Lifestyle It’s no secret that losing weight is a struggle for many of us. Despite being well-informed about nutrition and healthy eating, sticking to our plans long-term remains an uphill battle. A 2021 Ipsos survey found that 43 per cent of Britons were trying to lose weight, yet the knowledge doesn’t always translate into lasting results.
Through my work as a behavioural-change scientist specialising in addiction and weight loss, I’ve seen first hand the vast gulf between knowing what to do and actually implementing it consistently over time. Food is meant to be enjoyed — it connects us, allows creativity and love to be expressed, and can be delightfully delicious. Deprivation and rigid rules often backfire.
The truth is that sustainable weight management isn’t just about what you eat, but about how you think about food and, most importantly, how you think about yourself. So, here are my tips on how to manage your weight for life, without a single piece of advice on what to eat. Diets, in their traditional sense, can help us achieve our weight goals but they don’t teach us how to stay there.
Many people think that once they have rigidly followed a plan and lost weight, they will be able to keep it off. But losing weight on a diet does not teach you how to keep it off. What you need to do instead, is focus on identifying (and intentionally repeating) the new daily choices that you will have to normalise and master in order to maintain your weight loss long-term, .