Noom is a personalized weight loss diet plan based on behavioral change and mental wellness. By using the Noom app to track your food intake and exercise habits and connect with your own health coach, Noom helps you reach your personal weight goals.
About Noom
Founded in 2008, the Noom Healthy Weight Program is designed for weight loss — but it’s much more than that.
Noom uses a psychology-based approach that teaches you how to better understand your relationship with food and how to be mindful of your habits. This allows you to create long-lasting change without engaging in restriction or fad dieting.
The focus on mindset helps set the Noom diet apart from many other diet programs that place all the emphasis on losing weight.
How Noom Works
Guidelines
Everyone’s weight loss journey is personal, and no one best universal plan exists. Noom understands this, and their program is built on supporting you and what works for you as an individual.
The Noom Healthy Weight program includes:
- mini-lessons, which cover topics related to sleep, stress management, and self-care
- one-on-one support with your health coach, who checks in with you weekly
- food-tracking tools, including their color system to help you identify the best foods to keep you full and make sure you stay within your caloric limits
- exercise tracking tools because movement and exercise are an essential part of Noom’s weight loss plan
- tracking tools for weight, water intake, glucose levels, and blood pressure
The Diet Plan
The Noom diet plan uses a color system to help you make healthy food choices. Foods are categorized based on their calorie density and nutrient quality.
Green foods
Foods in the green category are the least calorie-dense and/or are most nutritional, so they should make up the bulk of your diet.
Green foods include:
- vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, cucumbers
- fruit, such as apples, bananas, and strawberries
- whole grains, such as oatmeal and brown rice
- protein sources, like tofu and tuna
Yellow foods
Yellow foods have more calories and/or fewer nutrients, so they should be consumed in moderate amounts.
Some examples are:
- Meats such as grilled chicken, turkey breast, salmon
- Eggs, black beans, tortillas, low-fat cheese, and avocado
Red foods
Red foods are the most calorie-dense and/or least nutritional. You should consume these foods in small amounts.
Red foods include red meat, desserts, oils, seeds, and nuts.
Cost
The cost of the Noom Diet depends on the length of your subscription.
You can select from the following auto-renewing plans, all of which are in USD and include a single up-front installment.
The longer the subscription length, the cheaper it works out each month.
- Monthly: $60
- 2- monthly: $119
- 3-monthly: $149
- 4-monthly: $159
- 5- monthly: $164
- 6-monthly: $169
- 7-monthly: $174
- 8-monthly: $179
- 9-monthly: $185
- 10-monthly: $189
- 11- monthly: $196
- 12-monthly: $199
Dos and Don’ts
Increase your chances of success on the Noom diet by following a few tips.
- Don’t view red foods as bad and green as good — this could lead to an unhealthy relationship with food and is not the purpose of the color system.
- Do weigh yourself at least once a week. The best time to do this is 15 to 30 minutes after waking up in the morning, before eating.
- Do log your meals, snacks, and physical activity to measure your progress.
- Don’t solely focus on the calories in food. Although you should keep a food log, it’s important to focus on the bigger picture and make sure you’re consuming enough fruit, vegetables, and whole grains.
Sample Diet Plan
Below is what a sample diet plan looks like:
Breakfast (200 – 400 calories)
- 1 protein serving – 2 scrambled eggs
- 1 whole-grain serving – 1 slice of whole-grain toast
- 1 nonstarchy vegetable serving – 1 cup of sautéed spinach
- 1 healthy fat serving – ¼ avocado
Lunch (300 – 500 calories)
- 1 protein serving – ½ cup of chickpeas
- 1 starchy veggie serving – ½ cup of beets
- 1 nonstarchy veggie serving – 1 cup of romaine
- 1 healthy fat serving – 1 tbsp of walnuts
- 1 “freebie” serving – 0.5 oz dark chocolate
Dinner (300–500 calories)
- 1 protein serving – 3 oz. sautéed shrimp
- 1 whole-grain serving – ½ cup cooked brown rice
- 1 nonstarchy veggie serving – ½ cup of sautéed asparagus
- 1 healthy fat serving – 0.1 tbsp pesto
Snacks (100–300 calories)
- 1 protein serving – 1 tbsp almond butter
- 1 fruit serving – 1 sliced apple
Health Benefits And Drawbacks of Noom
Benefits
In a small study of overweight or obese prediabetics, 64% of those who completed Noom’s Diabetes Prevention Program had significant weight loss after 16 and 24 weeks. They lost over five percent of their body weight, which is clinically meaningful because it reduces the risk of obesity-related chronic diseases. Weekly weigh-ins and logging meals were critical contributing factors to this outcome.
In another study, almost 78% of 36,000 Noom users lost weight after nine months of using the Noom app. Monitoring weight, exercise, and meals (dinner in particular) was associated with a smaller chance of experiencing the “yo-yo” effect of losing and regaining weight.
Interestingly, one study found that older adults achieved more significant weight loss after 16 weeks on the Noom Diet than younger adults. As age increased by one year, the average weight was reduced by 0.12 kilograms.
Drawbacks
Lack of In-person Coaching
Noom coaching is done virtually via the Noom app, unlike some other weight loss programs (like Weight Watchers) that offer face-to-face sessions in addition to digital coaching.
This could be difficult for people who struggle with technology or are more motivated by in-person sessions.
Noom Health Coach Qualifications
The Health Coaches of the Noom program do not need to be registered dieticians or nutritionists. Although some may have a nutritional or health background, they could still be unqualified to give you expert dietary advice.
Red foods can be healthy
Some foods Noom has labeled red due to their high-calorie content have superior health benefits that many people may not know before restricting their intake. For example, chia seeds have omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants, and walnuts support heart health and help lower your LDL cholesterol (sometimes known as bad cholesterol.)
The Bottom Line: Is Noom a Healthy Way to Lose Weight?
Noom is a well-researched weight loss program. Rather than restricting entire food groups or making drastic dietary changes, Noom helps you identify which foods you should eat more of and which foods you should eat less of. For most people, the Noom Diet is a healthy and safe way to reach your weight loss goals.
