The Three Best Ways to Lose Weight
- AND KEEP IT OFF!
What is the best way to lose weight? Carnivore? Vegan? Low carb? High carb? Keto? Intermittent Fasting?
The area of nutrition is overwhelming and confusing. And every second influencer wants to add to the noise by peddling protein powders, collagens and slimming teas. It’s enough to make anyone sit down with a good donut and raise the white weight-loss flag. (And for the record, there is nothing wrong with a good donut! – pink with sprinkles, if you’re buying).
Perhaps we can argue that the genuine experts in weight loss are those who have lost a lot of weight and maintained their weight loss. These people know firsthand the behaviour changes and habit formations needed for success. And therein lies part of the secret – an individual needs to find weight loss solutions that fit them as an individual. Yes, low carb might suit your colleague, but your only success on the low-carb diet is a much faster time to rage in traffic. Not ideal.
To determine the most successful individual weight loss solutions, the National Weight Loss Control Registry (NWCR) was established to investigate the characteristics of individuals who have succeeded with long term weight loss. Perhaps most interesting, their main findings are void of fad diets and supplementation, and instead reveal a strong inclination towards behaviour changes for long term weight loss. In particular, successful dieters have three primary factors in common:
They modified their food intake in some way
They increased their physical activity
They consistently weighed themselves.
To expand on these points:
Modifying food intake
Individuals who have successfully lost weight minimally vary their eating pattern from week-to-week, month-to-month, even year-to-year. While this definitely doesn’t mean we should eat the exact same foods every day in order to lose weight (variety is the spice of life!), we should be mindful to eat natural whole foods from the same food groups every day, ie: vegetables, fruit, whole grains and lean meats (or plant proteins). We should also strive to eat similar portions every day, and at similar times. This includes weekends and holidays when, granted, many of us significantly change our eating patterns – and food choices.
Chiefly this “lack of variety” means less diversity of packaged foods and take out. Think how often a new ice cream or chocolate or muesli bar is launched? We really want to try it to know what it tastes like. Successful maintainers of weight loss refrained from this food variety in their lives.
Another key food modification was the long-term maintenance of a low-calorie, low fat diet. If you’re keen to prescribe to a “diet” then it may be prudent to make sure it is overall low in calories and low in fat. Hence, if you’re keen to follow a keto diet for weight loss, perhaps you’re setting yourself up for failure?
Increased exercise
On average, successful weight loss maintainers exercise for around 1-hour a day and burn an average of 2620 calories a week via exercise. This means that 1-hour of exercise is intense! For example, a very brisk walk, jogging, or swimming freestyle laps. Ideally you want a be a little out of breath and sweaty.
This intensity is one of the most important factors for weight loss. Also consider making small changes to your daily movement routine. For example, park your car further away from the shopping centre, use the stairs instead of the lift, or catch up with a friend for a walk… There are many ways to get extra movement into your day. Try to think of movement as opportunity; not inconvenience.
Consistent self-weighing
Consistent self-monitoring of weight encourages us to keep track of our weight and make immediate lifestyle changes if necessary. During festive periods in particular, it can be common to gain an extra kilo or so. Sure, 1kg doesn’t sound very serious, but this additional kilo can happen repeatedly over a 5-, 10-, 20-year period.
It is important to remember however, that weight loss and improved health can also be tracked via subjective markers such as the fit of our clothes, our sleep quality, our stress management, our energy levels, our positive self-talk, our awareness around hunger and fullness, etc. Sometimes these factors can be a better indication of weight loss and/or improved health even though the scale hasn’t changed as yet. To find a balance between your objective and subjective data (ie the number on the scale vs how you feel), weigh yourself once a week on the same day at the same time. This will allow you to self-monitor your weight, without becoming too obsessive about it. And try as much as possible to focus instead on improving subjective health indicators as mentioned above.
What do you think?
Are those three primary factors for weight loss new to you? Do you think they’d work for you? as a dietitian, I absolutely appreciate that each factor is easy and hard in its own right. In particular, it can be very difficult to find the motivation to even start a weight loss journey! With regards to the advice above, start simple. And most importantly, make your goals your own. Find what works for you. You know your body best.