Does your client lead a sedentary lifestyle?<\/p>\n
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At first thought, you might have gone, \u201cImpossible!\u201d Your client strength trains four times a week<\/span> and slots in cardio sessions whenever they can.<\/p>\n That can hardly be called sedentary \u2026 right? Unfortunately, no. And it\u2019s all got to do with the amount of time your client spends being non-active throughout the day (e.g., sitting when working, watching TV, and browsing social media).\u00a0<\/p>\n More specifically, emerging research<\/span> <\/span>suggests that a variety of serious health issues\u2014including metabolic syndrome, poor blood sugar management, and type 2 diabetes\u2014are all related to large amounts of seated time, independent of how much someone exercises.<\/p>\n Keyword:<\/span> \u201cindependent.\u201d Meaning? Simply put, your client\u2019s thirty- or sixty-minute workouts can\u2019t counteract the adverse cardiometabolic health effects<\/span><\/span> caused by prolonged, unbroken periods of sedentary activities.<\/p>\n So, one thing\u2019s clear. It\u2019s beneficial for your client to increase their daily non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT)\u00a0 levels for its health benefits. Find out how you can help your client do that in this article.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n As implied by its name, non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) refers to any activity your client does throughout the day outside of formal exercise and sleeping<\/span>.<\/span> That includes carrying the groceries home, walking the dog, climbing the stairs, etc.<\/p>\n It\u2019s one of the four components that make up your client’s total daily energy expenditure (TDEE)<\/span><\/span>; here’s a brief explanation of each of them:<\/p>\n Of course, as mentioned, the primary benefit of helping your client increase their NEAT levels is combatting the ill effects of a sedentary lifestyle.<\/p>\n Higher levels of NEAT mean less risk<\/span><\/span> of metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular events, and death from all causes.<\/p>\n What\u2019s more, since research shows that inactivity can negate all the hard work your client puts into intentional exercise, increasing their NEAT levels would, in turn, help them reap the intended benefits of their workouts.<\/p>\n Another more commonly recognized benefit of increasing your client\u2019s NEAT levels?<\/p>\n It can make it easier for them to achieve\u2014and stay within\u2014a calorie deficit (relevant to those who\u2019re looking to lose weight<\/span>).<\/span> How so? Well, consider this.<\/p>\n Based on data measuring the energy expenditure of different lifestyles and activity patterns, an individual who works in an agricultural field could (theoretically) burn an extra 2,000 calories daily<\/span><\/span> through NEAT-related activities compared to another\u2014with the same height and body composition\u2014who works in a chair-bound job.<\/p>\n Read that again:<\/span> 2,000 calories!<\/p>\n The takeaway here is that the more calories your client burns through NEAT, the less you\u2019ll have to rely on either cutting down their food intake or tweaking their exercise program<\/span><\/span> (<\/span>or a combination of both) to help them achieve a calorie deficit.<\/p>\n A quick disclaimer before we begin:<\/span> Not every client will need to increase their NEAT levels.<\/p>\n For instance, say your client works a highly active job (e.g., waitressing) and is on their feet for up to eight hours a day. Is there a need for you to get them to move around more? The answer is no.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n So, before implementing any of the recommendations for a client, determine if they even need to increase their NEAT levels in the first place by looking at their:<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Let\u2019s say you\u2019ve determined that your client is indeed leading a sedentary lifestyle outside of their workout sessions. What next? Don\u2019t fret; here are five things you could have them start doing to increase their daily NEAT levels.<\/p>\n Fidget more? That\u2019s right.<\/p>\n According to a 2000 study<\/span><\/span> published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition<\/em>, your client can burn up to 120 calories an hour by simply sitting and “fidgeting” (e.g., toe-tapping, stretching their legs and arms, or flipping through papers)\u2014compared to the 80 calories an hour if they were to sit motionlessly.<\/p>\n Don’t be so quick to dismiss the additional 40 calories as “meager,” by the way! It all adds up: Seven hours of sitting and fidgeting over a workday tallies up to an additional 280 calories.<\/p>\n Of course, it\u2019s even better if you could get your client to fidget while standing.<\/p>\n This burns 150 calories an hour, which would, in turn, come up to an additional 490 calories daily compared to sitting motionless (math: 7 x 70 calories).<\/p>\n Getting your client to meal-prep<\/span> <\/span>increases their NEAT levels in two ways. The first is that they\u2019ll spend time commuting to the grocery store\u2014and then walking down the aisles, shopping for necessary ingredients.<\/p>\n For reference:<\/span> Walking at 2 MPH can help them burn up to 240 calories an hour.<\/p>\n The second way meal-prepping increases your client\u2019s activity level is that the process \u201cforces\u201d them to cook, which involves chopping up ingredients, stir-frying, and a whole lot of other \u201cfidgeting-like\u201d movements.