I can still remember my mother’s frustration. Time after time, she’d lose weight only to
put it on again (sound familiar?). Growing up, I thought there had to be a better way to
deal with weight control. Those feelings are part of the reason I went on to study
dietetics–so I could help myself (I inherited mom’s genes!) and my clients (Baby Boomers and seniors) reach their desired body weight and keep it off!
So these headlines from 2014, “Obesity research confirms long-term weight loss almost impossible,” caused me to look closely at how I work with overweight clients, and dig deeper into the statistics. Here’s what I found:
Better Chance of Cancer Remission?
There is a general perception that almost no one succeeds in long-term maintenance of weight loss. In fact, most studies show less than 5% of those who lose weight keep it off after one year. (You have a better chance of a five-year remission from most types of cancer.) The reason is most likely a mix of environmental cues and physiological changes. Regardless of the exact cause, most researchers agree it is not necessarily a lack of will power.
In spite of the gloomy outlook, overweight people are desperate to trim down. A study published in a 1991 revealed that previously morbidly obese pindividuals would rather be normal weight with a major handicap (deaf, blindness or amputation) than be morbidly obese. And Americans spend more than 20 billion dollars annually supporting the weight loss industry!
Rays of Sunshine
But there are actually some promising numbers regarding weight loss. When defined as a 10% drop of initial body weight–a reasonable goal now recommended by many weight loss experts–research shows that approximately 20% of overweight individuals maintain the loss for at least one year.
And results of a four-year study with more than 5,000 overweight or obese adults with Type 2 diabetes, published in 2011, showed that by year four, 42.2% kept off nearly 18% of their original weight for the full four years. Successful participants in the Look AHEAD project (Action for Health in Diabetes) paid close attention to food intake, exercise and education throughout the program.
Another source of inspiration are the 10,000 individuals being tracked in the National Weight Control Registry (nwcr.ws). This largest prospective investigation of long-term successful weight loss maintenance, started in 1994, collects information about the strategies used by successful individuals (participants must have lost at least 30 lb. and kept it off for one year). The average NWCR member has lost 66 lb. and maintained the loss for more than 5.5 years. Successful strategies reported by participants include:
• engaging in high levels of physical activity (about one hour per day)
• eating a low-calorie, low-fat diet
• eating breakfast regularly
• self-monitoring weight
• maintaining a consistent eating pattern across weekdays and weekends
In addition, weight loss maintenance may get easier over time. After individuals have successfully maintained their weight loss for two to five years, the chance of longer-term success greatly increases.
A Lifelong Commitment
One of my favorite weight-loss experts, Dr. Yoni Freedhoff, author of the book, The Diet Fix, sums it up (I’m paraphrasing): If you don’t like the life you’re living while you’re losing weight, you’re not going to keep living that way; the weight will return. Successful weight-loss maintenance requires a change in lifestyle that continues until the end of your days.
Researchers now agree that losing even 5 – 10% of your weight will reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. And aside from these health benefits, successfully losing and keeping off weight is completely life changing and worth the effort, according to my clients!
NOTE: And if you are ready to FINALLY TAKE CONTROL of your FITNESS and want to speak with me in an unbiased format, take advantage of my FREE CALL. I promise to give you a few tips and things to look at immediately plus we can discuss if any of my programs or classes are a good fit for you too.
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