Simon Cowell talks more about his fake-vegan diet which led to a 20-lb weight loss

"America's Got Talent" Season 14 Live Show Red Carpet

Here are some photos of Simon Cowell at the America’s Got Talent Season 14 “live show” red carpet. I don’t understand what that event is – ?? – but it happened on August 14th. Anyway, this post is just another annual reminder of what Simon Cowell looks like. I try to provide these once or twice a year, because honestly, Simon looks very different from year to year and we need to say that outloud. Simon has gotten fillers and Botox for years, and what pisses me off is that he has the money and access to get much better cosmetic work and he just… doesn’t. He really looks like he gets the cheapest work out there.

As CB recently covered, Simon has been talking a lot about his weight loss this year. He lost 20 pounds by going vegan, or so he claims. As CB pointed out, it sounded a lot like Simon went in for some blood work with some non-MD naturopath and that same naturopath decided that Simon needed to eliminate almost everything from his diet. Simon spoke about his diet at this event:

Simon Cowell is showing off a svelte new figure — and it’s all thanks to his revamped, vegan diet. The America’s Got Talent judge surprised fans with his trim physique Tuesday night on the red carpet, wearing a tight-fitting gray shirt and black pants. Cowell, 59, has credited his weight loss to a strict vegan diet that saw him say goodbye to meat, dairy, wheat and sugar.

“I went to see this guy, who’s very well-known, and he said to me after doing some blood work, ‘You can’t have red meat, dairy, sugar, bread or gluten,’” Cowell recalled to Extra in March. “I’m thinking, what about alcohol? That’s all I care about. And he said, ‘Maybe not quite as much as you had before.’”

The American Idol alum took the doctor’s advice, jokingly comparing the diet to that of his son Eric, 5, whom he shares with girlfriend Lauren Silverman. “It’s like the Eric diet because he actually, apart from ice cream, he actually likes water,” Cowell marveled. “I mean, who likes water? And his raw vegetables. So I’m on like, the Eric Cowell diet.”

The British star said he was surprised by how easy it was to adapt to his new diet, thanks to simple tricks like swapping his daily yogurt with almond-milk yogurt.

“I can eat certain fruits, but not all fruits. You have to be careful because some fruit can have more sugar than a can of Coke,” he explained. “Once you get into a pattern I’ve found it quite enjoyable. It has helped me sleep and I wake up feeling less tired. I noticed a massive difference in how I felt in about a week.”

[From People]

As I get older, I have less patience for disordered eating in the guise of “trendy dieting.” It would be one thing if Simon went for real medical testing and professional doctors, dieticians and specialists worked out a customized diet to make him healthier. That’s not what happened. And here’s something else: I don’t even believe Simon is adhering to this quacky diet – I think he just went in to his plastic surgeon’s office for some face work and he decided to get lipo as well. Also: if you’re feeling puffy or like you need to lose a modest amount of weight, one of the EASIEST ways to do it is simply decreasing your alcohol consumption. Those are empty calories and the booze is making you puffy, especially as you get older. It’s weird to me that Simon’s fake doctor was like “let’s put you on this extreme elimination diet but you still get to booze it up regularly.”

"America's Got Talent" Season 14 Live Show Red Carpet

"America's Got Talent" Season 14 Live Show Red Carpet

Photos courtesy of WENN.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

86 Responses to “Simon Cowell talks more about his fake-vegan diet which led to a 20-lb weight loss”

Comments are Closed

We close comments on older posts to fight comment spam.

  1. Mellie says:

    His teeth in that last picture reminds me of the Friends episode where Ross gets his teeth too white….

    • Julia says:

      HIS TEETH!!! How does he look at himself in the mirror and think “yep, it’s a good look”.

    • Lucy2 says:

      Or Matt Dillon in there’s something about Mary ! OMG.
      He does not look good, and probably should see an actual doctor, rather than someone who just charged him a lot of money to tell him really basic stuff – cut out many foods and you lose weight. Shocking!

