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It's easy to sit all day. First at your desk at work, then in the car or on public transport, followed by a few hours on the couch.
When you least expect it, you're eating dinner and realize you haven't exercised all day.
Several global studies find that a sedentary lifestyle can increase the risk of serious health problems.
Anything we can do to reduce sedentary time benefits our overall health. But it can be difficult to find time for this.
That's where the exercise called 'incidental' comes in. This is the movement we do outside of planned exercise hours.
Also known by the acronym NEAT, from the English non-exercise activity thermogenesis (thermogenesis due to physical activity not associated with exercise, in free translation), the concept refers to the energy we spend in everyday activities that do not involve sleeping, eating or deliberately practicing physical exercise, explains Anantha Narayanan, researcher at the Auckland University of Technology, in New Zealand.
Incidental physical activity can be as simple as shaking your leg while sitting or washing dishes.
"Smaller movements like changing posture, rotating your shoulders or flexing your feet also count," says Narayanan.
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Incidental exercise is proving to be a surprisingly powerful tool for protecting our health, helping us burn more calories, reduce our risk of cardiovascular disease, and even lower our risk of death.
Once we become aware of this "incidental activity," we can incorporate it more into our daily routine with some simple lifestyle adjustments.
Here are some you can try.
Restlessness
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Consider, for example, the restless movement of the legs.
Growing up, we are encouraged not to move too much, which is seen as a sign of boredom and lack of attention. There are many reasons to ignore this advice.
During prolonged periods of sitting, the leg muscles are relatively inactive.
This reduces the regular muscle contractions that help clear glucose from the bloodstream and maintain healthy blood circulation, says Narayanan.
But according to a recent study, moving increases muscle activity and therefore helps us burn more calories compared to sitting still.
"Some previous research suggests that moving your legs may help maintain blood vessel function and improve blood sugar control," says Narayanan.
Doing this while standing can enhance these benefits.
Similarly, a small study found that leg swinging, a form of fidgeting, burns about 16% more energy compared to sitting still.
Researchers have found that higher levels of incidental physical activity may offset the health risks associated with sitting for more than 11 hours a day.
And while walking may be better, it's not always possible, so moving your legs may be an option during a flight, at your desk — or even now, if it's safe to do so.
Move often
Unlike structured activities, incidental movement does not require gym membership or setting aside a specific time to move.
We often forget that everyday household activities can reduce the time we spend sitting. Cooking, gardening, and vacuuming are also forms of incidental exercise.
We don't need to spend hours moving to get health benefits. Just four minutes a day of brief, occasional bursts of activity that last less than a minute can help offset the increased risk of cardiovascular disease associated with a sedentary lifestyle, according to a large 2024 study.
In the study, researchers analyzed data from more than 22,000 participants in the United Kingdom who wore a tracking device that recorded how much they moved throughout the day. The sample was limited to individuals who did not exercise regularly.
Participants were followed for eight years. Researchers have found that higher levels of incidental physical activity may offset the health risks associated with sitting for more than 11 hours a day.
Subsequent research has found that incidental physical activity is also linked to a lower risk of premature death.
Nicholas Koemel, a senior researcher at Monash University in Australia who led the research, says the types of activities we could include are climbing flights of stairs, carrying heavy shopping bags or playing with children.
By paying attention to opportunities that help us increase our movement throughout the day, people may be able to increase the intensity of those activities, says Koemel.
This may include walking faster than your normal pace to get to your destination or parking further away when shopping.
While you're at it, consider using a basket instead of a cart. Before you know it, you could end up strengthening your muscles by carrying a few pounds of groceries.
Carpooling habit
Big fitness goals can seem daunting, so another strategy for introducing movement throughout the day might involve "building up" activities you already do, says Amanda Daley, professor of behavioral medicine at Loughborough University in the United Kingdom.
This simply involves adding some movement to an activity you are already doing.
You could try doing a calf raise while brushing your teeth, a leg raise under your desk, or taking a walk during a call instead of sitting.
Daley says that in her house there is a rule: any order placed online must be delivered to a nearby locker, and not to her house.
"If we want something, we have to go get it. This can also be a great way to get teens out of their rooms and encourage them to walk a little during the day."
We can also incorporate new habits into our workday. In one study, Daley and his colleagues provided standing desks for doctors. This helped them reduce the time they would spend sitting by about two hours a day.
The team also found that this encouraged more conversations with their patients about the benefits of reducing sedentary time.
"Occasional physical activity can also be an efficient way to stay physically active because you don't always need to set aside a lot of time," says Daley.
"It's important to find approaches that are less intimidating and easier to accomplish."
Best of all, the more casual activities you do throughout the day, the more meaningful they can become over time. This can be motivating, says Koemel.
"When something becomes an integral part of your lifestyle, even incidentally, it ends up becoming inherently part of your lifestyle."
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