Coaches Corner – How Your Body Burns Calories

We tend to think of exercise as the main way in which our bodies burn calories. But is that true? There are multiple actions and processes within the body and your daily activities that cause your body to burn calories. Exercise is just one of them! In today's Coach's Corner message, we will break down the different methods that you burn calories every day, perhaps without even realizing it!

The sum of the ways that the body burns calories is called TDEE, or Total Daily Energy Expenditure.

RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate): 
Resting Metabolic Rate is the rate at which the body expends energy even when fasted and at a complete rest. The majority of calories burned from RMR is due to energy expended from the body performing basic automatic functions, such as breathing, heartbeat, and organ function. These processes are taking place constantly throughout the day, and thus RMR accounts for 50-70% of Total Daily Energy Expenditure.

TEPA (Thermic Effect of Physical Activity):
The Thermic Effect of Physical Activity is the energy (calories) burned from the body performing muscular work. There are two factors with TEPA: Exercise, and Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis. These two factors of TEPA can account for 15-20% of calories burned for a sedentary person, or as much as 30-50% of Total Daily Energy Expenditure for an active person.

The Exercise factor of TEPA consists of calories burned from planned exercise, like your workouts in the gym or a run/walk outside. Most people overestimate the effect of the calories they burn from exercise. In reality, it is the combination of factors that contributes to calorie expenditure, and there are ways you can increase this calorie expenditure.

NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis): 
NEAT is the energy expended from all physical activity, outside of formal planned workouts. NEAT can be made up of fidgeting, walking, pacing, etc. A huge contributor of NEAT is your daily step count. When you walk the dog, walk into the grocery store, take the stairs, or pace while you're on a phone call, you are adding steps to your day and contributing to your energy expenditure. If you sit at a desk all day, or are naturally more sedentary, your NEAT will be lower than someone who gets a lot of steps each day.

TEF (Thermic Effect of Feeding):
The Thermic Effect of Feeding is the energy expended from your body using energy to digest food. TEF tends to only make up 8-10% of Total Daily Energy Expenditure. Some foods have a higher TEF than others. For instance, your body uses slightly more energy to digest and break down protein and fiber than it does simple sugars and carbs.

How To Apply:
So how can you apply this knowledge to increase your daily calorie expenditure? For one, don't rely solely on your workouts and exercise to carry the load of the calories you need to burn. Planned exercise certainly helps, and there is a huge added bonus of building muscle through your workouts. Higher levels of lean muscle mass in the body increase metabolism and makes your body more efficient at burning calories. This alone is a reason to add resistance training to your workout routine.

Second, hone in on NEAT as a way to increase your daily energy expenditure. Using a step counter to track your steps and aim for a high step count each day, will help you avoid remaining sedentary throughout the day and give you a consistent level of energy output. Take the stairs when given the opportunity, park further away from the entrance to your office or the grocery store, take your dog out for a morning and evening walk. Get up from your desk and pace for five minutes every hour when you're at work.

Third, increase your protein intake. Your body will use a little more energy to process those calories, and the protein will aid in the building of lean muscle mass, which also leads to a higher metabolism.

by Hidden Gym Trainer Rob Hines