Penn Jillette Credits Potato Diet For 100 Pound Weight Loss

OrangeJuice

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Penn Jillette credits potato diet for 100-pound weight loss


Penn Jillette said he ate nothing but Potatoes/Sweet Potatoes during strict diet and saw rapid fat loss.

"In late 2014, he went on an all-potato diet. They could be mashed, baked, or even sweet potatoes, but nothing else could be eaten. No other fruits, vegetables, proteins, or even exercise. Just potatoes.

He eventually added more items to his diet after a few weeks, but maintained an incredibly strict eating regimen. Even without exercise, the 6’7″ magician says he lost 75 pounds in the first three months."


Ray Peat vindicated?
 

tara

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There's no mention of how much he ate, just that he used it to break old eating habits.
Ray Peat vindicated?
Without knowing more about his health than just his weight loss, there's not much to go on.
 

tara

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I guess he didn't like potatoes enough to eat much?
 

tankasnowgod

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I guess he didn't like potatoes enough to eat much?

Well, three pounds of potatoes by raw weight is about 1000 calories. Caloric deficit by eating boredom is probably part of the potato hack, when it works.
 

tara

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Definitely....Have you tried to eat a lot of potatoes without anything on them? It is like impossible after the first couple.
I know - it would be hard not to starve on it. I love potatoes, but I never eat them straight.
Caloric deficit by eating boredom is probably part of the potato hack, when it works.
Yes.
 

tankasnowgod

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I tried the all potato diet for 3 days, and think I gave up by dinner on the third day. It got boring for me really quick. I don't think I even saw any weight loss on scale any of those days, which didn't help.

I tried going uber low fat for a week, and while the first day or so was great, I started getting some GI discomfort the next few days. Might have been cause I was going heavy on the starches.

If I ever try and go really low fat again, I'm doing it William Brown style- high protein, high dairy, high sugar.
 

kiran

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Its doable. Just use potato as your only source of carb. I used coconut/olive oil too. Healed my gut a while back.
 

tara

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The article is not accurate. Penn worked with a guy named Ray Cronise for his weight loss and it was based on very low calories and Joel Furman's program. But he maintains it now by eating enough calories from potatoes. Listen to Penns Sunday school podcast with Penn's diet guru Ray Cronise where they explain what he did. Penn also later has Joel Furman on his podcast. Ray Cronise is responsible for potatoes for being "accepted" in the paleo crowd. Cronise recently completed a 21 day waster fast at True North. Cronise is a proponent of cold thermogenesis, water fasting, and plant based diets. He combines Furman's nutritarian with McDouaglls starch solution.

Penn had major problems that forced him to do the plant based diet and now he's much better and medication free so attacks on his looks are just ad hominem from anti-plant food people who love their bacon and cheese too much. 60 years of junk food and the late night Las Vegas lifestyle, but of course now just blame the diet that fixed his problems because you don't want to eat it.

And to respond to what the OP said, Penns story is not Peat vindicated because nothing he did was "Peat" at all.

Cronise's comment on Penns book "Presto" which just came out the other day:

"This isn't a diet book. It's a hysterical account of one man's journey on a diet. Penn is a great storyteller and has been a huge influence in my life. We've known each other for over 20 years and have some crazy friends. He tells lots of funny stories and Presto will keep you laughing.

The real message in Presto, his permanent lifestyle transformation, is in the book, but we likely won't hear it reported widely in the media or on blogs. Some ideas may indeed be very contrary to what the popular diet and exercise dogmas most often teach. Most reports will probably focus on potatoes and Penn explains the funny magic act behind this often maligned food.

We can watch as this unravels in the press. We can listen as the media and blog machines kick into high gear with the "paleos and vegans' debating as the "carb vs fat" arguments mound. Where does he get his protein? We'll hear experts tell us all about how wrong this is (ignoring his success) without first talking to his physicians. One doesn't get too crazy with the loud, formerly overweight talking half of one of the most successful Vegas shows without second, third, and fourth opinions, right? Of course he's done it and we see the results, but some were once critiquing his approach based on information found in a tabloid article. His response to that article will make you cry with laughter and perhaps enlightens us on how stories get twisted. There are many bites of wisdom all plated with Penn's comedic genius.

