Watching My 600lb Life" is one of my guilty pleasures. I've had my share of weight struggles, although admittedly nothing ever that extreme. I think I like watching the show because it kind of makes me feel better about my life. I know that's kind of mean to say, but watching someone who is so far gone down the road of obesity, I feel better knowing that I am still somewhat in control.
Some people think that weight loss surgery is the easy way out, but if you watch the show you know that's not the case at all. These patients have to completely change (and risk) their lives for a chance at living a healthier life, including being put on an extremely restrictive diet. Dr. Nowrazadan, who is controversial in his own right, makes his patient follow a 1200-calorie diet, which for a lot of these people is about one-third of what they would normally eat.
I've often wondered what this restrictive diet looks like, other than keeping your calories low. If it was something not totally unreasonable, I might consider following it myself, but after getting a glimpse at what the diet entails...I think I'll be staying away. One of Dr. Now's former patients, L.B. Bonner, who sadly passed away despite keeping up with this incredible weight loss, shared the diet plan on social media. The diet, which is low-carb, low-fat, and high-protein, would be tricky for anyone to follow, especially those who struggle with food addiction.
These are the high calorie foods that must be avoided:
- Sugar (you can use artificial and natural sweeteners like Reb A and Sucralose)
- Candy
- Cookies
- Cakes
- Donuts
- Pies
- Ice cream
- Sweetened fruit
- Frozen yogurt
- Sherbet/sorbet
- Milkshakes
- Chocolate milk
- Pudding or sweetened gelatin desserts
- Chocolate
- Crackers
- Potato chips
- French fries
- Mashed potatoes
- Tater tots
- Popcorn
- Peanuts (peanut butter)
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Pistachios
- Sunflower seeds
- White or brown rice
- Pasta or noodles
- Cereals of any kind
- Oatmeal
- Grits
- Fruit juices
- Dried fruits
- Canned or frozen fruit
- Jellies/jams
- Bread, including wheat bread and tortillas
- Sodas or sugary drinks
- Sports and energy drinks
- Fruits like watermelon, bananas, cantaloupe
- Meal supplements or shakes
- Honey
- Syrup
- Molasses
For those keeping track, that basically just leaves vegetables and meat. In fairness, these people need to lose a massive amount of weight before they can safely be sedated for their gastric bypass surgery. I still don't know how they can live on such a restrictive diet. To go from eating fast food and junk all day every day to just meat and vegetables must be absolutely excruciating.
If you stick to it, though, odds are you'll be happy with the results. For me? I don't even think I'll be trying it...