Volumetrics - May/June - 2008
 

Welcome . . . :hug: . . . Thought we should have a new start once again, since the previous thread was getting rather long . . . Hope this will become one of your favourite places at 3FC . . .

VOLUMETRICS is not new, it just hasn't been making as big a splash in the weight loss community as some of the better known plans. I first discovered Volumetrics about a year or two ago thanks to the review on 3FC. After reading the review I went and bought both of the books and decided the Principles of Volumetrics was something I could live with . . . forever.

VOLUMETRICS explains how to FEEL FULL ON FEWER CALORIES . . . and let's face it, most of us don't stick with something very long, if we feel totally deprived all the time. The guiding principle is to get the 'highest volume of food at the lowest cost in calories' by choosing foods with a lower ED (Energy Density). BTW, 3FC has a data-base of over 7000 foods and is one of the few that includes the ED for all the items.

What foods have a lower ED? Basically, those that contain the highest water and fibre contents . . . for example; we all know that grapes and raisins start out as the same fruit, right? Raisins simply have had the water content removed. Did you know that 1/4 cup of raisins contains about 100 calories? More importantly . . . did you know that you can eat almost 2 full cups of grapes for the same 100 calories! I know which would make me feel fuller and stay fuller for longer . . . how about you?

Anyway, enough of my blathering for now . . . Please come and join our little discussion group as we help each other make our way along the long and winding road to better health and fitness the VOLUMETRICS way . . . hope to see you all soon . . . :yes:

If any of those little May Flowers dare to show their little heads around here this morning they'd better bring along an umbrella. :D

However, it is Thursday and I do have a million places to go and things to do (well, at least five that I can think of right now ;), so guess I'd better get myself into moving and shaking mode; pour myself another :coffee: and do a few more things around 3FC so I can get myself out and about in the so-called "real-world", too.

Have a great day and I'll see you all later . . . :carrot:

This coffee man-:coffee:- is perfect for me. Every morning I sit with a cup of coffee and read this thread, along with all my other email. It's a good way to start my day!

Got the book yesterday. Boy, is it ever...informative. Has ne1 ever read Water w/ Lemon by Zonya Foco? I think it's probably along the same lines.

Do you all use the recipes or do your own thing?

Mostly, I do my own thing . . . the biggest eye-opener for me was learning about the ED and how simple it is to calculate (just calories / grams). I use that whenever I'm shopping and feel tempted by a prepackaged or frozen item. If fast mental math brings it in with an ED much above 1.0 to 1.5, I leave it on the shelf. I'm never tempted to pick up one of those 100-calorie packs since I discovered that they have an ED of over 4.0. :yes:

Now, having said that, I planned and executed a treat today and ate a marvellous 70% Cote d'Or chocolate bar which has an ED of 6.0. Do I feel guilty -- a little -- but it was tempered by a salad lunch with a little grilled chicken and a very low calorie, fat-free Italian dressing. I'm going to have an egg-white and mushroom omelet for dinner and will finish the day within my planned calorie levels (albeit, at the high end).

PS: No have not even seen that book -- but :lol: I do love water with lemon :shrug: -- think I'll take a look for the book.

Hey, CrazedLZF! No, never read the Water w/Lemon, but like the concept of Volumetrics - I have used a few of the recipes (liked the chicken salad - kids liked it too!), but mostly use its principles to add volume to my own cooking. I am combining this with calorie-counting - thus far, I've lost 9+ lbs in a bit more than a month, so I'm not complaining. Plus, I am keeping track on FitDay, and popping in here, and other forums on 3FC. Visiting here helps so much - just to read of others' experiences/realities during this life-change train we're all on, keeps me on "track"!

Welcome to the forum! :hug:

Happy May everyone!!!

I just got a loaf of bread out of the breadmaker. Now, the idea is NOT to eat it all at once along with half a stick of butter. I am trying to make 100% whole wheat bread.

