NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis)
Calories burned by everything that isn't formal exercise — the biggest controllable lever in daily energy burn.
NEAT is the energy of ordinary motion — walking to the car, cooking, pacing on calls, posture itself — and it varies enormously: between a desk-bound day and an on-your-feet day can lie several hundred calories, more than most gym sessions. Weight loss quietly suppresses it; the body economizes on movement without asking.
That makes NEAT the strategic counterpunch during treatment and maintenance: step targets, walking meetings, stairs-by-default, a post-dinner loop — unglamorous, sustainable, and additive to whatever formal exercise exists. For patients on GLP-1 therapy whose energy dips early on, rebuilding NEAT deliberately once appetite stabilizes is often the difference between an adapted metabolism and a defended one.
This glossary entry is general information, not medical advice, and is written to be consistent with FDA prescribing information and primary trial publications as of its last review. Always consult a licensed healthcare provider for personal medical decisions.
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