Research paper
Levine JA, Lanningham-Foster LM, McCrady SK, Krizan AC, Olson LR, Kane PH, Jensen MD, Clark MM. Interindividual variation in posture allocation: possible role in human obesity. Science. 2005;307(5709):584-586. doi:10.1126/science.1106561
Why we cite it
The landmark study establishing that NEAT — not formal exercise — accounts for the energy expenditure difference between lean and obese individuals. Published in Science, it used an unprecedented measurement approach: sensors tracked every posture and movement, every half-second, for 10 days in 20 sedentary volunteers. The finding that obese individuals sat ~2 hours more per day (a ~350 kcal/day NEAT gap) is striking enough, but the truly important result for the project is that this posture allocation did not change with weight loss or gain — it appears biologically set. This reframes the weight conversation: the gap is not about willpower or gym memberships but about non-volitional daily movement patterns. For the project’s plateau messaging, it explains why metabolic adaptation is partly about reduced spontaneous movement, not just reduced metabolic rate.