This diet is consistently
ranked as one of the best weight-loss plans.
By Locke Hughes
Eat plenty of food—as much as you’re eating now, or even
more—and still shed pounds. Seems like an unlikely weight-loss plan, right?
Luckily, it’s not too good to be true: Developed by Barbara
Rolls, Ph.D., a professor of nutritional sciences and obesity researcher at
Penn State, the well-researched Volumetrics diet was named the number-two best
diet for weight loss and tied for the number-five best diet overall (out of 40
diets) in the 2018 U.S. News & World Report’s Best Diet Rankings. It
received high scores from nutrition experts for being safe, effective, and
sustainable in the long run.
And, yes, it centers on one fairly simple idea: filling up
on fewer calories. “The main claim, and premise by which the Volumetrics diet
works, is the satiety claim,” says Lisa Davis, Ph.D., chief nutrition officer
at Terra’s Kitchen.
The primary focus is filling up on foods that are naturally
low in calories and high in fiber or water—think fruits, veggies, and soups. “Since
carbohydrates and proteins both provide four calories per gram, and fat
provides nine calories per gram, you can eat more [carbs and protein] without
the excess calories,” she explains, noting that people following the
Volumetrics diet can expect to lose up to two pounds per week.
Of course, like most things in life, there’s more to the
Volumetrics diet than meets the eye. We talked to a few registered dietitians
to get the low-down on this eating approach.
The Volumetrics Diet Menu
If diets with strict rules and restrictions make you crazy, here's
your reason to celebrate: You don't have to count calories, measure food, or
log points on the diet. "Volumetrics is not a precisely prescribed diet
plan, but rather a concept and overarching nutritional approach,” says Paul
Salter, R.D., nutrition editor for Bodybuilding.com and founder of Fit In Your
Dress.
On the Volumetrics diet, food is divided into four groups, he
explains. Your goal: Eat mostly foods in groups one and two, be mindful of
portion sizes of foods in group three, and minimize choices of foods from group
four. And nothing is completely off-limits.
1. Group one: non-starchy
fruits and vegetables, nonfat milk and broth-based soup
2. Group two: starchy
fruits and veggies, grains, breakfast cereal, low-fat meat, legumes, low-fat
mixed dishes like chili and spaghetti.
3. Group three:
meat, cheese, pizza, french fries, salad dressing, bread, pretzels, ice cream
and cake.
4. Group four: crackers,
chips, chocolate candies, cookies, nuts, butter and oil.
Here's what you might eat in a typical day on the
Volumetrics diet, according to Salter:
• Breakfast: Vegetable
omelet with side of whole-wheat toast
• Morning
Snack: Low-fat Greek yogurt with fruit
• Lunch: Lean
meat chili with beans and vegetables
• Afternoon
Snack: Air-popped popcorn (no butter) with glass of milk
• Dinner: A
piece of fish, steamed veggies, quinoa
Does The Volumetrics Diet Really Work?
Of course, the million-dollar question: Is it legit? According
to solid scientific research (including a 2016 meta-analysis of 13 studies that
found a link between low-density foods and weight loss) and well, good old-fashioned
common sense, it works. “One of the main reasons why people break their healthy
eating is because they get hungry,” says Julie Upton, R.D., a registered
dietitian and co-founder of Appetite for Health. Since you're still eating a high
volume of food on the Volumetrics plan, you avoid those diet-busting hunger
pains.
Hundreds of other nutrition studies back this up. In a 2007
study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers
randomly assigned 97 obese women to either a low-fat diet or a low-energy-dense,
low-fat diet that emphasized fruits and vegetables. After a year, both groups
lost weight, but the fruits-and-vegetables dieters lost even more—14 pounds
compared with 11 pounds. The researchers deemed low-energy-dense diets an
effective way to drop pounds and keep them off.
A 2005 study published in Obesity Research, co-authored by
the Volumetrics diet creator, Rolls, suggests that a diet high in low-density
foods and soup, a staple on the Volumetrics eating plan, leads to substantial
weight loss. Another study of 186 women found decreasing energy density is a
way to prevent weight gain and obesity in both the short and long term.
Another perk of the Volumetrics diet: “The majority of low-calorie,
high-volume foods are nutrient-rich, and therefore positively impact your
health in a variety of ways,” Salter says.
Are There Any
Disadvantages?
Now, if alarm bells are ringing in your head, you're not
alone. As we've written about before, not all high-calorie foods are "bad"
for you. In fact, plenty of foods that are high in calories and fat are
essential for good health, such as nuts, seeds, avocado, and fatty fish.
One potential drawback to this diet is that it recommends a
very low consumption of nuts and seeds (since they are calorically dense), Davis explains. "Nuts
and seeds provide monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids; both beneficial
for cardiovascular and cognitive health."
This Is Why Almonds Help
You Lose Weight
Plus, like many diet plans, it can also be difficult to dine
out on the Volumetrics diet, since so many restaurants and food services
prepare their food with high-calorie, high-fat butters and oils, Davis points out. But no
foods are 100 percent prohibited on this diet—it's more about putting the
principles into practice.
Related: This Is The Diet Jessica Alba Used To Lose 11
Inches In 4 Months
Want to Get Started?
First, you'll want to check out Rolls' book, The Ultimate
Volumetrics Diet. Then, you'll want to make meal prep your BFF. "Buy all
of your produce and prep a lot of it over the weekend," Upton suggests. You'll also want to find some
great soup recipes. "Broth-based soups are very low in energy density and
if you eat them before a meal, they can help you eat less," she says.
"Planning out your meals for the week ahead of time
will be crucial to your success," Salter adds. "Try to keep some high-volume,
convenient foods handy too, such as fresh fruit and plenty of low-fat dairy. Once
you return from grocery shopping, make food prep a priority so that there’s no
thinking required at meal times—all you need to do is heat and eat!"
Finally, while it's not an essential component, the diet
plan does encourage more movement throughout the day. There's no rigorous
exercise program, but it does suggest simply increasing the amount of steps you
take per day with the end goal of reaching around 10,000 steps, Davis says.
The bottom line? If the thought of prepping and eating more
low-density foods, skipping calorie counts, and simply moving more sounds
doable, you may be the perfect candidate to give the Volumetrics diet a try.
Source: www.womenshealthmag.com
