This is the most common food Australians eat for weight loss

It's a breakfast staple 

When it comes to transforming your health and habits, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. However, as new data reveals, some nutritional choices reign supreme in the quest for weight loss. 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past ten years, you’re probably familiar with the popularity and overwhelming success of the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet, an online program designed to guide Aussies through their weight loss journeys. 

Now, after collecting a decade’s worth of data, Australia’s national science agency has released some remarkable statistics and findings, shedding light on the most common weight loss habits and lifestyle choices of Aussies who have successfully transformed their health. 

Here’s how the nation has altered its nutrition and lifestyle habits over the past decade to tackle its growing obesity epidemic. 

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Simplicity reigns supreme

With every man and his dog claiming to have discovered the ‘secret formula’ for healthy weight loss, scrolling through every meal plan, exercise session and fasting technique on the internet can feel overwhelming.   

But, as the statistics reveal, the impressive lifestyle transformations and success stories of everyday Aussies are not the product of complicated fad diets and extreme routines, but rather the result of simple– yet effective– habits. 

According to the data, 97 per cent of the Total Wellbeing Diet online members reported successful weight loss in just 12 weeks, losing a combined total of 558,000 kg over the past decade. Not too shabby.

So, what have the program’s members been filling their plates with, and how have they been moving their bodies? 

Bananas trumped the decade-long ranking, with over double as many entries logged by members. Image: Pexels

In total, over 900,000 bananas have been consumed and tracked in the program’s system, making the humble yellow fruit the most-eaten food for weight loss. In turn, the most popular tracked recipe was vanilla overnight oats with banana and peanut butter. 

Following the top spot, with only half as many entries, sits avocado, mixed salad vegetables, tomato, carrot and hard-boiled eggs, all sitting with roughly 400,000 entries. As the list continues, only affordable, whole foods are included, shedding light on the consumption habits of everyday Aussies.  

As for exercise, the data reveals simple activities are most popular amongst Aussies in the program, with outdoor walking being the most common form of exercise recorded by members. 

Outdoor walking is our most common form of exercise. Image: Pexels

Improving the health of the nation

All in all, the Total Wellbeing Diet has seen 21 per cent of members move out of the obese category, with the data from the last ten years showing roughly 20 per cent of participants have lost 10 per cent of their body weight as a result of the program’s nutritional advice and exercise plans. 

According to Dr Gilly Hendrie, a CSIRO Research Scientist, the positive data captured is a testament to the progression of Australian science in addressing the global weight crisis. 

"On average Australian adults seem to gain about five kilograms over a 20-year period, while two-thirds of the population are considered overweight or obese,” says Dr Hendrie on the current need for evidence-based, sustainable weight loss solutions such as the Total Wellbeing Diet. 

“With the right support, 12 weeks is all it takes to get the ball rolling and lose a significant amount of weight, improving wellbeing and reducing the risk of developing chronic diseases related to being overweight,” she adds. 

The Director of Health and Biosecurity at CSIRO, Professor Brett Sutton, reinforces the sentiment, explaining that the longevity and influence of the program on so many Australians only reflects the science agency’s pioneering efforts, “The Total Wellbeing Diet is one of CSIRO’s major success stories and demonstrates our commitment to working to reverse the high rates of obesity within the next ten years, as called for in the National Obesity Strategy,” he says.

Originally published as This is the most common food Australians eat for weight loss