What Is NEAT (Non-exercise Activity Thermogenesis)?

Written by Stephanie Booth
Medically Reviewed by Melinda Ratini, MS, DO on July 30, 2025
5 min read

Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is a way to describe the calories you burn when you’re not sleeping, eating, or doing planned exercise. “It’s all the movement you do throughout the day that doesn’t involve going to the gym or working out,” says Sabrena Jo, PhD, senior director of science and education at the American Council on Exercise.  

NEAT activities might not raise your heart rate or make you break a sweat, but they play a key role in good health. The more you move during your day, the better.

Simply being alive requires your body to expend a lot of energy. Vital functions like breathing, fixing damaged cells, and sending blood through your body all need fuel that your body makes from food. 

Every activity you do on top of that, from singing and laughing to brushing your teeth and typing on your laptop, are examples of non-exercise activity thermogenesis. They require calories as well. 

What non-exercise activity thermogenesis looks like at work or school

You probably do plenty of NEAT activities without knowing it. But to get even more while you’re at work or school, you could:

  • Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
  • Pace around your office space.
  • Lean side to side when you’re seated in a chair. 
  • Roll your shoulders forward and back.
  • Wiggle your toes and flex your feet.
  • Bounce on your toes when you wash your hands.
  • Walk during meetings or study sessions.
  • Stretch when you’re on a break.
  • Use a treadmill desk.
  • Make extra trips to a water cooler, printer, or trash can.

Non-exercise activity thermogenesis at home

When you’re at home, some examples of NEAT activities include:

  • Tidying up 
  • Doing yard work like raking or weeding
  • Watering plants
  • Washing your car
  • Pushing a stroller
  • Grocery shopping
  • Playing with your dog
  • Cooking/grilling
  • Cleaning out and organizing closets

To increase your NEAT level even more, you could: 

  • Walk in place while waiting for something; for instance, for food to cook in the microwave
  • Dance from one room to another
  • Make extra trips up and down your stairs
  • Stand while you fold laundry
  • Fidget while you talk on the phone
  • Wash dishes by hand
  • Move furniture when you vacuum
  • Move items off shelves before you dust 
  • Play video games that require you to move around
  • Stand up to adjust lights or appliances instead of using an app
  • Watch TV while you’re on a treadmill or stationary bike

Non-exercise activity thermogenesis is complex.

One way experts can figure it out is to add up your:

  • Basal metabolic rate (BMR), the amount of energy your body needs to function 
  • Thermic effect of food (TEF), how much energy it takes your body to digest, absorb, and store food after a meal

You subtract the total from your daily total energy expenditure (TEE), which is all the energy you use during one day. The number left is NEAT.

NEAT levels can vary as much as 2,000 calories from person to person, even if you’re around the same size. 

The difference is due to things like:

  • What you do in your free time
  • Your genes
  • The food you eat
  • Things going on in the cells of your body

Your job matters, too. If you do a lot of heavy lifting, bending, and moving around at work, you’ll probably have a high NEAT number. On the other hand, sitting at a desk all day can lower it.

If you’re curious about your own activity level, use an app or device that tracks it or at least counts your steps. Knowing how much you move during the day can help you make and reach your fitness goals.

To get and stay healthy, experts suggest doing at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week. That can sound like a lot, especially if you aren’t usually active. “But NEAT shows that all movement counts,” says Jo. 

Every tiny movement you do during your day adds up over time. 

For instance, studies show that NEAT activities can help improve your:

  • Metabolism (how quickly your body can turn food into energy)
  • Blood sugar levels
  • Cholesterol 
  • Blood pressure
  • Heart health

One reason why NEAT is so helpful is that helps to counteract the effects of sitting too much. “The dangers of prolonged sitting are well-documented,” says Jo. “It’s been linked to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and even early death.”

Getting up from your couch or chair, even for a few minutes, gets blood flowing through your body and wakes up your muscles. Moving more and sitting less is also good for your mood, energy levels, and focus.

“It’s empowering to know that everyday movement like taking short walking breaks or standing while talking on the phone can contribute to better health,” says Jo.

When you’re trying to get to a healthy weight, amping up NEAT activities can help a few different ways:

  • You’ll burn more calories when you swap “inactive” time with movement.
  • Small, low-impact movements may feel easy to add throughout your day.
  • You could find it easier to keep these new habits going. That can help you maintain any weight loss.

“While NEAT is incredibly valuable, it doesn’t offer all the benefits of structured exercise,” says Jo. 

For instance, it can’t provide cardio benefits or strength training, which are key to staying in shape, especially as you age.

But NEAT can give you a new way to look at being active.

“Try reframing exercise as joyful movement and something you look forward to,” says Jo. 

That could look like dancing in your kitchen, spending the day gardening in your yard, or walking with a friend. 

“Start small, find what feels good, and try a few types of movement to find what really works with your lifestyle,” Jo says.

Once you find some NEAT activities you enjoy, try pairing them with a gym class or online workout that feels just as fun to you. 

  • Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) describes all the calories you burn when you’re not working out.
  • Fidgeting, walking your dog, grocery shopping, and washing your car are all examples of NEAT activities.
  • Every small, low-impact movement that you do during the day is good for your metabolism, heart, and blood sugar levels and can help you avoid the negative effects of sitting too much.
  • NEAT activities can’t replace exercise because they don’t raise your heart rate for a sustained amount of time. But they may help you get to, and stay at, a healthy weight.