Here’s Why Kim Kardashian’s Met Gala Diet Isn’t Safe, Per Experts

At the 2022 Met Gala, hundreds of celebrities arrived in stunning, over-the-top looks. Kerry Washington, Camila Cabello, and Gwen Stefani swept the red carpet in larger than life ballgowns. Everything glittered. The crowd oohed and ahhed over the glitz and glam of the gilded glamour.

But Kim Kardashian’s outfit, borrowed from the one and only Marilyn Monroe, was tough to beat. Exactly 60 years after Marilyn first wore the shimmery, nude, hip-clinging gown, Kim took it to the Met, making her the only other person to ever wear the iconic dress. Covered in more than 6,000 hand-sewn crystals, it is currently valued at over $10 million, the New York Post reported.

“The idea really came to me after the gala in September last year. I thought to myself, what would I have done for the American theme if it had not been the Balenciaga look? What’s the most American thing you can think of? And that’s Marilyn Monroe,” Kim told Vogue.

But the look took serious—and unhealthy—dedication to pull off. “I always thought [Marilyn Monroe] was extremely curvy,” Kim said. “I imagined I might be smaller in some places where she was bigger and bigger in places where she was smaller. So when it didn’t fit me I wanted to cry because it can’t be altered at all.”

Instead, Kim decided to start a new diet and exercise plan that would help her drop enough pounds to squeeze into the dress without altering it. “I would wear a sauna suit twice a day, run on the treadmill, completely cut out all sugar and all carbs, and just eat the cleanest veggies and protein,” she said. “I didn’t starve myself, but I was so strict.”

After losing 16 pounds in three weeks, the 5’2″ Kardashian was able to fit into Marilyn’s dress for the Met Gala. But is it really healthy to lose that much weight so quickly? Women’s Health sat down with two experts for the full breakdown:

Here’s Why Kim Kardashian’s Met Gala Diet Isn’t Safe, Per Experts

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No, Kim Kardashian’s Met Gala diet isn’t healthy.

Kim’s diet is “definitely not a safe way to lose weight,” says Jonathan Valdez, RDN, the owner of Genki Nutrition and spokesperson for New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, in an email to WH.

It’s also unrealistic, says FitOn trainer Bree Mitchell, CPT. First, “weight is not always equaling body fat,” she explains. Meaning, those 16 pounds that Kim lost may not have all been fat—they could also have been water weight.

Plus, both Valdez and Mitchell agree that losing so much weight so quickly can be hard on the body. “Rapid weight loss risks include electrolyte imbalances, gallstones, gout, fatigue, constipation, diarrhea, and nausea,” according to Valdez. Mitchell says your levels of stress and cortisol will likely go up, too, and you probably won’t be getting all the valuable nutrients your body absorbs from meals.

Mitchell says a diet like Kim’s can also have negative effects on your metabolism and even lead to muscle loss. “We work hard for our muscles,” she explains, but “you really do risk losing muscle after that type of extreme weight loss.”

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It’s not sustainable in the long run.

While cutting out carbs and sugar may make you lose weight, “carbohydrates actually serve a lot of great functions in our body,” Mitchell says. Carbohydrates are your body’s main source of energy. Eliminating carbs from your diet can cause your body to reduce the amount of insulin it makes, which in turn causes your metabolism to shift, one 2020 study found. (For these reasons, it’s especially risky to cut out all carbs if you have diabetes or if you’re at risk of having diabetes, Valdez says.)

Plus, cutting out all carbs and sugar is extremely difficult. Valdez notes that most vegetables have carbohydrates in them, so it’s unlikely that Kim’s diet was completely carb-free.

“I certainly don’t think it’s a long-term solution,” Mitchell adds. After going on an extreme diet, it’s likely your body would gain the weight back sooner, rather than later. “When you go that far in one direction, that’s where that rebounds on the other side,” she says. “Your body’s always going to find a way to get what it needs.” Plus, any water weight loss will return as soon as you up your water intake again, she notes.

For Kim, the plan was short-lived. After the Met Gala, she posted a video on her Instagram Story of a huge spread of pizza and doughnuts in the star’s hotel room.

“OK guys, so after the Met, I am starving, and my favorite doughnuts in the entire world, in New York City, are these mini doughnuts,” she said, per Page Six. “And pizza! You guys, I haven’t had carbs or sugar in almost a month, definitely three weeks.”

Here’s how the numbers break down:

Mitchell says a healthier weight loss goal would look like losing one to two pounds a week, compared to Kim’s five or more. She adds that even on an extreme diet, Kim would have needed to add in an extra 22 workouts each week (assuming that she burns at least 500 calories per workout) to achieve her goal.

TBH, I’m tired just thinking about it.

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