Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes (2024)

The Clerks director was told to lose weight after suffering a massive near-fatal heart attack in February.

By Stacey Leasca
Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes (1)

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  • Kevin Smith says he lost 17 pounds in nine days on Penn Jillette's potato-heavy diet
  • The Clerks director suffered a near-fatal heart attack in February
  • Here's what nutritionists have to say about the restrictive diet

In late February, Kevin Smith shared with the world that he suffered a "massive heart attack" that came dangerously close to taking his life. Now, the Clerks director is opening up about how he’s making major lifestyle changes to protect himself from another health scare.

"I’ll never eat the way I used to," Smith shared on his Hollywood Babble-On podcast, according to E! News. "The way I used to eat wasn’t f*cking horrible. It was in my childhood that’s what my doctor said."

According to Smith, doctors said he had to lose 50 pounds — and in order to do so, the director adopted the all-potato diet made famous by illusionist Penn Jillette in his book, Presto!: How I Made Over 100 Pounds Disappear. In the diet, Jillette ate only potatoes for two full weeks, then phased in vegetable stews.

So far, Smith said he’s lost 17 pounds in just nine days.

"It’s a pretty intense program, but it’s been interesting," Smith said of the diet. "And of course necessary for my health and stuff. But once I get to a decent place, then I can think about eating again."

What Do Nutritionists Think of Potato Diets?

Dena Champion, a registered dietician at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, said she would not recommend a potato-only diet to a recent heart attack victim — or to anyone trying to lose weight, for that matter.

"This diet would not be adequate in protein, and contains no fat!" she said in quotes provided via email to MensHealth.com. "Not only that, but this diet is extremely low in most micronutrients including Calcium, Zinc, Selenium, and Vitamin A, to name only a few.

"Over time, this diet would surely cause an essential fatty acid deficiency and many micronutrient deficiencies," Champion continued. "It should never be recommended to anyone for any reason."

Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes (4)

Daniel O'Shaughnessy, a registered nutritionist and registered nutritional therapist in the United Kingdom, was also skeptical of Smith's post-heart attack diet. "I don’t think it’s healthy for anyone, due to the lack of nutrition, variety, and also psychological boredom," he told MensHealth.com.

The diet may be very low calorie, which would drive quick weight loss, but it's not the most ideal method for long-term sustainability, O'Shaughnessy added: "You’d see a weight loss over two weeks and be fooled in thinking this is the diet for you."

Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes (6)

Smith isn’t only guy to tout a potato-heavy diet as life-changing. In 2017, YouTuber Andrew Flinders Taylor, who goes by the name “Spud Fit,” explained that he lost 117 pounds over the course of a year using a potato-only diet. Taylor's plan was more extreme than Smith's: He stuck to eating plain potatoes for 365 days.

Taylor tried to beat the potato boredom by seasoning his spuds with spices, dried herbs, and fat-free sweet chili or barbecue sauce. At the time, at least one expert told MensHealth.com he couldn't get behind the diet.

Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes (8)

"I personally would not recommend it," Spencer Nadolsky, D.O., author of The Fat Loss Prescription, said. "It’s very restrictive. A vegan diet is very restrictive, and a ketogenic diet is very restrictive, but a potato diet is one of the most restrictive diets you could ever do."

Instead of following the potato-only path, O'Shaughnessy suggests that people looking to lose weight try intermittent fasting — or squeezing all your food consumption into a certain window of time each day. (When it comes to weight loss techniques, here's how intermittent fasting stacks up against plain old calorie restriction.)

March 22, 2018, 2:34 p.m.: This story has been updated.

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Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes (2024)

FAQs

Kevin Smith Says He Lost 17 Pounds in 9 Days By Eating Only Potatoes? ›

“In nine days, I've lost 17 lbs,” Smith revealed, adding that he's been following illusionist Penn Jillette's mono diet

mono diet
A monotrophic diet (also known as the mono diet or single-food diet) is a type of diet that involves eating only one food item (such as potatoes or apples) or one type of food (such as fruits or meats).
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Monotrophic_diet
from his book, Presto!: How I Made Over 100 Pounds Disappear which recommends eating only potatoes for the first two weeks before introducing salads and vegetables (no fruits or nuts) for the next ...

What happens if you only eat potatoes for 2 weeks? ›

Though potatoes themselves are pretty nutritious, they do lack some essential nutrients. The potato diet may result in nutritional deficiencies if followed long-term. Weight loss is likely to be short-term: Any weight lost during very short fad diets may not be kept off long-term.

