---
title: Battling a Sedentary Lifestyle the “NEAT” Way
description: Here’s a “NEAT” way to ditch a sedentary lifestyle and get more active. Non-exercise activity thermogenesis—or NEAT—burns calories during your everyday activities.
image: https://blog.silverandfit.com/hubfs/SF%20Blog/Article%20Images/Blog%20158%20-%20Sedentary%20lifestyle/blog_158_feature.png
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[Lifestyle](https://blog.silverandfit.com/tag/lifestyle)
# Battling a Sedentary Lifestyle the “NEAT” Way
By [The Silver&Fit® Team at American Specialty Health](https://blog.silverandfit.com/author/american-specialty-health) on April 7, 2025
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Here’s a “NEAT” way to ditch a sedentary lifestyle and get more active. Non-exercise activity thermogenesis—or NEAT—burns calories during your everyday activities.
We are learning more and more about how damaging a highly sedentary lifestyle can be for our bodies, especially as we age. Prolonged periods of inactivity or sitting can raise the risk of heart disease, metabolic issues, obesity, and weakened bones and muscles.
While your best bet for battling a sedentary lifestyle is a regular workout routine, that can be a little daunting for some, especially if it’s been a long time since you’ve been active.
Discover this “NEAT” way to weave more physical activity into your daily routine.
Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis
“NEAT” refers to the energy you burn just doing little things during the day that are not strictly exercise. These activities hover somewhere between lying completely still and exercising. This might include:
- Walking around your house or neighborhood
- Taking breaks to [stand up and stretch](https://blog.silverandfit.com/tag/healthy-aging/safe-stretching)
- Doing household chores
- Climbing the stairs
- Putting away groceries
The more often you blend these activities into your day, the more helpful they can be in combatting a sedentary life. However, it’s important to note that these activities won’t provide you with the same health benefits as an exercise routine.
Doctors recommend that you try to get 150 minutes a week of aerobic exercise. But these small, daily movements can make a difference. Sometimes just being aware of when you move and [making an effort](https://blog.silverandfit.com/5-excuses-you-may-be-making-to-avoid-working-out-and-how-to-push-past-them) to move more can help get you into the habit of increased physical activity.
Why sedentary lifestyles are so prevalent
Most everything in nature will take the path of least resistance when possible. Humans are no different. If given the choice of an easier way to do a task, it only makes sense that we’d choose the simpler route.
And the modern world has certainly helped make everyday tasks simpler. More jobs than ever can be done from a desk—and many can be done from your own home. No time to get groceries? No problem—have them delivered to your front door! You can watch any movie or sporting event in your living room. Even your vacuum and lawn mower can get the job done without you nowadays.
In a perfect world, all these time-saving efforts would allow you to be more productive in other parts of your life. While that may be true for some, it’s led to a much more sedentary life for many others.
Bumping up your NEAT activities
Unfortunately, a sedentary lifestyle can be a hard habit to kick. That’s why it can be helpful to start by incorporating NEAT into your daily life.
Even though the movements you do with NEAT may not be as effective as a regular workout, it can be a gateway to getting fit. By being mindful of these small actions, you’ll start to increase your daily movement. As you begin to incorporate them more and more into your daily life, you might find that you’ve started to form new, *healthier* habits.
When you’re ready, try to build on the [NEAT activities](https://health.clevelandclinic.org/non-exercise-activity-thermogenesis-neat-exercise) you already do.
Here are some ideas:
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
- When you’re out, park your car farther away to encourage more walking.
- Take an extra lap at the grocery store before you finish shopping.
- Walk to the end of the street each day when you check your mail.
- Ask your friends and neighbors who have dogs if you can join them on walks.
- Add more pep to your step in short bursts during walks.
- Hand wash your car.
- Mow the lawn or do other yard and garden work.
- Practice some basic [fall prevention exercises](https://blog.silverandfit.com/tag/healthy-aging/falls).
Setting goals for yourself
One of the keys to successfully adding more physical activity to your life is by setting [small, achievable goals](https://blog.silverandfit.com/tag/lifestyle/smart-goals). Don’t try to do too much too soon. Starting slowly with activities you enjoy can help prevent injuries. This also allows your body to adapt to new levels of activity.
Gradually increase the intensity and duration of your activities. You’ll start to build stamina and confidence.
Make it a fun part of your day so you want to keep coming back to it. Consistency is key to reaping the benefits of an active lifestyle.
As you achieve your goals, don’t forget to celebrate the wins. Rewarding your efforts can help keep you motivated.