    • whatWHAT? says:

      seriously…THOSE. TEEFS! way too white and large. and his face looks very different. I can appreciate the losing of weight doing that a little, but his eyes look droopy at the corners – is that a tell for botox?

      and the dude needs to STOP WEARING belled/flared pants that are too long for him. he doesn’t have to go tapered, but a straight leg that is actually the correct length would look so much better than this Denny Terrio thing he’s got going on.

      HOLEESH*T. I just googled pics of him from the first year of American Idol. def cheek implants and something major done to his eyes. what a difference…and not in a good way…oy.

      • (TheOG)@Jan90067 says:

        Looks like a huge hand pressed down on the top of his head, squished his forehead down to hood his eyes and push out his cheeks. Very Frankenstein-ish 😝.

        And spot ON to the Ross comparison! lolol

      • whatWHAT? says:

        he’s always had that rectangular-shaped flat head and his hairstyle does it NO favors. it totally accentuates the Frankenstein’s monster look.

      • 50centish says:

        But then we would see his manly heelshoes. Seriously, he hides his lifts under those pants. All the time.

      • emma33 says:

        Oohhh…Is he using those long pants to hide lifts? That would make Sense, because it is such a dated look.

    • RoyalBlue says:

      Yikes. those teeth are giving me nightmares. Has he gotten into his grandfather’s dentures?

    • emma33 says:

      That is the comment I was going to make!!! When the lights go off and you just see his teeth glowing in the dark?! I hope Simon’s aren’t glow in the dark. (Would eliminate the need for bedside lamps though….)

      Also, his fashion?? Why does he always wear the same boot-leg style of pants? Does he think it makes his legs look longer? I don’t get it.

  2. OriginalLala says:

    whatever work he is getting done is awful. My registered dietitian, who is plant-based and espouses intuitive eating instead of “diets” would have so many thoughts about his diet – one of which would be that demonizing fruit is a bad idea and rather common with alot of people who suffer from orthorexia.

    • Ronaldinhio says:

      It looks like facial reconstruction after surgery? Has something happened to him we are unaware of? I do actually mean this seriously.
      He looks to have a very different bite to his jaw than previously – as though he now has an over bite?
      Which is overlooked by the insanity of the tooth colour
      He then has had garden gnome style fillers
      An eye and eyebrow lift.
      I wonder if there is something else going on for him…..

    • Carol says:

      Yes, fruit has sugar but different type of sugars than a can of coke. Fruit is not bad for you unless you are already diabetic. I hate it when people go to quack doctors and then proselytize the bad information.

    • PointingScreaming says:

      I notice “getting the eyes done” always gives the look of a weird beady look. What’s the impetus for this procedure? Help me understand, because I love laugh lines?

  3. Tai says:

    He does look slimmer but man, his face is just jacked and weird.

    • Chica71 says:

      His eyelids have disappeared. Looks like cheek implants and fillers, one cheek is moving up and the other is going down.

  4. Roserose says:

    My god, what’s happened to his face? Was that….. Intentional?

  5. Peg says:

    All Simon is now is a head. LIPO all the way.

    • Esmom says:

      Lol. Eek, he is hard to look at. It’s sad…clearly he’s chasing something he’s never going to catch.

    • Krakken says:

      Simon needs to go back to the face shop and demand a refund. That mess is fully broke.

  6. A random commenter says:

    One of my friends went to a chiropractor who diagnosed her with non-celiac gluten sensitivity and dairy intolerance, and he did it all based solely on a short verbal history, no blood work or other testing! :/

    She cut out basically all food except lettuce and ice water. When she lost 25 pounds, she told anybody who’d listen it was because of the chiropractor, and not, you know, because she was starving herself. Do your research people! Go to a provider who is qualified to diagnose the conditions he’s supposedly treating you for.

