Today, I will be writing about the steak and eggs diet: how nutritious it is, what the benefits are, and the potential risks.
It feels like you wake up everyday finding out about a new diet that is supposed to be the perfect way of getting personal wellness goals from your kitchen.
People usually go for these diets because they believe them to be healthy.
The “Steak and Eggs” diet is no different. It all seemed too good to be true when I read about it online.
Without any further delay, let’s get into the meat of the subject.
What is the Steak and Eggs Diet?
The steak and eggs diet is a high-protein diet that includes eating steak and eggs for 5 days and then take one day off of the diet.
The idea of this diet is that you mainly eat protein because protein can’t be stored as fat like carbs can, so this means you are all set to burn through your fat stores.
The steak and eggs diet consists of eating fresh meat, veggies, grains and fruit. It doesn’t include highly processed foods, sugars, dairy or alcohol.
It implies that a person can generate enough energy from eating eggs for breakfast with a steak dinner to skip over lunch altogether.
Developed by a bodybuilder named Vince Gironda, the steak and eggs diet has also found popularity in Japan mostly and a bit all over the world.
The Benefits of The Steak and Eggs Diet
There are a lot of favorable things regarding the steak and eggs diet. Here are some of them
✅ Low in Carbs – The steak and eggs diet is low in carbs. It is advised to avoid processed food, sugars and bread.
I have to say that this sounds a little bit like the Atkins diet. The Atkins diet has been around for a while now and has caused quite a stir in the nutrition world because it does help you lose weight really quick; but it doesn’t clearly teach you how to eat healthy once you have lost the weight.
✅ Low Fat – The steak and eggs diet is low in fat because the meat is lean meat. It is recommended that you eat red meat because it is supposed to be healthier in contrast to processed meats.
The diet includes healthy fresh food – Just like the Atkins diet, the steak and eggs diet recommends eating fresh quality foods.
✅ Protein – The steak and eggs diet is extremely high in protein because if you avoid carbs, there is no other food group that provides protein on a calorie per calorie basis.
And what does the body use for energy if it doesn’t have glucose? The body will make its own glucose out of your fat.
The resulting byproducts are ketones and your body will burn these for energy, resulting in weight loss.
Protein helps you feel fuller longer, builds muscle, and protects organs by providing them with basic proteins for survival. You can’t go wrong with eating steak either, it tastes great!
Many people have claimed to see results from this diet. Some even say that they could lose up to 17 pounds of fat in a week! I am sure you will be skeptical of the claims but it is very important to remember that this diet contains no calorie counting, therefore we can’t really know if it actually works or not.
The “Steak and Eggs” diet has been effective for many but results may vary depending on your lifestyle and genetic predisposition.
The Risks of The Steak and Eggs Diet
Although the steak and eggs diet is supposed to be good for you, it does not come without it’s own set of risks.
Let’s see a few of the downsides of this diet.
❎ High In Cholesterol
Eating so much red meat will increase your cholesterol because red meat contains more saturated fat and cholesterol than any other food, this can be unhealthy for the heart and may increase one’s risk for cardiovascular disease.
It is recommended that you have three servings of fish per week to maintain a healthy level of cholesterol.
❎ Not Completely Balanced
The steak and eggs diet is not completely balanced since it consists of mainly red meat, which is high in saturated fat.
However, eggs are also high in cholesterol and you should therefore try to balance your diet with healthy fats as well.
❎ Losing Muscle Mass
The steak and eggs diet is a reductionist diet because it only focuses on the protein you eat, without any other nutrients at all (it eliminates the calories from food).
It is not sustainable – The steak and eggs diet is a very temporary diet since you can’t eat like that all the time.
❎ Not Enough Protein
The steak and eggs diet does not have enough protein to support muscle growth.
The steak and eggs diet is a low carb high protein diet, but it lacks in nutrient density because of its emphasis on protein intake only.
A complete protein contains all essential amino acids to build body tissue, muscles included. The steak and eggs diet does not include any other nutrients aside from meat and eggs.
