- Jayden Lee, a personal trainer, ate a Domino's pizza daily for 30 days and over 13 pounds.
- He wanted to show it's possible to enjoy calorie-dense foods and still lose weight.
- A dietitian stressed that eating a takeout pizza every day long-term could have negative effects.
A personal trainer and college student lost over 13 pounds in a month while eating a Domino’s pizza every day, to prove that it’s possible to enjoy treats and lose fat as long as you’re in a calorie deficit.
“Foods shouldn't be feared just because they've undergone some sort of processing,” Jayden Lee, 18, Lee told Business Insider.
Although there are foods that are more nutritious and sensible to eat while losing weight than takeout pizza, there are no inherently fattening foods and it is possible to enjoy treats in moderation while being healthy and hitting weight loss goals, dietitian Nichola Ludlam-Raine told BI.
However, she advised people to look beyond weight loss when it comes to taking care of their health, and consider the nutritional quality of the food they eat, their physical activity levels, mental well-being, and the steps they can take to prevent chronic diseases.
Lee used to fear certain foods
Lee, based in Portsmouth, UK, said he fell victim to diet fads and disordered eating in his younger years.
He was passionate about boxing as a younger teen and went through a phase of eating no more than one meal and a protein bar every day to lose weight, which damaged his relationship with food, Lee said.
“I would go to the grocery store and look at the calories, and I'd stand there for about 30 minutes and then leave because it was too much,” he said.
Lee would watch videos on Tiktok where people said processed foods were “poison,” which made him think that he could only eat unprocessed “good” foods.
Lee would then go to the other extreme and regularly binge-eating for comfort, which led to a binge-restrict cycle and his weight fluctuating drastically.
So Lee went on a mission to educate himself about weight management, nutrition, and fitness by reading as many books and listening to as many podcasts as he could, which helped him change his mindset and learn that “self-value isn’t based on the food you eat,” he said. Business Insider has previously shared tips on how to find quality health advice online.
“I'm in such a better position now, and I'm grateful every day to have this knowledge and experience because it feels so freeing,” Lee said. “I can eat a chocolate bar or I can eat pizza and just relax.”
Lee ate a pizza every day while in a calorie deficit
For his experiment, Lee ate a small Domino’s pizza with various toppings every day, meaning it would clock in at between 900 and 1,500 calories. He didn’t eat the garlic and herb dip, which contains 169 calories per portion in the UK, but added mayonnaise and tomato ketchup, he said.
Overall, Lee ate between 2,200 and 2,500 calories a day, so he would adjust his breakfast, lunch, and snacks to fit his target around the daily pizza. Calorie requirements vary from person to person depending on factors including age, body size, genetics, and activity levels. The USDA has a tool for working out roughly how much each person should eat each day.
Lee made sure the rest of his meals and snacks were nutrient-dense, high-fiber, high-volume — meaning they took up a lot of space in his stomach for relatively few calories — and made primarily from whole foods, including fruits and vegetables, he said.
His standard breakfast was protein oats with a banana and peanut butter, lunch might have been a wholemeal tuna wrap with pepper and onion, and pizza for dinner.
Lee made sure he was eating plenty of protein to help him feel full and minimize any muscle loss, he said, and he didn’t struggle with hunger much.
As a part-time Domino’s delivery cyclist, Lee had a staff discount, which helped from a financial perspective, he said.
Lee said his activity levels varied from day to day. When he was working delivery shifts, he would cycle quite a lot, for example.
He did five strength training sessions a week. Resistance training has many health benefits, including aiding fat loss because it helps maintain muscle, which in turn burns more calories at rest.
Lee also aimed to do roughly 45 minutes of cardio a day, but that increased on days when he was cycling for his Domino’s delivery shifts.
Overall, he lost 13.2 pounds or 8% of his body weight during the experiment.
Typically, weight loss of one to two pounds a month on average is deemed safe. For a short-term fat loss experiment, such as Jordan Syatt's blood sugar spiking challenge, a more drastic reduction can help ensure body fat rather than water weight is lost to prove a point.
Takeout pizza can be enjoyed in moderation, a dietitian said
Lee isn’t concerned about any negative health consequences from the challenge because it lasted 30 days and he won’t continue having a daily takeout pizza, he said.
“If you eat a balanced diet, get all the micronutrients, all the macronutrients you need to fuel your body, having a pizza or having a doughnut isn't going to kill you,” he said.
However, Lee doesn't recommend people try to follow his daily pizza diet to lose weight, and neither does Ludlam-Raine.
“Occasional indulgence in foods like pizza is part of a balanced diet and can help prevent feelings of deprivation,” Ludlam-Raine said. “However, making it a daily habit, even in the context of a calorie deficit, is not advisable due to the potential for nutritional imbalance and the health risks associated with high intake of (ultra) processed foods.”
Pizza from fast food chains often lacks the variety of nutrients found in whole, unprocessed foods, she said.
“While Jayden compensated with fruit, vegetables, and high-protein meals, this practice might not be sustainable or practical for everyone, potentially leading to nutrient deficiencies over time,” Ludlam-Raine said.
Although weight loss will happen if you are in a calorie deficit, eating take-out pizza regularly can lead to overconsumption of saturated fats and sodium, increasing the risk of heart disease and hypertension, she added.
Fast food pizzas are also usually lower in fiber than meals should ideally be, especially when compared to whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.
“Adequate fiber is crucial for digestive health, satiety, and avoiding long-term disease,” Ludlam-Raine said.
Domino's did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI. The company website says a small pizza serves one to two people.