How to Burn Calories Without Exercise
You can only work out so much. Learn how NEAT can boost your calorie burn.
What is NEAT?
Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy used for every move you make that’s not sleeping, eating, or exercise. NEAT provides a calorie-burning edge without additional exercise, and it offers other benefits, too.
Most midlife women need fewer calories with age because of decreased physical activity and loss of muscle tissue, which burns more calories than fat (but not that much more!). Your basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is how fast you use calories to stay alive, is relatively fixed. Although NEAT doesn’t increase BMR, it boosts calorie expenditure which can lead to weight loss and easier weight control going forward.
How Many Calories Does NEAT Burn?
You probably won’t torch the same number of calories with NEAT as you would running three miles, hiking for a couple of hours, or doing a spin class (although you may not be burning as many calories exercising as you think!). For example, a 155-pound person burns about 200 calories for a full hour of low-impact aerobics, 175 calories walking for one hour at a four-mile-per-hour pace, and 144 calories doing an hour of Hatha Yoga.
A 2018 review of NEAT research published in the Journal of Exercise Nutrition and Biochemistry found that higher levels of NEAT were associated with lower body weights, so it’s clear that calories burned by vacuuming, shopping for groceries, and folding laundry can really add up. That makes sense when you consider that a 155-pound person burns 80 calories mowing the lawn for 30 minutes, 70 calories raking for the same amount of time, and 110 calories shoveling snow.
The Health Benefits of NEAT
In a 2014 British Journal of Sports Medicine study of women and men over the age of 60 that lasted more than 12 years, researchers found that at the outset of the study, higher levels of NEAT were associated with a healthier waist circumference and more favorable levels of HDL (high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, the “good” kind) and triglycerides, which are fats in the blood linked to a higher risk for heart disease. At the end of the study, the researchers concluded that a generally active life was associated with better cardiovascular health and longevity in older adults.
According to Mayo Clinic experts, NEAT can reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and dying early. NEAT is so beneficial that the Mayo Clinic suggests health care providers recommend it for a person’s wellbeing.
How NEAT Compares to Exercise
However beneficial NEAT is, it’s an add-on, not a substitute, for the suggested amount of exercise, which is at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity and two strength training sessions weekly. Though NEAT shouldn’t stand in for regular exercise, it is a suitable substitute for sitting.
Incorporating NEAT into your daily routine breaks up prolonged sitting that can have negative health effects. A 2021 Endocrinology and Metabolism study found that doing just three minutes of light activity, such as climbing stairs, for every 30 minutes of sitting time lowered blood glucose levels over a three-week period. And, climbing stairs was associated with a lower risk for type 2 diabetes over a span of 12 years in a 2023 Journal of Sport and Health Science study of more than 450,000 older adults.
Here’s another reason sit less. A 2009 Medicine and Science in Sports study that followed more than 17,000 people for 12 years on average concluded that moderate-intensity physical activity, even the recommended amounts mentioned above, did not counteract the health effects of high levels of sitting. In other words, while exercising for 30 minutes or more is beneficial, sitting for the rest of the day after working out is not.
That said, any physical activity is better than none!
How You Can Increase Your NEAT
When I was younger, I gave little thought to increasing my NEAT because I thought going to the gym was enough. Now that I’m a midlife woman, I’ve come to appreciate the calorie-burning edge that NEAT provides along with its other benefits. Here are some ways to include more NEAT into your day.
Get out of the car instead of using the drive thru
Fold laundry
Vacuum
Sweep the floor
Type
Pace while you’re on the phone
Fidget
Cook dinner instead of ordering take out that gets delivered
Take the stairs
Walk a few extra blocks to and from work and to appointments
Park further away from the gym or the store
Rake leaves
Shop for groceries and take them in one bag at a time
Return your cart to the store after grocery shopping
Take the laundry upstairs in five trips instead of one
Paint a room
Play with the kids or the dog
Stretch
Mow the lawn
Plant flowers
Weed the garden
Shovel snow
Go bowling
Fly a kite
Laugh
How will you add more NEAT to your day? Let me know in the comments!