That's NEAT! Non-exercise activity thermogenesis and its role in obesity

by Bethany Sanders (Subscribe to Bethany Sanders's posts)
Dec 19th 2006 9:00AM

Are you a pacer? Do you twiddle your thumbs, fidget in your seat, or stand when you should be sitting? Are you always on the go during your waking hours? You may have high NEAT -- non exercise activity thermogeneses.

Researchers have recently discovered that obese people sit an average of 150 minutes more per day than lean people. Interestingly, they think this is not due to being overweight itself, or a lack of motivation, but a possible difference in brain chemistry. Even when people lost weight, or lean people artificially gained weight, their NEAT never changed -- making researchers think that NEAT is a significant part of treating obesity, possibly an even more important component than diet or exercise.

Want to raise your NEAT? Keep moving. Work in your garden, dance or walk in place during commercials, put your phone on speaker and pace during long conversations. Stand when you can sit, move when you could be standing still. Diet and exercise will always be the cornerstones of good health, but being generally more active throughout the day appears to be key to successful weight loss.

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Comments (38)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Corana 12-20-2006 @ 4:19PM

Not sure how feasible this "NEAT raising" business really is folks. I've been a cronic legg jiggling, finger-tapper since birth and am currently what the U.S. BMI considers obese. If only it were that easy.
*sigh*

Kasie 12-25-2006 @ 7:03PM

sooo true.... i am a self proclaimed gym rat.... and well when i started working a real job and not having time to go to the gym
for my 3 hour workouts i found that pacing ,using the stairs and keeping active at work did the trick to get some of a work out ..
just for peoples FYI

Xantur Kantur 12-25-2006 @ 7:03PM

The BMI is a bit of a joke. According to the BMI a bodybuilder is considered obese. It does not take into account body build or muscle mass. There are better indicators of obesity out there. The one thing the article does point out is that any activity is better than no activity. NEAT will not replace exercise as the primary means of losing weight if calorie intake remains the same. The best weight control is still a combination of exercise and reduced caloric intake.

Mary Hills 12-25-2006 @ 6:36PM

I worked in the restaurant industry for over 20 years working sometimes 6 days a week for 12 hours a day and after leaving this type of work I found it very difficult to sit still behind a desk and am often on the move throughout the office not to mention at home. I do feel the need to stay busy all day and can honestly say that it does help to keep me thin. I often feel exhausted by the time my work week has ended. I am also a single working Mom of two kids which adds a great deal to my activity. Not only am I active throughout the day, but I do find it difficult to sleep sometimes because my mind races at night too....I do wonder how much of a role my past plays in my current situation...BTW... I am 40 years old if that makes a difference....

cyn 12-25-2006 @ 6:55PM

This makes sense on paper but not to sure it is all that true. I say this because of my family. My mom, a workaholic moves around like crazy, she is an average weight. The older of my brothers is a chronic pacer and always moves around yet he is overweight, then there is the youngest brother who like me are the thinnest of the family and yet we move less than both mom and older brother. Plus we have been this way since at least my birth and let's just say I am no spring chicken. So I do not see this to be true but then this is just my family.

Larry 12-25-2006 @ 9:26PM

Yes, but hope springs eternal!

fairfax 12-25-2006 @ 7:02PM

NEAT: There must be subgroups to this NEAT thing. Hyperactive, hypervigilant people MAY have other diseases or genetics at work (e.g., connective tissue disorders) that cause them to be non-stop movers and hence thin. Then there may be another group of jigglers who don't have a disease/genetic thing going on and they don't lose weight or stay thin. Far more going on here than what they wrote in this article. I'm sure the usual suspects of hormones, brain chemicals, etc. are also involved. Far too complicated and we just don't know enough about the brain/body to understand it all.
Not a particularly insightful article...

T 12-25-2006 @ 7:07PM

I agree with the first post. I have never been one to sit in one place for a long length of time yet I have to constantly work at keeping my weight in check with diet and yes a consistent and somewhat strenous exercise program. While I think some exercise/movement is better than none I doubt that pacing while on the phone will truly foot the bill.

KV 12-25-2006 @ 7:06PM

I think this is the absolute truth. I am a pacer, and I am always moving even when I am standing still. I have never had a weight problem and am well over 40. I always thought it was just my metabolism. I have never been able to sit still. I think this is definetly tied to being overweight.

Sean 12-25-2006 @ 7:08PM

I saw a story on this a year ago on Dateline. A Mayo clinic professor built a "walking desk", replacing his chair with a treadmill and walked at .07mph instead of sitting. He lost tons of weight.

