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4 Keys to Weight Loss Success WebMD Weight Loss Clinic -
Feature=A0 If you listen to a lot of the stories in the
media, you might believe that losing weight and keeping
it off is virtually impossible. The common wisdom is
pretty discouraging. Sure, you can lose weight, but
what's the point, since you'll just put it on again
sooner or later? And since your body type is determined
by your genes, why bother trying anyway? Well, here's the
encouraging news: None of that is true. Regardless of
body type or genetics, all sorts of people are
successfully losing weight and keeping it off. While it
may take some hard work and dedication, you can as well.
The National Weight Control Registry In 1993, we started
the National Weight Control Registry as a way of studying
the behaviors of people who successfully lost weight and
kept it off. We wanted to see what methods these people
had in common, since they could help us discover the best
strategies for weight maintenance. To enroll in the
Registry, a person must have maintained at least a 30-
pound weight loss for at least a year. However, on
average, members of the Registry have lost 67 pounds and
kept it off for six years. Those are inspiring figures.
Looking at the data, we haven't seen evidence to confirm
the idea that our genes make our destiny when it comes to
weight. If people really had a genetic "set point" weight
as some argue, why would the average weight of Americans
be getting heavier each year? While genes certainly play
a role, they don't predetermine what your weight will
always be. Instead, they provide a range of weights that
are possible depending on your diet and amount of
exercise. So you have more control over your weight than
you might think. By looking at the behavior of the 4,200
people in the Registry, we've identified four common
characteristics of those who've lost weight and are now
keeping it off. These suggestions don't make up a diet
program. But if you're looking for ways to keep weight
off, adopting these behaviors isn't a bad way to start.
Lose Weight For Life Day One: Set Your Mind to
It=A0=A0=A0 Day Four: Fighting 40s Flab Day Two:
Conqering Cravings=A0=A0=A0 Day Five: Weight Loss Ever
After Day Three: Magic Bullets? Eat a Low-Fat, High-
Carbohydrate Diet Although a lot of people may think of
only pasta and bread when they hear the word
"carbohydrates," complex carbohydrates are in many foods,
not only grains but also in beans and many vegetables.
People in the Registry say they get about 56% of their
calories from such carbohydrates, and only about 19% of
calories from protein. Fat makes up about 25% of their
diet. People in the Registry also say they consume 1,300
to 1,400 calories a day on average, but that number is
probably lower than what they actually eat. Remember that
a good diet probably isn't one that makes you outlaw
certain types of food. Being too strict can make it hard
to stick to a healthy eating plan. The problem for most
people is not so much that they're eating the wrong
things, but that they're eating too much. Moderation is
important. But what about protein diets? People using
protein diets can and often do lose weight. The fact is
that you can probably lose weight on any of the major
diet plans, and Registry members slimmed down employing
all sorts of different approaches. However, what we've
found is that people who are successful at maintaining
their weight loss eat a low-fat and high-carbohydrate
diet. So while a protein diet may be good for losing
weight, it may not be the best for long-term weight
maintenance. Exercise Every Day Exercise is key to
maintaining your weight loss and it's probably more
important than diet. On average, people in the Registry
exercise between an hour and an hour and a half a day.
Yes, that's a lot. But before you despair, it's not as
bad as it sounds. First, many of the people break up
their exercise throughout the day instead of doing a
single, marathon work-out session. Second, one of the
most common methods of exercise is walking, which is easy
to incorporate into your day. If you're just starting
out, it's important to begin slowly. Starting too fast
can cause pulled muscles and discouragement. Instead,
gradually work up to a full hour. Alternatively, you can
increase your number of steps. Get a pedometer, or step
counter, and record the number of steps you take in an
average day. Then slowly increase them. An hour or an
hour and a half every day is a lot of time. But look at
it this way: if you could lose weight and keep it off for
the rest of your life with just an hour or so of exercise
a day, would it be worth it? A lot of people say yes. Eat
Breakfast Every Day Although some people try to lose
weight by cutting down on the number of meals they eat,
that really isn't a good strategy. Skipping meals often
just means that you'll be starving later and wind up
overeating. Starting the day with breakfast can help
prevent that, and on average, members of the Registry eat
breakfast every day. A daily breakfast may also be a sign
of the discipline that Registry members bring to how they
eat. Being careful about when you eat may also help make
you conscious of what you eat. Keep Track of Your Weight
and Eating This is a behavior shared by weight
maintainers that runs against common wisdom. Many people
have argued that weighing yourself regularly can put too
much emphasis on weight rather than fitness. We don't
know exactly why regular weighing is a common
characteristic of people who've been successful at
maintaining their weight, but we speculate that people
use their scales as an early warning system. If a person
weighs herself regularly, she'll notice quickly if she
has gained a few pounds and can then implement some
strategies to prevent gaining more. Checking your weight
less often can mean that you might wake up one morning
and discover that you gained 10 pounds. That can be
pretty discouraging, and it might cause you to just give
up. The Myth of Painless Weight Loss One thing that
people in the Registry tell us again and again is that
weight loss and weight maintenance is not easy: it's hard
work. Diet programs that advertise easy or painless
weight loss and weight maintenance tend to fail in the
long run. A lot of the people in the Registry tell us
that they only lost their weight after they gave up on
the "painless" methods. The problem for many people is
that they work hard at losing weight but then don't have
the skills to maintain that weight loss. We've found that
the best way to do that is to exercise and eat carefully
for the rest of your life. That may sound tough, and it
is. But when we ask people on the Registry, they say
losing the weight was worth it, and that it actually got
easier over time. Getting to a lower weight has made
their lives better.
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