LOSING WEIGHT — AND KEEPING IT OFF
Because reaching your goal is only part of the story.
Losing weight is one thing.
Keeping it off is another.
And one of the most useful questions to ask someone who has lost weight before isn't simply:
“How much did you lose?”
It's:
“How did you lose it?”
Because that matters enormously.
You can lose weight in all sorts of ways.
Cut out carbohydrates.
Stop drinking alcohol.
Live on meal replacements.
Exercise every day.
Track every mouthful.
Avoid restaurants.
Follow an extremely restrictive diet.
And yes — some of those approaches may result in weight loss.
But perhaps the more important question is:
Could you actually live like that?
Because if the method you use to lose weight bears very little resemblance to the way you intend to live afterwards, maintaining the result may be rather difficult.
IT'S NOT SOMETHING TO TICK OFF THE TO-DO LIST
One of the problems with “going on a diet” is that it sounds like a temporary project.
Start diet.
Follow diet.
Lose weight.
Reach target.
Tick. Done. What's next?
Except your body doesn't work like your overflowing inbox.
If you return completely to the habits and behaviours that contributed to weight gain in the first place, it's not particularly surprising if some of the weight eventually returns.
The goal isn't to finish the diet. It's to stop needing one.
Instead, think about creating a way of eating, moving and living that you can genuinely see yourself continuing.
That doesn't mean being “on plan” forever.
It doesn't mean tracking every mouthful, never eating cake or exercising every day.
Quite the opposite.
It's about gradually changing the way you live and think around food, movement and health so that helpful behaviours become part of normal life rather than something you're temporarily doing to lose weight.
You don't finish brushing your teeth because your teeth are currently clean.
You don't stop looking after your muscles because you've become stronger.
And healthy eating and movement don't suddenly become unnecessary because you've reached a number on the scales.
COULD YOU STILL DO THIS IN TWO YEARS?
This is one of the most useful questions you can ask while losing weight:
“Could I still see myself doing most of this in two years' time?”
Not perfectly.
Not every day.
But broadly.
Could you still:
Eat plenty of protein and fibre?
Include fruit and vegetables?
Pay some attention to portions?
Cook regularly?
Walk and strength train?
Plan ahead when useful?
Enjoy restaurants and holidays?
Eat cake without assuming the week is ruined?
If yes, you're probably building something far more useful than a short-term diet.
If the answer is no, perhaps something needs to change.
THE BIGGEST LOSER: AN EXTREME EXAMPLE
The American television programme The Biggest Loser was perhaps the ultimate example of treating weight loss as a project.
Contestants were removed from normal life and placed in an environment built around losing as much weight as possible — with intensive exercise, major dietary restriction, trainers, competition and almost constant focus on weight loss.
And they lost enormous amounts of weight.
But could anybody realistically live like that?
Researchers followed 14 former contestants six years after their competition.
During the programme, they had lost an average of around 58 kg (128 lb).
Six years later, they had regained an average of around 41 kg (90 lb) of that loss, although most remained below their original starting weight.
Researchers also found that their resting metabolic rates remained lower than would have been expected for their body size.
This was a tiny and highly unusual group, so we shouldn't assume the same thing happens to everyone who loses weight.
It certainly doesn't mean ordinary weight loss permanently damages your metabolism.
But it illustrates an important point:
Being able to lose weight using an extreme method isn't the same as having a way of living that you can maintain.
Interestingly, later research on these contestants also found that those who maintained more of their weight loss tended to be substantially more physically active six years later.
If you're interested in the story behind the programme, the 2025 Netflix documentary Fit for TV: The Reality of The Biggest Loser explores the methods used and the experiences of former contestants.
It's a fascinating example of why “Can I lose weight doing this?” and “Can I live like this?” are two very different questions.
YOUR BODY MAY ALSO PUSH BACK
Weight maintenance isn't purely psychological.
And weight regain isn't simply about somebody “losing willpower”.
When we lose weight, our bodies can undergo biological adaptations that favour weight regain.
A smaller body generally requires less energy than a larger one.
Weight loss can also alter appetite regulation, and some research has found changes in appetite-related hormones that persist after weight loss.
Energy expenditure may also fall somewhat beyond what would be expected from the reduction in body size alone.
