Previous research has shown that many overweight individuals are prone to weight gain after dieting. Researchers compared normal-weight people undergoing intentional weight loss to determine if they gained it back. Weight regain was found in 8 out of 10 studies. Weight loss without regain is possible if you follow a well-balanced diet and resistance exercise program that preserves muscle mass.
HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT AND KEEP IT OFF! SUMMARY
- Know how to lose weight and keeping it off is a problem millions of Americans face.
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Previous research has shown that many overweight individuals are prone to weight gain after dieting. Researchers compared normal-weight people undergoing intentional weight loss to determine if they gained it back.
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Weight regain was found in 8 out of 10 studies.
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Weight loss without regain is possible if you follow a well-balanced diet and resistance exercise program that preserves muscle mass.
WEIGHT GAIN AFTER WEIGHT LOSS
The prevalence of obesity varies substantially across countries, with Vietnam being as low as 2.1% to as high as 61% in the South Pacific nation of Nauru. The prevalence of obesity in the United States is 36.2%, in Canada, 29.4%, and 27.8% in the United Kingdom. Obesity is associated with comorbidities such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and elevated blood sugar levels contributing to diabetes.
Current guidelines for the management of obesity include diet modification (e.g., reduced calories and portion sizes, more fruits and vegetables, healthy fats, etc.), increased physical fitness, behavioral modification (e.g., cognitive behavioral therapy), pharmacotherapy, or a combination of these.
Many people are flocking to doctors to get their hands on the weight loss drug Ozempic for weight loss. However, discontinuation of the drug is associated with weight regain. Long-term weight loss maintenance requires healthy eating plans that include a balance of all food groups. Diet plans should be flexible, encouraging a reduced-calorie meal plan with a variety of healthy foods.
HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT & MAINTAIN YOUR WEIGHT AFTER WEIGHT LOSS
The most widely suggested weight loss plan is a weekly reduced 500-calorie reduction daily. A widely spread misconception is that less than 5 percent of dieters succeed; however, this depends on the time frame. In a study in the Medical Clinics of North America, more than half of all dieters lost weight and gained it back within 2 years. By year 5, more than 80% of all weight lost is regained. (Hall & Kahan, 2018)
Thus, there is a high percentage of dieters who regain weight back. The goal of weight loss is to maintain weight loss for a lifetime. Characteristics of successful weight loss are they exercise regularly, maintain healthy eating habits, and track calories (i.e., track calories to maintain weight calculator)
The National Weight Control Registry (NWCR) is the largest prospective investigation of long-term successful weight loss maintenance. There is a variety of ways in which successful dieters keep the weight off. Most report maintaining a low-calorie, low-fat diet and having high activity levels. Here are some characteristics of successful dieters reported by the NWCR:
- 78% eat breakfast every day.
- 75% weigh themselves at least once a week.
- 62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week.
- 90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.
Guidelines to Lose Weight
The current guideline also stresses that weight loss needs to be maintained for long-term health benefits. (Wharton et al., 2020) Yo-Yo dieting and fluctuation in body weight have been linked to cardiovascular stress and increased death rates. (Montani et al., 2015; Oh et al., 2019)
How often have you heard or seen someone who went on a diet and gained the weight back? In 1980, a book called “Dieting Makes You Fatter” discussed the psychological and physiological consequences of prolonged low-calorie diets. Losing weight is hard, but keeping it off is even harder. Athletes that compete in sports with periods of vigorous weight loss (i.e., boxing, wrestling, weight lifting) have greater weight regain and body fat than other sports without weight cycling or the general population. (Saarni et al., 2006)
Another interesting study on 2,000 twins compared one twin dieting to the other twin not dieting. The twin that intentionally lost weight were nearly two to three times more likely to become overweight than their non-dieting twin counterpart. This suggests that dieting can contribute to weight loss independent of genetic factors. (Pietiläinen et al., 2012)
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