Just in time for New Year’s resolution season, Rocco Dispirito is here to tell us all exactly what we want to hear: that we can eat as much as we want and lose weight while doing it.
The James Beard award winning chef and former restaurateur known for his mama’s meatballs and fat and drama driven menus, Dispirito hosted his own reality TV show about his experience opening his very popular NYC restaurant Union Pacific and now has a new mission: to end obesity.
“Today’s generation is really struggling against what they are seeing happening to their parents,” Rocco explains. “So many are suffering from obesity and diabetes, things we didn’t see in the 1960’s. Today we are so much more aware.”
Rocco’s own mother suffered from a lifestyle-induced disease and was part of Rocco’s transformation from a fat-equals-flavor chef—with a penchant for heavy late night eating and drinking—to a man on a mission to end obesity and bring wellness and health to the masses.
Rocco’s journey from excess to health has been a decade in the works. In 2006, at the age of 39, Rocco was diagnosed with high blood pressure and cholesterol. A routine checkup turned into a wake up call, and faced with the choice of medication or a lifestyle change, Rocco chose to make some changes. Those changes included diet and exercise and three months later he finished his first sprint marathon. One year later and thirty pounds lighter, he completed his first Ironman.
“I am going to be fifty this year,” Rocco said, “And I’ve never felt as good as I do now, I’ve never been in better shape, I’ve never felt like I can do what I can do now.”
How did he do it? Although Rocco admits in the beginning of his dietary transformation he relied on artificial sweeteners, instant pudding mixes and other tricks to simulate the taste of traditional comfort foods, today he embraces whole foods, especially the negative calorie ones.
His latest book, The Negative Calorie Diet: Lose Up to 10 Pounds in 10 Days with 10 All You Can Eat Foods, highlights his take on what it means to be healthy and lose weight.
“I wanted to focus on what you can eat, not what you can’t eat,” Rocco explains. “There are so many good things that you can have, and really, just a few that you should avoid. My negative calorie diet works because it relies on foods that take more energy to digest than to eat.”
Those foods include cruciferous vegetables, leafy greens, berries and, most especially, water.
“Water is the ultimate negative calorie winner,” says Rocco. “It takes one calorie to digest every ounce of water we drink. So it also makes sense that the more water dense your foods are, the more negative calorie they will be.”
While Rocco highly recommends drinking lots of water, what he doesn’t recommend is drinking alcohol or coffee.
“Both alcohol and coffee create a really acidic condition in your body, and it is impossible to create wellness with an acidic gut.”
For caffeine lovers, Rocco does give the very Italian option of espresso, which he states is 80 percent less acidic than coffee.
His book offers a 10 day cleanse followed by a 20 day diet plan as well as grocery lists and 75 flavor packed recipes: including dessert.
While he promotes a basically alkaline diet, which he follows fairly seriously, eating a diet of whole foods, eschewing alcohol and eating out, Rocco’s basic philosophy is start where you are and do what you can; that every bit helps.
“Listen, if you don’t want to do the cleanse, don’t do the cleanse, if you don’t want to give up your wine, don’t,” Rocco said. “Even if you just start incorporating more negative calorie foods into your diet, you will feel a change. A positive change. It’s going to help and it will build on itself.”
Even when it comes to exercise, Rocco promotes doing what feels good.
“You really don’t have to go to the gym every day, you really don’t have to be crazy about exercise to lose weight and feel good. Just live an active lifestyle and it is going to be enough,” Rocco states.
The future of health and wellness, Rocco believes, is in finding what feels good and works for each of us individually, and working towards our own best selves.
“Today more and more people are curating their own path to health and fitness. Everyday I work with multiple clients helping them find what works for them in their life. Ultimately success is finding what works for each of us individually and living that life. I’m just here to help along way.”
Eat to Shed: Rocco’s Top Ten Negative Calorie Foods
- Almonds
- Apples
- Berries
- Celery
- Citrus fruits (e.g. oranges, lemons, grapefruits)
- Cruciferous vegetables (e.g. broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts)
- Cucumbers
- Green leafy vegetables
- Mushrooms
- Nightshades (e.g. tomatoes, red and green bell peppers, eggplant)