In other words, after losing weight, you may need less energy while simultaneously feeling a stronger drive to eat.
A well-known study by Sumithran and colleagues found that several hormonal changes associated with increased appetite were still detectable a year after weight loss.
That doesn't mean weight regain is inevitable.
But it does help explain why maintaining a substantial weight loss can sometimes require continued attention rather than simply reaching a number and declaring the job finished.
Biology matters.
But it isn't the whole story.
YOUR BRAIN LIKES FAMILIAR PATTERNS TOO
There's another piece of the puzzle.
Humans are creatures of habit.
The sofa becomes associated with chocolate.
Friday evening becomes associated with wine.
Driving home becomes associated with stopping for something to eat.
Feeling stressed becomes associated with opening the fridge.
These behaviours don't necessarily involve a conscious decision every time.
Repeated behaviours can become strongly linked with particular situations and cues.
And old patterns can be surprisingly easy to slip back into — particularly when life becomes busy, stressful or tiring.
Familiar requires less thought.
That's why changing your lifestyle isn't simply about knowing what you “should” do.
You're gradually building new familiar patterns.
Eventually:
The walk can become normal.
The balanced breakfast can become normal.
Strength training can become something you simply do.
Planning a few meals can become routine.
Stopping when you're comfortably full can become easier.
The aim isn't to spend your life fighting your old habits.
It's to repeat your newer ones often enough that they start becoming familiar too.
MAINTENANCE IS A SKILL
We talk extensively about how to lose weight and surprisingly little about what happens afterwards.
But maintenance is something you can learn and practise.
It means discovering:
How much food satisfies you.
What your normal meals look like.
How to navigate weekends, restaurants and holidays.
How to remain active in ordinary life.
How to respond when weight fluctuates.
How to recognise when old habits are creeping back.
How to make adjustments without panicking.
You're no longer asking:
“How do I keep losing weight?”
You're learning:
“How do I live in a way that supports where I am now?”
And that may involve keeping many of the habits that helped you lose weight in the first place.
Protein and fibre.
Plenty of plants.
Regular movement.
Strength training.
Some awareness of portions.
Cooking and planning when useful.
Adequate sleep.
Paying attention to hunger and fullness.
You don't necessarily need to continue everything you did while actively losing weight.
Maintenance generally allows more flexibility because you're no longer trying to create the same energy deficit.
But identify the behaviours that genuinely improved your health and that you can realistically continue.
Those are the ones worth protecting.
And remember that movement isn't simply something you do to burn calories.
It supports cardiovascular health, fitness, muscle, mobility, mental wellbeing and healthy ageing — regardless of what the scales say.
THINK RANGE, NOT EXACT NUMBER
Your body weight isn't going to stay exactly the same every morning.
Food.
Fluid.
Hormones.
Salt.
Carbohydrate intake.
Bowel contents.
All can move the scales without representing a meaningful change in body fat.
So maintaining weight doesn't necessarily mean staying at one exact number forever.
A comfortable maintenance range can often be more realistic.
Instead of worrying about every fluctuation, pay attention to the overall trend.
The scales are information — not instructions to panic.
And if weighing yourself starts affecting your mood, self-worth or relationship with food, it may be worth reconsidering whether that particular monitoring method is helping you.
NOTICE THE DRIFT. ADJUST. CARRY ON.
Weight regain doesn't usually happen because of one enormous decision.
Often it's gradual.
The walks become less frequent.
Portions gradually get bigger.
A couple of drinks become several.
Takeaways become more regular.
Strength training drops off.
Planning disappears.
Snacking creeps back in.
None of this means you've failed.
It means you're human — and familiar patterns are easy to return to.
The answer isn't hypervigilance.
It's awareness.
Every now and then, ask yourself:
“Hang on — what am I doing now that I wasn't doing a few months ago?”
And:
“Are the habits that help me feel good still happening?”
If they're not, you don't necessarily need another dramatic diet.
You may simply need to bring a few helpful behaviours back.
Notice the drift.
Adjust.
Carry on.
DON'T TURN A SMALL REGAIN INTO A LARGE ONE
This is where all-or-nothing thinking can cause trouble.
Perhaps you've regained a few pounds.
The danger is turning that into:
“I've ruined everything.”
