You can have the best plan in the world. If dinner at home is pizza three times a week and the cupboard is always full of cookies, the plan loses. Diets rarely die at the gym. They die in the kitchen.
What the studies say
In a classic study, people who joined a weight loss program with friends, and received social support activities, were more likely to complete the program and keep the weight off six months later than those who joined alone. Support isn't a detail: it's part of the treatment.
It makes sense. Habits form through repetition, and repeating is much easier when your environment helps. Research on habit formation found that, on average, it takes more than two months for a new behavior to become automatic. During that time, having someone on your side makes a difference.
How to build a team that helps
No weight competition
Competing to see who loses the most sounds motivating, but it exposes people and discourages whoever loses slowly. What works better is tracking behavior: who ate within plan, who moved, who drank water. That's something everyone can do today, whatever their body.
Everyone with their own plan
A couple can eat the same food, but not the same amount. A 1.80 m man and a 1.60 m woman have very different budgets. Together on the team, separate in the math.
Nudge with information
"So, did you stick to your diet?" sounds like pressure. "Just your water left to close the day" sounds like help. A good reminder says what's missing.
Change the environment together
Decide together on the grocery list, the week's dinners and what stays visible in the cupboard. One decision at the store is worth ten decisions in front of the fridge.
How it works in Bora
In Bora you create a group and share the six-letter code. Each person has their own plan and budget. The group sees who closed the day's three things, and you can nudge someone falling behind with a message that says exactly what's missing. Each person's weight only shows if they turn that option on. And with the Family plan, up to six people in your Apple Family Sharing use Bora on one subscription.
Sources
- Wing RR, Jeffery RW. Benefits of recruiting participants with friends and increasing social support for weight loss and maintenance. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 1999;67(1):132-138.
- Lally P, van Jaarsveld CHM, Potts HWW, Wardle J. How are habits formed: modelling habit formation in the real world. European Journal of Social Psychology. 2010;40(6):998-1009.
This content is for information only and doesn't replace advice from a doctor or dietitian.