    • Eliza says:

      I mean if you cut out 80% of the food you were eating, and replace it with vegetables – you will lose weight. It just sounds better to say you HAVE to because XYZ than just admit you’re restricting.

    • Frida_K says:

      Is that even within a chiropractor’s scope of practice? To diagnose in this way?

      My advice: take a look at the web site and dig carefully before you go to any healthcare provider. It’s easy to jump on the bandwagon and front but unless the person has had substantive training and is clear about their scope of practice, steer clear. Most medical care providers have minimal training in diet and nutrition. If they have training and it’s only based on American standards, that’s pretty limited and based on industry supported ideas. Anyone who wants to get you on supplements is in it for their pocket and not your gut. And so forth.

      There are a lot of nuts out there, in Western biomedicine and in holistic healthcare, and you have to be smart about things. Cutting out huge swathes of food choice is not healthy. Being compelled to take expensive supplements is not healthy.

      Having a substantive conversation with your healthcare provider about a healthy weight for you (and this varies depending on body type and cultural values, among many other things) is a crucial first step. Your listening skills and bulls/t detector should be the foundation of it all, though.

      • A random commenter says:

        I believe chiropractors can act as primary care, but he was promoting himself as a “wellness physician” which is a big no-no. A chiropractor is not a physician.

    • Borgqueen says:

      You really have to do your research and make sure the doctor is qualified in the field he is treating you. I worked in a medical malpractice and I cant tell how many drs try to treat outside their field. I knew of a case where the podiatrist was doing penile enlargement surgeries and ended up butchering 20 guys.

    • MissM says:

      Lol I know a woman who went to her ciro and was diagnosed with celiacs. My friend has it and I’m certain that this woman does not have it since she has been gluten free for years and still spends half of her day in the bathroom. Girlfriend probably has IBS but she refuses to see a doctor, her chiropractor and herbalist run the show. The best part is that she brought her son in because the chiropractor told her he could give him an adjustment to cure his ADHD. Spoiler: it didn’t work.

      • A random commenter says:

        That pisses me off because I have celiac disease. I had blood work and a biopsy, and gluten-contaminated foods can have me on the toilet for days and writhing with the cramps. I hate the fakers because they inevitably make things more difficult for those of us with the real thing.

      • Baby Jane says:

        Do they, though? The “fakers” invariably increase the market for gluten free foods in stores and restaurants… doesn’t that expand your options and overall awareness of the condition? Serious question.

      • A random commenter says:

        Yes, absolutely they do! I can get more gluten free options in mainstream stores now, but I also run into so many people who don’t take my legitimate illness seriously because others do it on a whim. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve ordered salad without croutons or a bunless burger, only to be told “just pick off what you don’t want.” I literally can’t! Joint pain, cramps, diarrhea for DAYS, and I get massive ulcers in my mouth.

        In my experience, the fakers can never stick to it 100%. That’s why you get fools at restaurants demanding gluten free entrees and then wanting to know where’s their bread basket. They trivialize what I have to do to survive.

    • Godwina says:

      It maddens me. Everyone who goes to a homoepath or naturopath or somesuch is akways immediately put on an elimination diet, usually for no good reason other than for the quack to justify their fee or profession. And most patients come out of those sessions believing 1) they have all these intolerances and 2) they are food-special.

  7. Pixie says:

    The effect of the work he has done on his face, is the reason I worry for a lot of young people in their early 20’s getting so much work done. I’m no expert, but it seems to me he has had so much botox and fillers done on his cheeks and forehead, that some of the muscles on his face and around his eyes, aren’t able to keep up. The long term effects of fillers and botox are so unknown, and so potentially scary that I think it’s really irresponsible that doctors are so casually injecting young people. What are celebrities like Kylie Jenner going to look like after 20 years of Botox and fillers? Even much older celebrities that have had work done, certainly didn’t start in their early 20’s and most of them look pretty dubious already.

