In Part 1 of this article series, I explained:
 

1. Why your bodyweight is a useful tool in a fat loss or muscle gain phase
2. How to track and collect bodyweight data

 
In this second part, I’ll explain how to interpret and utilise your bodyweight data from the beginning to the end of a fat loss phase in order to diet and maintain the results successfully.
 
As stated in the previous article, the only data that matters in the context of muscle gain and fat loss is your bodyweight average per week and/or per month, which is what I’ll be referring to in the rest of this blog post.

Reflecting on the past two years of coaching people online and in person, I created a list of the advice that my clients have found most helpful in the pursuit of their goals, but that seems to be underrated in an online fitness space rife with detox teas and abs-blasting workouts.
 
This article breaks down these tips into the following categories:
 

1. Nutrition
2. Training
3. Habits
4. Mindset

95% of diets fail, so diets don’t work.
 
… Or do they?
 
If you take a look at the scientific literature, there’s actually plenty of evidence to the contrary. For example, we know that diets inducing a caloric deficit are effective for fat loss regardless of whether they’re high in fats, carbohydrates, or protein.
 
In other words, any diet can work as long as it involves a caloric deficit.
 
The real problem is maintaining the resulting weight loss.
 
For instance, a review of nearly 30 long-term studies on weight loss and maintenance in the American population showed that more than half of the weight lost was regained within two years, and 80% was regained within five.
 
For this reason, experts consider maintenance of 5 to 10% of your weight loss “a great achievement”.
 
But why is it so hard not to put weight back on?
 
When a new client signs up for online coaching to lose fat, what often stands out to me is their mindset: In their experience, a diet is a short-term, excruciating “eat chicken breast and a green leaf for every meal” endeavour, not an attempt to change their lifestyle for the better in the long run.
 
After a few weeks or months of this torture, they go back to the same way they were eating before, regain weight, start another diet, and so on.
 
This vicious cycle is unfortunately common because most diets give you rules to stick to, whether you like them or not, instead of habits that you can incorporate into your long-term lifestyle.
 
This article is perfect if you haven’t had much luck maintaining fat loss after your previous diets, because it does exactly what those diets didn’t do: It teaches you five habits you need to have in place not only to lose fat, but to keep it off, too.
 
If you’ve been spinning your wheels with countless diets for as long as you can remember, you don’t want to miss this one.

​Spoiler alert: Yes, it’s possible! (Gasp.)
 
Humans were changing their body size long before calories and calorie-tracking apps existed.
 
Tracking calories and macros can be a very successful approach to losing fat, gaining muscle, or maintaining your weight. In fact, it’s the method I’ve had the greatest success with in my own bodybuilding journey, and I employ it with many clients.
 
However, it isn’t for everyone.
 
You can never track calories or macros, and still get great results. So, if you’ve tried it and it just isn’t for you, why not have a crack at one of the three fat loss methods in this article?
 
Fair warning: Not a single one of them involves cutting out entire food groups, your favourite treats, or any joy from your life!

​What does healthy eating mean to you?
 
Since the first time I can remember having thoughts about food until after I became a training and nutrition coach, healthy eating to me meant losing weight.
 
In my head, if someone had weight to lose, they’d do that by eating healthier. If someone was already slim, it was because they already ate healthy.
 
However, you can be at a relatively low weight without eating healthy, and you can also be at a relatively higher weight whilst having a very healthy diet.
 
What’s more – and most importantly – health isn’t limited to weight, and healthy eating influences far more aspects of wellness than just your body size.
 
So, how can you improve your diet if you don’t want to change your weight? I’ve got you!
 
Each of the nine tips in this article poses a challenge to help you form a new eating habit.
 
These aren’t meant to be hard and fast rules, but rather starting points to give you a specific target to shoot for. Goal specificity is key to tracking your progress, and progress is key to success.
 
Without further ado, let’s dig in (pun obviously intended).