There are some facts that seem self-explanatory – like fast food being bad for your health. Fast food has long been stigmatised, with correlation being drawn between eating it and gaining weight.

Theatre release poster for the film.

The film “Super-Size Me” attempts to prove this. Morgan Spurlock, the director and star of the film only ate McDonalds, and Super-Sized his meals when asked if he wanted too for a month. The documentary proved to the public what they already believed; McDonalds greatly affects our health.

This has now been flipped on its head.

In October, YouTuber Jordan Syatt released a video called ‘I Ate One Big Mac Every Day for 30 Days and Lost 7lbs (Here’s How).’ The video aims to prove that a healthy lifestyle is about moderation. You can enjoy life – and still lose weight.

Syatt discusses many of the differences between his approach to his experiment and the one in Super-Size Me. 

One major difference is that Spurlock made an effort to stop being active in Super-Size Me, Syatt said. Whereas Syatt continued an average fitness routine as well as walked at least 10,000 steps per day.

Syatt disclosed his weekly fitness routine in the video, saying he did 3 days at the gym: one day for upper body, one day for lower body, and one day for full body workouts, all lasting 30 to 45 minutes each. He also attended beginner Jiu Jitsu classes.

In Super-Size Me, he deliberately stopped exercising and specifically stopped walking which was very misleading. Of course if you eat more calories than you’re supposed to, and you exercise less you’re going to gain weight and get unhealthier

-Syatt said in video

YouTube video creator, Jordan Syatt. (Photo: YouTube Channel, Jordan Syatt)

Another difference Syatt had compared to Spurlock, is that he ate at a ‘calorie deficit’. A calorie deficit is when you consume less calories than you burn in a day, therefore burning fat and losing weight.

In Super-Size Me, this would not have been possible as he Super-Sized his meals whenever asked. Syatt only ordered the sandwich, and a small or medium drink, no fries..

Looking at the numbers, a Big Mac sandwich alone is around 508kcal, whereas the meal with medium fries and a medium drink is 846kcal according to the McDonalds online nutrition calculator. 

 There is a 338kcal difference between just a sandwich and a meal. The super-size option is not available in the United Kingdom and is aimed to no longer be available in the United States by the end of the year. 

In the video, which was shot in the United States, the meal is over 1000 calories, and a Big Mac alone was 540 calories. 

Syatt makes it clear in his video that life is all about choices. You can choose the meal, and if you are in a calorie deficit, you will have to adjust your diet accordingly. 

He chose not to pick the meal so that he could still be in a calorie deficit while enjoying other food he enjoys.

The purpose of this isn’t to show you that eating Big Macs is healthy, its to show you that you can incorporate your favourite foods while having an overall healthy lifestyle and still be ok.

The point he was making was that life is about moderation. 

Syatt says that putting food into categories is doing more harm than good. Like McDonalds, you can have it, as long as it’s part of a balanced lifestyle.

When to comes to diets, “the only way to fail is to quit,” Syatt said.