A few weeks ago, we posted a survey here in Maintainers - How Did You Lose The Weight? Forty-five people voted and many went on to explain their choices – thanks to all who participated! I thought it might be interesting to analyze the results a bit, especially because this is the time of year when new members come to 3FC and ask ‘what works’? ‘what’s the best diet’?
As of January 2, the survey ended in a three-way tie between Weight Watchers, ‘my own plan’ and ‘other’. Each got nine votes, representing 20% of the total. The next highest choice was calorie-counting, receiving 8 votes or 17%. The other 23% of the votes were divided between Jenny Craig – 3 votes, 6.67%; carb counting – 2 votes, 4.44%; and weight loss surgery, Atkins, South Beach Diet, Body For Life, and a nutritionist-supervised plan each at 1 vote, or 2.2% each. Neither Sugar Busters nor LA Weight Loss received any votes.
This isn’t a scientific survey, of course, but some interesting things occur to me when I look at the results (please note – my comments aren’t meant to criticize any diet plan – I really believe that there are many equally valid ways to lose weight ). First is the fact that the ‘book’ diets – the titles you see all over the best-seller lists, like South Beach, Atkins, SugarBusters, BFL etc – didn’t do very well in our survey. That’s a little surprising to me since often the first place that most dieters look for a plan is in a book. However, I wasn’t surprised that, of the commercial weight loss programs - WW, Jenny Craig and LA Weightloss, WW had the most success in our survey. Of course, that could simply be the result of WW being the largest (by far) of the commercial programs, and I know we in Maintainers have some wonderful JC success stories also. In contrast, LA Weightloss has more centers than Jenny Craig but wasn’t cited by any of our maintainers as the way they lost the weight. I don’t know enough about the two programs to compare, but perhaps there’s some element in the JC program that accounts for the difference in (at least our) success rates?
In any event, the majority of our successful losers lost the weight on their own, either through calorie/carb counting, their own customized plan, or another plan that they tweaked to suit their own likes and needs. This number is in line with the statistics from the National Weight Control Registry, which show that about half their maintainers lost through formal programs and the other half lost on their own plans.
My own opinion is that almost any diet works – putting aside the dreadful fad diets that can endanger your health, like juice fasts and the cabbage soup diet etc. It all boils down to calories in versus calories out. Regardless of what the latest best-seller claims, there isn’t any magic formula or secret combination of foods that will result in permanent, sustainable weight loss. Instead, the key is to find, adapt, or create a plan that you can live with for the rest of your life, since as we maintainers well know, this IS for the rest of our lives!
Maybe that’s the reason that the most successful plans in our survey seem to be the most flexible ones – they’re the ones that allow a dieter to adapt a plan to her own unique lifestyle, needs and preferences. In my experience, it’s harder to stick to a plan over the long-term that tells you exactly what to eat or that prohibits entire categories of food (one memorable diet failure of mine occurred when it was the day to drink carrot juice – not only did I NOT drink the juice, I abandoned the diet with a huge binge ). WW’s big selling point is that you can eat anything so long as you count the Points; likewise, if you’re calorie or carb-counting, you have a lot of leeway in how you spent your calories or carbs … and if you write your own plan, you’re definitely doing it YOUR way.
So the best advice that I‘d give to a new dieter, based on our little survey, is do it YOUR WAY. Find a plan or create your own that suits YOUR life. Don’t worry about what your co-workers are doing or what’s on the best-seller list. Don’t be afraid to tweak or change what isn’t working for you. Let your plan evolve as you lose weight and try to make it an easy, effortless way to live your life.
What do all of you think about the survey results? How do you interpret the results? What advice would you give to a new dieter? I’d love to hear what the rest of you think!
I think the key IS finding something that you can live with the rest of your life. It's part of that long-term, lifestyle-change, start-maintenance-on-day-one view. I think that's why I've been successful with JC. While the program starts off using entree items you purchase, no one claims there's any magic in the food. It's really just an exchange system (as WW used to be) with training wheels. While I get a printed menu that tells me I need to eat a salad every day with lunch, I know that simply means a vegetable exchange, and I can have any non-starchy vegetable I want, raw or cooked. And if for some reason I can't have or don't want it at lunch, I can just eat it some other time during the day. So, while there is a rigid template you can follow, it's really just as flexible as WW at its core. But, as you say, WW is more pervasive AND has certain features some people prefer.
