If you want to trim down, you should set up your home to make the healthy choice the easy choice, says Amy Gorin, assistant professor of psychology at the University of Connecticut.

She presented her research Wednesday at the annual meeting of the Obesity Society, a group of weight-loss researchers and professionals.

Gorin and colleagues recruited 201 overweight and obese people and divided them into two groups.

Participants in one group got a six-month behavioral weight-loss program that emphasized a low-fat, low-calorie diet and moderate intensity physical activity. They met weekly with weight-loss experts and learned how to keep food journals and work through tempting eating situations.

The other group got the same weekly weight-loss program with professional help. They also:

•Had an overweight partner participate in the weight-loss program with them. This was either a spouse or another adult who lived in the same home.

•Were given a piece of exercise equipment (a treadmill or exercise bike), bathroom scales, a full-length mirror, healthy cooking and fitness magazines and smaller dinner plates that were about the size of salad plates.

•Were encouraged to watch less television.

At the end of six months, dieters with a partner and extra equipment at home lost an average of 20 pounds; their partners also lost a substantial amount of weight. Dieters in the weight-loss advice group lost about 15 pounds.

"Making concrete and real changes to the home make it much easier to stick with a healthful eating and exercise program," Gorin says.