People aiming to sustain weight loss after dieting should target approximately 8,500 steps daily, according to new research.
Experts discovered that consistent daily steps were a critical factor in preventing weight regain, particularly when comparing groups who combined dieting with exercise against those who only dieted or received no intervention.
These findings are being presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul, Turkey, and are also slated for publication in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.
Professor Marwan El Ghoch, from the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia in Italy, who spearheaded the study, highlighted the common challenge: “Around 80 per cent of people with overweight or obesity who initially lose weight tend to put some or all of it back on again within three to five years.
“The identification of a strategy that would solve this problem and help people maintain their new weight would be of huge clinical value.”
Professor El Ghoch and his colleagues across Italy and Lebanon conducted an analysis of 14 existing studies on the subject to identify recurring themes. These studies collectively involved 3,758 individuals, all classified as overweight or obese, with an average age of 53, drawn from countries including the UK, US, Australia, and Japan.
Overall, 1,987 people were on lifestyle modification programmes, including eating healthily and walking more.
Another 1,771 people were either dieting alone or not receiving any treatment and acted as the comparison group.
The programmes had a weight loss phase, followed by a weight maintenance phase, where the aim was to keep the weight off in the long term.
A person’s daily number of steps was measured at the start of the trials, at the end of the weight loss phase (average 7.9 months) and at the end of the weight maintenance phase (average 10.3 months).
Both groups of patients were found to have a similar step count at the start (7,280 in the lifestyle group and 7,180 in the comparison group) indicating that they had similar lifestyles.
Researchers found that, overall, the control group did not increase their number of steps and did not lose weight at any time.
However, in contrast, the group following the lifestyle advice programmes increased their step count to 8,454 a day by the end of the weight loss phase, losing 4.39% of their body weight on average, or around 4kg.
At the end of the weight maintenance phase, these people were still walking and doing 8,241 steps per day.
They also kept off most of the weight they had lost (with average weight loss at end of trials being 3.28%, or around 3kg), the study found.
Researchers concluded there was a clear link between increasing step count and preventing weight regain, though during the weight loss phase it was reduced calorie intake that seemed to play the biggest role.
Prof El Ghosh said: “Participants should be always encouraged to increase their step count to approximately 8,500 a day during the weight loss phase and sustain this level of physical activity during the maintenance phase to help prevent them from regaining weight.
“Increasing the number of steps walked to 8,500 each day is a simple and affordable strategy to prevent weight regain.”