'Spud Fit': Man has lost 22 pounds with a goal of eating nothing but potatoes in 2016
- Jan 11, 2017
- 2 min read
Melbourne resident Andrew Flinders Taylor plans to eat nothing but potatoes for 99 percent of his calories for 366 days, with the other 1 percent coming from seasonings and sauces on the spuds. So far, what he has dubbed "Spud Fit" has worked, as he said it's resulted in a loss of 10 kilograms, or roughly 22 pounds, through the first 32 days of the experiment.
Taylor has been posting updates on his progress on Facebook and YouTube, starting with the announcement of his radical plan on Jan. 4. He may have dropped 22 pounds, but says the potato diet isn't as much about losing weight as improving his relationship with food.
He started the challenge weighing 151.7 kilograms, or 334.4 pounds, which is the most he's ever weighed.
He noted there will be no oil used in cooking the potatoes and has explored all the different ways the world's fourth-largest food crop can be prepared.
"It's a very daunting thing for me to go without all the delicious things that I love to eat for a year, so that's scary,'' he said. "The research I've done, potatoes have got pretty much everything a body needs, and it's been done before. As long as I'm physically and mentally healthy, I want to keep going."
Potatoes do have vitamins C and B6 and are a good source of potassium, manganese, phosphorus and niacin. If he's eating the skin, they're high in fiber.
But, as anyone concerned about nutrition realizes — healthful eating is all about balance and choice. A restrictive diet like Taylor is forcing on himself makes it harder to maintain daily nutrient requirements.
For one: protein deficiency.
"He will rapidly become severely protein deficient, with negative health consequences if he consumes only potatoes," says NBC News nutrition editor Madelyn Fernstrom.
To read this article in its entirety, please click on the link below:
To follow Andrew's 'Spud Fit' challenge, please click on the following links:
Comments