The funny thing is, I know a lot of JC members who failed at WW because there was too MUCH choice -- they felt they needed MORE guidance to get started, more structure. I know I felt sort of the same way when I started; I had done WW in the past, and needed something a little more ... laid out ... just so I wouldn't have to work so hard at planning and cooking at first. I knew, of course, that the day would come, but having that foundation of prepared entrees and a healthy eating pattern template was crucial to my success at first. Another major factor was that JC offers weekly individual counseling, which was invaluable to me. I just wouldn't have gotten anything out of group meetings this time around, and I craved some "just me" time to work everything out with a sympathetic, trained ear.
I so admire folks who can "just do it" on their own, without a third party. But, as you say, no one method works for everyone, and I would just encourage anyone looking for "a plan" to consider what YOU need to succeed. There is no shame in getting help, even if you have to pay for it. I know so many JC members whose family and/or friends are scornful because they are "weak" and "wasting money" because they "should" just be able to "eat less." Only you know what you need, and even then, it may take some time to figure it out. Don't let anyone tell you that you "should" be able to do this a certain way. My mantra, after all, is "Whatever works." I'm just really, really thankful I found what works for me.
Meg, great survey! This just shows there is no One Best Diet. We each have to mix and match and find what works for our own lifestyle.
It looks like the plans with the most freedom came out on top. Some people need a rigid program, but I'm not one of them. I wish I was, because I'd love somebody to plan my meals for me! I'm somewhat rebellious with my food choices. I have a hard time with foods I CAN'T have. Forbidden fruit gets me every time. Overall, I have tweaked every plan I've been on to make it work for me. If the diet failed, it's because I didn't do my math. Calories in must be less than calories out! That isn't glamorous, but it's the basic principle of weight loss. Do what you gotta do! (Within reason!)
Interesting results! and thanks, Meg, for doing all the analysis What I would add is that even for one person, a particular plan may not be optimal forever. I lost most of my scale weight using a very strict version of SugarBusters and exercise, but then switched to Body for Life, and have further tweaked and refined over the years until it is MY plan, and even so it's never static.
Funniegirl made a good point about WW or other plans which allow too much choice. I find that to be very true for myself. I have a very hard time eating from pre-set menus and having little or no choice, but personally I could never maintain (or lose in the first place) on a plan where all foods were allowed. But that's just me and my "all or nothing" personality.
Oh, yes, thank you so much Meg for doing this summary ... I often see surveys on 3FC and participate of course, but I never see the end results ...
Very good point Mel about having to always change up our food plans even if it has always worked, I guess this is when the dreaded plateau happens. Same goes too with exercising ... changing and tweaking is good, it also makes life a little less boring... Although I do like my routine and was more than happy to get back at it today!
I agree totally that even when you find the right plan, it may not stay the "right" plan forever. Even though I still follow the JC template, I usually eat according to a slightly tweaked ratio of carb/fat/protein. And, I keep an open mind about making further refinements as needed.
And, while JC allows me to eat literally ANYTHING as long as I count it correctly in my daily exchanges, the template of what amounts of what exchanges to eat when is still helpful. I also know what foods are difficult to control or will just set up cravings, so I avoid them.
It's all about self-knowledge and monitoring yourself, changing things when they stop working or when you think something else might work better!
It's all about self-knowledge and monitoring yourself, changing things when they stop working or when you think something else might work better!
Amem to this. I probably follow the least structured plan of anyone here, but if I am not constantly mindful of what I am doing, I will lose my way. And I am always tweaking what I do, both with eating and with exercise. Right now what I am doing is working well. When it works less well, I will change it.
Before you make a New Year's resolution to join an organized diet program, consider this: A University of Pennsylvania study finds a high cost per pound lost and very limited evidence for long-term success of any of nine popular diet programs studied.
Oh, yes, and large proportions of people -- sometimes more than half -- drop out within months of beginning the programs.
If you want to achieve a healthier weight, "the first step is to try to do this on your own," said Thomas A. Wadden, director of the Weight and Eating Disorders Program at Penn and co-author of the study, which appears in this week's Annals of Internal Medicine. "If that doesn't work, then get assistance."
Backed in part by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, Wadden and Penn physician Adam Gilden Tsai reviewed 1,500 weight loss studies of adults and zeroed in on 10 commercial or self-help programs.
Using those studies, plus additional data supplied by the programs themselves, the team examined nine plans: Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, L.A. Weight Loss and eDiets.com; the self-help groups Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) and Overeaters Anonymous (OA); and three medically supervised commercial programs, Optifast, Health Management Resources and Medifast/Take Shape for Life.
"With the exception of one trial of Weight Watchers, the evidence to support the use of the major commercial and self-help weight loss programs is modest or nonexistent," the team concludes. "Controlled trials are needed to assess the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of these interventions."
