Burning calories doesn't always require a grueling session in the weight room or a hike across a difficult trail. As a matter of fact, even as you sit and read this right now, you're burning calories (albeit, not all too many). The process of burning calories during everyday tasks is known as Non-exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT).

That all being said, this doesn't mean that you can ditch your workout and replace it with bird watching. Well, you can -- I just wouldn't advise it if your goal is to lose weight. It's here that I take some issue with what some so-called fitness experts are suggesting these days. Case in point, I recently came across an article in ... you know what, I'll leave the name of the magazine out of it. Let's just call it the Popular Family Magazine for the sake of discussion. Anyway, in said Popular Family Magazine, an article listed 20 ways to drop some pounds. So far, so good, right? Indeed; that is, until I saw that backyard barbecuing was recommended as a way to burn calories.

Does the concept of NEAT apply here? In all fairness, yes it does. According to FitDay.com, a 135-pound woman burns 86 calories per hour while cooking. However, you're only fooling yourself if you think cooking some burgers and hot dogs constitutes an effective means of weight loss. Plus, let's not forget that the whole point of preparing and cooking food is to eat it. So, after you've burned your measly 43 calories (I've never heard of a hamburger taking an hour to cook, so I've cut it down to calories burned in a half hour) calories while grilling, you then negate them entirely by consuming about 420 calories with the burger or about 300 calories with the hot dog.

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What's NEAT? Well, beside being a word used by teenage TV stars of yesteryear to describe rocket ships and hula-hoops, it's also an acronym that may have you parking your car in the farthest spot from your office as possible.

Standing for Nonexercise Activity Thermogenesis (fancy talk for things you do, other than exercise, that also burn calories), NEAT was the explanation for an increase in triglyceride levels in men in a recent study. Danish researchers instructed study volunteers to take elevators instead of stairs, park close to buildings, and reduce the overall amount of walking they do for two weeks, after which time their triglyceride levels were again taken. Amazingly, researchers found that the men's levels were, on average, 18 percent higher after the two-week period.

Clearly, the takeaway from this study is to remember that burning calories need not require a gym membership or daily five-mile runs. Everyday activities -- such as those mentioned, as well as normal household chores and daily duties -- require caloric expenditure. To that end, greater benefit can be obtained from taking steps to increase your nonexercise effort level, with parking far from a building, using stairs instead of elevators, and walking to and from the store being great methods of how to go about doing just that.

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Do you have those friends who never gain a pound, despite the fact that they don't actually exercise and aren't careful about what they eat? Or are you one of those people? It certainly has a bit to do with genetics, but there could be another factor: NEAT.

NEAT is "non-exercise activity thermogenesis," which, according to diet-blog.com, is "the energy expended in everything we do that doesn't involve eating, sleeping, and sport-related activity." We've actually mentioned this before, but you might not be aware of just how big a difference NEAT can make in your weight.

In a study, sedentary subjects (some obese, some thin) were fitted with "magical underwear" that recorded every move they made. Everyone was fed 1000 calories more than their weight required for maintenance, and those who activated their NEAT didn't gain fat, but those who didn't gained 10 times more fat. Learn about activating your NEAT by clicking through the gallery.

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Successful weight loss might be all in your head. According to a recent study, people who are methodical, organized, punctual, neat and disciplined are more likely to be successful in losing weight and keeping it off. This isn't really surprising since we know that planning and discipline are important when maintaining any healthy weight-loss plan.

So where does that leave the rest of us? Is there hope for the scatterbrained, the perpetually late, the disorganized? Yes, but you have to think like a planner. Here are some tips from Fitsugar:

• Organize your house. You know that box of miscellaneous photos from the past 25 years? Conquer it. Do your CD collection too. And your spice rack. Just don't do everything in one weekend -- you'll short circuit
• Be punctual. Keep a schedule and stick to it.
  
• Make a plan ... every day. Try to stick to some sort of routine too.
  
• Follow the instructions you're given, whether it's for a recipe or setting up your DVD player.
  

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