Therefore, a steak and eggs diet does not contain enough protein to sustain muscle growth over an extended period.
What You’ll Eat and When You’ll Eat It On The Steak and Eggs Diet?
In general, the steak diet looks like this:
- 4-6 eggs + 0.75 to 1.5 lbs of steak for each meal
- Only two meals per day are allowed for a period of 5 days
- Day 6 is like a cheat day where you can refeed on carbs.
Don’t forget to add in some veggies, lots of water, unsweetened coffee and one fruit if you get really hungry in between meals.
How Much Protein On The Steak and Eggs Diet?
One pound of meat is equal to 3 oz. Of protein.
Therefore, it takes 6 ounces of meat for one meal to get your daily recommended amount of protein in this diet. One serving of meat is about the size of a deck of cards.
Does it Get Boring Eating Steak and Eggs?
If this diet gets boring you could do one of two things:
- You can make your eggs scrambled.
- You can take the time to sauté your meat for dinner and for lunch have an omelet with sautéed red peppers and onions.
The steak & eggs diet may be a good option for anyone who feels they are losing control over food.
It’s most effective if you’re still working out and trying to lose fat. It will also work well for those who have been eating the same thing for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for a while.
I don’t mean that they need to eat steak and eggs but any sort of change will work.
The only problem with the diet is not getting enough nutrients from the protein so it is important to eat 1/3 of your body weight in ounces of protein every day or it could affect your health.
If you’re trying to lose weight, anything that is going to help you use less calories will help.
This diet is a good choice if you’re looking for something a little different but it’s also a good idea if you’re just looking for something that has some protein.
Maybe it’s not for you but I know people who have had success with this diet and I think it’s a great way to start something new.
Reasons to Try The Diet
- If you are a meat lover, then you’ll love the fact that you can eat the same thing every day.
- You won’t have to worry about the timing of your meals, just make sure to eat at least 6 ounces of protein every day.
- It’s easy to follow.
- You can drink coffee and water all day long and not worry about calories or sugar.
- It will suppress your appetite if you stick to the plan.
- You can change up what you eat for dinner if you wish, just make sure it contains 6 ounces of protein!
- This diet is good for those who are trying to lose weight or gain muscle mass but it doesn’t need to be followed forever as a lifestyle choice!
Other Tips To Remember:
- Don’t eat ice cream or any other food that contains a lot of sugar. Sugar will raise your insulin levels and decrease your fat burning capabilities.
- You can drink coffee, water, tea, or any other drinks that contain no calories or carbohydrates during the day.
- It is recommended to workout while on this diet because it increases testosterone production and helps you gain muscle mass which in turn speeds up your metabolism which will help you burn more calories even while resting.
- Eat a big salad at dinner and eat lean meat to ensure that you are getting your nutrients.
- Eat 6 oz’s of protein every day to help maintain muscle mass and keep your metabolism high so you can burn body fat.
- You can eat as much red meat as you want but you may not want to eat it all the time because of the risk of heart disease and cancer.
- Don’t drink alcohol on this diet because it contains many carbs that will stop fat burning and slow down muscle growth.
- Eat only lean meat that is free of antibiotics and hormones.
- Stay away from it if you don’t like eating the same thing every day.
Final Thoughts About The Steak And Eggs Diet
The steak and eggs diet has been around for a while but it’s still very popular among people who are trying to lose weight.
Everyone is different and some people will like this diet better than others but I think it’s a good idea to give it a go.
You never know, maybe you’ll find another way of eating that you enjoy more!
A lot of people are already on a low carbohydrate high protein diet, or on the Paleo Diet or a similar type of diet for better health.
But for those who need to lose weight, especially if you are eating well and exercising regularly, but still not getting the results you want, steak and eggs could be worth a try.
In my opinion, this is not really a natural way to eat in the sense that our Paleo ancestors did not eat steak and eggs everyday of their lives.
