End the Yo

MS, Registered Dietitian, Former President of CT Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics

If you’ve ever experienced the frustrating cycle of losing and regaining unwanted weight, you might have fallen into the trap known as yo-yo dieting. You’re not alone in this, though. In fact, you’re in the majority: 74.6% of American adults have attempted weight loss at some point.

What isn’t often discussed is that research suggests around 80% of people who lose a significant amount of weight struggle to maintain it over the following year, and many regain more than half their weight back within two years. 

This cycle is often misunderstood and is presumed to be caused by a lack of willpower. However, recent research shows otherwise and suggests these weight fluctuations stem more from your body’s biological response to extreme or unsustainable ways of eating. In other words, this challenge of keeping weight off is a clear protective mechanism at play, not a personal flaw.

The good news: cycles can be broken, and that often starts with understanding. So, if you’re ready to stop starting over, let’s explore what yo-yo dieting is, why it happens in weight loss, and which alternate strategies have shown sustainable and maintainable success.

Yo-yo dieting, also known as weight cycling, refers to the repeated loss and regain of weight, typically in significant amounts (10 pounds or more).