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You don't have to go hungry to lose weight. The volumetrics diet helps you choose healthier foods that encourage weight loss while still eating a decent volume of food.
We asked Elise Harlow, a registered dietitian with a Master of Science in Nutritional Sciences, to help explain how the volumetric diet works.
Here’s everything you should know before starting this diet.
Dr. Barbara Rolls, a nutrition and obesity researcher at Penn State University, developed the volumetrics meal plan.1
It involves eating foods that are high in both fiber and water. Foods that are rich in water and fiber are filling but have fewer calories.
If you stick to low calorie density foods, you can eat up to 3 meals, 2 snacks, and 1 dessert daily without significantly adding to your calories. 2
The volumetrics diet fills you up with low-calorie dense foods. This includes foods that have a high water and fiber content, such as broccoli.
This will reduce your overall caloric intake and help you reach a calorie deficit while still having large and filling meals. In turn, this encourages your body to burn excess fat.
Your meals will mostly consist of foods that keep you full with fewer calories. You can also eat some foods with higher energy content.
The volumetrics diet divides foods into 4 categories based on their calorie density:
To get energy density, divide the number of calories per serving with the food’s weight in grams.
Category 1 and 2 foods are preferred for their low caloric density. They also tend to be healthy foods packed with nutrients.
Below are some examples of foods you should eat more of with a volumetric diet.
Some examples of category 1 foods are:3
Some examples of category 2 foods are:3
A unique feature of the volumetrics diet is that it doesn’t eliminate entire food groups. Instead, it focuses on what you should eat more or less of, depending on their calorie density.
Here are some foods to limit if you’re on a volumetrics diet. You don’t have to stop eating them, but you do have to reduce their portions in your meals.
Examples of category 3 foods include:3
Here are some examples of category 4 foods:3
Yes. You can lose weight by following the volumetrics diet. It contains foods with low energy density. This allows you to eat bigger portions while maintaining a calorie deficit.
Studies show that eating less energy-dense foods is effective for weight loss.4 It can also help you maintain a healthy weight since it’s easier to stick to the diet.
The volumetric diet helps you develop a healthy relationship with food. It encourages you to eat low-calorie and nutrient-dense foods and reduce your intake of foods with a high caloric density.
High-calorie options tend to be unhealthy processed foods. Cutting back on them can protect you from heart disease, diabetes, and high cholesterol levels.5
The volumetrics diet plan encourages you to eat lots of fruits and vegetables. They provide nutrients necessary for several body functions. They also promote gut health by providing fiber.
The volumetrics diet is great for losing weight. It reduces your daily calorie intake while keeping you satiated for longer periods.
It doesn’t deprive you of food or nutrition. This makes it suitable for healthy weight loss and long-term weight management.
However, registered dietitian Elise Harlow reminds readers that weight loss plans should be individualized and that results may vary for each person.
“While there are several aspects of the volumetrics diet that are beneficial, such as eating more fruits and vegetables, the outcomes of a diet can not be guaranteed for any individual person,” she says.
But if you’re not comfortable with the volumetrics diet, there are other weight loss diets you can try. Just remember to consult your doctor before starting any diet.
