Sitting Time, Type, and Context Among Long‐Term Weight‐Loss Maintainers

Objective This study aimed to investigate sitting time, the home sedentary environment, and physical activity among weight‐loss maintainers in WW (formerly Weight Watchers). Methods Participants were 4,305 weight‐loss maintainers who had maintained ≥9.1 kg of weight loss (24.7 kg on average) for 3.3 years and had an average current BMI of 27.6 kg/m 2 . A control group of weight‐stable individuals with obesity ( n = 619) had an average BMI of 38.9 kg/m 2 . The Multicontext Sitting Time Questionnaire and Paffenbarger physical activity questionnaire were administered. Results Weight‐loss maintainers versus controls spent 3 hours less per day sitting during the week (10.9 vs. 13.9; = 0.039; P = 0.0001) and weekends (9.7 vs. 12.6; = 0.038). Weight‐loss maintainers versus controls spent 1 hour less per day in non–work‐related sitting using a computer or video games during the week (1.4 vs. 2.3; = 0.03; P = 0.0001) and weekends (1.5 vs. 2.5; = 0.03; P = 0.0001). Weight‐loss maintainers versus controls had similar numbers of sedentary‐promoting devices (15.8 vs. 14.8) and expended significantly more calories per week in physical activity (1,835 vs. 785; = 0.036; P = 0.0001). Conclusions Weight‐loss maintainers reported less time sitting than weight‐stable individuals with obesity. Future research should test the efficacy of targeting sitting time to help promote long‐term weight‐loss maintenance.