CG Fitness: Personal Training, Nutrition & Yoga

Happy Friday my friends!

All my clients, friends & family members…all want to know how to burn more calories. More than two-thirds of Americans are obese or overweight. We are a nation where we drive to the library, to the store, to our friends house, etc…we drive everywhere…then we sit down for hours on end…basically we are a lazy society. We walk for exercise…when walking should just be a normal part of our day.

Unfortunately, we can’t always help how much sitting we do because of where we live or where we work.

BUT…the good news is that you can burn more calories throughout your day by doing NEAT exercises.

What the heck does NEAT stand for?

NEAT stands for “Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis”. Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy expended for everything we do that is not sleeping, eating or sports-like exercise. It ranges from the energy expended walking to work, typing, performing yard work, undertaking agricultural tasks and fidgeting.

Studies show that lean people fidget for about 150 minutes a day more than obese people do. That kind of low-grade activity (tapping feet and fingers, twirling hair, gesturing while speaking, etc.) can burn 350 calories a day, which translates into 10-30 pounds a year!

My husband says I fidget all the time…I can’t keep still no matter what I do. I went to get an MRI years ago and they had to keep telling me to stop moving my feet and hands…I didn’t even realize I was doing it.

NEAT Exercises to add to your daily routine:

• Pacing back and forth – when talking on the phone you can pace back and forth in your office or kitchen or cubicle or where ever you are. You can burn 90 more calories an hour pacing than if you just talk while sitting still.
• Carry one grocery bag in the house at a time. (yes…some of you will be eye rolling at this one..lol but I do this all the time and I live in a second floor apartment…which means I go up and down those stairs A LOT!)
• Clean more frequently – I know this might sound like you need to be a neat freat (hahaha…like my little NEAT pun there?!) but seriously…washing, ironing, vacuum cleaning, mopping the floor, cleaning the bathrooms…they all burn calories.
• Wash your car your self instead of using the automatic car wash. Vacuum the car, clean the car windows…etc… My husband and I actually enjoy detailing cars so cleaning our car is actually fun for us…we make it all shiny and pretty looking every time we wash it. Plus, it gets me outside in the sunshine and enjoying the fresh air.
• Walk to the library, hair salon, post office, mail box (oh man…this one is a pet peeve of mine when I see people driving up to their mail box and getting their mail through their driver’s side window..seriously?! Just park your car and walk to your mail box), walk up the stairs inst

  

  ead of taking the elevator, park your car as far away from the store if you drive there….

• Use the rake instead of the leaf blower, use a shovel instead of a snow blower, hand trim your yard instead of using the weed eater (I used to get so mad at my dad for making me use the hand trimmers as a kid, but it really is good exercise), sweep the driveway/sidewalk/porch, etc…
• Get a stand-up desk for your office or if you can afford it get a treadmill desk like I have and walk while you are working on your computer.
• Do some walking lunges to go to the kitchen or living room…do squats while getting the dishes out of the dishwasher…or do leg raises while standing at the stove cooking…get creative while doing normal daily activities just to burn more calories.
• Place your water or coffee or tea away from where you are sitting so you have to get up and walk to get it every time you need a drink (I personally do this which makes me get up from my computer…when I’m not on my treadmill…and I drink a ton of water which means I get up a lot!)
• Dance or move your body when you hear a song you like…I do this all the time lol

Ok, hopefully some of these ideas help you to just DO MORE throughout your day to burn more calories. I know these might not sound like a lot, but all of these things together really will help build up your daily calorie burn.

Comment below and share with me some ways you fidget or get more calorie burn in during your day.

Stay Healthy (and fidgety) my Friends!

XO,

Carrie A Groff