What Is The Perfect Weight Diet?

The Perfect Weight diet, created by Jordan Rubin, promises to help you reach your "perfect weight" -- the size at which you feel good about yourself. Not a quick-fix solution, Rubin's program, as described in his book on the diet, emphasizes regular exercise and a natural, well-balanced diet based on organic, seasonal foods. Like many other diets, the Perfect Weight diet starts with a highly-restrictive first phase to help you jump-start your weight loss and lifestyle change.

Basics

The Perfect Weight diet identifies hunger as the key cause of dieting failure. Rather than tell you to eat less, this diet requires you to simply eat smarter and make better food choices. The program does not, however, claim you can eat as much as you want of the recommended foods. Instead, you should stop eating when you're satiated but neither overly full nor still hungry. The diet advises you to also plan ahead for meals and snacks; otherwise, hunger may cause you to reach for whatever is most convenient.

Staples

The Perfect Weight diet encourages balanced meals consisting of natural and organic foods, especially nutrient-dense and fiber-rich vegetables, fruits, nuts and beans. You may also eat whole grains on this diet, but Rubin argues that the USDA recommendation of six to 11 servings of grains per day is too many. Instead, he tells readers to obtain a significant amount of carbohydrates from beans, fruits and vegetables. For additional protein, the diet advises you to choose wild game or organic meat, eggs and dairy from pastured or grass-fed animals. Evidence on the health benefits of organic produce is inconclusive, but "Nutrition Journal" reports three decades of research supporting the claim that grass-fed animal products contain less artery-clogging saturated fat and more heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids than similar products from grain-fed animals.

Restrictions

The diet asks you to eliminate processed foods, trans fats, hydrogenated oils, refined flours, refined sugar, preservatives, additives, genetically-modified ingredients and pasteurized milk. Unpasteurized milk is illegal in most states, but you can find cheeses made from unpasteurized milk in most health food stores. The diet advises you to also ditch pork and shellfish, citing both scientific and religious reasons. Government agencies and most scientists, however, affirm the safety of these foods.

Recommendations

Rubin suggests meals and snacks that provide a balance of carbohydrates, protein and fats. He also advises you to eat in accordance with the seasons. In winter, he recommends a diet that is 75 percent cooked and 25 percent raw. As summer approaches, you should begin reversing the ratio to eventually reach a diet that is 75 percent raw. In addition to diet, the Perfect Weight plan encourages you to practice breathing exercises, mindfulness activities, physical fitness and detoxification programs.

Phases

This 16-week program is divided into four phases. Like many other diets, the first phase is the most restrictive. It forbids starchy vegetables such as potatoes and peas, as well as alcohol, seed-based oils, peanuts, soy, dried fruit, bananas and cow's milk. It does permit cheese made from cow, sheep or goat milk. Each phase gets progressively more inclusive, with the fourth phase representing a long-term whole-foods eating plan.