Prevent kilo rebound with these five tried-and-tested tips

After losing weight, it’s tempting to take a vacation from healthy eating. “Many dieters start slipping back into their old behaviors soon after dropping kilos,” says Naomi Fukagawa, M.D., spokeswoman for the American Society for Nutrition. But there are ways to stay on track without depriving yourself. As several new studies show, by making a few minor adjustments to your regular routine, you can hang on to those hard-earned losses for good.

1. Weigh in regularly
“Hopping on the scale consistently provides positive reinforcement for your healthy habits,” says Meghan Butryn, Ph.D., an assistant professor of psychology at Drexel University. “It can also help you catch small
gains before they escalate.”

When Butryn and her research team studied the habits of adults who’d lost 13.5 kilograms or more and kept it off for several years, they discovered that those who got on the scale consistently put on just 2 kilograms in a year. However, the dieters whose weigh-ins declined in frequency gained back double that amount.