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Do you think the only way to accomplish fat or weight loss is by increasing your time in the gym or dieting harder?
What if I told you there’s actually an easier way?
Let’s first understand that in order to lose fat you need a negative energy balance. Understanding that negative energy balance (a calorie deficit) is part of the ABCs of fat loss.
Meaning, that energy expenditure has to be greater than energy intake in order to lose weight.
(calories out > calories in)
So, where energy expenditure is concerned, you can diet, reducing your calories to ensure you’re eating below your maintenance level. OR, you can also increase your energy expenditure.
People often rely on the latter to trim off excess weight, because significantly reducing calories isn’t that fun. Not for you and most likely not for anyone around you.
Say you get yourself up on a Saturday morning bright and early and go to the gym for an hour or two. After the gym, you head home and plop back onto the couch for the rest of the day, watching Netflix, taking a nap, etc. You expect to wake up and see the numbers going down on the scale the next morning because you “crushed it in the gym”, but you may very well not.
Why’s that?
Well, what’s missing is one BIG piece of the fat loss puzzle – your non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT).
NEAT is the energy expended for everything we do when we’re not sleeping or exercising. Some examples are mowing the lawn, walking up a flight of stairs, and even an hour of fidgeting around. All of these activities burn calories and more than you would expect.
Our jobs and careers tend to greatly impact our levels of NEAT. Nurses, waiters or waitresses, construction workers or personal trainers – anyone working in an occupation that requires you to be on your feet moving about or engaging in any physical activity – typically have high levels of NEAT.
For the rest of us who spend Monday to Friday chained to our desks, our levels of NEAT are generally quite low. The difference in energy expenditure between active and sedentary jobs can be hundreds and hundreds of calories.
Focusing solely on the energy you use while exercising is one of the biggest fat loss mistakes you can make.
Exercise won’t make up for the energy you could be using to live an active lifestyle. If you want to effectively lose fat, you need to move more. Period.
When you’re dieting, ensuring you’re active throughout the day becomes that much more important to achieve your fat loss goal.
There are most certainly ways to increase NEAT even when working in a sedentary occupation! You can do so either by working in some NEAT throughout the work day or increasing leisure NEAT, the thermogenesis resulting from how you spend your spare time.
5 Ways to Increase NEAT
1. Take the stairs.
Ditch the elevator! This is a simple and easy way to burn more energy throughout the day, and it’s pretty easy to accomplish.
2. Get a standing desk.
If you spend the majority of your day sitting at a desk, those are precious hours that you could be spending standing up! The number of calories expended standing at your desk vs sitting isn’t huge, but you’re more likely to move around if you’re already on your feet rather than sitting in your chair!
3. Break up your day with walks.
Getting up and going for a 10-15 minute walk during your breaks at work is an awesome way to get some extra movement in. It’s also a great way to give your mind a break from the work day as well!
4. Start your day with a morning walk.
In addition to getting some steps to start your day, a morning walk provides a number of other benefits as well. It can increase your energy, improve your mood, and boost your brain health!
5. Do chores around the house.
Try sweeping or vacuuming all of your hard floors, followed by mopping. Declutter your attic or garage, paint or redecorate a room in your house, or mow the lawn!
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