The best weight loss comes from diet and exercise together

New research by Fitness First in the UK shows how vital it is to combine healthy eating with regular exercise.

More than 90 percent of the people surveyed who chose this combination reported it as a successful weight loss formula in the study.

The research into the effectiveness of diets alone, and alongside regular exercise, also gives a resounding “thumbs up” to the sensible approach of steady weight loss and exercise, with dieters shunning the more extreme and niche diets as ineffective in the long term.

Exercise three or four times a week was judged to provide the best complement to dieting, a realistic aim for those looking to lose weight.

Fitness First surveyed more than 2,000 people on their diet and fitness habits. The results showed that twice as many women as men sample different weight-loss diets. (The actual figures were 55 percent of women dieting but just 23 percent of men willing to diet.)

However, both men and women favour diets such as WeightWatchers, Slimming World and Slim Fast over lesser known options such as the Duken or Maple Syrup diets.

The UK national fitness manager for Fitness First, Mr Derek Crawford, said, “It is good to see so many people taking up exercise to help keep them in shape, but the key is to incorporate an enjoyable fitness regime into your lifestyle – which is a common-sense approach to keeping fit and healthy.”

He said men were keener to incorporate fitness into the weight loss programme but said that it was important for everyone to exercise regularly.

Here are the five most popular diets for men and women:

Women

* WeightWatchers
* Slim Fast
* Slimming World
* Atkins
* Rosemary Conley

Men

* WeightWatchers
* Atkins
* Slim Fast
* Slimming World
* Rosemary Conley

There is no doubt that dieters who want to shed those extra pounds – and keep them off – should add regular exercise to their weight-loss program.