I sit at work, but not at the same place, so I couldn't do it at work. I sit in front of my computer at home, however, for hours a day. This past June, I built my own treadmill desk, and have lost a little over 1lb per week since, with no other changes in my lifestyle.

A pound per week doesn't sound like much, but 5 1/2 months later, I'm down 30 lbs. If you want to find out more, do a search on "walking desk" and "treadmill desk"

Chris 12-25-2006 @ 7:12PM

Even though people may pace, and still be obese, I believe this study is just a factor in the contribution to people becomming obese. There can't be just one factor that causes someone to be obese, but it is very likely that "NEAT" added into the equation of genetics, diet, and overall lifestyle has a huge effect on people.
I see it on advertisements all the time, and I feel like a majority of people misunderstand obesity. Many people think that there is a simple solution to obesity, and this study proves, that one simple, magical answer may not be the case at all.

teresa brown 12-25-2006 @ 7:33PM

i am 50 yrs. old and have been the same size since i was 14.not only do i constantly move,i eat all day long.i do not eat 3 meals a day,i eat those 3 meals all day long.my energty level is maintained as well as my weight.isometric excercise can be incorporated into daily lifestyles to help keep tone in check.i agree with the neat concept.

CB 12-25-2006 @ 7:34PM

I am a person with high NEAT activity. I teach 3/4 year old children work a second job and generally have a hard time sitting still anywhere. I am even on the move when I sleep. I am an obseased person and do not agree with this NEAT theory.

yacro 12-25-2006 @ 8:02PM

I am also not sure if this is true. However, this article probably works for me since I constantly pace and my BMI is 21. I think what you eat also factors into the equation. You can pace all you want, but if you don't watch what you eat, you aren't going to loose any weight.

Jim 12-25-2006 @ 8:04PM

I've done this all my life and it works?

As I stand a lot I try to stretch upwards, also from way back witha weight lifting friend it is not the # of weight, but going through the steps of pushing upwards. I move all the time at work,
and get away from the dinner table quickly!

I park as far as I can to entry ways of stores...a little each day, adds up after 40 years of doing this now.

Obesity....A person who has some weight on them can still work out those leg muscles, and still be active. I've seen many people who are.

Jim 12-25-2006 @ 8:18PM

Steve 12-25-2006 @ 8:20PM

I don't understand, I'm 45yr's old, 5'11" tall and was 476 pounds when I started walking on a treadmill last year. I walk about 3hr's a day while eating Cheeseburgers (about 6) and Pizza (about 6 large slices) and watching t.v. Now I'm down to 186 pounds. So...I I can only guess that If ya'll would stop your pity party and move YOUR arse more, maybe you would not be such fat arse hogs.

Lauren 12-25-2006 @ 8:35PM

I really think this is amazing... I definately agree that diet and exercise are more important for weight loss and health... But I've always thought that all the finger tapping and pacing I do helps keep me thin... Some of my friends can sit perfectly still and they weigh quite a bit more than me... Who knows... But this is really awesome that they've discovered something else to help understand weight gain and loss...

Jazzie 12-25-2006 @ 8:46PM

I agree that this cannot be the only factor keeping a person thin, but I do believe there is some validity in the arguement that movement helps weight loss. I constantly move and fidget and I've remained at the same weight for years despite a less than healthy diet. I don't have problems relaxing, but I usually have a part of my body moving. Then again, it might just be genetics.

Carol 12-25-2006 @ 9:16PM

All these articles about what causes us to be fat or thin drives me nuts! All I know is this--they don't know squat. I have been active all my life to the point where they labeled me as manic/depressive and they were wrong about that, too. I worked long hours all my life at jobs where I had to be on the go constantly--many times without a break or lunch period. (10 - 12 hrs. a day). The only thing I know is I gained weight for no reason when I had two kids in a row. I then rode my bike 5 miles every night after work, swam in my own pool (after cleaning it of course), did aerobic dancing, bought exercise equipment (and used it) , and starved myself on nearly every diet you can think of. I probably know more about diets and nutrition than a nutritionist. I keep the weight off for a year, then boom--the weight literally piles on me no matter what just like clockwork. I'm not stupid enough to go out and garbage down on empty calories and junk food as soon as I get down to a manageable weight. I exercise no less and eat no more. Even my parents were small by today's standards. I think there is more to it than what they know. I wish I could figure it out because then I would probably easily become the richest person in the world! LOL

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