Here are 11 insights and characteristics that successful losers share:
Secret 1: Control Portions
Less than 20 years ago, a standard cup of coffee with whole milk and sugar measured in at 8 ounces and 45 calories. Today, many java junkies have replaced that cup with a Starbucks 16-ounce Grande Mocha Frappuccino, which weighs in at a whopping 380 calories. To burn all those extra calories, you would have to walk for at least an hour.
Successful weight "losers" control their food portions. In fact, research suggests portion control is the greatest predictor of successful weight loss (Logue et al. 2004). Learn to read nutrition labels; carefully measure out servings; eat only a single helping; use smaller serving dishes; and resist the urge to "clean their plates."
Secret 2: Be Mindful When Eating
I believe that this is absolutely KEY. You must practice conscious awareness when eating and making food choices. Many people turn to food when they are bored or stressed out. Eat when You're hungry and stop when you're full. That means paying attention to everything you eat.
Ask yourself WHY you are heading to the fridge or pantry. Is it hunger, or are you really just bored, stressed, sad, tired and maybe even full from your last meal or snack! Emotional eating can wreak havoc on a well-planned weight management program.
Secret 3: Exercise Regularly
Fitness is key in losing weight and keeping those pounds off. In a study, more than 94% of participants who succeeded in their goals in the increased their rate of physical activity (NWCR 2007). In fact, many who lost weight reported walking for at least 1 hour per day.
And for those who kept the weight off, exercise was also crucial. This was evident because the registry participants who dropped out of fitness programs ended up putting the pounds back on (NWCR 2007). Remember, as people lose weight, a proportion of each pound comes from muscle; that, in turn, slows down the metabolism and makes it difficult to keep the weight off. Although walking and other cardiovascular exercise is important for burning calories, you must also have a resistance training program to keep that muscle!
Secret 4: Check the Scale
While it is not advisable to become obsessive about weight to the nearest 0.01 pound, people who maintain their weight loss do so by keeping periodic tabs on the scale, weighing themselves at least once per week. This way they are able to identify small weight increases in time to take appropriate corrective action (NWCR 2007).
Secret 5: Eat Breakfast
More than 75% of the NWCR participants eat breakfast daily; only 4% never do (Wyatt et al. 2002). And research suggests that breakfast eaters weigh less and suffer from fewer chronic diseases than people who skip breakfast. Breakfast recommendations depend on individual needs--but if you don't, start eating in the AM!
Secret 6: Monitor Intake
One of the strongest predictors of successful and maintained lifestyle change is monitoring dietary intake...at least in the beginning. While it can be tedious to keep a daily food log, I always recommend that our new clients send me over a collection of food logs for me to take a look at and make suggestions off of.
Secret 7: Turn Off the Tube
Time spent watching TV is time spent being completely sedentary (and thus expending minimal amounts of calories) and often eating as well. Most people mindlessly consume snacks while mesmerized in front of the television, not noticing the rapidly multiplying calorie intake. Case in point: The successful NWCR "losers" watched less than 10 hours of television per week (Raynor et al. 2006).
Secret 8: Retrain Your Brain
Interestingly, most people who have lost and kept off the most weight tend to be "lower left" brained, meaning they are organized, controlled, methodical and disciplined (Mithers 2005). This is not to say that those of us who thrive on spontaneity or embrace clutter are doomed-it's just a matter of retraining our brains.
Take steps to become better organized by writing a grocery shopping list and sticking to it, for example.
Secret 9: Start Today and Don't Cheat
It's easy to put off starting a serious lifestyle change to a later date. Likewise, it's easy to "cheat" and eat an extra piece of cake here, a pepperoni pizza there. It's important to be diligent when attempting to lose weight, because people who don't cheat on a regular basis are 150% more likely to maintain their weight loss (Gorin et al. 2004). That means you must embark on a "doable" healthy lifestyle you can stick with; this will reduce those compelling urges to unwittingly sabotage your weight management success.
Secret 10: Know That Birds of a Feather Stick Together
A study of 12,067 people followed over 32 years concluded that obesity spreads through social ties (Christakis & Fowler 2007). That is, obese people tend to have obese friends. Pairs of friends and siblings of the same sex seem to have the most profound effect on each other's weight loss. Some researchers suspect that the spread of obesity has a lot to do with an individual's general perception of the social norms regarding the acceptability of obesity. The logic works like this: If my best friend and my sister are both obese and I love and admire them all the same, then maybe it's not so bad that I gain a few pounds. Pick pals who will help you stay fit!
Secret 11: Remain Optimistic
Research suggests that people who are optimistic (i.e., they have perceived control, positive expectations, empowerment, a fighting spirit and lack of helplessness) are more successful at changing behaviors and losing weight (Tinkler et al. 2007).
