In recent years, the theory that Walking 10,000 steps a day is the key to health and weight loss is increasingly common.
However, according to a new study, this will not actually prevent weight gain or lead to weight loss, according to the British newspaper “The Independent”, cited by Obesity magazine.
120 female students
Researchers from Brigham Young University’s Department of Exercise Sciences, in collaboration with experts from the Department of Dietetics and Food Sciences, conducted a study on a group of college freshmen.
Data from 120 female students were analyzed during the first six months of college, who participated in a step counting experiment, which ranged between 10,000, 12,500, or 15,000 steps per day, 6 days per week, for 24 weeks.
The data also included the number of steps and calories taken by the students and their weight.
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1.5 kg
The researchers found that the number of steps did not stop the female students in the study from gaining weight, even among participants who walked 15,000 steps a day.
It was also found that at the end of the study period, female students gained an average of 1.5 kg, which is the extra weight normally gained during the first year of university students, according to the previous studies cited.
While the researchers wrote that “the failure to reduce weight gain among participants by number of steps is a surprising result, because physical activity gradually increases with each step and, in turn, leads to increased consumption and alters the energy balance of the body “.
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Other moral and health benefits
Among the findings, lead researcher Bruce Bailey, professor of exercise science at Brigham Young University, concluded, “Exercise alone isn’t always the most effective way to lose weight. If you follow the steps, it can have an advantage in increasing physical activity But the study results showed that the number of steps will not translate into weight maintenance or weight gain prevention. “
However, the researchers noted that taking more steps means an overall positive effect on students’ “physical activity patterns” and may have “other moral and health benefits”.
Bailey concluded that “the greatest benefit from the recommendations Walking For a greater number of steps it is the exit from the sedentary life. While it alone doesn’t prevent weight gain, more steps are always better. “
