With a racing heart and sweating palms, you kick off your shoes and step on the scale. There it is. Your goal number. The number that seemed so impossible when you started the battle to lose weight all those months ago.
Now, a new battle: maintaining it.
The National Weight Control Registry monitors people who have successfully lost at least 30 pounds and kept the weight off for at least a year.
The results are in! There are several specific things you can do to increase your chances of keeping the pounds off for good.
1) Exercise.
90% of the successful maintainers in the NWCR exercise for an average of an hour a day. Exercise can be as simple as a walk around the block or strenuous work in the garden, it’s just important that you move.
2) Breakfast.
78% of the successful maintainers eat breakfast every day. Try to eat something small each morning — even if it is just a muffin!
3) Step on the scale.
75% of successful maintainers weigh themselves at least once a week. Seeing micro-fluctuations helps you keep track of your weight trends. If you see the scale vary more than a pound or two, you know it’s time to change things up and get on track.
4) Turn off the TV.
62% of successful maintainers watch less than 10 hours of TV per week. A Netflix binge won’t pack on the pounds but a habit of spending evenings and weekends doing nothing but binging your favorite television shows leads to less healthy habits, like mindless eating or not moving enough.
5) Stay the course.
If you lost weight by cutting carbs or counting calories- now is not the time for a drastic change. Slowly add back into your diet if you’re ready but avoid sliding back to the eating style that packed on the pounds in the first place.
6) Proper supplementation.
Dieting can leave holes in your nutrition. Vitamin deficiencies can leave you feeling lethargic, lower your metabolism, impede your sleep and so much more. Be sure to incorporate supplements so your body is getting everything it needs to ward off cravings and continue to maintain weight loss — especially if you are not getting them in your everyday diet.
Cheers to staying healthy and happy!
