Losing weight is traditionally difficult and it is not uncommon for people to try numerous methods without lasting results.

As a scientific team, we have been studying this phenomenon for years and finally found the reasons behind this failure. Large regions of the world have reached a state of obesity epidemic without durable solutions. We hope our findings will be one of many to help tackle this problem.

Our results show that sustained weight management requires three intermingling components:

1. An excellent nutritional program including key nutrients, which promote weight loss, exceeds all nutritional needs and occupy volume for satisfaction and comfort. Accounts for only 10% of long-term success.

2. Understanding how different food groups are processed and used differently by your body (bio-chemical and bio-mechanical actions of foods). Account for 20% of success.

3. Acquiring a powerful mindset to keep motivation at peak level by using psychological tools to replace bad eating habits with good ones (reflex cognitive behavior acquisition). Accounts for 70% of sustained weight loss success.

Up to now, only diet programs were considered for weight loss. Most diets score high marks for short-term success. Usually within a few months to a year weight is gained back. The dieter comes to the conclusion the program was not good enough. Following a new event, the person will start again with a "new and better diet" that will inevitably give some short-term results but eventually fail to give sustained results.

This unfortunate cycle can last for years and leaves a person feeling helpless causing various degree of emotional traumas and self-confidence issues. During interviews these people feel lost. They don't understand why and how they have failed; self-acceptance is sinking in. In fact, a diet program accounts for only 10% of long-term results.

The real success of permanent weight loss and control lies within components 2 & 3 listed above.

Bio-chemical and bio-mechanical actions of foods. For various reasons, your body processes and uses different food groups differently. Contrary to popular beliefs calories are NOT equal. One thousand calories of certain food groups will contribute to weight loss and control. The same 1000 calories of other food groups will actually make you gain weight because some food molecules are perceived and treated differently by your body (this important subject will be treated in more depth in a future article).

Being able to identify and avoid food with high bio-chemical and bio-mechanical action is essential to permanent weight loss success.

Acquiring a powerful mindset. This might shock you but many overweight people have the same relationship with food as alcoholic have with alcohol. It occupies an overly important part in their lives and minds. We hear expressions like "eating is the only pleasure I have in life" or "we only have one life to live".

Most overweight conditions are the result of the mind and it's ONLY through the mind that the reverse process will occur giving lifetime weight control.

Acquiring a powerful mindset and good habits is the real key to permanent weight loss. An array of tools like visualization, hypnosis, or psychological help are available through professionals or self-help. Any method chosen should favor cognitive behavior modification.

Acquiring a new mindset is not that difficult and leads to excellent results. Following a good diet program suddenly becomes easy when it's a part of your mind.

The three components method has been tried on many people for the past 5 years resulting in sustained and lasting results (two years and more).

The only prerequisite to permanent weight loss and control is a sincere desire for change. The target is now reachable and can be quite easy for anybody when the right tools are used.

Copyright (c) 2008 Jef Masson