Sylvester Stallone had to change his diet after 'Rocky III' due to brain damage

At 77 years old, Sylvester Stallone is a legend when it comes to action movies and, without a doubt, continues to be a leader in the genre.

Despite the passing of the years, far from losing his physical shape, the actor continues to stay in impeccable shape thanks to his work in the gym and a diet that fits his needs. However, there was a time he wasn't always in control of his diet and there was a time when he paid the consequences.

In the 80s, Stallone was flying high thanks to two successful installments of 'Rocky' and about to release a third, which was released in 1982. However, while preparing for the film he went through a process that caused him brain damage due to a strict and surprising diet.

Why Stallone endangered his health

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, the actor revealed what some of his dangerous habits were: "I used to drink about 25 cups [of coffee] a day when I was doing Rocky III. My entire breakfast would be maybe two [small] oatmeal cookies made with brown rice and 10 cups of coffee because I wanted to keep my body fat down to 2.8%."

Although he achieved his goal and lost 13 kilos, that ended up costing him, especially when it came to his memory. "I was forgetting my phone number. I was eating just tuna fish. My memory was shot, it was completely gone. I was getting all kinds of debilitating physical effects. But it was for the cause."

Over time, Stallone has always maintained his defined and muscular body in action movies. But those problems led him to stop that diet after 'Rocky III' and, although he maintained a healthy and balanced diet for the various films he had to tackle, he never went through that again.