Put away those fat pants—for good. Tanya Zuckerbrot wants to change lives, one whole-wheat bagel at a time. Author of F-Factor Diet, this New York City-based dietician calls her plan an anti-diet diet. Now is a good time to consider it, since winter weight gain is a common concern. The average weight loss on this high-fiber diet is 20 pounds in two-and-half months.
F-Factor Diet Basics
“It’s natural, it’s inexpensive, and you can do it without hunger,” says Zuckerbrot, who created the high-fiber diet. “Diets fail because people are hungry all the time, so they don’t stick with it.” What’s different about the F-Factor diet plan? There are no forbidden food groups. “Most people end up eating more food on my diet than they ate before,” Zuckerbrot says. “They can’t believe how much they’re eating, and how few calories they’re consuming. Plus, you can go out to dinner, have a couple of drinks, and not cheat on your diet. Beats sitting at home with a packaged diet dinner!"
Weight Loss on a High-Fiber Diet
The secret ‘f’ word that makes this possible? It’s fiber, an unsexy concept if there ever was one. Roughage, bulk, bran, teaspoons full of yucky stuff granddad puts in his orange juice--that’s fiber. “Fiber is the dirty little word no one wants to hear,” Zuckerbrot says. “If you want to lose weight and improve your health, there’s nothing like it,” she adds. The medical community agrees that dietary fiber offers many health benefits.
The average weight loss on the F-Factor diet is four to six pounds in the first two weeks, or about 20 pounds in two-and-a-half months, Zuckerbrot says. “We’ve had patients lose 200 pounds,” Zuckerbrot says. Socialites, actors (Brian Dennehy is a client), Radio City Rockettes, movie executives and stay-at-home moms have embraced the F-Factor diet plan.
How Fiber Promotes Weight Loss
So what is fiber? It’s a natural substance, non-digestible, with zero calories. It has no nutritional value. It simply goes in and comes out, so to speak. So why is it a magic bullet for weight loss? As Zuckerbrot details in her book, “fiber acts like a sponge in your digestive tract, absorbing other molecules like carbs, fats, and sugars, along with all their calories, and preventing them from settling on your hips.” Fiber adds bulk to foods, she says, providing the satisfaction of chewing and feeling full without adding calories. Also, since fiber-rich foods take longer to digest, “you feel fuller longer, so you eat less,” Zuckerbrot says.
High-Fiber Foods for Dieters
But is having a buff body worth it, if it means surviving on bran flakes and prunes? Zuckerbrot pooh-poohs the notion that fiber is icky. “A pear has six grams of fiber, compared to 3.9 in a serving of dried prunes,” she points out. Other good things that are packed with fiber include blueberries, almonds, crackers, soup, salads, whole-wheat bread and pasta. Along with fiber-rich, good carbs, F-Factor followers eat lean protein, including fish, chicken, shellfish, even lamb, beef, and veal. Zuckerbrot’s mantra is, “Fiber and protein at every meal makes losing weight no big deal.”
Typical Meals on a High-Fiber Diet
F-Factor dieters count carbs and fiber, not calories. A typical breakfast might feature a berry parfait with yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, almonds, bran and cinnamon. For lunch, perhaps a Greek salad with shrimp. Dinner options include Asian-flavored tuna, pecan chicken, beef fajitas and turkey chili. Desserts and snacks include popcorn sprinkled with parmesan cheese, chocolate-covered bananas, and chocolate-cherry almond biscotti.
Is a High-Fiber Diet Healthy?
The average American consumes between nine and eleven grams of fiber per day, far short of the 35 grams a day Zuckerbrot recommends for weight loss. As a result, “We’re fat and constipated!” she says bluntly. “We’re in a fiber deficit. Why else would we spend $1 billion per year on laxatives?” Changing one’s diet to a mix of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein is a huge health-booster, she says. “Crank up your intake of fiber and you’ll cleans the toxins from your body,” she explains. “Your hair will be shinier, your skin will look better. My patients just feel amazing.”
Eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein is a healthful approach to losing weight, and the extra fiber helps dieters feel full. Feeling full and satisfied helps dieters resist the temptation to overload on sugary, fatty foods.
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