shake,
and a good handful of veggies.
If we also truly look at how much junk food you’re allowed to eat versus healthy food
on an 1800 calorie diet, you’ll see that you’re in for quite a starving experience.
And again, you’ll probably want more than just losing weight.
I’m sure most of you are looking to put on some muscle or at the very least, lose
weight and get that elusive “lean” look.
You can work out, of course, but much of your exercises will go to waste if you’re not
giving your body enough protein to begin with, something that we know junk food is sorely
lacking.
In the short run, you might be able to get away with a junk food diet with very little
negative impact to health.
But if you expect this to work in the long run, sorry to burst your bubblegum, it won’t
pan out too well for you.
So let’s revisit the question.
If you ask, “Can you lose weight eating nothing but junk food?”
The answer is factually yes.
But if you ask “Is losing weight by eating nothing but junk food healthy?
Then the answer is a big, fatty, no.
What are some crazy diets you’ve tried?
Share it in the comments.
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