Dieting? Your 10 Best Options

If one of your New Year’s resolutions just so happened to involve dieting, you’re in luck: The Daily Beast does your homework for you, analyzing 10 major diets for overall weight loss, change in BMI, and of course, whether the weight loss actually sticks. The result? A ranking of the most effective diets:

1. Volumetrics: It focuses on foods packed with water, like soup and non-starchy vegetables to make you feel more satisfied. The 6-month mean weight loss is 19.6lbs.
2. Low-fat diet: Pretty simple, really. Stick to a diet in which up to 30% of your calories come from fat and 10% from saturated fat, and eat 1,500 calories a day (women) or 1,800 (men). The 6-month mean weight loss is 12.9lbs.

3. Weight Watchers: It’s all about counting calories, fat, and fiber via the popular points system—and lots of support helps. The 6-month mean weight loss is 12.3lbs.
4. Mediterranean diet: Fruits, vegetables, nuts, and olive oil are the core of this diet; red meat is largely avoided. The 6-month mean weight loss is 10.1lbs.
5. Atkins diet: You know the drill … carbs are bad! The 6-month mean weight loss is 12.1lbs.

Click for the complete list—or, if you can’t handle the thought of Atkins, click for some carb-friendly diet ideas. (More diet stories.)