Illusionist Penn Jillette Unveils Slim New Look, But This Is No Magic Trick

NEW YORK(CBSNewYork) -- Illusionist Penn Jillette is looking slim and trim these days without the help of any magic tricks.

As CBS2's Jill Nicolini reported, Jillette has lost 105-lbs.

Looking much slimmer Jillette told People Magazine that he went from 330-lbs to 225-lbs after his hypertension almost put him in the hospital.

"When Penn went to the doctor he was taking six pills a day for high blood pressure, and it was always a struggle for him and they said if he lost about 100-lbs he may never have to take those pills again," Emily Longeretta, Senior Entertainment Editor at Hollywoodlife.com, explained.

That was the driving factor behind his weight loss. He didn't want to take anymore medication so instead he began an extreme low-calorie diet.

As Dr. Keith Ayoob from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine explained, that type of diet isn't safe for everyone.

"I do have some concerns that he lost a lot of weight very quickly, and my concern number one it's not always sustainable when you do that, plus I'm concerned he lost a lot of muscle," Dr. Ayoob said.

You could also be missing out on nutrients unless you take supplements.

"My biggest concern is that it's not going to be able to give you enough protein. He'll lose weight, but you'll lose weight on any diet of 1,000 calories," Dr. Ayoob said.

From December 2014, until March, Jillette followed a strict vegan diet that focuses on fruits, vegetables, and beans.

He also said he chose to skip breakfast.

"When you skip meals you skip nutrients and you don't always make up for it the rest of the day, plus when you're starting out your day breaking your fast, that's what breakfast is, and that means you need to start eating some protein," Dr. Ayoob said.

Jillette said the one downside to losing all the weight is that he had to get new suits for his Penn and Teller shows, which were quite expensive.

Now that his diet is over, Jillette said he will continue to eat vegan and will continue a '7 minute scientific workout' which includes juggling and magic.