Overview
- At the European Congress on Obesity in May, Professor Marwan El Ghoch presented evidence that walking about 8,500 steps a day helps people maintain weight loss after a diet.
- The research synthesized 18 clinical trials from countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan, and tied higher daily steps to better long-term maintenance.
- The analysis found that boosting daily steps did not increase weight lost during the initial diet phase, but it did cut the amount of weight regained during maintenance.
- Media summaries report nearly 4,000 participants, with one report citing an average of 8,454 steps linked to about 4 kilograms lost and about 8,200 steps tied to sustaining that loss over time.
- Specialists say the finding could spur updates to clinical advice by replacing the 10,000-step goal, which began as a 1960s pedometer slogan, with a more reachable and low-cost target.