In the study, Wing and her team enrolled 314 participants who'd lost at least 10 percent of their body weight averaging nearly 20 percent of their body weight or 42 pounds within the last two years. A third of participants were assigned to a control group, and received quarterly newsletters about eating and exercise in the mail for the duration of the study period.
The other two-thirds were assigned to groups that would test the weight maintenance program. One third received the intervention over the Internet, the final third in face-to-face group meetings. Whether delivered over the computer, or in person, the education and support program was virtually identical.
Participants were taught strategies specific to preventing weight regain, many gleaned from Wing's National Weight Control Registry, a registry of more than 5,000 people who have successfully lost weight and kept it off for at least one year. Strategies taught in the trial included eating breakfast, getting an hour of physical activity each day and regular weighing - participants were given a scale and urged to use it daily. They also reported their weight weekly, either over the Internet or by phone, depending on the study group.
Participants were also introduced to a weight-monitoring system based on color zones. If they were within three pounds of their starting weight after the weekly check-in, they were in the "green zone" and received encouraging phone messages and green rewards, from mint gum to a dollar bill. If they'd gained between three and four pounds, they landed in the "yellow zone" and were instructed to
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Contact: Megan Martin
mmartin@lifespan.org
401-793-7484
Lifespan
11-Oct-2006