Dietitians regularly stress the importance of a varied diet to meet your nutritional needs. But new research suggests it doesn’t actually help—at least when you try lose weight.
The study, which appeared in the journal Health psychologymakes a strong case for sticking to the same foods when you’re on a weight loss journey. If the constant thought of new meals causes you stress, this may seem like good news.
“While this approach is not for everyone and may not be ideal long-term, for those who are content to eat the same thing for a few days or have meals and snacks they can rely on, it can simplify eating a healthy, balanced diet that supports your weight management goals.” Jessica Cording, RDits author The Little Book of Game Changerssays SELF.
But the findings also don’t mean you’re screwed in the weight-loss department if you prefer to mix things up in your diet. Here’s why.
The study looked at a mix of dietary patterns.
For the study, the researchers recruited 112 overweight or obesity who enrolled in a structured behavioral weight loss program. Participants were asked to track their food in an app and weigh themselves on a wireless scale.
The researchers specifically focused on the first 12 weeks of the program, when participants tend to track their food intake the most, and measured how routine the participants’ diets were. They did this in two ways: They looked at the participants’ calorie stability, which is how much they have daily calories it fluctuated from day to day and between weekdays and weekends. The researchers also looked at how repetitive the participants’ diets were, looking at how often people logged the same meals and snacks over time.
After collecting the data, the researchers discovered that people who stuck to a varied diet lost an average of 5.9% of their body weight, compared to 4.3% for those who mixed up their diet more. Greater caloric consistency was associated with better weight loss outcomes. Specifically, for every 100-calorie increase in day-to-day fluctuation, participants’ weight loss decreased by about 0.6% over the 12-week period.
Based on all of this, the researchers concluded that less variation in diet and maintaining a consistent calorie intake can help people develop sustainable habits to support weight loss. “Conventional dieting wisdom says to include lots of different foods to avoid boredom and to save for weekends or special occasions so you don’t feel deprived.” Charlotte Hagerman, PhDco-author of the study and researcher at the Oregon Research Institute, tells SELF. “However, this contradicts research that shows that consistency makes your behavior more habitual, that is, more automatic and effortless.”
