Here’s how dieting with your spouse will help you lose weight faster

A new study has found that when your partner is trying to eat healthy and exercise more, this is likely to boost your own motivation to do so.

While trying to lose fat, your friends and family often act as supporters, keeping you away from the cakes and cookies that tempt you.

A new study has found that when someone is trying to lose fat, slim down or generally get in shape, there’s a higher chance their partner will too. Also, when your partner is trying to eat healthy and exercise more, this is likely to boost your own motivation to do so.

“The concept is called the ripple effect and it means that weight loss interventions delivered to one spouse have unintended, but positive benefits on the other spouse”, told study co-author Amy Gorin, to The Independent. However, if one person starts gaining weight, it’s likely their partner will too. In fact, recent research shows that being in a relationship is linked to weight gain.

According to the ripple effect concept, weight loss interventions delivered to one spouse have unintended, but positive benefits on the other spouse. (Getty Images)

Gorin and team conducted a study on the same. They split couples into two groups – for half of them, the person most interested in weight loss was put on Weight Watchers.

For the other half, again, the person most keen to lose weight was given a basic handout containing information on healthy eating, staying active and weight management strategies. The partners less interested in slimming down received nothing.

Gorin acknowledged,“Spouses clearly influence each others’ weight-related choices. We need more research to understand how to harness the power of behaviour change within households.”

The findings from the study are published in the journal Obesity.

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