Our society today is used to getting everything instantly – if we order a package from Amazon it arrives the same day, and if we want to know something then the answer is just a google away. But when it comes to fat loss, is quickly really the best method, or does slow and steady win the diet race?

 

We’ve lost count of the number of members who have come to us after trying fad after fad – vowing to start a radical fasting programme, going on a juice diet, or trying to give up alcohol completely when drinking several units per night. They’re looking for a quick fix. Most personal trainers, nutritionists and health professionals warn against these quick fixes, arguing that adopting a slow and steady approach is healthier in the long run and better for long term weight loss; after all, this gives you time to adapt to new habits, making them more likely to last and therefore avoiding a huge rebound in weight gain when you crack under the pressure of an unrealistic nutrition plan.

 

But in our industry, it’s crucial to keep an eye on the science and research – things constantly evolve. So, what does the research say?

 

In recent years, several papers have looked at the impact on the rate of weight loss when it comes to regaining weight. A 2013 report in the New England Journal of Medicine went against conventional wisdom, concluding that “the rate of weight regain is the same irrespective of the rate of weight loss.” More recently, a 2019 study looking at weight loss across a year in obese menopausal women found the women who restricted their food intake by 65-75% for the first four months and then 25-35% for the remaining eight months lost 15.3kgs compared to 8.4kgs in those women who restricted their calorie consumption by 25-35% across the year. The severely restricted group were also 2.5-3 times more likely to lose at least 10% of their bodyweight, as well as finding the regime three times easier to stick to.

 

Sounds like a promising start for an initial period of restriction, however the research also shows us that over half of those who originally lost the weight managed to put it all back on within the first two years, regardless of how quickly they lost it to begin with. This regain in weight has little to do with the rate at which you lose it, but rather the mechanisms behind losing the weight.

 

This is crucial information for those who are losing weight, and those who are helping them to do it, to understand. Often, it’s not the losing weight that’s the issue, it’s the keeping it off once the job is done. Why is that?

 

Well, whether you’re trying to lose weight slowly or not, the body begins to fight back in an effort to return back to its initial starting weight. It does this by altering your hunger hormones, decreasing the hormone leptin that is responsible for food intake and energy control, and increasing the hormone ghrelin that helps to regulate hunger and appetite. The levels of these two hormones change as we begin to lose weight and remain altered even after a year. Evidence suggests the change in these hormones can offset the weight we’re trying to lose by increasing our food intake by around 100 kcals per day for every kilogram lost.
 

Not only do we find our appetite increases as we try to lose weight, but typically, our general day-to-day movement decreases. Non-Activity Exercise Thermogenesis (NEAT) is the number of calories we burn outside of formal exercise. Subconscious movement such as standing, holding your posture, fidgeting, chewing gum, walking to and from the car etc. all require energy – small actions that we rarely think about but in fact can equate in upwards of 1,000+ kcals per day. Sadly, as we begin to lose weight we also begin to (subconsciously) move less, as the body begins to put the brakes on in an effort to conserve calories.
 

So, as we lose weight, our appetite increases and our general movement decreases. The balance of those calories every day doesn’t need to change much to move us out of a deficit or maintenance, and back into weight gain.

 

So now we understand the challenge, what lessons should we learn from this?

 

The most important thing when embarking on any diet is the support network you have around you. If your environment isn’t set up for success, if you haven’t got a team of people cheering you on, supporting you, and helping you overcome the barriers your face then it’s going to be an uphill struggle. Once that’s all set, it’s about working out what kind of fat loss will work for you. Are you a very on or off person who does well with strict rules, has good discipline and likes to see fast change? If so, then starting off with a slightly more restrictive plan may benefit you. If you’re somebody who likes flexibility, who wants to gradually build better habits and still have the odd treat, then taking the slow and steady approach may be better.

 

But keep in mind that your efforts will have to continue even when you reach your goal weight. In many respects, this is the most important period for consolidation, and you’ll need that support around you to carry on.

 

If you’re struggling to lose weight or just confused on what you should or shouldn’t be eating, why not check out our nutrition services? Or you can learn more about building a personalised diet here.