This simple truth is known to all: to lose weight, you must consume more calories than you get from food. But trips to the gym – not the only way. How many calories you can burn without doing fitness?
How to spend more calories
We spend energy not only in heavy traffic. Calories expended on heating the body, digestion, growth of hair and nails, heartbeat and breathing the air … On the biochemical processes within cells also requires energy. Therefore, calories expended time, even during sleep. Then why do some people spend all their free time in the gym, but can not lose weight, while others lucky sports never do, and still slim? A significant role in this is the so-called basal metabolic rate – an indicator of the intensity of energy metabolism. This amount of heat generated by the body in a state of complete physical and mental rest (lying and not less than 14 hours after a meal) and thermal comfort (18-20 ° C). On average, its value is 1 kcal / h per 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of body weight. At the same time women basal metabolic rate lower by 5-10% than in men and in people over 40 years – by 10-15% lower than in the young. And it is reduced in certain diseases (e.g., hypothyroidism), and when fasting.
Chill to help
Surprisingly, the most calories your body spends it to maintain a constant body temperature, the very 36,6 ° C. And this is normal, “indoor” climate. And, for example, when the air temperature drops to 10-15 ° C calorie consumption is increased by 2-3 times! Incidentally, the heating body is consumed mainly energy from fat reserves – up to 90% (as opposed to physical exercises that require mainly carbohydrate costs). Therefore, in the autumn-winter season, the body accumulates fat hard.
Especially actively spent calories in the cold – a 10-minute walk can do in as many as 100 kcal! However, there is a risk: return home pulls on nourishing food – because the body wants to compensate for the time spent. “Trick” you can lean, but the hot food – warmed milk, light soup, mashed potatoes, and coffee.
Water Treatment
Summer come to the aid chilled food and drinks – the body will have to spend calories to warm them in the stomach. Theonly: 1 to heat a glass of water (200 ml) at 10 ° C, needs only 0.2 kcal. So, 1.5 liters of water – the recommended minimum for a day for weight loss – from the refrigerator will help to spend 1.5 kcal.
Water causes the body to expend calories, not only inside but also outside – even if you just stand there and not to swim. Water is generally colder body. For example, in a standard pool water temperature 26-27 ° C, but since water is denser than air and has a large thermal conductivity, the calories expended intensive. Therefore, in 30 minutes, even sluggish bathing consumed 200 calories.
Simple movement
However, thin helps us still moving. Even minor muscle contraction or static work to hold any position significantly increase the cost of energy. Let’s just sitting person spends 30 calories per hour. And if you sit and knit – already 100. Because moving the fingers, tighten the arms and shoulders, spine harder to maintain balance.
Not so long ago invented a special term NEAT – from the initial letters of the English names of Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis, which translates as “heat generation caused by an activity not related to exercise.”
Why the “heat”? Because energy from fat and has a first heat.
What daily activities quietly help us lose weight?
HOMEWORK Regular cleaning (dust off the TV and table, remove unnecessary things in the closet, vacuum, load the washing machine, and so on. N.) Take 150-250 calories per hour. If you choose to spend spring cleaning with washing windows, chandeliers and furniture move aside, expect at least 300 calories per hour.
SHOPPING particularly useful for burning calories supermarkets: wandering around them will deprive you of 200-250 kcal per hour.
Children and pets Games with a cat, small dog or other small animals burn up to 200 calories per hour. Active walk in the fresh air with the child or the dog will be picked up from 200 to 400 calories per hour. If you do not just play, and teach your child, for example, play ball or ride a bike, then easily spend more than 400 kcal. Even cleaning the aquarium “eats” about 100 calories per hour.
Garden and planting flowers and weed out 250-350 calories per hour.
RECREATION According to experts, is a kind of recreation we choose – depends on genes: someone by nature mobile, and someone phlegmatic. Temperament, inherited genetically us, and determines the level of . One person on the beach can not lie quietly in a lounge chair and will then swim-dive, to build something with the children sandcastles, then throw a Frisbee, and the other, not naturally inclined to vanity, burn 150-200 calories a day less. However, to increase their level of NEAT, it turns out, is not so difficult: it is enough often wonder what is happening around you.
OFFICE We must wake up more often. For example, twice an hour to go up and stretches your legs. Useful such interruptions and to preserve vision, disease prevention carpal joints, spine and veins. 8-16 of lifts during the working day – and 100-150 kcal gone.