    • A random commenter says:

      You can’t go overboard and you certainly can’t try to cover bad habits with Botox and filler cause it shows. The thing about Botox is, it wears off within a few months and your face returns to what it was. The drooping eyelids or paralyzed face comes from Botox injected at the wrong site, Botox that has migrated, or using too heavy a hand.

      • Pixie says:

        That makes sense. But also continuously using Botox in the same ‘right’ spots for years will eventually make the muscles weaker and flatter and according to Google start ‘to recruit surrounding muscles when you make facial expressions’, resulting in super weird faces and probably what is happening to Simon in the picture. I feel like all these procedures are in their most experimental phases, and they’re just using people as testers :/

      • Frida_K says:

        Unused muscles atrophy and facial muscles are small to begin with; I cannot image how wispy and unhealthy a person’s muscles would be after decades of Botox.

  8. The Twinkle Function says:

    I said this last time but I reckon old mate is losing weight with the aid of the Bolivian Marching Powder…

    • Zapp Brannigan says:

      Agree that something is not right with him, there was also that weird falling down the stairs accident that he had a while back, if I am remembering right the facts reported didn’t add up, something was very off like the papers were dancing around what really happened.

      Also if someone with his access and moolah ends up looking like that after plastic surgery what hope do ordinary people with limited budgets have of not ending up looking like a panto villain.

    • yiza says:

      HAHAA Bolivian marching powder. I’m bolivian and I enjoyed this comment.

  9. Seraphina says:

    Good grief. He face looks so strange. Almost comical like Jim Carey in the mask.

    I would much rather have 10/15 pounds more on my frame and be healthy and have my face look normal. As the saying goes: it’s either your ass or your face, you can’t save both.

  10. Becks1 says:

    Oh man, his face. He needs to stop whatever he is doing to it. ASAP.

    He does have an interesting point about fruit – it can have a lot of sugar, which is something to watch out for if you are trying to specifically decrease your overall sugar intake or you are diabetic obviously, but I don’t think any doctor is going to say, “coke and strawberries are the same, so just drink the coke!”

    • Arpeggi says:

      Some fruits have indeed lots of fructose but unless you’re diabetic and/or, like my diabetic granddad, eat a dozen bananas and a kilo of apricots daily, no healthcare professional will ever tell you to cut fruits. Fruits, veggies, legumes and, unless you are celiac, whole grains are good for you. Cut booze for sure but if you feel like you have to make a choice between carbs from watermelon or beer? Well you are an alcoholic and no dieting will change that

  11. Chica71 says:

    Behind the facial hair, the right sidw lips are disappearing into mouth and the other side is so full.

    • holly hobby says:

      Maybe that’s why he has that sloppy facial hair. He was pretty much clean shaven until he decided to mess with this face. This is all sad and unnecessary. He wasn’t that bad looking in the early AI days.

  12. CharliePenn says:

    He’s ending up with the face he deserves, the big old bully. I actually want to like him but every time I watch him on TV he is just such a shallow meanie. Not even in a fun or silly way, he just seems mean.

  13. BayTampaBay says:

    I never got Simon Cowell and could never figure out why it seemed like a million women were crazy about him. I have the same problem with Ryan Seacrest…I just don’t get it????

  14. Sayrah says:

    I had no idea who that picture was on the main page. He looks like a bad wax sculpture at Madame Tussaud’s. Wow

    • Chaine says:

      That’s what I was going to say, he looks like a budget wax museum attempt at George Michael. Absolutely ghastly. Those chompers are the stuff of nightmares.

      • Ana Maria says:

        nnooooo, George Michael was handsome, ’till the end he was handsome; Simon looks like a circus freak

  15. Jess says:

    I think he’s gotten too much Botox on his crows feet. It makes the cheeks weird and Apple-y like that. I know because I had it done and hated it. It makes your smile look fake.

  16. Adrien says:

    Was he ever overweight to begin with? His weight looks samey to me.

