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Local Man Loses Close to 100lbs on Fast Food Diet|ABC 7 News
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A local man swears by the "Fast Food Diet" and says anyone could can lose weight and eat healthy at fast food restaurants.
At 273 pounds, Eric Foster hit bottom, "To be honest, I'd get winded peeling an orange!" Unmotivated to work-out, he turned to his diet. He knew cutting down on carbohydrates worked for him and he knew Chipotle filled him up. "So I started thinking maybe I can do this. Could I really do this?"
So Foster gave it a shot. He ate two Chipotle burrito bowls each day, cutting out the tortilla and filling up on meat, cheese, veggies, and salsa. He even asked for guacamole and sour cream.
"The first couple weeks, I guess I had lost 14 or 15 pounds and I thought my plan is working. It's really working," Foster said.
It continued to work. In nine months, he lost 90 pounds. For Foster, it was a pleasant surprise. For nutritionist Katherine Tallmadge, it made perfect sense.
"Absolutely you can lose weight and eat healthy at fast food restaurants," Tallmadge said.
The first secret is knowing where to go. According to health magazine, Chipotle ranks among the five healthiest fast-food restaurants along with Noodles and Company, Cosi, Panera Bread, and Au Bon Pain.
Each have whole grains on the menu, limit the amount of trans-fats, offer low sodium options and have smaller portions. According to nutritionists, the key to losing weight on a fast food diet is to have easy access to each restaurant's nutritional information.
"Go to the restaurant's website, figure out the maximum calories you want per meal and select the items within that calorie range," said Tallmadge.
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The second secret is knowing how to navigate the huge portions, the hidden fats and the sky high sodium levels. When they ask you if you want to "super-size", say no. Cut out the cheese and mayonnaise and the tortilla. You should also choose chicken and fish over hamburger.
"We die of heart disease in America, 75 percent of us, and saturated fat and animal fat is the prime culprit," said Tallmadge.
At 90 pounds lighter, Eric Foster reached the weight he wanted. "It almost feels like I'm cheating, like it shouldn't be this easy. How can I have my favorite thing everyday and still lose weight?!"
The fast food diet, if done properly, may actually just work. Nutritionist Katherine Tallmadge would like for Foster to add more fruit to his diet and cut out the fatty sour cream and guacamole and the key to any diet is to get off the couch and exercise.
Source: WJLA-TV Washington D.C.All rights reserved.