Do you need to eat LESS or eat DIFFERENT? That question popped into my head the other day. Often times when people are trying to lose weight, they complain of being hungry all of the time. Does that really need to happen? No. In fact, I have clients who say they can’t eat all of the food recommended, while they are successfully losing weight.
What is the difference? What I am referring to is eating DIFFERENTLY. It is common that when you are making the choice to switch to eating clean and less processed foods, that are the healthier selection, you can eat a larger volume while receiving the benefit of improved nutrients and decreased calories. When planning out your main meals, start with loading your plate with non-starchy vegetables, then add a healthy protein, and then a whole grain. Include a small amount of healthy fat, too, like nuts, avocado or olive oil. The vegetables provide a high volume of food with minimal calories and a great source of fiber that helps to satiate you. For healthy snacks, utilize fresh vegetables or fruit while adding a small amount of healthy fat or a lean protein (Greek yogurt is a great option).
One of the eating plans out there that aims for just this, is called The Volumetrics Eating Plan, by Barbara Rolls, PhD.
Some of the key parts of the Volumetrics Eating (and lifestyle) Plan are:
- Eating foods with low energy density. Rolls says that, for most people, counting calories is pretty difficult. Instead, she suggests that you learn what kinds of foods are high and low in calories so you can make better choices. To help you out, she supplies plenty of recipes and meal suggestions for people who are trying to eat basic 1,600 or 2,000 calories per day diets. The more recent book, The Volumetrics Eating Plan, provides three weeks of complete eating plans for every meal and snack.
- Keeping records of the foods you eat and the amount of physical activity you get. Rolls says that doing this is important for your long-term success. You start by recording your food and exercise on an average week so you get a baseline. This will let you see where you need to make improvements. Also, Rolls suggests that you log your weight at least once a week — and not more than once a day — to follow your progress.
- Increasing your physical activity. You need to start slow, but Rolls suggests that eventually you should aim to exercise for about 30-60 minutes on most days. Any activity that you enjoy is fine. She suggests that walking is a great approach for many people, and recommends using a pedometer.
- Learning how to calculate energy density in foods so that you can eat — and shop — more wisely. The book also has loads of charts at the end, which give you the energy density and calories of various foods by weight.
What principles can you add to your fueling and health plan? Think long-term and sustainability. This is another plan, another suggestion, another thought process. Most important, what can work for you? Accountability? More recipes? More vegetables? Eating out less? Don’t wait until New Year’s Resolutions to start making changes, start today! Even one small change a day is one step closer to developing a healthy living plan.
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