You have lost weight but can you keep it off? Now if you expect me to come up with some miracle solution that will help you keep the weight off, you are going to be disappointed.
The truth is – there are no secret tricks that help prevent weight gain – unless you buy into the promise of Kusmi Tea or the lemon juice detox diet, but that is another story. Having said that, research shows that there are a number of similarities between people who have lost weight and kept it off for a statistically significant amount of time.
According to a recent survey of more than 30,000 dieters, here is what you need to do to keep weight off:
Customize your diet to work for you In this survey, more than 80 percent of successful dieters did not use diet foods, diet pills, or commercial diet programs, which is hardly surprising. Most diet foods are nothing more than garbage loaded with artificial ingredients and sugar. And do not even get me started on diet pills.
Which diet approach have they used? They did their own thing. They have experimented with different diet strategies until each individual found the one that worked for him or her. In short, you need to find a diet that matches your individual needs, whatever those needs might be. There is no right or wrong approach to choosing a diet; for example, some people do great on a low-carb diet – they often use low carb pasta, by the way – while others feel more comfortable with counting calories or the calorie shifting techniques.
Repeat after me: exercise, exercise, exercise No surprise here, eight out of 10 successful dieters engaged in some form of physical activity. Which form of exercise was the most popular? Why, walking (three times a week), of course. Still, some people (about a third) lifted weights in addition to walking, which is very smart.
Walking is a low-impact cardio exercise, which, unlike running, does not put you at risk of losing what little muscle mass you have left. Weightlifting complements walking nicely; while it is not as effective as walking at burning fat, it does help you strengthen your body and increase your chances of burning more calories. How? It challenges your muscles to grow, which increases your metabolism.
Portion control and food choices still matter More than fifty percent of those dieters who have managed to maintain their weight loss for at least five years said they consistently ate more fruits and vegetables and less junk food. In addition, they consumed smaller portion sizes.