The Twinkie Diet for Weight Loss?
There has been much discussion recently about the Twinkie Diet for weight loss.
In case you haven't heard, Mark Haub, Ph.D., a professor of human nutrition at Kansas State University, did a self-experiment to see if he could lose weight eating Twinkies.
He ate a calorie-restricted diet, in which most of his calories came from junk food. (We could also call it The Convenience Store Diet.)
He ate a calorie-restricted diet, in which most of his calories came from junk food. (We could also call it The Convenience Store Diet.)
He ended up losing almost twenty-seven pounds over ten weeks, going from a starting weight of 200 pounds and ending up at 174 pounds.
His cholesterol also went down. The bad cholesterol went down and the good cholesterol went up.
His cholesterol also went down. The bad cholesterol went down and the good cholesterol went up.
His triglycerides also came down.
And all he did was eat mostly Twinkies.
When he got tired of Twinkies, he went and got some Little Debbie cakes.
He also included Doritos, sugar cereals, and Oreos. He would eat every three hours.
He also maintained the same level of moderate physical activity as before going on the diet. He didn't exercise any more than usual.
Professor Haub wanted to prove that pure calorie counting is what matters most, not the nutritional value of the food.
When I first heard of it, I thought there's no way he could continue to eat this way for the rest of his life and remain healthy. Others concur. (For further reading, click here and here.)
Yes, for a short period of time, Professor Haub did lose weight by counting calories.
He also maintained the same level of moderate physical activity as before going on the diet. He didn't exercise any more than usual.
Professor Haub wanted to prove that pure calorie counting is what matters most, not the nutritional value of the food.
When I first heard of it, I thought there's no way he could continue to eat this way for the rest of his life and remain healthy. Others concur. (For further reading, click here and here.)
Yes, for a short period of time, Professor Haub did lose weight by counting calories.
But I still believe consuming a low carbohydrate diet is the best way, long-term, to maintain weight and be healthy.