Rush Limbaugh's Quick Weight Loss Diet

You may or may not think that Rush Limbaugh has lost his mind, but one thing he has lost recently is weight. The right-wing talk show host has lost almost 90 pounds since March 2009, losing up to a pound a day at times.

Limbaugh has been talking about his weight loss regularly on his radio show, but only recently revealed which diet he is on: the Quick Weight Loss Center plan.

Quick Weight Loss Center puts their clients on a strict, low-calorie diet of regular supermarket foods, and adds supplements and appetite suppressants. Limbaugh said in June that he consumes about 1500 calories per day, and that there are other special requirements. For instance, he can only have one serving of protein per meal, and he can eat green peppers but not red peppers.

Limbaugh says that until now even Quick Weight Loss Center has not known that he was using their service. Limbaugh has posted a picture on his website of himself next to a screen capture of the Quick Weight Loss Center website, giving a thumbs up, and this picture links to Quick Weight Loss Center, but he doesn't say whether he's giving them an official endorsement or whether he's receiving any compensation for this.

Is this a sustainable diet, either for Limbaugh or for the average person? Limbaugh admits to being a serial dieter. In 2007 he said (about losing weight without exercising), "Folks, I've lost 90 pounds three times in my life without taking a step beyond the normal steps I took in a given day. I've lost 40 pounds four times. My whole life I'm either weight gaining or losing."

Limbaugh says that he still doesn't exercise, except for playing golf, and he says that explaining the diet is "too complicated. I mean putting the menu together is a jigsaw puzzle every day. It would take me 45 minutes every day to tell you what the diet plan is and answer all your questions about why it works."

Doctors generally recommend limiting weight loss to one to two pounds per week, and suggest permanent lifestyle changes including both diet and exercise, rather than quick-loss diets involving supplements. According to the American Heart Association, "A healthy diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and fat-free or low-fat dairy products, along with regular physical activity, can help most people manage and maintain weight loss for both cardiovascular health and appearance."

Limbaugh's weight loss approach may work for him. After all, he can afford to have doctors monitor his health closely to make sure he isn't harming his body, as well as a personal chef to make sure he's eating the right things.

But for the average person, a diet involving expensive supplements and complicated dietary requirements might prove to be difficult and/or unsustainable.

SOURCES
Rush Limbaugh, "El Rushbo Reveals His Diet: It's Quick Weight Loss Centers," http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_073009/content/01125108.guest.html

Rush Limbaugh, "Rush Diet Update: 58 Lbs. Gone," http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_060109/content/01125110.guest.html

Rush Limbaugh, "See, I Told You So: Losing Weight Does Not Require Exercise," http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/estack_12_13_06/osing_Weight_Does_Not_Require_Exercise.guest.html

American Heart Association, "Quick-Weight-Loss or Fad Diets," http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4584