Noom doesn’t restrict certain types of foods or limit you to a certain number of calories. That approach causes cravings and results in yo-yo dieting. So, to achieve sustainable weight loss Noom educates you to make better food choices. Specifically, they focus on “calorie density” which is how many calories are in a given weight of the food.
For example, a bowl of raisins is much denser and has a lot more calories than a bowl of grapes because the grapes have a much higher water content. You’ll feel just as full eating the same amount of grapes as raisins, but the grapes are a lot healthier. Make sense?
Noom divides all food into three categories based on calorie density: green, yellow, and red.
As you can guess, the colors are a lot like those on a traffic light, telling you when to go or slow down; essentially navigating you through food town like a metaphorical GPS. (No?!) By the way, if you want to try Noom, we have a 14-day free trial, or view all promo codes here!
Here is Noom’s green, yellow, and red food list, plus more about how the color system works:
Noom: Green Foods | Yellow Foods | Red Foods | Printable Food List | Color System
Noom Food List (Printable)
If the grid goes down, how will you know which foods are on the Green, Yellow, and Red food list? I recommend printing this food list and keeping it next to your canned goods, silver coins, and bullets.
Here’s a free printable version of Noom’s food list:
Noom GREEN Foods:
Green is the healthiest food category and is full of the least calorie-dense foods like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. (Sorry, keto: no bacon on this food list!) Similar to WW’s “Zero-Point Foods,” Noom’s Green foods are the healthiest food choices. Since they are high in water and nutrients, they fill you up with a lower number of calories, and there’s no guilt in eating Green List foods as the bulk of your diet.
Here are the most popular items from Noom’s Green food list: (a-z)
| • Apple • Banana • Blueberries • Bread (whole grain) • Broccoli • Brussels Sprouts • Carrots • Cereal (whole grain) • Cheese, non-fat (cottage, feta, etc) • Cherries • Coffee (black, 1% milk) • Condiments (not creamy) • Corn • Cucumbers • Egg Whites • Green Beans • Lettuce • Milk (skim, almond, cashew) • Oatmeal • Onion | • Peas • Pita (whole grain) • Pasta (whole grain) • Polenta • Potatoes • Rice (brown) • Peaches • Pineapple • Salad Greens • Soups (vegetable, miso, etc) • Spinach • Strawberries • Sweet potatoes • Tortilla (whole grain) • Tofu • Tomato • Watermelon • Yogurt (Greek, non-fat) • Zucchini |
Noom YELLOW Foods:
Foods on Noom’s yellow foods are generally more calorie-dense and have less nutrition per serving than those on the Green food list. The yellow food list has a lot of lean meats, starches, and the carbs that didn’t make the cut for the Green list, like white pasta and white rice. That’s OK, though, because you’ll be encouraged to incorporate these yellow foods in moderation.
Here are popular items from Noom’s yellow food list:
| • Avocados • Beans (baked, black, chickpeas) • Beer • Bread (white) • Cheese (low-fat, cottage) • Chicken (grilled) • Couscous • Cottage cheese (low-fat) • Deli Meats • Eggs (scrambled, boiled, etc) • English muffins • Fish (salmon, cod, tilapia) • Guacamole • Hummus • Legumes • Meat, lean (beef, pork, lamb) | • Milk (low-fat, 2%) • Rice (white) • Pasta (white) • Peas • Pita bread • Potatoes (mashed) • Protein powder • Olives • Quinoa • Quiche • Seitan • Salmon • Soda (diet) • Tempeh • Turkey (breast, sausage) • Yogurt (Greek) |
Noom RED Foods:
Uh, oh… the light just turned red! With Noom, red doesn’t quite mean, “Stop!”, but you should know that these are the most calorie-dense and least healthy foods. That means it takes a lot of calories from foods on Noom’s Red foods to fill you up, and you should eat them less frequently and in smaller portions.
Foods on the Red List include red meats, processed foods, desserts, and wine. While no foods are forbidden, think of foods on the Red Food List as a treat to enjoy in moderation.
Here are popular foods on Noom’s Red food List:
| • Bacon • Butter • Cake • Cheese (full-fat) • Chocolate • Cookies • Energy/snack bars • Flour • French fries • Fruit, dried (raisins, etc) • Ham • Hamburgers • Honey • Hot dogs • Mayonnaise • Meat, red (beef, pork, lamb) • Meat, fried | • Milk (Whole) • Nuts • Oils • Orange Juice • Pancakes • Peanut butter • Pizza • Popcorn • Potato chips • Pretzels • Salad Dressing (creamy) • Salami • Sausage • Seeds • Sugar • Wine • Yogurt (full-fat) |
How the Color System Works:
Noom describes their color system as, “a hammer in your toolkit for long-term success – to bang out new behaviors, reinforce good habits you already have, and remove any unwanted nails in your sides.”
How did they know I love metaphors? Anyway, Noom asks you to use the color system to:
- Make food choices in the moment: “Should I order a baked potato or french fries?”
- Analyze your previous food choices: “I’m not used to eating vegetables before dinner” – oops!
- Find healthy substitutions and opportunities: “I could substitute lean ground turkey for ground beef next time I make this recipe!”
Noom has a database of thousands of foods besides the popular examples on these color-coded food lists. Every time you log food, Noom will immediately tell you what color it is: green, yellow, or red. They also offer hundreds of healthy recipes with color and calorie info:
After a while, you’ll remember which foods are what color, and you should start to notice a positive behavioral change as you make better choices on your own.
OK, does that make sense? Here are the most popular foods on their Green, Yellow, and Red food lists:
No Foods Are Off-Limits!
Noom uses the simple green, yellow, red, color system to educate you and encourage healthy food choices. Remember, no foods are off-limits, but you have to make smart choices to stay within your daily budget. If you do, you should lose weight!
Tip: Can’t live without potato chips? That’s ok, but mind the portion size, and eat them with a filling food like an apple or piece of low-fat cheese!
Noom’s simplicity and low monthly price make it easy to follow, and the weight loss you experience from positive behavioral change should be sustainable.
Have you tried Noom yet? If not, we’re happy to recommend it and to pass along the exclusive free trial offer that we were given by Noom:
Not sold on Noom? Consider the highly-rated WW (Weight Watchers) diet, similar in some ways, but based on a point system instead of a color system for food. We have WW coupons!
*Related: WW Points List: 99 Most-Tracked Foods
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