UrbanUpdate

Reggie Watts is never not busy. The longtime Comedy Bang! Bang! host has spent years performing as a comedian, musician, and beatboxer, often all at the same time. Since 2015, his primary gig has made him a little more stationary than usual: He snagged the bandleader position on The Late Late Show with James Corden, and working in the same place five nights a week kind of requires staying in one spot.

Watts has not been sitting still during this time, however. Over the past two years, in between filming alongside Corden; recording Taskmaster, a game show airing on Comedy Central; and working with his group Wajatta on a forthcoming (non-comedy) electronic album, Casual High Technology, Watts has shed 60 pounds of fat and put on 20 pounds of muscle. He recently spoke with GQ about how he accomplished such an impressive transformation, and how he manages to ensure that his newfound maniacally healthy lifestyle still includes fruit syrup and hamburgers. (Not at the same time. We think.)

GQ: You’ve had a really big physical change—far more dramatic than just "dropping a few pounds." What made you want to do that?

Reggie Watts: The last time I was in pretty good shape was when I was maybe 27. I’m 46 now! I was touring a lot before I got the Late Late Show gig, and putting on a lot of weight. I felt like an in-shape guy in a fat suit, and when I would see clips of me performing, I’d be like, Argh, I can move much better than that, and I can look much better than that. I want to feel sexier. So when I got the job, my plan was to get a nutritionist and find a trainer.

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Was having your own show coming up a big motivator?

A bit, but the thing about comedy is they don’t require you to be in shape. If you’re a big performer, they’re fine with it. It’s not like being a working actor or action star. You have to create your own presence. But Taskmaster was a bonus. I was already working out when they came to me about it, so I kept doing what I was doing.

What’s surprised you most about the whole process?

I'm still getting used to being in shape—to being close to my goal weight. There’s a little bit of shock because the process of getting in shape is about creating consistency. You do it every week and incorporate it into your lifestyle, and eventually people are like, Whoa, you lost a lot of weight. And I look at myself and go, Oh, I guess I have. It’s like a good version of when people work long hours in an office and then wonder what happened to the time. It’s kind of disorienting.

So what’s a regular breakfast look like on your regimen?

Breakfast is usually a shake that my trainer, Jorgen de Mey, created. It’s real simple—just half a cup of water, half a cup of plain kefir, a cup of oats, one scoop of chocolate egg-white protein, and a handful of blueberries. An alternative is a bowl of overnight oats with a scoop of egg-white protein, or just three egg whites scrambled with two pieces of rice toast.

Wait, rice toast?

It’s rice bread. You can get it at health-food stores, usually frozen. It’s like a small, dense loaf, really light in fat.

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Do you not eat wheat, then?

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I don’t do that well with wheat, so for me, rice bread is great. It’s something my trainer recommended. It’s the ultimate toast. Wheat is different—it absorbs things like butter better. But I just have it plain. It’s a dense, satisfying experience, because it’s kind of chewy if you toast it well.

And how about lunch?

Chicken breast, steamed broccoli, and either brown rice or quinoa. Or sometimes it’s just a sandwich: two pieces of Ezekiel bread with mustard—no mayonnaise—and turkey and pickles. And then usually some salad that I don’t put oil on.

Dinner is even more exciting. It’s chicken breast or turkey breast, all broiled, with steamed broccoli.

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Do you avoid starches at night as a rule?

Yeah, no carbs, no starch. Just vegetables and protein.

This sounds like a lot of behavioral changes, really fast. Is it tough to stick to?

I slip up here and there, and I try to allow myself one cheat meal a week. Usually it’s, like, brunch on Sunday. And on special occasions, or when I want a nice meal, I’ll just experience that. It’s a challenge, because sometimes you get cravings. Even now I’m starving, but I’m going to go work out in just a little bit and I tell myself that it’s fine—it’s okay to be hungry.

So it feels like it’s all routine now?

Yeah, what helps is that now, if I even ate a spoonful of peanut butter, I would feel heavy, like I’ve just gained weight. It’s the weirdest feeling. When sugar hits my bloodstream, I immediately feel gross. I have strong reactions to food now that what I eat is much simpler, which is probably a sign that a simple diet is a better one.

Mine is obviously extreme, because I’m trying to get to around 12 percent body fat and get really ripped and cut—just once! But the last part is tough. I have these eight pounds that just keep wanting to hang on.

You mentioned brunch was one of your big cheat meals. Are you a sweet or savory brunch guy?

Probably savory, but I do love sweet, too. If there’s a gluten-free pancake or something, that can be really nice with butter. I bring my own syrup, this stuff made by a company called Lakanto, which uses monk fruit to make something that tastes exactly like maple syrup. It’s insane. I’ve given it to people and they’re like, “No, that’s maple syrup.” So I use that.

Really, the thing I probably crave the most is burgers. I really crave a hamburger.

Have you found any substitutions that work for burgers?

I do lettuce instead of a bun—that sounds like such a cheap cop-out. But I have had burgers just wrapped in lettuce leaves. It helps you realize that carbs are nice, but the flavor—the strongest part of a burger—comes from the meat and the seasoning you put on it. It’s nice to figure out the best version of the worst thing you can have. That’s what I’m on a mission for.

Luke Darby is a contributor to GQ, covering news, entertainment, and the environment. A Louisiana native, he now resides in Cleveland, and his writing has also appeared in Outside, the Dallas Observer, and Marie Claire.Related Stories for GQReal Life Diet