Do you cheat on your diet because you cannot bear to go hungry? Millions of people around the world are in the same boat. These people are victims of yo-yo dieting because they just cannot go hungry when they are on a diet.
Barbara Knolls has utilized her training as nutritionist to teach people to choose foods that control hunger. The secret is to know how to eat less while feeling fuller, and it is contained in the Volumetrics book.
The term ‘energy dense’ refers to foods that have more calories per serving size. According to the author, energy density plays a vital role in deciding weight fluctuations because we tend to eat the same weight of food everyday.
By choosing less calorie dense foods, we are effectively reducing the number of calories without feeling starved! For example, a gram of fat has 9 calories while a gram of wheat bran has much fewer calories.
The book explains how to calculate the energy density in different books. Fat is the most energy dense food. The lower the energy density of foods, the better these foods are for a person on a diet because they can consume more of such foods.
Since the book propagates the principle of eat more to weigh less, it’s not surprising that the recommended foods include high fiber vegetables and fruits. These foods have a lot of water. So, for example, a cup of grapes may contain 50-80 calories, while a cup of raisins may contain more than 500 calories! The more processed the food is, the more calories it has. Less processed foods are lean on calories but they help fill the stomach.
It is true that by today’s standards, the information in this book is nothing revolutionary. But, if you bear in mind the fact that Volumetrics was first published in 2000 – just about when the Atkins diet was making humongous waves – you will appreciate the groundbreaking thought process in this book.
A diet of low density foods is recommended. Rolls recommends natural, fiber rich foods and throws out junk foods, processed foods, fats, alcohol, colas and carbs. High density foods like useful fats should only be taken in to answer basic nutritional needs.
To make it easy for people to take in low density meals, the book contains about 125 easy, tasty recipes. Some examples include Vegetable stuffed Macaroni and Cheese and a salad dip that is as tasty as it is low on fat. Light desserts are also outlined in the book.
Volumetrics Review
This diet was rated by Consumer Reports as the most sustainable weight loss program. The reason is simple – the plan is healthy, nutritious and sensible.
There is a lot of additional, helpful information. Exercise is also given due importance in this plan.
Pros:
- Recommends healthy foods
- Eliminates fattening food
- Expounds a very easy to understand approach to weight loss
- Teaches dieters to follow their diet without feeling deprived
- Emphasizes the importance of exercise
- Plenty of recipes along with their calorie counts
Cons:
- No information on alternatives that may be used in case of food allergies
- Data compilation and presentation tend to be a little confusing at times
In Conclusion
What we have here is not a weight loss plan but a way of life. By checking the entry of calorie laden foods and integrating an exercise program along with behavior modification, the diet plan makes losing weight highly achievable.
