“Don’t go to buffets, they’re a trap.”

This advice comes from Phyllis Solod, 75.

After being diagnosed as diabetic, Phyllis wanted to get healthy again so she joined Taking Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS).

“I realized I had to take better care of myself,” she said.

Now almost six years later, Phyllis lost 34 pounds, has kept it off for over two years, has even been taken off all her diabetic medication, only checking her blood sugar every other day, and was even named the TOPS Queen for Rhode Island last year.

TOPS was the original weight loss program starting in 1948, according to Mark McLaughlin, public relations for TOPS.

The non-profit program is not a diet, they do not have contracts, they do not endorse any commercial meal plans or exercise systems, but focus on helping their members learn to live a healthier lifestyle.

“TOPS is not out to make a buck,” McLaughlin said. “They are out to help people get healthy.”

Members learn how to watch what they are eating and their portion sizes while incorporating exercise.

With the help of TOPS, Phyllis writes down everything she eats. She says this lets her track her food intake so she can see where she could use improvement.

She said, “I do not believe in diets and I want that four-letter word taken out of the dictionary. Diets don’t work; you need to learn how to eat properly.”

A key to the TOPS program is that goal weights are decided with the help of a member’s own health care professional. Phyllis said when she met with her doctor she had suggested a lower weight, but her doctor said that for her age it would have been an unhealthy amount of weight loss.

McLaughlin said because healthy weights are dependent on so many variables, it is safest when there is a doctor’s input on a member’s goal weight.

“TOPS isn’t about crash diets and doesn’t want people to have an hourglass, Hollywood figure. They want them healthy,” he said.

With this method, TOPS helped their 251 Rhode Island members lose 1,086 and ¼ pounds in 2013, and so far the 2014 numbers are looking similar. Throughout the 9,000 TOPS chapters in the United States and Canada, members lost 417 tons.

It took Phyllis three-and-a-half years to lose the 34 pounds, but she believes that is part of what helps her keep the weight off.

Once she reached her goal, she graduated from TOPS into KOPS, Keeping Off Pounds Sensibly, and she has been a “Kop” for two years.

Despite having reached her goal weight and having all her friends tell her how “terrific” she looks, Phyllis still attends the TOPS meeting every Thursday.

“It is a priority for me to go to the meetings every week,” she said. “The biggest reason I have maintained my weight since losing it is the friendship and camaraderie I’ve found with TOPS.”

Part of the reason members find themselves so successful in TOPS is the accountability and support system built into the program.

McLaughlin said, “Members say it helps to keep things in perspective. Say they gained a few pounds, it’s not the end of the world and everyone encourages them to keep going and to get back on track.”

For more information on TOPS or to find a meeting site near you, visit their website at www.tops.org.