    • olive says:

      he famously had moobs on american idol. he wasn’t overweight, just got unlucky in the fat distribution department.

  17. olive says:

    no one’s interested in your diet, simon, we want to know about your FACE

    • Turtledove says:

      “no one’s interested in your diet, simon, we want to know about your FACE”

      That made me laugh out loud. Directly to the point and 100% accurate.

  18. Mego says:

    I’ve been noticing older men who had work done and most of the time it looks as obvious and bad as women. Watching Jerry O’Connell in Carter and his face looks like a wax figure. Really noticing that and bad weaves/wigs. Men are doing it just as much as women. Partly why I prefer British tv as actors look so much more natural.

    • Anne Call says:

      Yes, I so agree. I mainly watch British and foreign tv series, but have gotten into the Good Fight and really love it. Having said that, the American actresses are so glammed up and facelifted and tottering around the office on 5 inch heels, it’s distracting. I do love Lucca, but it turns out she’s British!

  19. Michelle says:

    Mother of Pearl! WTF happened to his face? It looks like his forehead collapsed onto his eyes. Don’t even get me started on his teeth. Why would someone do this to themselves?

  20. L84Tea says:

    He looks so….odd.

  21. Deanne says:

    Jacked up face and disordered eating aside, I can’t get over his ridiculously long pants, used to cover up his high healed boots. No wonder he fell down the stairs.

  22. Solange says:

    My god those cheeks are terrifying.

  23. Sunnee says:

    Saving all these comments 4eva!. Thanks for the belly laughs to start my Friday!

  24. Missy says:

    My man needs to lay off the eyeliner and the teeth bleaching.

  25. Oy vey says:

    He looks like his head is disarticulated from his body and the head actually belongs to a man 6’4″ and 250 lbs. He’s got a floating, giant head.

  26. pollyv says:

    His eye surgery is awful and his veneers are too large and too white.
    So many men that have eye surgery look like deer caught in the headlines. He looks so different now.

    • GMonkey says:

      I wonder if some of the men who get plastic surgery fail to see subtlety? I agree that their plastic surgery is much more the stuff of nightmares than women. Many seem attracted to less subtle surgery in women, as well.

  27. Anna says:

    Too many people (celebrities and non) try to label disordered eating as “healthy” and “clean”. (There are absolutely people out there who have dietary restrictions, and that’s not what I mean here.) It’s really worrying and disturbing how many people feel somehow virtuous for cutting out major food groups because the internet tells them its “better”.

    Kind of sounds like Simon, if he’s actually following this eating regimen, is falling into disordered eating as well. That plus all the plastic surgery is not a good mix for anybody.

  28. Nicegirl says:

    I’m suffering from an extreme condition which makes my colon allergic to several food types. I absolutely hate it. Alcohol is not helpful for my condition and I cannot imagine the nutritionist at the gastroenterologist telling me to keep the booze flowing while restricting other nutritive items. Ok Simon bad lipo liar face. Gosh it doesn’t even look good

  29. Andrea says:

    It looks like his eyes were photoshopped on upside down. What on earth happened?!

  30. yeet says:

    @Kaiser yes cutting alcohol is one of the easiest ways to lose weight!! Drinking before bed can help you feel sleepy and help you fall asleep, but then the alcohol keeps your sleep light and so your body doesn’t go through the proper stages of sleep – which is actually important for brain, memory, muscle repair, keeping your heart healthy – so many things. Also alcohol can prevent your body from absorbing the nutrients in the food you’re eating. I’m not a teetotaler by any means, but that’s why I drink in moderation.

    When I lived in NYC and LA, it was amazing to me how many people will go on and on about toxins this and organic that like GOOP but meanwhile were losing sleep to party all the time, and/or thinking nothing of going to town on a bottle of wine plus some cocktails and drugs. Ethanol is an actual toxin people ingest in high doses, not pesticide residue on lettuce or a small ingredient in skin cream. it is gonna eff your health up way more than some conventional lettuce and parabens in your skin scream but go awf.

