When Tom Hanks was preparing for his role as Chuck Noland, a plane crash victim stranded on a deserted island, he lost 55 pounds to play the part. The diet he went on in order to lose the weight was a bit extreme. He was not allowed to drink coffee, so the self admitted latte addict switched to drinking tea instead. This was necessary in order for Hanks to cut down on his intake of milk, which reached as much as a half-gallon due to his love of lattes. Since tea has fewer calories than coffee, this is one thing that helped him drop the pounds. Hanks also drank lots of water for the duration of this diet, because he needed to replace the fluids he was losing by exercising as often as he was. This was a necessary step to stop him from becoming dehydrated.
Tom Hanks Diet
When Hanks would feel hungry, he would eat large amounts of both vegetables and fruit. This allowed him to consume natural food without having to go hungry between meals. The major staples of his diet were crabs, coconuts and coconut milk. This diet later became famously known as both the Castaway Diet and the Tom Hanks Diet. Hanks joked that during the first two weeks of his diet regimen it was possible to fit an entire meal in the palm of his hand. That, combined with having to workout two hours a day, reportedly took its toll on Hanks.
Years after completing this diet, Tom Hanks started another diet that focuses on cutting out sugar and other sweets. He was inspired to try this after seeing how fellow actor and friend Alec Baldwin looked after going on the same diet. Hanks reported that Baldwin looked great as a result, and that he wanted to look just as great. Hanks also started on this diet because he realized he is getting older and high blood sugar often becomes a problem for many people when they reach a certain age. Since he has cut sweet snacks out of his diet, Hanks has reported looking better and feeling healthier.
Years before these two diets, Tom Hanks lost 26 pounds to star in the movie Philadelphia, where he played an AIDS patient. His willingness to put his body through diet plans he wouldn’t normally consider shows what a dedicated and serious actor he is. There were countless roles that Hanks had to their gain or lose weight in order to play, and he always did it with grace and dignity. With the discipline to stick to the correct diet and exercise procedures, Hanks has enhanced most of the roles he has played by simply throwing himself into whatever it took to look the part, regardless of what the part actually was.
Tom Hanks is an actor who has more than earned the awards he has received from playing such diverse and complicated characters throughout his career. He is truly the epitome of a timeless actor through the years.
|
JAMES OKUN 
CRACKER 