How much weight did Kevin Smith lose on a potato diet? ›

After suffering a heart attack on February 25, actor/filmmaker/podcaster Kevin Smith decided to get serious about weight loss. Some people go plant-based to try to get healthier, but Smith took it one step further: he went potato-based.

How much weight can you lose in a week on the potato diet? ›

This extreme eating plan focuses on consuming nothing but cooked potatoes for rapid weight loss. For instance, you might even lose up to one pound (0.45 kg) per day after following the potato diet for three to five days. However, longer-term versions of the potato diet might not have significant health benefits.

Would I lose weight if I only ate potatoes? ›

The potato diet may be effective for short-term weight loss, but it's not a long-term solution. Potatoes are nutritious but don't contain all the nutrients you need for optimal health. Furthermore, very low calorie diets have been shown to slow metabolism and decrease muscle mass.

Can I survive on only potatoes? ›

Technically, the traditional white potato contains all the essential amino acids you need to build proteins, repair cells, and fight diseases. And eating just five of them a day would get you there. However, if you sustained on white potatoes alone, you would eventually run into vitamin and mineral deficiencies.

Does the potato diet really work? ›

But other than that, there's no real science to support that eating potatoes specifically helps you lose weight fast. For long-term weight loss results, a three to five-day potato diet is not the way to go.

What is the potato hack diet? ›

The potato hack diet is a three to five day diet intervention where all you eat is 2 to 5 pounds of potatoes all day long, nothing else. It promises that you will lose around 1 pound per day.

What is the potato detox diet? ›

How to do the potato diet to lose weight
  1. Rule 1: Eat only plain, cooked potatoes for three to five days.
  2. Rule 2: Consume around two to five pounds of potatoes per day.
  3. Rule 3: No other foods including condiments and toppings, such as ketchup, butter, sour cream and cheese are allowed.
Oct 1, 2023

How to cook potatoes for potato diet? ›

Cook potatoes by boiling, steaming or microwaving them without adding other ingredients. Preparing potatoes in this manner will ensure that they are very low in salt, sugar and fat. 3. Another method of cooking potato the healthy way is to cook it with its skin this provides fiber to the body.

When not to eat potatoes? ›

As they age, or with improper storage, potatoes may develop sprouting and green spots. If there isn't any sprouting, you can use the color change as an indicator of spoilage. If the skin looks greenish or if there's sprouting present, you'll need to remove the sprouts or toss the whole potato, depending on severity.

Is it OK to eat potatoes once a week? ›

Eating one medium-size potato a day can be part of a healthy diet and doesn't increase cardiometabolic risk — the chances of having diabetes, heart disease or stroke — as long as the potato is steamed or baked, and prepared without adding too much salt or saturated fat, a study by nutritionists at The Pennsylvania ...

Are potatoes bad for losing belly fat? ›

While you can obtain fiber and carbohydrates from eating potatoes, experts advise eating them in moderation if weight loss and a flatter stomach are your goals. "The starchy vegetables to avoid if you want a flat stomach are white potatoes," Mitri says.

What happens to your body when you eat potatoes everyday? ›

Potatoes are a decent source of fiber, which can help you feel full longer. Fiber also can help prevent heart disease by keeping your cholesterol and blood sugar levels in check. Potatoes are also rich in antioxidants that prevent diseases and vitamins that help your body function properly.

What is the best potato for weight loss? ›

After taking into account the mineral density, the vitamin density, the macronutrient balance, the sugar-to-fiber ratio, the sodium-to-potassium ratio, and the phytochemical profile, red potatoes are the healthiest potato with data from the USDA Food Database.

Are potatoes good for 2 weeks? ›

Potatoes can last for up to several months in a cool pantry. If stored at room temperature, they are best if eaten within one to two weeks. Once cooked, keep them in the fridge for no more than three days.

What happens if you don't eat vegetables for 2 weeks? ›

"Not eating enough fruits and vegetables regularly can increase the risk of many health conditions, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and stroke," says Jennifer Hernandez, RD, of Plant-Powered Kidneys. And in general, not getting enough vegetables weakens the immune system.

Do potatoes detox your body? ›

Experts say that there is no evidence that potatoes are an effective method of drawing out toxins or helping people get over an illness faster. While participating in the trend is not really harmful or dangerous, experts do not recommend trying it.

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