Fitness Junction

This week:

• Knowledge Corner: Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT)

• Monthly Challenge Update: Getting outside in February

• Meme Center: Stay hydrated

Knowledge Corner: Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT)

Do you know what’s neat? Non-exercise activity thermogenesis is NEAT! NEAT is a great tool to compliment exercise and nutrition for supporting weight loss goals — including burning off all the jalapeno poppers and beer that we just overindulged in for the Super Bowl. It is one of the ways our body uses energy and contributes to our total daily energy expenditure (TDEE).

TDEE is how many calories (energy) your body uses in a day. You may not be familiar with the concept of TDEE, but you interact with it every time you go to the grocery store. Food labels in the U.S. use a 2,000 calorie TDEE as an estimated average to calculate the nutrition facts. TDEE is made up of three processes that use energy: Resting metabolic rate (also known as basal metabolic rate), the thermic effect of feeding, and the thermic effect of activity.

Resting metabolic rate is the amount of energy required to keep your body alive and makes up about 60–75% of TDEE. This is the number of calories you would burn if you spent all day lying in bed, not moving or eating. The thermic effect of feeding is the energy your body uses to digest food. It accounts for ~10% of TDEE. Both resting metabolic rate and the thermic effect of feeding are mostly outside of our ability to control. It is through the thermic effect of activity, which includes NEAT, that one can have the biggest impact on their daily energy expenditure.

The thermic effect of activity is further broken down into exercise and non-exercise activity thermogenesis. Exercise is deliberate. It’s working out, playing sports, or any other activity focused on fitness. NEAT, on the other hand, is incidental. It is the use of energy to move our body outside of exercise. Walking, typing, and brushing your teeth are all examples of NEAT. While the amount of calories burned in these activities can be minimal, they add up quickly. A Mayo Clinic study suggests that we could burn an extra 2,000 calories a day by increasing our NEAT.

So how do we improve our NEAT? There are endless opportunities throughout our day. Anytime you can move more, you’ll increase your NEAT. Here are some examples: Take walking breaks or have walking meetings at work, start a garden, handwash dishes, chase your kids or dog around, do yardwork, hit the dancefloor, and always take the stairs. The sky is the limit. So be creative and take advantage of NEAT to burn extra calories everyday!

Trivia

What position did Vince Lombardi play in college?

• A. Defensive End

• B. Quarterback

• C. Guard

• D. Linebacker

February Challenge: 15min Outside, 5x Per Week

Great success this past week! It helps that the weather crept back up into the 40s. I hope everyone is staying motivated this February and finding time to get outdoors! Don't forget that a dose of vitamin D per day keeps the rickets away.

Meme Center

Thank you for reading this week's Fitness Junction! If you aren't already, subscribe here and share the newsletter with anyone you think will enjoy it. Click the button below to learn more about Natural Function Fitness and our services.

Trivia answer: C. Guard. Lombardi started right guard for what was dubbed "The Seven Blocks of Granite" offensive line of Fordham University in 1937.