1) Dive in.
Losing weight is a long, bumpy road. What works for one person can be a disaster for another. That's why we're giving you 50 ways to navigate this challenge. Ready to dive in? Take a deep breath, and jump!
2) Understand why you want to lose weight.
Knowing why you want to lose weight will help guide you through those moments when you want to give up, says Heather Bainbridge, RD, nutrition care coordinator at Temple Health Bariatric at Temple University Hospital and Jeanes Hospital in Philadelphia. And your goal is more likely to resonate if you include real-world benefits, like having more energy to play with your kids or pursue new activities. "Your why is the grounding force that will push you through tough times," she says.
3) Believe.
Confidence is one of the single biggest predictors that you will be able to change, says Charles Platkin, PhD, MPH, Distinguished Lecturer at Hunter College and City University of New York School of Public Health. "You really need to believe in your ability to organize and execute a behavioral modification," he says. "Weight loss is a tough road, so you need to rely on the confidence that you can attain what you want."
4) Set a real goal.
Platkin stresses the importance of planning and goal setting. "No matter what, it's something you need to take the time to write down," he says. In one study, people were 42% more likely to reach their goals when they wrote them down. Platkin recommends setting a long-term goal and outlining the steps you'll take to carry it out. Don't say, "I'm going to lose 25 pounds." Instead, pick a number you want to weigh, devise a thorough plan of attack, and figure out the best strategies for getting there. And then keep careful track of your progress.
5) Break your goal into bite-size chunks.
Set plenty of intermediate goals: "The most important thing to remember is any weight loss is good," says Louis Aronne, MD, the director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill-Cornell Medical College and author of the forthcoming book The Change Your Biology Diet: The Proven Program for Lifelong Weight Loss. "Any weight loss will improve your cardiovascular function, reduce your risk for diabetes, and help your blood-pressure." (Try these 13 proven foods that help lower blood pressure.) If you aim to lose 80 pounds, celebrate every 10 that you manage to shed.
6) Channel your inner toddler.
"Children don't eat just because food is in front of them, nor do they eat because they're feeling stressed or bored," says Lawrence Cheskin, MD, director of the Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "They'll play until they're hungry, and they won't eat if they're not hungry. Paying attention to physiological cues is something we should all try. Just ask yourself: Am I hungry right now, or am I eating because I'm stressed or for another reason that's not actually hunger?"
7) Dieting is for gainers: Eat in a way you can sustain for life.
The eating changes you make should be forever—not the next 3 months, says Platkin. Living on a juice diet, exercising 6 mornings a week before the crack of dawn, or eating only one meal a day may lead to weight loss, but you won't be able to sustain that kind of loss. (Lose up to 15 pounds WITHOUT dieting with Eat Clean to Get Lean, our 21-day clean-eating meal plan.) Platkin advises forming new patterns that make your eating and exercise habits automatic. "It shouldn't be a diet; it should be a way of life," he says. "You break a diet. You don't take a break from your life."
8) Pay attention.
When you're conscious of what you eat, you'll enjoy it more while eating less, says Cheskin. If you open a bag of chips before sitting on the couch, you'll barely notice eating the whole thing. Try to eat only when you can pay attention to every bite, savor the taste—and slow down. That's good for portion control and for digestion, says Cheskin.
9)Ask yourself, "Am I enjoying this?"
Food delivers a marginal return on the calorie, says Cheskin. Every additional bite gives you less return on the investment. "Eating more won't give you more pleasure, more energy, or more satiety," he says. But it will make you rounder.
10) Keep a food diary.
Log all the food you eat and you'll have the data you need and a platform to assess which habits need tweaks. Bainbridge suggests writing down what time you're eating, what you're eating, the size of the portion, and the calories listed on the package. One study found that keeping a food diary can double a person's weight loss and is one of the best predictors of weight loss. "Recording our habits is eye-opening," Bainbridge says. "You can really look back and say, 'Did I need to eat this? Could I have only had half of that? What am I now ready to change?
Makes sense, right? Now just to follow them...
Makes sense, right? Now just to follow them...
