Phone Coaching for Weight Loss Maintenance

Examination of Phone Coaching as a Weight Loss Maintenance Strategy

The purpose of this study was to examine whether 4 consecutive weeks of phone coaching aids in recovery from weight regain during weight loss maintenance. Individuals who previously achieved and maintained a >=5% weight loss in a 1-year behavioral weight loss program were provided with a low-intensity maintenance intervention (monthly newsletters and smart scale). At baseline, participants were randomized to the coaching group or the control group (no coaching). If participants regained >1.5% of their weight, randomization was "triggered." At this point, participants randomized to the coaching condition received 4 brief weekly coaching calls; participants randomized to the control condition received no additional intervention contact. Short-term and long-term weight change was assessed and compared between treatment groups.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Obesity; Weight Loss
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Maintenance program; Behavioral: Phone coaching

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 77
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Rhode Island
    • Providence, Rhode Island, United States, 02903
      • The Miriam Hospital's Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 72 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• 18-72 years of age
• Recent completion of a 1-year behavioral weight loss program
• Achievement of >=5% weight loss at the end of the 1-year weight loss program

Exclusion Criteria:

• Not currently enrolled in another weight management program

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Maintenance program+possibility of phone coaching; All participants are provided with a monthly newsletter which contains useful strategies for maintaining weight loss long-term. Participants are also encouraged to weigh themselves daily using a smart scale, which electronically transmits weight data to the research staff. Some participants randomized to this condition will also receive 4 consecutive weeks of phone coaching at some point over the 1-year intervention period (this is determined by a weight-based algorithm).	Behavioral: Maintenance program; 1-year weight loss maintenance program, consisting of monthly newsletters; Behavioral: Phone coaching; Some individuals will receive 4 consecutive weeks of phone coaching. The first coaching call will be approximately 30 minutes in duration and follow-up calls will be 10-15 minutes in duration. Coaches will help support participants in their weight loss maintenance efforts. Once coaching calls are completed, the participant will not have any other contact with their coach.
Active Comparator: Maintenance program only; All participants are provided with a monthly newsletter which contains useful strategies for maintaining weight loss long-term. Participants are also encouraged to weigh themselves daily using a smart scale, which electronically transmits weight data to the research staff. No participants in this condition will receive phone coaching.	Behavioral: Maintenance program; 1-year weight loss maintenance program, consisting of monthly newsletters

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Percent Change in Body Weight From Baseline to Month 12	Baseline and Month 12

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Percent Weight Change Over the Coaching Period	The 'coaching period' weight change was calculated by subtracting the 'trigger date' weight (i.e., the weight measurement from the smart scale on the day the participant achieved the trigger threshold, which was defined as the final day in a series of 4 days >1.5% or the final day in which the previous 7 days averaged >1.5%) from the smart scale weight 40 days following the 'trigger date'. Percent weight change was then calculated by taking the 'coaching period weight change' and dividing it by the 'trigger date weight' and multiplying by 100. Therefore, a negative number indicates weight loss and a positive number indicates weight gain over the 40-day coaching period.	Trigger date and 40 days post-trigger date

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: The Miriam Hospital
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jessica L Unick, PhD, The Miriam Hospital's Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 4, 2020
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 23, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): August 23, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 27, 2020
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 2, 2020
• First Posted (Actual): March 3, 2020

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 25, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 19, 2024
• Last Verified: December 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Exercise; Diet; Phone coaching
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Body Weight Changes; Weight Loss; Body Weight
• Other Study ID Numbers: 1561299

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No