What to look forward to as you improve your health
It can take a lot of perseverance to live a more active lifestyle. But if you do it gradually—and safely—you’ll start to build healthy habits that will last you a lifetime. Here are just a few of the rewards you may enjoy:
- **Improved cardiovascular health.** Adopting an active lifestyle can help lower your risk for stroke and heart disease.
- **Healthy weight.** Carrying too much body weight can lead to a host of health concerns. Staying more active can help you manage your weight.
- **Strong bones and muscles.** Staying fit not only helps build muscle but also strengthens bones. Strong bones are especially vital as you age.
- **Improved mental health**. Studies have shown that staying fit can help with cognitive function and improve overall mood and well-being.
- **Independence.** Staying fit as you age can help simplify small, everyday tasks. This can go a long way toward helping you maintain independence later in life.
Transitioning from a sedentary lifestyle to a more active one is not something that will happen overnight. Just remember that every bit of movement counts. You can get started now by adding NEAT to your daily routine.
Not a Silver&Fit® member? Learn more about everything the program has to offer, including more helpful healthy living tips like this, [here on our website](https://www.silverandfit.com/).
*This information is not intended to take the place of regular medical care or advice. Please check with your doctor before using this information or beginning any self-care program. Images used for this article do not depict any members of the Silver&Fit program.*
**References**
Cleveland Clinic. (2024, December 6). Understanding Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT Exercise). [https://health.clevelandclinic.org/non-exercise-activity-thermogenesis-neat-exercise](https://health.clevelandclinic.org/non-exercise-activity-thermogenesis-neat-exercise)
Fitzgerald, J. D., Johnson, L., Hire, D. G., Ambrosius, W. T., Anton, S. D., Dodson, J. A., LIFE Study Research Group. (2015). Association of objectively measured physical activity with cardiovascular risk in mobility-limited older adults. Journal of the American Heart Association, 18;4(2). pii: e001288. [https://doi.org/10.1161/JAHA.114.001288](https://doi.org/10.1161/JAHA.114.001288).
Harvard Health Publishing. (2015, January 28). Use the NEAT factor (nonexercise activity thermogenesis) to burn calories. [https://www.health.harvard.edu/diet-and-weight-loss/use-the-neat-factor-nonexercise-activity-thermogenesis-to-burn-calories](https://www.health.harvard.edu/diet-and-weight-loss/use-the-neat-factor-nonexercise-activity-thermogenesis-to-burn-calories)
Henson, J., De Craemer, M., & Yates, T. (2023). Sedentary behaviour and disease risk. BMC public health, 23(1), 2048. [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-16867-2](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-16867-2)
Park, J. H., Moon, J. H., Kim, H. J., Kong, M. H., & Oh, Y. H. (2020). Sedentary Lifestyle: Overview of Updated Evidence of Potential Health Risks. Korean journal of family medicine, 41(6), 365–373. [https://kjfm.or.kr/journal/view.php?doi=10.4082/kjfm.20.0165](https://kjfm.or.kr/journal/view.php?doi=10.4082/kjfm.20.0165)
Posadzki, P., Pieper, D., Bajpai, R., Makaruk, H., Könsgen, N., Neuhaus, A. L., & Semwal, M. (2020). Exercise/physical activity and health outcomes: an overview of Cochrane systematic reviews. BMC public health, 20(1), 1724. [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09855-3](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09855-3)
Raffin, J., de Souto Barreto, P., Le Traon, A. P., Vellas, B., Aubertin-Leheudre, M., & Rolland, Y. (2023). Sedentary behavior and the biological hallmarks of aging. Ageing research reviews, 83, 101807. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arr.2022.101807](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arr.2022.101807)
Shi, H., Hu, F. B., Huang, T., Schernhammer, E. S., Willett, W. C., Sun, Q., & Wang, M. (2024). Sedentary Behaviors, Light-Intensity Physical Activity, and Healthy Aging. JAMA network open, 7(6), e2416300. [https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.16300](https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.16300)
Villablanca, P. A., Alegria, J. R., Mookadam, F., Holmes, D. R., Jr, Wright, R. S., & Levine, J. A. (2015). Nonexercise activity thermogenesis in obesity management. Mayo Clinic proceedings, 90(4), 509–519. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2015.02.001](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2015.02.001)
Von Loeffelholz, C., & Birkenfeld, A. L. (2022). Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis in Human Energy Homeostasis. In Feingold, K.R., Anawalt, B., Blackman, M.R., et. al., (Eds.) Endotext. South Dartmouth (MA). MDText.com, Inc. Available from: [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279077/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279077/)
This article was written by Jason Nielsen, edited by Celina Johnson, and clinically reviewed by Elizabeth Thompson, MPH, RDN, on February 5, 2025.
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