The makers of the fitness band Jawbone UP have released news customer data that reveales the habits of the UP community’s biggest weight losers. If you’re trying to tame your summer paunch, the following behaviours and activities might be worth pursuing — whether you own a fitness band or not.
In a bid to identify the most common behaviors among UP losers who have successfully lost weight, Jawbone analysed the personal data of users who had lost at least 10 per cent of their body weight since signing up to the service. The sample of weight-trackers contained tens of thousands of UP users active between the months of July and November, 2014.
The study found that the community’s “biggest losers” were far more likely to log meals, workouts and weigh-ins each week than those who didn’t lose weight. Surprise, surprise.
Users who successfully lost weight beat their step goal 43 per cent more often and averaged 17 per cent more steps per day. They also tended to have more in-app teammates: the fitness band equivalent of a workout partner.
“One of the biggest differences between people who did and did not lose weight was the number of meals logged per week,” Jawbone explained in its report. “People with major weight loss logged 75 per cent more meals per week than those who did not lose weight.
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“This supports evidence from other studies which show that keeping a food diary is one of the best long-term strategies to help people lose weight and keep that weight off.”
Naturally, weight losers ate more healthy meals per week (49%) which saw them log 25 per cent more fiber, 13 per cent less fat, 13 per cent fewer calories and 12 per cent less sugar per meal than people who did not lose weight. They also drank 33 per cent more water and ate breakfast 30 per cent more times per week.
One interesting tidbit from the report is Australia’s impressive placing on the global comparison table. On a per-country basis, Australian UP users were the most successful at losing weight, with a success rate of nearly 60 per cent:
Clearly, when Aussies invest in a device they really want to get their money’s worth.
It would seem from the above data that the key to losing weight isn’t just diet and exercise: you also need to track what you’re doing via detailed logs. You should also drink plenty of water (natch) and use like-minded friends for support.
While fitness bands like the Jawbone UP make this process easy, there’s no reason you can’t replicate the same success using a notepad or free fitness app. Even cheapskates can lose weight if they keep records!
Comments
4 responses to “How Your Fitness Band Can Help You Lose Weight”
What are we supposed to do with the logs? I highly doubt that just keeping logs makes the difference. Surely we’re supposed to use them somehow to find where we can improve?
For me it’s the mindfulness that comes with it. If I am logging everything, I am thinking about it. If it’s dinner time and I’ve already logged close to my calorie allowance I’ll rethink what I am having for dinner, or consider whether I should go for a walk beforehand.
Is there any side effect of this device.
weight loss is a big one.
This product is any side effect. The weight loss is a big problem.