Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis or 'NEAT' is just a sexy term of all the energy you burn when not working out, eating or sleeping. It includes all sorts, from walking to fidgeting & from typing to taking the stairs.
So, what if I told you this is a HUGE slice of the fat-loss pie I use with my clients? Furthermore, you can use NEAT to cut down the cardio but still lose weight. There are, of course personal & lifestyle factors which affect everyone differently, but we can ALL benefit from the positive effects of being efficient with our NEAT.
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Despite me trying to sound like Elon Musk with fancy words & thermogenic processes, the only important part as far as fat loss is concerned is that NEAT helps you reach a calorie deficit. If you don’t know what that means by now (because I feel like I go on about it daily), it is when you are burning more calories than you consume. By this logic, you may up your non-exercise activity massively, but if you also smash out an ‘Assorted Dozen’ (from Krispy Kreme for the Graeme’s & Sandra’s unaware of what that is), you’ll most likely undo your good work. HOWEVER, the biggest selling point of NEAT is the accessibility. You don’t need to know your way round an elliptical or join a CrossFit gym to burn calories through NEAT.
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But what DO you need to do? How do you harness NEAT?
-      Go for more walks, whether it be at lunch time, before work with a friend or to get somewhere in a more health-beneficial way. If you’re really struggling, take a work call out on a walk with you.
-Â Â Â Â Â Â Take the stairs is an obvious one, but, for the love of God people, walk on escalators too! You can even park further away from the shop, work or home.
-Â Â Â Â Â Â Set activity goals, do it with a friend or even get a dog. All of which are ways to hold yourself to it & improve adherence.
These are just a few of the things that come to mind, but there are endless other examples of how to up your daily NEAT available online.
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Sounds too simple to be true? It can’t make THAT much difference, surely? Look at this…
This meta-analysis shows the massive impact of NEAT as a part of your Total Energy Expenditure each daily (TEE):
The outcome of this series of studies including studies by Google Scholar, PubMed & Harvard University, was a trend of sedentary individuals getting the most consistent fat loss results from methods to up their NEAT.
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Now I know what you lot are like, so don’t take this as an excuse to complete ditch the cardio as that’s still super important for your overall health. All I’m saying is that cardio is an inefficient fat loss tool, so why not make that journey a little easier for you. Cardio still strengthens your heart, lungs, bones & mind. It’s also key for your metabolism (& therefore energy levels), so find a method you get along with like sports, clubs or targets to achieve & include it along side your fat loss journey.
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I hope this helps some of you to explore a new avenue of consistent & enjoyable fat loss. As always we are happy to go into the nuance of this in a way that's specific to you so drop us a message. Ta ta!
Elliot Hutchinson // 06.10.2024
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