Research
Adherence
Successful long-term weight loss maintenance is associated with specific behavioral strategies, including high levels of physical activity, frequent self-monitoring, and strict dietary adherence, which counteract physiological adaptations.
To keep weight off, you must treat maintenance as a full-time job. This means eating fewer calories (especially fat), exercising regularly (about an hour a day), weighing yourself often, and limiting sedentary time. These behaviors counteract the biological urge to regain weight.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
Analyses of strategies reported by registry members to maintain weight loss have revealed a number of key behaviours common to the majority of participants... (i) Eating a low-calorie low-fat diet... (ii) Eating breakfast every day... (iii) Frequent self-monitoring... (iv) Undertaking regular exercise... (v) Limiting television viewing.
Why this rating
Based on self-reported data from a registry (NWCR), which may have recall bias, but represents a large sample of successful maintainers.
Source
The defence of body weight: a physiological basis for weight regain after weight loss
Priya Sumithran et al. · Clinical Science · 2012
DOI 10.1042/cs20120223
narrative_reviewCited 300×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
Related findings · Adherence
- Regular physical activity (at least 150 minutes/week of moderate-intensity) reduces all-cause and cardiovascular mortality by 20-30% and lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes by 25-35%.Strong
- Increasing physical activity from a sedentary lifestyle to an active one in middle adulthood significantly reduces the risk of coronary events compared to remaining sedentary.Strong
- Resistance exercise is the only intervention capable of consistently restoring muscle function and strength in sarcopenia, partially overcoming age-related anabolic resistance.Strong
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