Study: 8,500 steps may maintain weight

Professor Marwan El Ghoch and colleagues reported this week that adults with overweight or obesity who kept walking about 8,500 steps a day after dieting were better able to hold onto weight loss. The findings come from a systematic review and meta-analysis presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul and published in the *International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health*. The analysis pooled randomized trials that paired diet advice with step-count targets and compared them with dieting alone or no treatment. Researchers said the evidence addresses a common problem in obesity care: regaining weight after an initial loss. ### Where does the 8,500-step figure come from? Fourteen randomized controlled trials involving 3,758 people were included in the meta-analysis, according to the conference release. Those participants had an average age of 53 and an average body mass index of 31, and came from countries including the United States, Britain, Australia and Japan. The lifestyle-modification groups started at about 7,280 steps a day, rose to 8,454 by the end of the weight-loss phase, and were still averaging 8,241 during the maintenance phase, the release said. (eurekalert.org) The control groups started near 7,180 steps a day, did not increase activity and did not lose weight during the trials. ### How much weight did participants lose — and keep off? (eurekalert.org) The intervention groups lost 4.39% of body weight on average during the weight-loss phase, or roughly 4 kilograms, according to the study summary. During the maintenance phase, those groups regained 1.56 kilograms on average, while control groups gained 2.79 kilograms. Researchers said that left the walking-and-diet groups with a lower net regain than the comparison groups. (eurekalert.org) Professor El Ghoch, of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, said in the release that preventing regain is the “greatest” challenge in obesity treatment. He said around 80% of people with overweight or obesity who lose weight initially regain some or all of it within three to five years. ### Does this prove everyone should aim for exactly 8,500? The evidence supports that figure as an observed level in successful programs, not as a universal prescription. (eurekalert.org) The trials tested lifestyle programs that combined dietary advice with walking and step counting, rather than isolating steps alone as the only change. The review also reflects a relatively modest evidence base. (eurekalert.org) Eighteen randomized trials were included in the systematic review, but only 14 had enough comparable data for the meta-analysis. That means the result is built on a targeted set of interventions in adults already enrolled in weight-management programs. ### How does this fit with other research on walking? (eurekalert.org) A 2025 *Lancet Public Health* systematic review found that higher daily step counts were linked to lower risks across several health outcomes, adding to evidence that walking volume matters for health beyond weight alone. That review synthesized prospective evidence on steps and outcomes including mortality, cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. (eurekalert.org) The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, often cited in population studies on activity and health, completes more than 400,000 adult interviews each year across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and three U.S. territories. That makes it one of the large recurring data sources researchers use to study behavior patterns in U.S. adults. (thelancet.com) ### What should readers watch next? ECO 2026 runs from May 12 to May 15 in Istanbul, according to the congress website. The walking analysis is one of the obesity studies being presented there this week, and the underlying paper is already published in the *International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health*. May 15 is the next clear milestone for this story, when the congress concludes and additional presentations from named researchers at ECO 2026 are scheduled to wrap up in Istanbul. (cdc.gov) (eco2026.org)