How daily movement beyond formal exercise affects energy expenditure.
What the evidence says
- NEAT = all movement that isn’t formal exercise (walking, standing, fidgeting, stairs)[1]
- REMOVED 2026-09-02 (card MERNGY): “Can account for 15-50% of total daily energy expenditure.” The range appears nowhere in `cne01`’s directory and nowhere in any citation record in this library — it carried an anchor to a record that does not contain it. Restore only against a source that states it; the figure may well be right, and that is exactly why it needs one[1]
- Lean individuals stand/walk about 2.5 hours more per day than obese individuals[1]
- This difference amounts to ~350 kcal/day[1]
- NEAT appears biologically determined, not consciously controlled: when obese individuals lost weight they did not move more; when lean individuals gained weight they did not move less[1]
- NEAT is regulated by energy balance: it increases with overfeeding and decreases with underfeeding — this means dieting can unconsciously reduce daily movement, and hypothalamic factors are thought to drive this regulation[2]
- NEAT is the most variable component of total daily energy expenditure — it can range from negligible in sedentary desk workers to over 2,000 kcal/day in highly active occupations, far exceeding the variation in BMR or thermic effect of food[2]
- NEAT suppression may persist after dieting ends: spontaneous physical activity remains suppressed for some time after returning to ad libitum feeding, contributing to post-diet weight regain[3]