NEAT stands for Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis - it’s basically the energy expended doing everything that’s not sleeping, eating or intentional exercise.
This can include things like walking around your house, doing chores, fidgeting, standing at your desk at work, dancing in your kitchen etc. They’re the movements/activities that you do every day that you probably don't even realise are contributing to your weight loss goals, because it's not "intentional" or "planned" exercise.
Why is NEAT important for weight loss?
In a research paper that analysed the effects of sedentary behaviour in elite athletes, they found that even when the athletes engaged moderate to intense exercise, the athletes who engaged more regularly in sedentary behaviour presented higher levels of total and trunk fatness (fat around the middle), regardless of their age and training time per week.
So basically, even athletes who trained regularly and intensely could not mitigate the negative effects of sedentary behaviour.
And having excess fat around your abdominal area is not just a weight loss issue. It goes beyond that. Your hip to waist ratio is a really important indicator of health, and more belly fat (or visceral fat) is linked to a higher risk of of chronic diseases, like Diabetes.
Because there are so many different ways to engage in NEAT throughout the day (not just for 30 mins to an hour during your planned workouts), NEAT is actually one of the most effective way to control the speed of our metabolism on a daily basis.
And while fidgeting or doing chores or going on a walk might seems useless for weight loss, engaging regularly in small movements and activities during the day can have a significant impact on your daily calorie expenditure and weight control.
This is especially important for petite women because, as we know, increasing your metabolic rate as a short girl is even more important for weight loss than it is for taller women or men, because our metabolisms are naturally slower.
How can I get started with NEAT?
NEAT will feel like an "effort"at first, because, similar to planned exercise, it means you have to plan how you're going to include it and scatter it throughout your day.
But once you make it habit, it becomes like all the other things you do on a daily basis, like chores, that you don't realise could be beneficial to your health.
Here are 4 ways to engage with NEAT starting TODAY
During your lunch break (or straight after walk), aim to get at least 5000 steps in (use the health app on your phone to track). Then, build up to between 8000 to 10 000 as you get more confident.
Set a timer on your phone to get up from your desk and move around every 30 minutes (or as often as you can depending on your job).
If you're working from home, set a timer to get up and dance for the length of your favourite song every hour. So liberating for the soul too!
Whenever you go up the stairs to do anything, whether your popping to the loo (that's the bathroom for the Americans here!) or just getting something from your bedroom, get to the top of the stairs, then go back down and up again. Takes about 10 seconds but adds to your NEAT count for the day!
I absolutely love to support my lovely clients with their NEAT movement alongside their nutrition in my 6-week Nutrition Program. Book a FREE 20-minute discovery call with me now to find out how we can kick-start your weight loss journey.
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