Words of Weight-Loss Wisdom
By Janis Jibrin, R.D., Best Life lead nutritionist

Many people will say that losing weight is easy; it's keeping it off that's the tough part. But the word from people who've done it--kept off a lot of weight for many years--is that maintenance really isn't so bad.The successful maintainers I'm referring to are the people enrolled in the National Weight Control Registry, a study that tracks the habits of about 3,000 men and women who've lost an average of 66 pounds and kept it off for an average of 5 and a half years. Their experience and success bodes well for those of you trying to maintain your hard-earned weight loss. Here's how they see it:

• Maintenance is easier than weight loss. That's what 42 percent of participants said, and another 33 percent said it's no harder to maintain than to lose. As with most skills, the longer you do, the easier it gets.

• Your metabolism keeps humming along. While some research suggests that losing weight results in a dip in metabolic rate (the rate at which your body burns calories), that's not what the National Weight Control Registry found. The metabolic rates of study participants were similar to people of the same weight and height who had never had a weight problem. So, when you slim down, your body doesn't fight to get back those lost pounds. In fact, researchers found that study participants ate about as many calories as people who were never overweight, and exercised nearly the same amount.

• Weight loss improves your life. A full 95 percent of participants said losing weight improved their quality of life. And more than 90 percent reported having more energy and mobility, an improved mood and an increase in self-confidence. Not surprisingly, 86 percent said their physical health had improved, and for 65 percent of people, their "interaction with the opposite sex" was also better. You're likely to see some changes at the office, too. More than half said they did better on the job after losing weight. Just look at all you have to gain by losing.....

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