The STRENGTH Study: Shapely Sisters Targeting Realistic Exercise and Nutrition Goals Through Healthy Habits

Stress has been identified as a major barrier to engaging in healthy lifestyle behaviors (e.g. diet and exercise) among African American women. African American women consistently lose less weight than their Caucasian counterparts in weight loss interventions. One reason for this disparity may be due to the failure of most weight loss interventions to address stress management adequately or in a culturally competent way. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a stress-focused tailored weight loss intervention compared to a standard weight loss intervention on weight loss in severely obese (BMI \> 40.0) African American women. The stress-focused weight loss intervention will incorporate stress management content throughout the entire intervention and will include content that is culturally tailored. The standard weight loss intervention will cover stress management techniques during one of the 14 sessions and the material will be more generic in nature (e.g. not culturally tailored).