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Writer's pictureTara Pickham

The Psychology of Weight Loss

Updated: Apr 30, 2023

When you look at what is physically required from a person to lose weight it’s not complicated. In fact it’s pretty darn simple, create a calorie deficit through diet, exercise or both and well you’re pretty much there. So why do so many people struggle to lose weight and maintain it long term? This is because there is much more to weight loss then meets the eye. For weight loss to occur and be maintained; we must understand the psychology behind our food behaviours, lifestyle choices and how they can impact our ability to make the necessary changes to improve our lifestyle.


The Link between Psychology and Weight Loss

Most of us know what we need to do in order to lose weight, there is however a little more to it. Being overweight doesn’t necessarily indicate that a person is lazy or ill-disciplined, oftentimes it is actually a reflection that a person is dealing with stress, trauma, poor body image or low self-esteem. All of which can bring about a large array of emotions. This might sound bizarre but people like this may actually get something out of habits which are associated with being overweight. We are creatures of routine and we find comfort within our routines, when people habitually turn to food as a means of dealing with their emotions this becomes a part of their routine. The rationalisation is that unhealthy habits actually provide relief and comfort (even if only temporary) and so these habits continue, after all why discontinue a practice that makes you feel better. Our bodies are designed to eat so breaking these habits can cause discomfort and sometimes distress, this means change can be difficult. Understanding the psychology behind what we do is the key to developing a healthier relationship with food and being successful at long term weight loss.


Psychological Blocks to Weight Loss


Mindset: When it comes to weight loss people generally have an all or nothing approach. This tends to lead them to fad diets that promise fast and significant weight loss. Let me tell you now this won’t work, the vicious cycle of drastic dieting simply just leaves people feeling angry, frustrated and disappointed. This can foster even greater feelings of dissatisfaction and only aggravate the problem. For permanent weight loss you must make permanent lifestyle changes, you do this by adapting your behaviour and forming new healthy routines. This means eating a balanced diet full of foods that nourish your body, eating mindfully so to improve your awareness of what you’re consuming and what your body needs and exercising with the intention of feeling good and improving your health and fitness. A healthy mindset results in a healthy approach to weight loss.


Negative Body Image: Negative body image can affect anyone regardless of their shape or size. Whilst it’s ok and sometimes necessary to want to change your appearance, harbouring a body image that is negative will only hinder your ability to do so. People attempt to shame themselves by repeating negative messages about who they are and how they look in the hope that this will spark motivation to lose weight. Creating such dissatisfaction within one’s self can exacerbate unhealthy eating habits and lead to feelings of embarrassment in public or lead to avoidance of activity because they are self-conscious about themselves. When undertaking a weight loss journey it’s important to remember that everyone’s journey is different and that creating comparisons between themselves and others can lead to further dissatisfaction and potential failure to achieve their own goals.


Stress and Mental Health: As we touched on earlier; eating makes us feel good, so in times of stress it’s no surprise that people turn to food in order to calm their emotions. This happens to people of all shapes and sizes but it is when this behaviour becomes part of your routine that it can be detrimental to your weight. Stress hormones such as cortisol not only promote the growth of body fat but it can also make it harder to lose. Mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression are also linked to binge eating and are typically associated with a lack of motivation. This can make it difficult to achieve a weight loss goal. It is also important to note that personal or childhood trauma can be linked to poor mental health and as a result unhealthy eating habits can develop.


Overcoming Barriers


Set Goals: That are realistic, specific, attainable and conducive to you achieving overall health and well-being. Make yourself accountable and remember there will be ups and downs to your progress. Don’t dwell on the numbers, rather focus on making small manageable changes that improve your lifestyle and create healthy habits.


Keep a Journal: And be honest about what you put in it. Having a record will allow you to identify what triggers your emotional eating. In your journal you can track if you over eat or make poor food choices when you are in certain situations, in specific environments or around particular people. Make a record of how you feel when you eat so that you can recognise what emotions trigger negative reactions, this gives us an insight into the psychology behind our decisions. Once we identify these triggers we can either limit exposure to these situations or develop better coping strategies.


Positive Self Talk: Fortunately self-talk can go both ways. Take a little time to listen to your own inner dialogue, do you encourage positive or negative images of yourself? If you answered negatively then try switching these negative phrases with positive and empowering messages that boost you confidence and self-worth. This takes time but stick with it long enough and you will notice a change in your thinking. Remember positive self-talk can be reinforced with positive behaviours.


Seek Help: This might be as simple as finding a friend or loved one who you can talk to openly, honestly and without shame about what you are experiencing. For some, having the support of their loved ones is all they need to overcome their psychological barriers. If talking to your loved ones isn’t enough then now is a good time to seek the advice of a qualified therapist, this will allow you to better identify and treat the underlying cause of your emotional eating and weight gain.


Changing your behaviour can be difficult and it most certainly won’t be straight forward. There will be days where you feel like you have everything under control and other days where you feel like you’ve taken three steps back. Don’t give up, stay focused on your goal and surround yourself with the support you need to make a healthy long term change to your lifestyle. Your body and mind will thank you for it.

xx Tara


Have you ever considered the psychology behind your lifestyle choices? Have you got a weight loss goal?

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