What is NEAT, and why do we talk about it?

Firstly your NEAT stands for your Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis. Or simply put, this is the calories we burn doing our day to day tasks. This can play a huge factor in why someone who doesn't go to the gym or play any sports can still be healthy and in good shape. But more so now than ever before we are becoming a population that spends the vast majority of our time sitting down in front of a screen. Thus reducing our overall NEAT.

When people start at Iceni training, during their consultation we always discuss this and why we need to think about it more so in our day to day lives. Making it to the gym every day for a lot of our members is not something that they can manage alongside their busy work lives and family commitments. So we start by making them more aware of their movement throughout the day.

Here are some easy wins to increase your NEAT that we find out members at Iceni Training find really helpful.

• Take the stairs rather than the lifts in the office.

• Park a little further away from the entrance when possible.

• Walk with a colleague on your lunch break rather than sitting at your desk.

• Set a reminder on your phone or smartwatch to stand up and refill your water bottle. NOT HEAD TO THE FRIDGE!

• Even investing in the popular sit and stand desks can be a great option to burn a few more calories per hour throughout a long working day.

Something we often prescribe to members is getting their 10,000 steps in per day. And we monitor this through our monthly check-ins to help keep people accountable if they feel the need. What we do in the gym is only part of the picture in the quest for better health and fitness.