Welcome Back & Happy New Year!
We are excited to announce that we are now offering Small Group Fitness Training! This year we invite you to Get Fit with ChiroFitt!
• Limited to 8 Participants Per Class
• 30 Minutes to Fit Your Busy Schedule
• Full Body Workout
• 3 Different Classes to Choose From
For a limited time, we are offering a FREE INTRO Group Class! To sign up for your free intro class, CLICK HERE!
Today We Will Focus On:
• How our body burns calories
• The Importance of NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) Movements
• How our TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) Effects our Weight loss and Muscle Growth Goals
Once we ring in the New Year, it seems we are bombarded with information on the perfect nutrition plans and the perfect workouts that will make you reach your fitness goals. Did you start the New Year wanting to lose weight, focus on your health, or just have personal fitness goals? If so, it is important to understand the breakdown of how your body burns calories throughout the day so that you can find what will work for your body! The process of our body burning calories throughout the day is referred to as TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure).
Calories that you consume from food and drink are used to fuel the different activities throughout your day. Calories = Energy!! Let’s discuss how your body uses those calories…
How Your Body Burns Calories: (TDEE)
• EAT 5-10% = EAT stands for Exercise Activity Thermogenesis which is the calories burned through exercise.
• TEF 10-15% = TEF stands for Thermic Effect of Food which are the calories burned digesting and absorbing food. This represents the energy your body uses when it breaks down and metabolizes food. Foods that are high in protein burn more calories when digesting. In other words, they have a higher thermic effect.
• NEAT 20-30% =NEAT stands for Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis which are the calories burned from all movement throughout the day. This can be walking, standing, chores, getting groceries, etc.
• BMR 60-70% = BMR stands for Basal Metabolic Rate which are the calories your body burns at rest and to keep your body functioning.
The Importance of NEAT Movement (NEAT stands for NON-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis)
Exercise is important and has positive impacts on our health, but as you can see from the breakdown, it makes up a small percentage of where we burn calories throughout the day. When it comes to weight loss and overall health, it is important to also focus in on NEAT movements. Non Exercise Movements throughout the day include standing, walking, chores/cleaning, cooking,…etc. The more you move throughout the day, the more benefits you will begin seeing in your health. Tracking your step count and striving to hit a minimum of 7k steps a day is going to positively impact your weight loss journey.
When seeking weight loss, your body needs to be in a calorie deficit. In other words, we need to consume less calories than we burn throughout the day. NEAT Movement is KEY to reaching a calorie deficit as well as contributing to your overall health. We want to keep the body moving! Hitting 7k steps a day may seem overwhelming but there are some simple ways to help that number rise throughout the day:
• Walk on lunch break
• Park in the back of the parking lot
• Take the stairs instead of an elevator
• Standing (Walking in Place) at your desk
• Pacing when talking on the phone
• Walking the Dog
The more aware you are of the amount you have moved your body throughout the day, the less sedentary you become.
Working Out and Not Seeing Results with Weight loss?
Maybe you have recently set the goal to lose weight, this means a calorie deficit is needed. It is an initial reaction for people to assume they need to add lots of extra cardio on top of a workout routine because they want the deficit to increase quickly. This can have negative effects on your weight loss goals. Cardiovascular health is important, and cardio is a great way to promote that, but what you want to avoid is creating too high of a deficit very quickly. Often when people complete high intensity workouts or add in more cardio than they need or have conditioned for, they will become overly fatigued… which then leads to sitting more throughout the day and being less active. This lowers your NEAT movements throughout the day, which as we can see from the breakdown, NEAT movements are important in the total amount of calories your body burns throughout the day.
Increasing cardio gradually along with strength training, a solid nutrition plan and a focus on NEAT movement will lead you to your fitness goals.
Focused on Muscle Growth and Gaining Strength?
Understanding your caloric breakdown can play a crucial role when looking to build muscle growth. To build muscle, you need to ensure you are eating enough calories and are not in a caloric deficit. The foundation of muscle growth starts with nutrition. Protein intake and eating enough calories to have the energy for strength training is how muscles grow. Muscle growth only happens when you are consistently eating enough dietary protein and calories in addition to strength training. The more muscle you gain, the more efficient your body becomes with burning calories which allows you to eat more calories. Muscle burns more calories for you even when you are rest; just one of the many benefits of building muscle.
So Where Do You Start?
Finding your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the first place to start as a guideline to the amount of calories your body is burning when at rest and to keep you alive. Your BMR is the calories burned when your body is at rest. Breathing, heart rate, blood flow, organ functions…these all require energy (calories=energy). It’s important to eat enough calories for your body to properly function.
Tracking your caloric intake will help you understand how many calories you are consuming. Once you know your daily calorie intake, you can see if you are consuming enough to build muscle or if you need to create a caloric deficit when looking to lose weight. These are just guidelines; nutrition needs to be individualized for every person. Hiring a nutrition coach can be a great resource when learning what your body needs and creating healthy goals for your body!
What is Next?
Be sure to follow us on Instagram & Facebook for more info on Fitness, Nutrition & Wellness. Next week we will begin a nutrition series on what are Macros and why they are important in your health & fitness journey!
