Psst....These Are 6 Secrets Of Successful Dieters

What's the best diet for weight loss?

Maybe that's the wrong question.

A better question might be "What are the best habits for weight loss?"

​The largest and longest clinical trial on diet and weight loss — the POUNDS Lost trial — found great variation in how much weight people lost or gained while eating different amounts of fat, protein, and carbohydrates.

However.....at the end of the two-year trial, the members of each diet group had lost a similar amount of weight, averaging 6.6-8 pounds!

​Those who lost the most weight had these things in common:

1. They ate more protein.

People who ate significantly more protein lost much more weight than people who didn't. By the end of the trial, the high-protein consumers had lost an average of 16.5 pounds – triple the amount that people in the lowest protein group lost.

Eating more protein is thermogenic. It costs a lot of calories to digest and absorb protein compared to fat and carbs. Protein is also more filling.

2. They ate more fiber.

People who increased their fiber intake the most during the first six months of the study lost roughly 23 pounds – nearly double the amount of weight loss by people who added the least fiber to their diets.

Fiber slows the transit from your stomach to your intestines, which helps you feel full. It also stimulates the release of appetite-suppressing hormones like GLP-1, the hormone that’s mimicked by the diabetes and weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.

3. They cut back on ultra-processed foods.

People who consumed the fewest ultra-processed foods lost an average of 18.2 pounds during the study, while those who ate the most ultra-processed foods lost about 11.6 pounds. We tend to eat significantly more calories on a diet of ultra-processed foods like cookies, sugary breakfast cereals, and sodas. Ultra-processed foods are often designed to cause people to overeat.

4. They ate a variety of foods.

People who ate a wider range of nutritious foods lost significantly more weight and had larger reductions in their waistlines and body fat. These participants increased their intake of whole grains, berries, melons, and citrus fruits, as well as low-fat milk, yogurt, and dark-green and orange vegetables. They may have felt less deprived and enjoyed the variety.

5. They walked and exercised more.

The more people increased their daily step counts, the more weight and body fat they lost. Those who had the largest increases in physical activity maintained their weight loss throughout the two-year trial, while those who had the smallest increases in physical activity ended up regaining lost weight. The power of NEAT!

6. They got better sleep.

People who struggled with sleep problems had triple the likelihood of failing to lose weight. Losing sleep triggers brain and hormonal changes that drive us to crave and overeat junk foods rich in fat and sugar.

Successful weight loss isn't about following a particular diet, it's about practicing certain habits.

No counting calories! Woo Hoo!