Rule number one of dieting: Willpower alone doesn't work. Researchers have specifically tested this. A 2016 study found that participants who practiced willpower exercises for six weeks didn't improve their self-control issues. What should you try instead? Brainpower — that is, thinking about and planning how you eat. For instance, don't keep junk food in the house. And if you're going out to eat, check the menu online first and know what you're going to order. Also try mindful eating — focusing on and savoring each bite of food you eat in the moment and pausing between bites to do so. It may help control binge eating and emotional eating, a 2014 study analysis in Obesity Reviews showed. The good news: Getting older may help you take back control. “Our weight-loss research has found that older adults were more successful with adhering to a weight-reducing diet than young adults were,” says physician Samuel Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.