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If you’ve ever brought up the topic of weight loss around friends or at the office we’re sure you’ve heard about all the fabulous diets that are low carb, low fat, high protein… there’s a lot of crazy ideas. But the truth is it all comes down to your calorie intake and your level of commitment.

You don’t have to take our word for it, earlier this year The New England Journal of Medicine published its results from a study on the comparison of weight-loss diets with different compositions of fat, protein, and carbohydrates.
The study compared four different types of diets using over 800 overweight participants.

Low-fat, average protein: 20 percent fat, 15 percent protein, 65 percent carbohydrate.
Low-fat, high protein: 20 percent fat, 25 percent protein, 55 percent carbohydrate.
High-fat, average protein: 40 percent fat, 15 percent protein, 45 percent carbohydrate.
High-fat, high-protein: 40 percent fat, 25 percent protein, 35 percent carbohydrate.

The test even included group and individual counseling sessions, food guidelines, and moderate levels of exercise.
The results after two years was the average weight loss was around 8.5 pounds regardless of the carbs, fat, or protein content of their diet. So the core message here is that as long as you follow a calorie reduced diet, the nutritional approach you choose has little effect on your weight loss. The major determining factor is the patient’s level of commitment.