How the plan works

If people are overweight, it’s usually because they
eat and drink more calories than they need.

Losing weight - Getting started is designed to help you lose weight at a safe rate of 0.5kg to 1kg (1lb to 2lb) each week by sticking to a daily calorie allowance. 

For most men, this will mean consuming no more than 1,900kcal a day, and 1,400kcal for most women.

If you go over your limit one day, don’t worry, we've got that covered. It simply means you’ll have to reduce your calorie intake the following days.

For example, if you're a woman and you have 1,700kcal on Tuesday – that’s 300kcal more than your daily calorie allowance of 1,400kcal.

To stay on track, you’ll need to remove 300kcal from your remaining calorie allowance over the rest of the week.

Information guides

The guide is delivered through 12 weekly information packs full of diet, healthy eating and physical activity advice, including weekly challenges.

Each information guide contains a food and activity chart (view sample PDF, 545kb) to help you record your calories, exercise and weight loss so you can see how well you're doing at a glance.

Print and stick the chart somewhere you can see it, such as the fridge or a kitchen cupboard, and update it at the end of each day.

In addition to a healthier diet, regular physical activity is a vital component of your weight loss journey.

Not only will it help you lose more weight but it will also keep you motivated and improve your general health and wellbeing.

As you work through the weeks, you'll get lots of ideas and structured programmes to help you get active, from easy ways to gradually build activity into your day, to the popular Couch to 5K, 5K+ and Strength and Flex podcasts.

Getting started

The links below provide the tools and knowledge you'll need from day one on the plan. Before you download Week 1, it's worth taking a look so you can:

• work out how much weight you need to lose
• learn how to count calories on the plan
• line up some non-food rewards to celebrate your progress along the way  
• make the best start on the plan with our 12 weight loss tips     

*The NHS Choices weight loss guide has been developed under the supervision and advice of specialist dietitians from the British Dietetic Association, which represents registered dietitians in the UK. Thanks to dietitians within DOM UK (Dietitians in Obesity Management) – a specialist group of the British Dietetic Association.