| CAN YOU REALLY LOSE WEIGHT BY EATING JUST PIZZA? |
OK, I’ll admit it. This is kind of a trick question. But hear me out.
Sure, we’ve all heard about the Pizza Diet, which says it’s possible to lose weight by just eating just pizza. And, in fact, this is correct. Believe it or not, it’s also possible to lose weight by just eating chocolate.
That’s right. You read that correctly. You can lose weight by just eating just pizza or chocolate all day long. All you have to do is eat small enough portions of chocolate or pizza so you’re still in a calorie deficit. In fact, you could eat nothing but pizza and chocolate for the next month and still lose weight.
Think about it. If a guy can eat only Subway sandwiches all day and still lose weight, then why not 100% pizza? All you need is a calorie deficit. That’s the key to this whole formula. It’s all about your calorie intake.
Do you remember the childhood riddle: What weighs more—a ton of feathers or a ton of steel? The answer is that a “ton” is a “ton” no matter how you slice it. They are equal, whether feathers or steel.
It’s the same with your calorie intake.
Of course, I strongly suggest you do NOT eat a100% junk food diet because your health will be impacted negatively. The point is that fat loss revolves around having that calorie deficit.
Now, lots of NY Times bestselling authors these days are making money teaching people that calories don’t count. This is the same myth that diet gurus have been spreading for decades, and quite frankly it’s just not true.
“Calories-In” vs. “Calories-Out” is a basic law of energy balance. To go against this is to contradict the laws of physics! So if you think that “eating pizza equals getting fat”—you’re wrong, it doesn’t. Same with “eating chocolate equals getting fat”—it doesn’t. It’s not a cause and effect relationship where “junk food” equals getting fat. Eating too many calories equals getting fat, or, better “gaining” fat.
The bottom line? As far as your favorite foods go, depriving yourself completely may make you completely miserable, which may very well cause you to fall off your diet very quickly.
The best way to go about it is simply to obey the law of calorie balance—to allow yourself to eat some of your favorite foods as long as you acknowledge that calories do count.
This is one reason that I don’t highly recommend the “full day off diet” which allows for some “free for all cheat days” because many people misinterpret this as thinking they can shove as much food down their throats as they want on a cheat day. If they go far over on their cheat day, when it all averages out over the week they’re even and they haven’t lost any body fat.
Your best approach is to know your calorie target, or at least the ballpark, and give yourself a compliance rule within that target.
We believe 90% compliance is optimal. 90% of the time you should eat clean foods that include high nutrient density foods with all the essentials. The other 10% of the time, eat whatever you want.
When approached this way, there’s no such thing as forbidden foods! A diet that gives you this kind of flexibility will work more effectively than a diet that demands 100% clean eating.
So don’t ever deprive yourself of pizza and chocolate again. Just be sensible and make sure you are aware of how many calories you’re putting in your body. It’s really that simple.
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