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How Helpful are Behaviour Change Techniques? Insights from the Weight Management Clients

Focus groups with weight management clients revealed that goal setting, self-monitoring, and social support were the most utilised behaviour change techniques. These strategies contributed to meaningful lifestyle changes and successful weight loss outcomes.

How Helpful are Behaviour Change Techniques? Insights from the Weight Management Clients

Dr AB Sirin-Ayva, Matt Buckley, James Roast, Dr Sophie Edwards, Prof Paul Gately

Introduction

Obesity is a long-term condition which may increase many other health conditions. Preventable behaviours, such as physical inactivity and unhealthy eating have been identified as leading causes of morbidity and mortality.

Morelife is a healthy lifestyle provider across the UK. Morelife utilises behaviour change techniques to support clients with their weight management journey. Morelife offers year-long support with 12 weekly and 9 monthly sessions. Behaviour change techniques are the core component of each session along with motivational interviewing and healthy lifestyle information. NICE recommends identifying combinations of behaviour change techniques and modes of delivery to understand effectiveness of those techniques from different socio-demographic groups with different levels of motivation.

Methods

Morelife service users are referred by healthcare professionals with a BMI ≥ 35kg/m² without co-morbidities (adjusted to 30 kg/m² for Black African, African-Caribbean and Asian ethnic groups). The Morelife programme offers year-long support with weekly and monthly sessions to cover nutrition, dietetic, psychological and physical activity contents.

We scheduled six focus groups with 19 clients in total to gather an in-depth understanding of utilising behaviour change techniques in weight management programmes. The focus groups completed between January-April 2025, facilitated by the clinical team.

Results

Qualitative data is transferred on the computer and analysed to find common themes and concepts.

What stood out to you the most about the programme?

  • Changing the mindset
  • Not a quick fix or a sprint, but a lifestyle change and a journey
  • Self-awareness and self- monitoring
  • Information was discussed, but not being told
  • Having a chance to talk, discuss and share with others
  • Group support prevents you from slipping/off-feeling accountable

“Now, looking at it differently, eating healthier and not calling it a diet. Psychology has been the big thing for me. People are noticing the weight I’ve lost now. Keeping me motivated.”

“Found freedom and increased control from not restricting eating certain foods, just having foods in a balanced way. Challenging food choices to ensure fulfilment.”

“If you’re not in as part of a team to discuss it, then you tend to find that you slip into old ways.”

Something you’ve applied in your daily life

  • Self-monitoring-food diary
  • Taking small steps
  • Listening to body and hunger
  • Understanding emotional eating and managing it
  • Regular/healthy and balanced eating

“Small steps at a time were something I used to keep motivated doing my food and exercise.”

“It’s not just around the calories, but you think you’re more about, you know, what’s gonna fill you up? What’s gonna taste nice? What’s gonna be more widely healthy? And I think, yeah, that’s helping you to make those food choices good to hear you trying new foods as well.”

Which tools or techniques (like SMART goals, self-monitoring, or problem-solving) were most helpful for you, and why?

  • Goal setting- the sense of achievement
  • Self-monitoring – weight, exercise, food, thoughts
  • SMART goals- sense of achievement
  • Social support (emotional, practical)- hearing others, sharing ideas, anonymity

“So, it’s small steps, but it’s small steps, but it is about changing it.”

“You failed if you haven’t kept your goals, but it makes you want to try more. You
know the weekly goals, and then just talking with each other. The support, I think that’s the biggest thing for me, is just talking to other people and not feeling so
alone.”

“Some of the things, like writing down your thoughts and other things beyond just counting calories, I think that’s quite useful, is of not really considered before.”

Conclusion

The themes shared above show that clients utilised goal setting, self-monitoring and social support more than any other behaviour change techniques. They have made some changes in their lives that have brought out successful weight loss.

References:

  1. NHS (2025) retrieved from https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/obesity/ on 06/01/2025.
  2. Lozano R, Naghavi M, Foreman K, Lim S, Shibuya K, Aboyans V, et al. Global and regional mortality from 235 causes of death for 20 age groups in 1990 and 2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010.Lancet2012;380:2095–128. 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)61728-0.
  3. NICE (2014). Behaviour Change : Individual Approaches Public health guideline [PH49]Published: 02 January 2014.