<\/p>\n Compare that to if your client were to get their meals delivered right to their doorstep. Chances are, they’d likely sit around\u2014chilling on the sofa\u2014and wait for their food to arrive.\u00a0<\/p>\n Another \u201chidden\u201d benefit of having your client prepare their own meals is that it discourages the over-consumption of ultra-processed foods<\/span> <\/span>by giving them more control over their dietary intake.<\/p>\n They’d have a better understanding of just what they’re putting into their bodies (i.e., number of calories and macronutrient split) and start to see the link between specific dietary tweaks, changes in their body composition, and how they feel during training.<\/p>\n One of the easiest ways to increase your client\u2019s NEAT levels is to have them aim for anywhere between 10,000 to 12,000 steps a day<\/span>.<\/span> This way, they enjoy the flexibility of choosing the movement they prefer the most.<\/p>\n Examples of creative ways your client could make use of to get those extra steps in:<\/p>\n Is your client struggling to increase their NEAT levels despite their best efforts?<\/p>\n They may be doing too much cardio. But, wait\u2014what’s that got to do with anything? Well, as it turns out, research shows that it\u2019s common for individuals to move a lot less after a cardio workout.<\/p>\n More specifically, multiple studies have shown that people tend to compensate with a reduction in activity<\/span><\/span> post-workout (i.e., lie around after exercising), sometimes so much so<\/span> <\/span>that they’d have burned more calories through their typical, daily NEAT levels than their cardio session.\u00a0<\/p>\n If your client is indeed doing too much cardio (e.g., more than four times a week), the first thing you want to do is reduce that frequency.<\/p>\n This will naturally help increase your client\u2019s NEAT levels.<\/p>\n And to further increase their daily NEAT levels, you could consider swapping their cardio sessions for strength-training ones.<\/p>\n That’s because, in contrast to cardio workouts, resistance training appears to increase an individual’s NEAT levels<\/span><\/span> for the rest of the day.<\/p>\n Bottom line?<\/span> You want to prioritize strength training\u2014making sure to keep your client progressing over sessions\u2014<\/span>and spend less time focusing on your client\u2019s cardio sessions.<\/p>\n Of course, that doesn\u2019t mean eliminating cardio. You should still get your client to meet the recommended amounts of 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity weekly.<\/p>\n Bottom line?<\/span> You want to prioritize strength training,<\/p>\n This pointer is particularly relevant for clients eating in a calorie deficit.<\/p>\n That\u2019s because low calories will, inevitably, lead to decreased energy and increased lethargy\u2014in turn, translating into massive reductions<\/span><\/span> in the number of calories expended through NEAT.<\/p>\n Worse still, the number of calories your client burns through NEAT continues to decrease throughout their diet\u2019s duration.<\/p>\n In other words:<\/span> The longer they’re in a calorie deficit, the fewer and fewer calories they’ll burn, with it potentially reaching a point<\/span> <\/span>where they\u2019re burning so little calories that they\u2019re no longer in a deficit.<\/p>\n Ready for some good news?<\/p>\n It appears that you can help counteract your client\u2019s decrease in NEAT levels by implementing something known as a \u201cdiet break.<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\n To implement this strategy, you increase your client’s calorie intake back up to maintenance levels for a week (or two) after every 4-8 weeks or so of dieting. Doing so appears to reverse<\/span> <\/span>many of the \u201cenergy-conserving\u201d physiological adaptations their body has made in response to calorie restriction\u2014including the reduction in NEAT levels.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Note that doing so will extend the length of your client’s diet. For example, they may take sixteen weeks to reach their goal weight instead of the targeted twelve weeks (where they’re in a continuous deficit).<\/p>\n Unless your client is rushing for a specific deadline (e.g., wedding or photoshoot), though, this wouldn\u2019t necessarily be a major \u201cdownside.\u201d<\/p>\n While increasing NEAT is a great way to combat a sedentary lifestyle, don\u2019t let your client fall into the trap of thinking it\u2019s a replacement for exercising. Rather, it\u2019s a change to their lifestyles that could potentially improve their health\u2014and complement the great work they\u2019re already doing with training. That\u2019s a key message to get across to your clients.<\/p>\nWhat Is NEAT?<\/h2>\n
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Benefits of Increasing Your Client\u2019s NEAT Levels<\/h2>\n
How to Increase Your Client\u2019s NEAT Levels<\/h2>\n
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Ask Your Client to Fidget More at Their Desk<\/h3>\n
Get Them to Prepare Their Own Meals<\/h3>\n
Help Your Client Set a Daily Step Goal<\/h3>\n
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Prioritize Strength Training over Cardio<\/h3>\n
Give Your Client a (Planned) Break from Their Diet<\/h3>\n
Takeaway \u00ad<\/h2>\n
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