Brief Behavioral Weight Loss Treatment vs. Weight Watchers

Weight Watchers is a popular nonmedical commercial weight loss program. Recent studies suggest that people enrolled in Weight Watchers lose approximately 3-5 kg in 6 months of treatment. These outcomes are substantially lower than average weight losses achieved in 6 months if university/hospital-based standard behavioral treatment (approximately 10 kg). However, standard behavioral weight loss programs are expensive and have limited accessibility to most people seeking weight loss. Therefore, the purpose of the current study is to investigate whether enhancing Weight Watchers by adding an 8-week group-based behavioral weight loss program prior to participation in Weight Watchers will improve weight loss outcomes at 6 months. Comparison: 6 months of Weight Watchers vs. combination treatment (2 months of standard behavioral weight loss treatment followed by 4 months of Weight Watchers) vs. 2 months of standard behavioral treatment.