By: Chris Goode Personal Trainer, WOAC
Many things have changed in that past few weeks and months. I am a big believer in starting with the big picture. Start simple and work the details in over time. Sometimes those details can be challenging to recognize. In my opinion, one of the biggest impacts someone can have on their day to day habits to see change is called NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis). Basically, this just means all of the heat energy you expend to go about your normal routine outside of the gym or exercise activity. This is really important because this is how most of your waking day is spent. Many people think about what they do in the gym and track only that. What do you do day to day in terms of moving around in general? For example, do you have a seated job versus an active job? If you are working remotely now how does that change your daily movement?
If you are one of the many who is adapting to the “at-home” lifestyle change you may be struggling to accumulate enough daily activity and maintain decent nutrition and sleep habits.
This is where NEAT comes in. Whether you have a nice home gym or just shoes and the road, you’ve got to move! Whether it’s walking, house chores, playing with a pet, an active family game, yard work, cooking or whatever else, 20-30 extra minutes can go a long way. Movement, even small movement is a great way to help boost immune health, relieve stress, and manage fatigue.
Of course, I do not think these things take the place of weight training or other resistance modalities, but rather compliment them and can be a temporarily tool for the maintenance during this challenging time.
If anyone has any questions about NEAT or training in general, please feel free to reach out to me here at chrisg@waverleyoaks.com. Hope to be back at the club with you all soon!