Hi . . . :wave:

It's still raining . . . I'd like it to stop. :yes:

Well, yesterday was the 1 year anniversary of the day we had to put our very beloved dog down. I ate a small bag of M&M's to commemorate it and console myself.

{{{ArtCat}}} So sorry for your loss. What a lucky dog that she was love so much that her person is still remembering her.

I wanted to say "Hi" to everyone. I'm trying to learn about Volumetrics so that I can better understand how to make the WW Core plan work for me. I did really awesome at first and then recently, I started to feel like maybe I wasn't making the smartest food choices. Someone said that I should eat more non-starchy vegetables but I didn't totally understand what that meant. So I started to research and learned more about Volumetrics. I want to buy the books but money is a little tight right now (or shall I say, the dragon is awake and is guarding the gold?)

Do you guys know a good description of starch vs. non-starchy vegetables? Is there a list out there somewhere? Or is the division really obvious? What about fruits? I heard that some fruits can be starchy too.

Yesterday, I spent a long time preparing my vegetables and a salad so that I could make better choices over the next few days. But i thought it was funny because I got a hunger headache before I could finish the salad, so I ended up eating a bowl of beans. Not a big deal, but I was trying to get more nonstarchy veggies ready so I could eat less starchy choices.

I found this information on a Harvard web page that used a term new to me (cruciferous), and makes the following recommendations for heart health (and says avoid potatoes):

green leafy vegetables such as lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, and mustard greens;
cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, and kale;
citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit (and their juices)

I know that juice is probably "out" on the volumetrics plan. But I thought I might try to focus on these types of veggies and fruit since it seems like a good recommendation. If you know of any good resources for looking at starchy vs. non-starchy fruits and vegetables, let me know!

p.s. I tried to include the link but evidently, I need to make 25 posts before being allowed.

You are on the right track with what you already found, Susan.

The vast majority of vegetables are considered non-starchy and have a very low carbohydrate level and what there is is coupled with lots of fibre. The most common exceptions are potatoes, corn (which is actually a grain anyway), beets, parsnips, and several of the winter squashes. Green peas are a little higher in cabs also but they are actually a legume, and like other legumes (dried beans) their higher carb level comes with a fairly decent protein level too. Potatoes are definitely not on my 'recommended eating' lists. :lol:

Fruits are higher in carbs and calories than most vegetables because of the natural sugars they contain. Fructose (fruit sugar) however, has a far less intense impact on the body than does the carbs in things like potatoes and white flour and white table sugar. Once again, the carbs in fruits come coupled with lots of fibre. You are far further ahead to eat a whole fruit rather than drinking juice, because you lose most of the fibre to the extraction process.

BTW . . . the original Volumetric book is available as a pretty inexpensive mass-market paperback (Amazon has it for US$6.95). I would also imagine both of the Volumetrics books would be available at your library.

At the moment, I'm running a series called Magic Foods over in the Dieting with Obstacles forum and you might want to hve a look at it . . . http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=139983 . . . it is actually aimed at the latest diet-related, obesity-related problems like Metabolic Syndrom; Diabetes; PCOS; Insulin Resistance.

Hope this stuff is of some help . . . if you hve any specific questions, give me a yell.

I like the original Volumetrics book best. I got it out of the library first, and after I decided I liked it, I bought it from Amazon. I also read the other book from the library. It is fine, but has a lot of recipes and I already have plenty of recipes.

I think your idea of combining Volumetrics with WW is really good. The principles go with any healthy diet and make it more satifying. As far as I am concerned, you can't beat Weight Watchers. I own and like their cookbook.

I am on the "Make-it-up-as-you-go-along" diet, but it is pretty much a low-ish fat, mostly fresh, mostly whole foods plan.

My lunch today was a big salad, poached chicken breast on homemade whole wheat bread with lettuce and seeded mustard.

OMG -- the sun is shining -- it was hard to tell first thing because of the heavy fog, but now that is gone and it's shaping up to be a glorious day. :yay:

See you all later . . . :grouphug:

ArtCat, what a pretty dog. We sure do get attached to our pets.