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The Diet-Type Weight-Loss Program

Theory:

When it comes to weight loss, people are definitely not alike.  They differ in the rate at which they gain and lose pounds, as well as in where they accumulate them, when they accumulate them, and the reasons they become and stay overweight.  Even more important, they have distinct eating habits, preferences, life-styles, medical histories and attitudes toward food that will determine the kind of diet that suits them best.  Just as everyone has a blood type, he or she also has a diet type. There are five basic diet categories:

1. High-Fiber/Super Grain Diet

You can actually eat more and weight less on this diet – no strict portion control is required.  Plentiful in complex carbohydrates – whole grains, cereals, pasta, potatoes, legumes, fresh vegetables and fruits – low in fat and featuring far more protein from plant than animal sources.

Sample Menu

• Breakfast – Muesli (Swiss cold oat cereal); ½ cup uncooked rolled oats with ½ cup mixed sliced banana and apple, 1 tablespoon chopped almonds (optional) and ½ cup skim or soy milk. For added fiber in this and all morning cereals (and lunch and dinner entrees or dessert), top with 1 to 2 tablespoon each oat and wheat bran
• Lunch – 1 cup Hearty Lentil Soup, 1 whole-wheat pita pocket stuffed with 1-2 ounces low-fat (1 percent) cottage cheese, chopped fresh scallions, grated carrot, romaine leaves, raw broccoli, shredded cabbage (or any other fresh herb/vegetable combo)
• Dinner – Festive Vegetable Stir-Fry with Oriental Brown Rice, tossed escarole and bell pepper salad with yogurt relish (plain low- or nonfat yogurt mixed with lemon juice and horseradish to taste)
• Snacks – 1 apple, 1 tablespoon sunflower seeds, 1 cup air-popped popcorn with fresh chopped herbs and dash of olive oil

2. Modified Protein-Plus Diet

This diet is designed for those who wish to advantage of an effective weight-loss plan that features their favorite protein foods and healthful, lower-fat alternatives.  It may also benefit those who crave carbohydrates and wind up bingeing on them at every opportunity.

Sample Menu

• Breakfast – 1 soft-boiled or sunny-side-up egg on toasted whole-wheat English muffin, ½ grapefruit
• Lunch – 1 serving Spicy Tuna-Vegetable Melt, 1 cup skim milk, 1 apple
• Dinner – 4 ounces broiled loin lamb chop with mint or Magic Meat Loaf, stir-fry vegetables with Tahini-Miso Dressing, mixed green salad green salad with tarragon vinegar and 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Snacks – 1 tablespoon roasted pumpkin seeds, ½ cup low-fat (1 percent) cottage cheese with chopped scallions, radishes and green peppers with dash of hot sauce

3. No-More-Allergies Diet

This diet is aimed at those who either crave or respond unfavorably to certain foods and whose chronic symptoms may result from diagnosed or suspected allergies.  By “rotating” troublesome items – carefully timing when they are eaten – it helps break the food sensitivities and dependencies that lead to unwanted weight gain in some people.

Sample Menu

• Breakfast – Rice cream cereal, cooked apple
• Lunch – Two-Bean Salad, Millet with Cauliflower and Onions
• Dinner – Oriental Stir-Fry, Rice with Carrots and Onions
• Snacks – Rice cakes, local fruit: apples, grapes, pears

4. Natural Raw Foods Diet

This eating plan emphasizes carbohydrates in the form of leafy greens (raw or lightly cooked) and fresh fruits instead of whole grains and starchy vegetables.  It is a predominately vegetarian diet, high in water content, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and fiber.

Sample Menu

• Breakfast – 2/3 cup crispy brown rice cereal with 1/3 to 2/3 cup Nut Milk
• Lunch – Zesty Broccoli-Spinach Salad, ½ cup steamed brown rice with chopped dill and sesame seeds
• Dinner – ½ cup Pasta Vegetable Medley, Broccoli with Lemon Sauce or Roasted Red Peppers, escarole and endive salad with lemon, fresh minced garlic and olive oil
• Snack – ½ papaya with fresh blueberries or ½ any fresh fruit in season

5. Bored of Health Diet

This program aims to build on the best in the American diet and tends more to the mainstream than the exotic. For those short on time or patience (or both), the plan serves up supermarket food, often of the ready-made variety, and is also easy to follow on the road, where standard restaurant/hotel fare is common. 

Sample Menu

• Breakfast – 1 slice Aunt Jemima Cinnamon French Toast with Poiret Apple and Pear Spread or Sorrell Ridge Conserves (fruit only)
• Lunch – ½ cup Light n’ Lively Low-fat Cottage Cheese (1% milkfat) on romaine lettuce; sliced apples, grapes and pears
• Dinner – 1 serving Gorton’s Light Recipe frozen fish, White Rose Frozen Peas, Bird’s Eye Frozen Spinach

This book includes a questionnaire that will help you identify your eating attitudes, preferences, habits, and beliefs as well as your diet and medical history to discover the best Diet Type for you.

General Principles for Dieters

Don’t focus on calories; it’s their quality, not quantity, that counts above all.  Do cut back on fats.  Bear in mind that it’s hard to gain weight on unrefined complex carbohydrates – whole grains, legumes, fresh vegetables and fruits – so you should definitely be paying more attention to these foods, no matter what your chosen diet. 

Ronald L. Hoffman, M.D. 1988.  New York : Simon and Schuster

Information provided on this website is not meant to replace the services of your physician, but only to act as an educational tool. The diet summaries are by no means a substitute for reading the actual diet programs, but rather are synopses of basic principles meant to pique your interest and help you select a diet. Be sure to consult your physician and read the entire diet book before beginning any weight loss program.