Most of us live with the wrong notion that spending one hour in the gym each day is enough to shed weight and get to your goal weight quickly, but it’s just that – a wrong notion. When we are spending the rest of the day eating unhealthy food and glued to the laptop, rarely moving out of the chair, the extra weight is not going anywhere. Wondering what extra you would need to do – well, eating healthy is of supreme importance – following the correct diet which provides ample nutrition, just like Rati Beauty diet programs make a big difference and then comes NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis). Abbreviated as NEAT, it is the energy we use for everything we do in our day-to-day life except for when we are sleeping or exercising. Using the stairs instead of the lift, squatting on the floor to lift something up, walking while talking on the phone, every activity we do while being on our feet, comes under NEAT. All these activities help to burn some amount of calories and these bits of calories spent here and there, add up to a considerable amount when you are trying to lose weight. We all know that for weight loss to happen, there should a calorie deficit and also high resting metabolic rate, which means we should be using up more calories than the amount we are consuming each day. Since most of us lead sedentary lifestyle and our jobs require us to stay scrunched up in the sitting position for long hours, the levels that lead up to NEAT decrease considerably – that’s the reason why instead of burning calories, our body tends to pile up calories and there’s buildup of fat in the body. Interestingly, researchers have proven that one could easily burn up to 2000 calories by just being on their feet for a good part of their day!
What is Resting Metabolic Rate?
Basal metabolic rate (BMR) or resting metabolic rate (RMR) is the rate at which one burns energy even when he/she is in complete resting state. Resting metabolic rate is the amount of calories your body needs to perform its basic functions. Our body would spend that amount of calories even if you do not make any effort. When you indulge in physical activity, more calories get burnt.
What is Calorie Deficit?
A calorie deficit occurs when a person consumes fewer calories than those burnt while exercising, resting, or performing basic bodily functions. In contrast, a calorie surplus occurs when a person consumes more calories than those that are burnt, leading to weight gain. In order to have a calorie deficit, the average person must cut down food intake by 500 calories per day. This figure is usually sufficient for weight loss without affecting energy levels, hunger, or bodily functions. For women, the number of calories must not drop below 1200 calories per day, and for men, it should not fall below 1500 calories per day.
What is Exercise Activity Thermogenesis?
When you workout in the gym or go to the park to jog or run, do aerobics or yoga with the aim to burn calories, it falls under “exercise activity thermogenesis.” Such activities require additional burning of calories.
How To Increase Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis Levels?
1. Cooking your own food: Instead of ordering food from outside – cook your own food. When you cook yourself, you would have a control over the ingredients that go into the dishes and you would be generating a good amount of NEAT, standing there in the kitchen for at least 20 minutes each time.
2. Take the stairs instead of the lift, period.
3. Gardening is not only a relaxing hobby, helping you to reduce stress levels – activities such as pulling out weeds, shovelling, planting all will burn some amount of calories, taking up your NEAT levels.
4. Morning walk – just like gardening, early morning walks can be therapeutic in addition to burning up calories. An early morning walk will help calm your mind and relieve stress too.
5. Every half an hour, get up from wherever you are sitting, and take a stroll across the hall.
6. When you are on phone, attending a call, stand up and walk through the duration of the call, you will burn calories without even making an effort.
7. Wash your own dishes – washing the dishes yourself will burn calories people.
8. Eating thermogenic foods would also help – coconut oil, garlic, turmeric, black pepper, green chillies are thermogenic food items that increase the heat levels in the body.
9. Instead of online shopping, walk around in the mall or shops to pick the stuff you like.
10. We are not kidding, dance in the shower if you can and burn calories 😛
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