Losing Weight May Require an Hour of Exercise Daily

Losing weight and keeping it off may require more exercise than previously thought--maybe twice as much as the 30 minutes recommended, researchers said Monday.

A study from Brown University researchers found that 2,500 people who had lost an average of 60 pounds and kept it off for a year exercised about an hour a day.

“We know that 30 minutes every day is a good thing . . . ,” said Dr. John Jakicic, an assistant professor of behavioral medicine at Brown. “But after that, what you want is somewhere between 30 and 60 minutes and where that is, we’re not sure.”

Dr. Rena Wing, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral medicine at Brown, said most of the study’s subjects walked about 10 miles a week, then did aerobics, weight lifting or other activities.

The researchers attended the annual meeting of the North American Assn. for the Study of Obesity. The study was based on data from the National Weight Control Registry.