Notes from Chris

Episode 481

For Melbourne native Andrew Taylor, food addiction was a real problem. At 36 years old, the former junior Australian Champion marathon kayaker and physical education/health high-school teacher found himself at his heaviest and unhealthiest and wanted to make a drastic change to his life.

So, he decided to make a New Year’s resolution that would transform his health. But he didn't adopt the fad diets and hectic gym sessions most of us make on January 1st. He opted for something a little more...drastic.

Andrew wanted to treat his transformation not as a weight-loss problem, but as an addiction problem. So, he decided to remove food as a stimulus altogether and, instead, focused on one food only—potatoes.

Armed with a degree in Applied Science (Human Movement) and a fascination with all things nutrition-related, Andrew spent six weeks researching ‘the perfect food’ before he settled on the humble spud. Despite the shunning potatoes have received over the years as a result of their high carbohydrate count, they pack quite a punch nutritionally. Andrew could get all of the fat, protein, vitamin C, and iron that he needed, and the high fiber content kept him full and sated.

Between January 2nd, 2016 and January 2nd, 2017 Andrew started what he called the "Potato-Only Diet," which would later go on to become Spud Fit. 99.9% of his caloric intake would come from potatoes and the other 0.1% from seasoning. If you saw the film The Martian with Matt Damon, you know just how vital those seasonings are to maintain this kind of diet.

To hold himself accountable and document his progress, Andrew kept a video diary on YouTube. He uploaded daily videos he'd recorded through his mobile phone and uploaded straight to his channel. There was no editing involved, and it was as raw and basic as possible. This reduced any barriers to him posting his videos and made the process simplistic.

It's important to note that Andrew never planned on turning Spud Fit into a business. He just wanted a way to share his message with anyone who cared. Which, surprisingly, turned out to be a lot of people.

His YouTube channel started to attract attention, and after just a few months, Andrew had developed an audience of devoted "Spuddies" who tuned into his channel to watch his progress. They were amazed by his results—losing 121 lbs over the course of the year—and the thick skin he’d developed through his discipline. Andrew was also never afraid to dig deep into the emotional aspects of his life and the challenge, like dealing with depression, anxiety, and addiction. This provided a lot of value and solace to his fans.

These products have taken Andrew and Spud Fit to around $1,500 a month. Which is a great amount of money for a business that was never meant to be a business!

Although the press coverage has died down, Andrew keeps growing his business through social media. He regularly uploads content to his blog + podcast, Facebook and YouTube. And he’s always overwhelmed by the response his products get, and the hundreds of people he’s able to help through his story and Spud Fit challenges. It’s a true story, a life transformation and a side hustle success—definitely not small potatoes.

 

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  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Spud Fit: This side hustle is anything but small potatoes—learn more about Andrew's journey over on his website!
• YouTube | Spud Fit: Watch Andrew's journey from beginning to end over on his YouTube channel

SEE ALSO:

• Engineer Beats Wildest Eggspectations With Recipe Blog: A Minnesotan software engineer turns healthy recipes into an online business that has over three million website visitors a month
• Private Chef Turns Performance Food Into $30,000/Month Hustle: A California professional uses her autoimmune disease to learn about healthy performance food, creating two businesses in the process
• Ketogenic Cookbook Author Makes $1,000 the First Day: After striking out on a new ketogenic lifestyle, one woman creates a $2,000/month side hustle sharing tips and recipes on her blog

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

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