    • Kitten says:

      Ugh this is where I’m at right now. I always gain a bit of weight in the summer and I’m REALLY ready to lose it for the fall.
      I KNOW that if I cut out the two or three beers I have after work that the weight would fall off. But beer is so comforting in Trump America and it’s become a habit that when I get home my BF and I will crack a couple of good beers and have them with dinner on our patio. I’m hoping I can break out of this pattern starting in the Fall.

      But yeah, everything you said about alcohol is true, even what you said about people eating healthy then boozing at night lol I feel like you’re describing me *sobs*.

  31. Maaite says:

    Wow is he now a dead ringer for Adolf Hitler circa WW1. Scary.

  32. Sticks says:

    Agree he just looks crazier. To be honest, I bristled at the assumption this advice came from a naturopath. Contributes to a negative stereotype. They’re not an MD replacement and don’t try to be. I’ve seen one for years and has been tremendously helpful for me.

  33. intheknow says:

    Can you imagine waking up the middle of the night seeing that face standing over you?? He could be in the movie “It”
    **Shudders**

  34. khaveman says:

    I would just say that if you lose a large amount of weight get your trousers/pants taken in so they fit properly. Or buy new. If they are really expensive (the man is wealthy) and you don’t want to ditch them, just tailor.

  35. Mab's A'Mabbin says:

    I can’t unsee a massive overbite. I’m sure it’s his tanning product or lighting, shading, whatever. I can’t look at him without thinking of Goofy. Does Simon have a dog named Pluto?

  36. Savannah says:

    I swear, this man’s had a midlife crisis since he was born.
    He just came out of his mother and thought: “OMG I’m getting old”

  37. Granger says:

    ALL naturopathic doctors prescribe this diet to first-time patients. Every. Single. Time. It’s an elimination diet that is supposed to help you figure out your food sensitivities/allergies so you can avoid those things going forward. Having done it myself I know how much weight you lose on it — I think I lost 8 lbs in 3 weeks. Which is way too much too fast, and the SECOND you start eating normally again, you gain it all back. Because… d’uh. Pretty much all you’re eating is vegetables and fish, so yeah, of course you’re going to lose weight!

    As other reasonable posters have already said, if you want to lose weight (and aren’t struggling with food insensitivities/intolerances that are legitimately wreaking havoc on your overall health), eat what you normally eat — just eat less! It’s totally possible to lose weight and still eat bread, have cream in your coffee, and indulge in the occasional small bowl of chips or ice cream. It really is simple science — 3,500 calories equals about 1 lb of fat, so if you can cut around 300 calories a day and burn another 200 calories through exercise, you should lose about 1 lb a week. So let’s say you drink 1 glass of wine every evening and have 2 slices of bread each day. Cut out that glass of wine and go down to 1 slice of bread and boom, that’s 200 calories right there. 30 minutes of walking burns anywhere from 150 to 200 calories (depending on your weight and how fast you walk). Heck, weeding your garden for 30 minutes can burn 150 calories!

  38. KinChicago says:

    #JapanesePotatoes

    • Nicegirl says:

      Hitting the ‘love it’ button for your Japanese potatoes comment ❤️💕🖖🏽

  39. Str8Shooter says:

    And yet even with all that $$$ still has the worlds dumbest-looking haircut!

  40. Bkittyb says:

    He looks awful, sorry.

  41. Amelie says:

    No he lost a lot of weight. If you google pictures of him when his son was a toddler, he does look very puffy but also you can tell he gained some weight. I’m not trying to be unkind but he was a bit heavier. There’s no way lipo alone could have given him such a svelte figure. He definitely dieted, whether it was going vegan or through some other diet.

  42. Alexis says:

    He looks like he’s melting. As long as he’s happy I suppose. *shrug*

  43. jd says:

    what the actual %^&*$ has he DONE to his FACE??!!