Study Suggests 8,500 Daily Steps May Aid in Weight Maintenance

A recent meta-analysis presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2026) in Istanbul suggests that walking approximately 8,500 steps per day may help individuals maintain weight loss and prevent weight regain after dieting ^[1]. The study, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, analyzed data from 18 randomized controlled trials involving 3,758 adults ^[1].

The research found that participants in lifestyle modification programs increased their daily steps from about 7,280 to around 8,454 during the weight-loss phase. They maintained about 8,241 steps per day during the maintenance phase, resulting in a long-term weight loss of approximately 3.28%, equivalent to about 3 kilograms ^[1].

Professor Marwan El Ghoch, from the Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia in Italy, led the study. The findings indicate that increasing daily steps to around 8,500 during the weight-loss phase and sustaining that level during maintenance is associated with reduced weight regain. However, walking more than this amount was not linked to greater weight loss during the initial dieting phase ^[1].

The study involved participants with an average age of 53 and an average body mass index (BMI) of 31 kg/m², across multiple countries including the UK, US, Australia, and Japan ^[1].

What Is Known

The research provides evidence that walking 8,500 steps daily can be effective in maintaining weight loss. This challenges the common perception that 10,000 steps are necessary for weight management ^[1][2].

What Remains Unclear

The study did not confirm the origin of the 10,000-step goal, which is often attributed to a 1960s Japanese marketing campaign. This claim remains unverified by multiple independent sources ^[3].