Lots of us have tried to lose weight and we feel like we’ve tried every tip, trick and tactic under the sun. But new research finds one more thing we should consider to boost our chances of shedding a few pounds and keeping them off – having your partner or a friend do it with you. The study finds spouses lose more weight together than alone.
Researchers followed 411 participants who adopted healthy lifestyle changes and 413 who didn’t. Those in the weight loss group had weekly sessions with a coach from Weight Watchers for a full year. And in the end, those who did it with a “participating partner” were more than twice as likely to have success.
“Our study shows that when spouses join the effort to change habits, patients have a better chance of becoming healthier – particularly when it comes to losing weight,” explains researcher Lotte Verweij. She says this is because couples often have comparable lifestyles and changing habits is harder when only one person is making the effort. It affects practical issues, like grocery shopping, but also psychological challenges and a supportive partner can help keep us motivated when we want to give up on our goal.
Source: Eat This, Not That