LifeSteps® Weight Management
Each LifeSteps® participant develops a personalized eating and physical activity plan over the program’s 14 weeks, which incorporates small changes that add up to big changes for a lifetime!
How LifeSteps® Is Unique
- Cognitive-Behavioral Program – The focus is on behavior change, not a diet.
- High Retention Rate – Participants stick with the program because it increases their confidence and sets them up for success.
- One Step At A Time – Learning and skill building is gradual. Concepts start with the basics and progress to more complex over 14 weeks. Participants are not overwhelmed with a lot of information at once.
2023 Class Schedule
March/April
- Free information session: Tuesday, March 22 at 5:30 p.m.
- Free information session: Tuesday, March 29 at 5:30 p.m.
- Class starts April 12
August/September
- Free information session: Tuesday, August 22 at 5:30 p.m.
- Free information session: Tuesday, August 29 at 5:30 p.m.
- Class starts September 12
Already completed the Lifesteps Program and need to recharge your motivation or refresh your skills on your weight loss journey? Join us for the REBOOT program, which meets once a month to provide some extra accountability and group support so you can meet your health goals! The group meets on the second Thursday of each month from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. in the Healthpark classrooms A & B. There is a one-time fee of $25. Space is limited so please contact us at Lifesteps@OwensboroHealth.org or 270-688-4804 if you would like to attend!
Location
Ask about virtual options.
Healthpark
1006 Ford Ave.
Owensboro, KY 42301
270-688-4804
16 “Steps” Week-by-Week Overview
5 Key Components
- Nutrition
- Physical Activity
- Behavior Modification
- Small-Group Support
- Personal Lifestyle Change
Each weekly session, or “Step,” introduces a new concept and key behavior for weight loss. Sessions are highly interactive and incorporate group discussion, role-play, problem-solving and more. Each session provides a “road map” for content delivery, including the following:
- Key behavior and concept review: Why They Help with Weight Loss
- Self-assessment: Where Are You Now?
- Hands-on practice: Activity That Reinforces Concepts Introduced
- Action planning: Nutrition and Physical Activity Behaviors
The Steps
Pre-Program Sessions: Orientation Session & Initial Interview
These two sessions are a win for you and win for your participants. Participants who attend both these sessions are more likely to stick with the program and lose weight.
- Group Orientation Session – Individuals who are interested in LifeSteps® learn about what’s involved and decide if they are ready to make lifestyle changes that will lead to weight loss.
- One-on-One Initial Interview – This interview helps you determine whether the client is ready to embark on a lifestyle change journey. Using motivational interviewing, you assess:
- Health status and weight history
- Readiness for change
- Willingness to do required activities, including daily food tracking and regular physical activity
Steps 1-5: Learning The Basics
Knowledge is key to successful behavior change. Learning the basics of nutrition and physical activity sets the foundation for creating a personal plan for
- Step 1: Monitoring – Learn the importance of monitoring in weight management and how to keep a Food and Activity Record.
- Step 2: Physical Activity – Learn the importance of physical activity and make a plan for increasing activity levels.
- Step 3: Guide to Daily Food Choices – Learn the importance of eating a variety of foods from the Five Food Groups and develop a healthy eating plan based on the MyPlate recommendations.
- Step 4: Serving Size – Learn how to weigh and measure food and develop an eye for standard serving sizes.
- Step 5: The Calorie Connection – Learn where calories fit in the weight management picture and identify ways to cut calories.
Steps 6-8: Individualized Action Planning
Participants’ lifestyles are all different. These three “Steps” help them identify and prioritize nutrition, activity and behavior changes that meet their needs.
- Step 6: Putting It
All Together – Develop a personal plan for reducing calories by decreasing food intake, increasing physical activity or both based on the information learned in the first five “Steps” and individual lifestyle goals. - Step 7: Mid-Program Interview – One-on-one interview based on motivational interviewing to evaluate progress and provide feedback.
- Step 8: Eating Styles – Identify eating styles that lead to overeating and discuss hunger and satiety.
Steps 9-13: Managing Lapses: Emotional, Environmental Issues & Eating
Lapses can be small or large. What’s important for successful behavior change is how they are managed to stay on track for reaching weight loss goals.
- Step 9: Managing Lapses, Dealing with Your Environment – Learn what constitutes a “lapse” and how environmental cues, such as the availability and visibility of food, affect how much we eat and strategies for eliminating or decreasing them.
- Step 10: Managing Lapses, Dealing with Social Events – Identify personal, high-risk social situations and develop strategies for managing them.
- Step 11: Managing Lapses, Dealing with Feelings – Identify how feelings affect eating behavior and develop plans for handling a variety of situations.
- Step 12: Managing Lapses, Dealing with Other People – Develop strategies for dealing with people who overtly or unconsciously encourage eating and identify steps for soliciting support.
- Step 13: Managing Lapses, Eating Out– Plan strategies for staying on track while eating away from home in a variety of settings.
Steps 14-16: Preparing For The Future
Weekly classes are coming to end; however, weight management is a lifelong process. These final “Steps” help participants take pride in the progress they’ve made and own their process of making healthy lifestyle changes.
- Step 14: Staying Active – Develop a personal physical activity program for maintaining weight loss and cardiovascular fitness.
- Step 15: Final Interview – One-on-one interview to evaluate participant’s LifeSteps® experience, provide feedback and set goals for the future
- Step 16: Staying in Step – Learn a six-step process for maintaining behavior changes established during the program and how to continue setting and achieving weight loss goals.
Maintenance Sessions
LifeSteps® includes 11 additional Maintenance Sessions that you can use to offer continued support after your LifeSteps® Program ends. These sessions extend the program’s 16 core steps and provide additional support, skill building and practice.
Maintenance Session Topics
- Learning to Anticipate High-Risk Situations
- Handling Cravings
- Keeping a Thought Journal
- Creating Positive Affirmations
- Managing Stress
- Setting Up Your Own Lapse
- Enlisting Support
- Picking Effective Rewards
- Developing a Reward Contract
- Developing Menus
- Modifying Recipes
Evidence Based
LifeSteps® is grounded in sound science and reflects current dietary, physical activity and weight management guidelines, including:
- The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2015-2020
- 2013 AHA/ACC/TOS Guideline for the Management of Overweight and Obesity in Adults
- 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans
LifeSteps® also reflects the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics for weight management and the American Diabetes Association for diabetes management.
- Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Position on the Intervention and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults
- American Diabetes Association’s Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes