Diet Round-up #2

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If you missed the last Diet Round-up we covered the Atkins and Zone diets. In each series, I’ll cover 2 different types of diets, giving a description, strengths, weaknesses, and my own opinion.

Volumetrics

Description: The idea behind this diet is to eat foods that are not very “energy dense” which is defined by the amount of calories in an amount of food. For example, popcorn, great beans, and watermelon are quite sizable foods, but they are low calorie for a large portion. On the other end of the scale are foods like oils and other fatty foods (since fat has 9 calories/gram).
Strengths: People get to eat more quantity of food on this diet. That’s going to make them feel psychologically full. Fats are limited because they are very energy dense.
Weaknesses: Nuts, which are generally considered to be a healthy and natural food aren’t friendly with this diet. Chicken is a fairly energy dense food and I’m not sure how it works.
Lazy Man’s Take: Overall, I think this diet has strong merits and I think people could do well with it. I’m concerned about limiting nuts and other energy dense foods. I believe they should have a part in any diet you choose.

Weight Watchers

Description: This diet program focuses on a POINT system. A patented formula can be used to determine the POINT value of any food. The dieter’s goal is to not eat more than their POINTS allotment per day. Members often pay to go to meetings, however, if they reach their goal weight meetings can become discounted or free.
Strengths: Many foods seem to label the amount of POINTS it has. The POINTS system is easier for most people because it doesn’t require dieters to calculate pros and cons of fats, carbohydrates, etc.
Weaknesses: Oddly enough, it’s the simplicity of the POINTS system. One could imagine a “diet” that would consist of truly bad foods to eat. You could use your point allotment up on some greasy fast food by noon and then go hungry the rest of the day. What kind of diet is that? Also paying money for membership can be good motivation, but who wants to pay money for a diet?
Lazy Man’s Take: I’ve known a few friends who have lost a lot of weight on this diet, so it’s hard for me to be negative. I don’t think that any are still with the organization and go to meetings, but it’s a small sample size. I’d say that the benefits behind the simplicity of POINTS system outweigh the negatives.

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Posted by Lazy Man on August 3, 2007 in Diets.

One Response to “Diet Round-up #2”

Skinny Guy Says:
August 3rd, 2007 at 8:16 am
I’ve lost 130 pounds on Weight Watchers, and your criticism of the WW point system is valid. However, like any diet system, there are those who follow the spirit of the plan and those who attempt to “cheat” the system. Eating your daily allotment of points on non-healthy foods will definitely NOT lead to success on the program. And the meetings try to teach you that.

There is also a second plan that you can follow on WW which is close in philosophy to the Volumetrics diet. You eat to satisfaction from a list of “Core” foods, and you have a weekly number of points to use for foods that aren’t on the list. I lost all my weight on the points system, and I’m maintaining it on the Core system.

As far as paying for a diet, I didn’t have the discipline this time around to do it own my own. The meetings and the financial commitment gave me additional levels of accountability and support that helped me achieve my goals. And the estimated $625 that I’ve spent on WW meetings is only a small percentage of the cost of some of the other programs out there.

I’m not trying to promote WW over any other program out there, just offering my observations on what worked for me.