Penn's transformation challenges status quo and suggests we can all make a change. Like much of his advice, Presto centers on breaking away from accepting mass mediocrity and instead seeking the best. Our struggles are real, but laughing at our mistakes brings us much closer to success than living a life driven by fear. We hear a lot of exaggerated claims about slowing metabolisms (the latest biggest loser distraction) and warnings against losing weight too quickly. Of course none of this will apply to the 196,000 people that had some form of bariatric surgery last year or the 703,000 in the 4 years prior. These people can't eat Penn's diet now and they were convinced by inner chatter, friends, family, and conventional medical wisdom that they didn't have the willpower or were metabolically broken. Penn's success demonstrates we can and laugh about it all the way.

It's not crazy to surgically rearrange someone's intestinal tract to limit their ability to swallow, but we are to lead to believe that it's crazy for me to tell Penn to voluntarily do the same thing. Okay, I'm a nut. My friend is doing great 17 months later, off 6 powerful BP meds and happy.

We do crazy things for friends, right?

Laced in the humor is a simple message - Change your lifestyle. Really. Change it. There's no need wait for the next new diet book or even reach for a potato. We probably won't hear this headline and that's actually what Penn did; he changed his relationship with food. Penn's success can be summed up in two sentences:

It's nearly impossible to lose weight with moderation and to keep that weight off eating a controlled quantity of what was eaten to gain it.

Further if social relationships dominate one's plate and these relationships are with people that eat unhealthily, the odds of moderating the food and the social pressure are overwhelmingly in favor of failure.

When disruptive ideas are introduced, no one is completely correct. We want this to be, but history teaches we usually aren't. There are some paths that lead to cul-de-sacs and some that inch us closer to the truth. Presto has the ability to move you a mile, but it involves a permanent change that goes against what is socially normal.

Penn is okay with running against social norm when it's for a just cause and we should all be happy for his success."

Presto!: How I Made Over 100 Pounds Disappear and Other Magical Tales: Penn Jillette: 9781501140181: Amazon.com: Books
 
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EIRE24

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Its doable. Just use potato as your only source of carb. I used coconut/olive oil too. Healed my gut a while back.
Eating just potatoes with a little fat healed your gut? What was the problem with your gut before this?
 

Atalanta

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Definitely....Have you tried to eat a lot of potatoes without anything on them? It is like impossible after the first couple.

Impossible for whom?

I have lived on nothing but potatoes for days at a time. They are delicious.
 

tankasnowgod

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Ray Cronise is responsible for potatoes for being "accepted" in the paleo crowd.

This isn't true. Guys like Kurt Harris, Richard Nikoley and J. Stanton were promoting potatoes in the "Paleosphere" before Ray Cronise, and Ray was never a paleo guy. I would say Tim "Tatertot" Steele and Chris Voight should also get credit when it comes to promoting the potato hack.

However, Ray Cronise's contribution to the diet and health arena is much bigger and more interesting- the idea that temperature and thermal load can affect body weight.
 

Atalanta

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look like he aged 20 years. doesnt look healthy. at all


He looks fine. The aged look is from loose skin. His facial skin was stretched and plumped from fat.
Many people who lose a lot of weight end up up loose skin which have to be tightened or removed by surgery.

Looking old while aging is a natural part of life. I don't know any old people who look like 25 without surgery, hormones etc.
Even Ray Peat looks and sounds old.

I have noticed that only people who advocate plant based diets are criticized for looking old on this forum.
 

tankasnowgod

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I have noticed that only people who advocate plant based diets are criticized for looking old on this forum.

I personally find it bizarre that anyone would come to a forum based on the ideas of Ray Peat to promote a plant based diet. Ray has stressed the importance of animal protein for decades, and has often talked about the value of animal foods like dairy, eggs, oysters, liver, lobster, gelatin, and even muscle meat. It's as puzzling to me as the whole "Eco-Atkins" thing was.
 

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