4 expert tips for kickstarting your weight loss journey

The weight loss journey can be hard enough without all of the conflicting information and trends out there putting pressure on you. From the Ozempic craze to fad diets, social media and the internet are filled with methods for losing weight quickly. However, there are healthier and less intense ways to start on the right path to losing weight and keeping it off.

Set realistic goals and be flexible

With the allure of losing weight quickly, fad diets and workout plans that promise fast results can seem appealing. But experts say that the key to making new health habits and behaviors stick is to have realistic expectations. Losing about one to two pounds a week is the safest and most sustainable, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. When starting your weight loss journey, it is best to set short-term goals and reward yourself for meeting those goals. The most effective goals are "specific, realistic and forgiving (less than perfect)," said the CDC. Being realistic about your goals also means "expecting occasional setbacks." When they happen, it is best to "get back on track as quickly as possible."

Avoid having a goal be reaching a specific number on the scale because that has a "pass/fail connotation," said Deviny Mo, manager of UCLA Health Sports Performance. People either struggle to reach the number and "lose confidence in themselves," or they reach their ideal weight and "go back to old habits that don't support what they worked hard for and bounce back," Mo said. "I like to tell my clients to look at it as a journey of change.”

Be wary of weight loss trends online

Fad diets and dubious weight loss trends are not new phenomena. However, the digital age has added new challenges in discerning what information is trustworthy and which should be avoided. Social media has allowed self-proclaimed experts to claim to know what is best when it is "really just a form of trust hacking through mass confidence as if they know what’s going on with you,” said Dr. Mikhail Varshavski, known as Dr. Mike on Youtube, said to CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta on the podcast Chasing Life. If you come across a claim online about weight loss that seems too good to be true, "allow that inner skeptic in you to further test it" by researching on your own or "bringing it up at your next visit with your primary care doctor," he said.

Talk to a health care professional

With weight loss requiring long-term commitments to adopting healthier habits, it is good to prioritize building relationships with medical professionals who can help you along the journey. "That's the biggest tip I would give: to create a long-lasting relationship with a primary care doctor," said Dr. Mike. While many people use urgent care as their primary source of health care, that is not ideal. You will not get the "benefits of having a longitudinal relationship with a single provider." Dr. Mike said having a solid relationship with your doctor is especially important when it comes to weight loss because "how in the world can you help someone sustain weight loss if there's no continuity of care?"

Build a healthy relationship with eating and exercise over time

Diet and exercise are the foundation for healthy and sustainable weight loss but making intense changes too quickly can cause more harm than good. Instead of focusing on what foods you should avoid, you can figure out how to inject healthier food into your diet, like fruits, vegetables and lean proteins.

Before you start working out, it is essential to check in with your doctor to ensure you are in proper physical condition before going to the gym. Once you have been cleared, incorporate moderate cardio and weight training a few days a week into your routine. How you do that depends on what works best for you, as long as you get moving. If you want the routine to stick, it is best to work it into your lifestyle organically. If you are trying to lose weight "at the expense of other things that are important, like spending time with your family, that's not going to last," Mo said to UCLA Health. "Something is going to give." Instead, you can introduce the changes subtly so that "you can stay consistent for the long haul."