“I knew I wouldn't keep it off.”
“Here we go again.”
“Sod it.”
And suddenly a small change becomes a much bigger one.
A few pounds of regain doesn't erase everything you've achieved.
You don't need to punish yourself.
And you don't necessarily need another dramatic Monday restart.
Instead, get curious.
What's changed?
Are portions bigger?
Are you moving less?
Has life become more stressful?
Are you sleeping badly?
Have weekends become very different from weekdays?
Has more automatic eating crept in?
Then decide what needs adjusting.
Adjust — don't punish.
You don't have to start again. You just need to course-correct.
CAN I REACH IT — OR CAN I LIVE THERE?
There's another useful distinction:
“Can I reach this weight?”
is not quite the same question as:
“Can I comfortably live at this weight?”
If maintaining a particular number requires constant hunger, excessive exercise, rigid food rules and avoiding your social life, it may be worth asking whether that number is actually serving you.
Your healthiest life isn't necessarily found at the smallest body weight you can possibly achieve.
And don't forget the other wins.
Perhaps you're stronger.
Fitter.
Sleeping better.
Cooking more.
Walking regularly.
More confident around food.
Less all-or-nothing.
Better at recognising hunger and fullness.
Those changes matter.
Don't allow the scales to be the only measure of whether you're succeeding.
BUILD SOMETHING YOU DON'T NEED TO ESCAPE FROM
Successful long-term weight management isn't about eating perfectly forever.
It's about creating a way of living that works most of the time.
One that has room for:
Restaurants.
Holidays.
Birthdays.
Christmas.
Pudding.
Busy weeks.
Rest days.
And occasionally eating more than you intended because you're a human being rather than a nutrition spreadsheet.
Then you return to your usual habits.
No punishment.
No dramatic Monday restart.
No “I'll be good from January.”
Just back to normal.
Restaurant meals, celebrations, chocolate, takeaways and lazy Sundays aren't interruptions to real life.
They are real life.
The aim isn't to control every variable forever.
It's to build enough helpful habits that they survive normal life.
YOUR MAINTENANCE TOOLKIT
Take a few minutes to think about what would genuinely work for you.
The habits that helped me most were:
..............................................................................
The foods and meals that work well for me are:
..............................................................................
The movement I genuinely enjoy and can maintain is:
..............................................................................
The situations where I tend to struggle are:
..............................................................................
My early signs that old habits are creeping back are:
..............................................................................
If I notice myself drifting, the first small things I can return to are:
..............................................................................
Other ways I can measure my health and progress are:
..............................................................................
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
Weight loss isn't an item on your to-do list.
You don't reach your target, tick the box and return to exactly how you lived before.
And maintenance doesn't mean spending the rest of your life on a diet.
The aim is to gradually create a way of eating, moving, thinking and living that supports your health and that you can realistically continue.
Your body may make maintenance more challenging.
Your brain may be tempted by familiar patterns.
Life will occasionally get in the way.
None of that requires perfection.
Keep some structure.
Allow flexibility.
Eat food you enjoy.
Keep moving.
Maintain your muscle.
Notice when things start to drift.
Adjust when you need to.
And carry on living your life.
The goal isn't to finish the diet. It's to stop needing one.
Ultimately, successful weight management isn't simply about reaching a particular number.
It's about building a way of living that you don't constantly need to escape from.
Sources & further reading
Fothergill E et al. (2016). Persistent metabolic adaptation 6 years after “The Biggest Loser” competition. Obesity.
Kerns JC et al. (2017). Increased physical activity associated with less weight regain six years after “The Biggest Loser” competition. Obesity.
Sumithran P et al. (2011). Long-term persistence of hormonal adaptations to weight loss. New England Journal of Medicine.
Wood W, Rünger D. (2016). Psychology of Habit. Annual Review of Psychology.
MacLean PS et al. (2015). Physiological adaptations to weight loss and factors favouring weight regain.International Journal of Obesity.
For your information
This handout provides general education about weight management, nutrition, behaviour and lifestyle. It is not intended to replace individual medical, dietetic or psychological advice. Weight management can be affected by medical conditions, medications, hormonal factors and individual circumstances. Please seek appropriate professional advice where needed.
For client use only. Please do not copy, reproduce, distribute or share without permission.
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