So many of my patients are diet experts. They have been on every diet known, and modified them in every way possible. If you have lost weight in the past, you know how distressing it is to see the weight come back on. As it turns out, we can predict when someone is about to regain weight with some degree of certainty. The history goes like this: As someone loses weight, they also increase their activity level. As long as they stay active, their eating habits stay in balance.
A drop in activity level is the most common signal that you are about to regain weight. This can occur due to illness, travel, family stressors such as the death or illness of a family member, or any of life’s twists and turns. As soon as you stop exercising, you typically stop paying attention to the eating habits that lead to your weight loss. Following this, you might stop weighing yourself. After all, who wants to face the scale when you are gaining weight?
This self destructive cycle can be interrupted by getting us involved as early as possible. Whatever the weight regain, we are here for you to help you get back on track. One strategy is as follows: If you can’t exercise due to a life event or stressor, go back to the last diet plan that helped you lose weight. That will lessen the damage of stopping your exercise. Ask yourself what worked for you in the past, and what did not work. You’ll be amazed at how some simple planning can avoid the yo-yo diet cycle.