I know, you think the title of this means I’m going to tell you to come to the gym and do more workouts. But what if I told you that going absolutely HAM at the gym everyday wasn’t the easiest way to get the most physical activity in?? Here’s how it works:
Your body burns calories doing basic human functions such as operating your organs, opening and closing your eyes, digesting food, etc. Your body also burns calories during exercise. But a forgotten component of calorie burning is your bodies “NEAT” – This stands for Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis – which basically means physical movement other than exercise. This includes walking around doing chores, stretching, parking further from the grocery store and having to walk, etc. The best way to increase your calorie burn without doing too many workouts or starving yourself – increase your general movement! Most people are very sedentary when not at the gym. This means that for 1 hour you are getting a lot of activity in, and the other 23 you are not moving at all. How’s your workout supposed to outwork all of THAT non-movement?!
Want to increase your NEAT?
– Go on walks. 15-30 minutes is great!
– PLAY! Learn a new sport, go bowling, play tennis, throw the ball with your kid.
– Stretch! Not only is it more movement, this will help your recovery from exercise as well!
“And beyond NEAT- how do I increase my movement? I want to work out more but sometimes I’m too sore!”
Still come to the gym! Here are a few tactics I love to do myself when I still need to get movement in but am feeling pretty beat up.
– Active recovery days. Come to the gym and bike/row/ski for about 15 minutes, keeping your heart rate no more than maybe 60-70%, or a conversational pace. Do some stretching, or maybe even accessory work such as P.T. movements, crossover symmetry, or foam rolling. Movement is medicine and can help work the kinks out – just don’t let it turn into a full workout!
– Complete half of the WOD, or even complete it “Not for Time”
Some days I feel like I can get a workout in, but my body needs it to be at a little lower intensity. Instead of shooting for all the reps and in a set time, remove the intensity piece. Ex: Come to open gym and complete the rowing intervals at that 60% pace we talked about, instead of treating them as sprint intervals. If the workout is 4 Rounds of 10, 20 or 30 reps- do half, and maybe even modify the movement more than you normally would!
If you want to play the long game of fitnes, honoring when your body needs a break is vital! Some days you are charged up and ready to go 100%, other days you’re stressed and sore and didn’t sleep well, and maybe 50% is all you have. Honor your body on the days you need it- and recover smarter and harder!
