Stories about weight loss, when not harping on about the importance of swapping fast foods for brisk walking, tend to be tales of short-term success and longer-term backsliding.

The controversial TV show The Biggest Loser (old episodes still streaming) was a case in point.

First, there was a guilty and even unkind pleasure watching morbidly obese people whinge and weep and break down as they were pushed and cajoled and bullied into working harder and eating less.

But there was amazement and admiration, too, at their success. Just last week, we reported on the depressingly low success rate for people with obesity to return to a normal weight by modifying their lifestyle.

A brief moment of glory

For a short while these people gave the rest of us hope. If those seemingly hopeless fatties could do it, why not the rest of us?

Then came the stories that few of those contestants, once removed from a highly controlled environment, had managed to keep the weight off. The sinister effects of biochemistry had worked against them.

In fact, scientists studied some of those contestants for years –  and discovered just how brutally the body works against weight loss.

Still, considering the extent of the failure – the sheer number of people who went backwards – one can only suppose that the strategies provided to them simply weren’t up to scratch.

So what does it take?

What does it take for a biggest loser of kilos to become a long-term loser?

A new study from California Polytechnic State University has come up with some persuasive answers – by surveying nearly 2500 WeightWatchers members who lost an average of 26 kilograms and kept it off for more than 3.5 years.

Participants were asked, in an extensive questionnaire, to detail their weight-control behaviours, goals, successes and setbacks.

“This asks the very question: ‘How do people who have successfully maintained weight loss over the long-term do it’?”  co-author of the study, and director of Cal Poly’s Centre for Health Research, Dr Suzanne Phelan, said.

“What can we learn from them to help others going through a similar journey be more successful?”

 The study

Nearly all (94.9 per cent) of participants were female with an average age of 60 years. Participants ranged from 49 to 71 years old.

They were divided into three groups:

• 48 per cent had maintained their weight loss without significant fluctuation; these were designated as ‘stable’
• 29 per cent reported gains and losses, were designated as ‘gain-lose’, and proved to be the group with the most helpful insights
• 23 per cent reported gradual regain, designated as ‘gain’.

The survey questions included:

“What is the largest amount of weight you have regained before restarting weight-loss efforts?”

And: “When you tried to re-lose this larger amount of weight, what was your primary strategy?”

The findings

In comparison to those in the gain group, the gain-lose participants engaged in the following behaviours:

• Resumed weight-loss efforts after a smaller amount of regain (less than 3.6 kilos)
• Sustained weight-loss efforts longer (16 weeks in gain-lose versus 10 weeks among gain group)
• Engaged in more frequent self-weighing, self-monitoring and healthy dietary choices
• Used more psychological coping mechanisms, such as self-reinforcement, problem-solving and restructuring negative thoughts.

In other words, the participants who successfully maintained weight-loss were quick to respond when the scales started to creep up again. This meant they didn’t let the weight gain get out of control.

They also worked at their weight-loss longer, meaning they didn’t slack off or engage in bargaining once they had some success.

They also engaged in more self-weighing and self-monitoring. This is potentially controversial in that frequently standing on the bathroom scales has been associated with triggering feelings of unworthiness and shame.

The reasonable answer to that is you’re probably struggling with amplified issues of self-worth to begin with, and you would likely benefit from exploring those issues with a psychologist or counsellor.

Perhaps the cautionary question for participants in this study to be mindful of is: When does vigilance become obsession?

However, off-setting that risk is the fact that successful weight control, according to these participants, relies on psychological coping mechanisms (thereby avoiding anxiety), inner cheerleading and problem-solving.

This problem-solving component no doubt serves to create a healthy mindset when working to maintain one’s weight, because it separates the feelings you have about yourself – your self-image – and how you feel about the task at hand.

In short: What appears to work is a mindful but not neurotic vigilance.