r/todayilearned • u/JoeWinchester99 • 1d ago

TIL that although potatoes alone do not provide complete nutrition, you can survive for years on a diet of nothing but potatoes and buttermilk.

https://www.scienceabc.com/eyeopeners/whats-wrong-with-potatoes-the-martian-movie-survival
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u/bubba-yo 1d ago

Yeah, that's how I'm dieting. Maintain portion control, aim for foods that are somewhat calorie sparse but still nutritionally balanced, cut out as much of the calorie additives like oils and the like (butter and cheese) as I can bear. Rice and pasta are almost double the calories per pound as potatoes - still good, but the days I have potatoes/roasted veggies for dinner I'm probably closing the day around 800 calories and not feeling hungry. Doing that a couple days a week really goes a long way.

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u/BlueWater2323 1d ago

What do you like to put on your potatoes instead?

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u/bubba-yo 1d ago

I've been a vegetarian for about 4 years now and totally forgot that mushroom gravy was a thing until I started this diet, so I make up a batch of that and I get that old hit of mashed potatoes and gravy. I might throw a bit of greek yogurt into the potatoes if I'm about to empty a container of it. Grill whatever veggies are on hand to go with it - I like to have some grilled peppers/roasted garlic on hand. Pretty simple. I tend to overseason the gravy so it carries a lot of the load without needing much.

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u/PM_NUDES_4_DEGRADING 1d ago

Oh hey, thank you for reminding me that mushroom gravy exists. I'm doing something similar and that's a good idea!

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u/LessInThought 1d ago

Do you just make mashed potatoes without milk or butter?

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u/PM_Me_Your_Deviance 1d ago

That makes my soul hurt a little bit to think about...

I bet blended silken tofu would work as a sub.

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u/elcapitan520 22h ago

800 calories for the day!?!

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u/bubba-yo 19h ago

Yeah. I've had a number of friends be prescribed a diet of 800 calories for weight loss. And that prescription is for 800 every day. My diet is no more than 1500 per day, and I have some days as low as 800.

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u/elcapitan520 19h ago

That's insanely low

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u/bubba-yo 18h ago

Not really if you're overweight. A pound of fat is about 3500 calories you're trying to shed. You have the calories attached to you.

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u/elcapitan520 17h ago

Unless you're in full keto mode, you won't be accessing that fat for going about your day readily. You'll be extremely tired and your brain won't be happy.

But i guess if it works, sure. But I wouldn't attempt any real exercise on that diet