Price is likely to put many of the programs beyond reach of those trying to achieve a healthy weight, the study found. The medically supervised programs, which also provided food, cost the most, ranging from $840 to $2,100 for three months, or "about $50 per pound lost," Wadden said.
Jenny Craig cost $1,249 for three months, including all daily food. Both Weight Watchers and L.A. Weight Loss cost about $170 for three months, while Ediets.com was $65, TOPS $26 and OA had no charge.
While the study found little evidence to prove that most commercial or self-help weight loss programs work, here's what experts say can help you to achieve a healthier weight by doing it yourself in 2005:
Pace yourself. Sure, it's tempting to start changing all your habits at once, but Wadden and his colleagues have found that doing too much too soon can be a program for failure. In fact, behavioral studies suggest that new habits begun at the same time are also more likely to be abandoned at the same time. So it's best to spend the first two weeks getting some of your eating habits in order. "Then introduce exercise in the third or fourth week," Wadden said.
Keep records. Yes, you may feel like an accountant, but studies show that recording daily eating and exercise increases your chances of success. Susan Burke, vice president of nutrition services at eDiets.com, notes that participants who record the food they eat on their site fare much better with weight loss than those who sign up but fail to log on regularly. "Unless you use it, you're not going to lose it," she says.
Make big changes in small steps. To foster a sense of mastery over your new habits, begin with something you know you can do. Maybe you want to decrease calorie intake: Start with a level that isn't too onerous -- say, 1,800 calories per day this week, then drop to 1,600 daily next week and so on, until you reach the appropriate level for the weight loss you want to achieve.
Revel in your progress instead of obsessing about your long-term goal. "Focus on what you achieve," Wadden said. "So celebrate the 10 pounds lost, even if you need to lose 70 pounds. You can only feel miserable about the latter and, hopefully, somewhat proud of the former."
Be the turtle, not the hare. Plenty of weight loss programs and best-selling books promise quick success. But losing pounds too fast can raise the risk of gallstones, constipation, cold intolerance and hair loss. Plus, quick weight loss doesn't give you the chance to make the fundamental lifestyle changes necessary for long-term success. About half a pound to two pounds per week is considered a safe rate of weight loss. It takes a deficit of about 3,500 calories to lose a pound. But things don't always go according to plan: Hormonal fluctuations and water retention can sometimes slow the scale's decline even when you do everything right. One of the last contestants to be booted off "The Biggest Loser" reality television series lost two pounds in a week -- and she was working full time at losing weight.
Reward yourself. Most people forget to give themselves a good pat on the back for reaching an interim goal. Just make sure that reward isn't food. Think about renting a movie you've always wanted to see; go to a concert; buy a new CD; get a massage or new workout shoes or clothes.
Enlist support for your efforts. "Recognize that you need a supportive atmosphere to be successful with weight loss," said Karen Miller-Kovach, chief scientist for Weight Watchers. "So turn to co-workers, family or friends for help."
The thing about this is that "no proof" doesn't mean "it doesn't work" -- it means "we don't know 'cause no one has conducted a double-blind study." A scientist would know this, but a lay person interprets this as "only WW works."
It's the same with the word "theory" -- in the scientific world this is a much more solid concept than a hypothesis, but the non-scientific community hears "theory" and interprets that as "wild idea with no evidence to back it up and therefore is something to be distrusted and/or ignored."
We all know the failure rate with wl efforts is very high. The usually used figure is 95% eventual failure of those who start a diet. Turning that around means 1 in 20 is successful.
In Thin for Life, Fletcher found about half successful losers used organized programs, and about half didnt. We all know losing and keeping it off is very hard to do, but it can be done. One in twenty are successful.
Survey Results
). First is the fact that the ‘book’ diets – the titles you see all over the best-seller lists, like South Beach, Atkins, SugarBusters, BFL etc – didn’t do very well in our survey. That’s a little surprising to me since often the first place that most dieters look for a plan is in a book. However, I wasn’t surprised that, of the commercial weight loss programs - WW, Jenny Craig and LA Weightloss, WW had the most success in our survey. Of course, that could simply be the result of WW being the largest (by far) of the commercial programs, and I know we in Maintainers have some wonderful JC success stories also. In contrast, LA Weightloss has more centers than Jenny Craig but wasn’t cited by any of our maintainers as the way they lost the weight. I don’t know enough about the two programs to compare, but perhaps there’s some element in the JC program that accounts for the difference in (at least our) success rates?
). WW’s big selling point is that you can eat anything so long as you count the Points; likewise, if you’re calorie or carb-counting, you have a lot of leeway in how you spent your calories or carbs … and if you write your own plan, you’re definitely doing it YOUR way. 
