Lose weight with chocolate

Getty Images

If your weight loss goal includes removing chocolate from your diet, think again

It turns out that a well-intentioned move like this could backfire and stall your kilogram drop. Of the people who lost at least 10 percent of their body weight on the U.K. site Nutracheck, 91 percent continued to enjoy chocolate as part of their diet, according to a new survey conducted by the market research firm YouGov.

This is pretty delicious news considering that the same survey found 63 percent of people believe that you have to cut out certain foods entirely to successfully lose weight.

Janet Aylott, a nutrition scientist with Nutracheck who commissioned the survey, which said: ‘Extensive research has proven that diets centred around food elimination are much more likely to fail.

‘The key is to take a more relaxed approach and to have a little of what you like.’

Previous research has also shown evidence that chocolate consumption may help you live longer. A study by Harvard University tracked 8,000 men for 65 years and found that those who ate modest amounts of chocolate up to three times a month lived almost a year longer than those who ate none.

In her book Push, Chalene Johnson lists the 10 eating habits of successfully fit people and explains that these perpetually in-shape individuals hardly ever eliminate foods altogether. They just learn how enjoy the foods they crave in moderation—rather than avoiding them at all costs and setting themselves up for a binge later.

The lesson? Enjoying smaller portions of chocolate (or whatever else your weakness may be) on occasion shouldn't put a dent in your weight-loss plans, in fact it may even help you from going overboard down the road.

Celebrate with these chocolate recipes below:

Abigail O'Neill's chocolate recipes