The secret strategies for lasting weight loss: A surprising study cites what's critical for sticking with an exercise and diet plan to lose weight. Five women tell how it brought them long-term success - New Research

Shape, March, 2002 by Alice Lesch Kelly

You're ready to launch your weight-loss program: You've joined a gym; stocked your kitchen with fruit and microwave popcorn; and cleaned the candy out of your desk drawers. But wait--before you start to become the trimmer new you, consider the compelling research that shows it pays to get your head in the right place first.

Weight-loss researchers are finding that people who lose weight and keep it off don't just alter the way they eat and exercise. They modify their minds too. "The difficulty with weight loss is you have to be committed to changing habits which are extremely ingrained," says Jane Ogden, Ph.D., a health psychologist at Guys Kings and St. Thomas' School of Medicine in London.

Ogden studied a group of women, one-third of whom had lost weight and maintained it for more than three years. She compared their habits to women who didn't lose weight and to women who'd lost and gained it back. She found that the women who can keep the weight off change not only the way they eat and exercise, but also the way they think about eating and exercising. By doing so, they're able to make a commitment to changing their ingrained behaviors. Weight-loss experts have pinpointed several important psychological factors that help women change their mind-sets. These factors may mean the difference between success and failure. Here are five attitudes to get you into a successful weight-loss frame of mind.

1. Believe you can lose.

Why this works: In her study, Ogden found that the women who believed their weight problems were caused by their own choices (such as what foods they ate and how much they exercised), rather than by metabolism or genetics, were more successful at losing pounds because they believed that they were in control of their weight -- and, therefore, believed they could lose weight.

Many people think they can't lose weight, either because of their "slow" metabolisms, their mothers' large thighs or because they've had trouble sticking with diets or exercise routines in the past. They're wrong. Maybe you'll never be considered svelte, but you can take off enough weight to feel better, look better and reduce your risk of disease.

"You have to believe that you will drop some weight and then begin that journey," says Pamela Peeke, M.D., M.P.H., assistant professor of medicine at the University of Maryland in Baltimore and author of Fight Fat Over Forty (Viking, 2000). Once you believe success is possible, Peeke says, you'll feel less intimidated by the challenges along the way.

Who it's worked for: Michelle Chapman, 37, of Portland, Ore., lost 35 pounds and has kept them off for three years. She's 5 feet 8 inches and now 145 pounds.

At 5-foot-8 and 180 pounds, Chapman grew frustrated with her weight. "I was a size 12 for as long as I can remember. I was an athlete, playing team sports like basketball, volleyball, soccer, track and field. So I was in shape, but I was a big girl," she says. A divorce a few years ago led Chapman to think hard about herself, and she decided to make some changes. "I was tired of being unhappy with my weight and not doing anything about it," Chapman says. "I ate well -- I'm a vegetarian -- but I ate too much. I decided I wanted to be in control of what I put in my body." One of Chapman's transforming moments came when she was trying on clothes and had to wiggle into a size 14 for the first time in her life. "I thought to myself, this is ridiculous! I felt very much out of control, and I realized no one could change this but me. I believed that if I set some goals, I could eventually be the person I wanted to be."

Chapman educated herself about portion sizes, started working out with weights and on the elliptical trainer (in addition to playing her team sports) and lost 35 pounds, which she's kept off so successfully that her personal trainer suggested she contact a local modeling agency. She didn't think anything would come of it, but now she does print modeling for Nike, Columbia and other athletic-wear lines.

2. Seek support.

Why this works: Women who have a support group -- of family or friends or an organized gathering -- cheering them on are more successful with long-term weight loss. in one recent study, the men and women who participated in a structured weight-loss program that included weekly group support lost more weight and did a better job of keeping it off for two years than did people who lacked group support.

Years of fast-food lunches, takeout dinners and her grandmother's Italian cooking contributed to Collins' weight gain: She weighed 162 pounds in 1997. Determined to trim down for her wedding, and frustrated at her inability to lose weight on her own, Collins joined Weight Watchers and found that group support made the difference for her.

Who it's worked for: Tiffany Collins, 29, of Haverhill, Mass., lost 22 pounds and has succeeded in keeping the weight of f for four years. She's 5 feet 2 inches and now 140 pounds.

"What helped was hearing other people's stories, and sharing recipes and menus and advice on what restaurants to go to," Collins says. "That kind of experience was excellent. I had a whole group of women cheering me on."