Do This, Not That: 6 Secrets to Making Weight Loss Resolutions Stick

As the new year gets closer, many of us will plan to lose weight by dieting — one of the most common New Year’s resolutions. Yet while this may be appropriate for some, especially if it’s recommended by a doctor, getting to that goal can be complicated.

Weight loss resolutions may fail for many reasons. In some cases, it boils down to using the wrong strategies. To help you reach your weight loss goals more effectively, here are six tips on how to structure your diet and avoid common resolution mistakes.

1. Set Approach-Oriented Goals, Not Avoidance-Oriented Ones

According to Kelsey Costa, RDN, a nutrition consultant for the National Coalition on Health Care, setting approach-oriented goals over avoidance-oriented goals leads to higher success rates. Costa cites a study published in PLoS One in December 2020 that found that approach-oriented New Year’s resolutions led to a success rate of nearly 59 percent compared to a lower success rate in people who made avoidance-oriented goals.

What exactly does it mean to set approach-oriented goals instead of avoidance-oriented ones?

Costa says that avoidance-oriented goals are overly restrictive and unrealistic dietary habits that people tend to impose on themselves when trying to lose weight. “This often involves the strict elimination of certain food groups or extremely low-calorie diets, which are difficult to maintain and can lead to nutritional deficiencies,” she notes.

For example, someone who completely cuts out all bread or carbs when trying to lose weight would be practicing an avoidance-oriented approach to weight loss. On the other hand, someone who sets a goal of eating more protein in their diet would be choosing an approach-oriented strategy by actively working toward a specific nutrition goal, not avoiding certain foods.

Instead of cutting out food groups, first prioritize increasing fiber, water, and lean protein intake for healthy weight management, Costa suggests.

“This perspective shift helps you set achievable goals and promotes long-term adherence to healthier eating habits,” she adds. “Remember, the goal should be overall health improvement, not just weight reduction.”

2. Start a Balanced Diet, Not a Crash Diet

A post-holiday crash diet may cause some rapid weight loss initially, but can lead to rebound weight gain, warns Costa. So instead of turning to a crash diet that can not only be ineffective, but also potentially harmful, make gradual shifts toward nutritional changes, Costa advises.

For instance, aim to eat more nutrient-dense foods that you enjoy in order to create a balanced diet. A fully balanced diet should include a variety of whole foods from all of the major food groups, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats.

Increasing your consumption of whole foods from the major food groups will also naturally allow you to reduce ultra-processed foods like deli meats, artificially and sugar-sweetened beverages, chips, and cookies, which are typically high in sodium, unhealthy fats, and added sugars.

“Sustainable diet changes are the most effective for losing weight because they focus on long-term behavior and lifestyle modifications rather than short-term restrictive diets,” Costa explains. “This approach allows for consistent progress toward weight loss goals and promotes overall health improvement.”

Certified Nutritional Coach, macro coach, and bodybuilder Karla De Epstein notes that while all three macronutrients — protein, carbs, and fats — are important in a balanced diet, prioritizing protein may be helpful for anyone looking to lose weight and stay satiated (full).

De Epstein recommends incorporating high-protein foods such as tuna, chicken breast, turkey breast, egg whites, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, and protein shakes. She also suggests tracking macros with an app to help you learn how much protein is in the foods you’re eating.

Plus, as a bonus, De Epstein notes that prioritizing protein can help stave off hunger when making diet changes. “Who wants to starve all day?” she notes. “That’s definitely no fun. Consuming protein-rich meals will help your belly feel fuller for longer.”

3. Focus on How You Feel, Not on the Scale

Peg Doyle, a health coach and owner of Wellness and You, says that trying to lose weight through dieting alone is not typically an effective strategy. “It’s usually no more successful than the ‘resolution’ to exercise more,” Doyle points out.

The problem with simply dieting, she adds, is that there’s usually no strategy to the diet, “just a few enthusiastic days of deprivation and quickly slipping back into old habits because deprivation does not work long term.”

Instead of trying to stick to a strict diet, anyone trying to lose weight long term can view dietary changes as lifestyle changes that will help them both look and feel better, says Doyle. “Less focus on the scale and more focus on health and energy is the best strategy, whether at the start of the year or any time you are ready to make a positive change,” she notes.

To make those changes, Doyle suggests focusing on eating more whole, fresh foods; cooking at home; and paying “close attention” to how the foods you eat make you feel “energy-wise.”

4. Try One Small Change First, Not an Entire Overhaul

Trying to overhaul your entire diet all at once is not going to lead to a sustainable nutritional change, says Costa. If you throw out all of the “unhealthy” foods in your house or try to modify the way you eat overnight, odds are you’ll become too overwhelmed to create lasting change.

Instead, experts like Costa recommend starting with one small change at a time and building new habits as you master each one.

“Successful and sustainable weight loss requires a balanced and realistic approach, one that promotes gradual changes and incorporates a variety of nutrient-dense foods,” Costa points out.

One strategy Costa recommends is “rollover nutrition,” which involves gradually incorporating new, healthier eating habits into your daily routine. For example, start by increasing your water intake and reducing any other beverages you normally drink daily. Once that becomes a habit, add more vegetables to your meals and reduce processed snacks.

“Continue building upon these changes one step at a time until you have achieved a well-rounded and balanced diet,” Costa says.

5. Use a Combination of Weight Loss Strategies, Not Just One

While it is possible to lose weight by changing one’s diet alone, Costa says that a “combination of dietary changes and regular exercise has consistently been proven to yield more successful and sustainable weight loss outcomes than weight loss from diet alone.”

Indeed, an analysis published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health in October 2021 found that when people had successfully lost weight, exercise and diet changes seemed to go hand in hand. “Combined interventions with diet and exercise are more effective than diet or exercise separately,” the study concluded, adding that they found that people often changed their diet as a “natural consequence” of exercising.

The study also found that people who exercise regularly are able to sustain their weight loss more than people who don’t. Similar to diet changes, it’s most effective to gradually add movement into your daily routine and build new habits rather than immediately jumping into marathon training or a vigorous weight-lifting program. Start small, such as adding a morning or evening walk or streaming a free workout video at home as you build a fitness routine that works for you.

And according to De Epstein, even changing up the type of food you eat can help you burn more calories.

“There's something called the ‘thermic effect of food’ (TEF), which is the amount of calories we burn while our body is just working to digest the food we consume,” she says. “The TEF of protein is significantly higher than when we are digesting carbs or fats, which means we are burning three to four times the calories when we digest protein than when we digest other macronutrients.”

6. Begin Your Weight Loss Journey With Support, Not All on Your Own

Last but not least, the same 2020 study cited earlier found that participants who had support during the process of reaching their weight loss goals — even if that support was administered digitally — had greater success in losing weight.

So whether you turn to a support group, text an accountability buddy, join a fitness challenge, or use an app along the way, lining up support to help you reach your goals will only help you achieve them more effectively.

 

Editorial Sources and Fact-Checking

• America’s Top New Year’s Resolutions for 2024. Statista. December 19, 2023.
• Oscarsson M, Carlbring P, Andersson G, et al. A Large-Scale Experiment on New Year’s Resolutions: Approach-Oriented Goals Are More Successful Than Avoidance-Oriented Goals. PLoS One. December 9, 2020.
• Helland MH and Nordbotten GL. Dietary Changes, Motivators, and Barriers Affecting Diet and Physical Activity Among Overweight and Obese: A Mixed Methods Approach. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. October 9, 2021.