The Volumetrics Eating Plan

What it is: Volumetrics creator nutritionist Barbara Rolls believes that the trick to losing weight is to focus on satiety (or feeling full) that comes from foods that aren’t high in calories. Rolls claims that the Volumetrics plan will often allow dieters to eat more – not less – and still lose weight.

How it works: The plan is designed to have you lose a healthy amount of weight, about an average of 1 to 2 pounds per week. There are four main factors that make the volumetrics plan successful: eating foods with low energy density (see below), keeping records of meals and exercise, increasing exercise and learning how to calculate energy density.

What you do: There are no banned foods on the Volumetrics Eating Plan, but dieters are encouraged to pick foods based on their energy density. Energy density is the number of calories in a specific amount of food. Cookies and oils, for example, are especially dense, while something like water has zero energy density. The goal is to eat foods that have low energy density so that you can eat more and still consume fewer calories. Some very low density foods include non-starchy vegetables, nonfat milk and soup broths. Dieters are also encouraged to eat lean protein and filing fibers, and while sweets are still permitted, it is recommended that they are eaten sparingly.

Benefits: Nutritionists praise the volumetrics plan as a healthy approach to long-term weight loss. The plan also includes many recipe options and suggestions that may be helpful to dieters.

The Down Side: Some experts worry that the feeling of fullness that comes from eating water-rich foods may disappear quickly, leaving some dieters hungry for more. It may also prove too tedious for some dieters to calculate energy density and spend time cooking meals according to the eating plan.