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For this festive season and beyond, one of the weirdest health and wellness tip to give is to develop the habit of fidgeting.
This way your body gets into a state of what is called non-exercise activity thermogenesis. Ever noticed how fidgety people always seem to be leaner than the rest of us?
Well, that has a lot to do with this unintentional moving, according to a 1999 article by scientists James Levine, Norman Eberhardt and Michael Jensen published in the journal Science titled Role of Nonexercise Activity Thermogenesis in Resistance to fat Gain in Humans. The experiment concluded that "the increase in total daily energy expenditure was due to increased non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT), which is associated with fidgeting, the maintenance of posture and other physical activities of daily life" which leads to fat loss.
READ: Dashiki | Fitness resolutions or dissolutions
This peer-reviewed article appeared more than two decades ago but the concept and evidence of NEAT is still relevant today. Scientist and elite powerlifter Layne Norton, last year spoke on Andrew Huberman’s podcast. He said:
Huberman added that he found the NEAT concept fascinating.
Movement is your friend, my friends. So, when you are on a phone call with a relative who can not make it to this year’s Christmas lunch, instead of chatting to them while you are sitting down, get up and pace around.
Firstly, when doing your last-minute gift shopping find parking far from the entrance (or use the furthest exit). Secondly, if you are not carrying items that are too heavy, take the stairs instead of the escalator or lift.
Another weird and wonderful fidgety move revealed by researchers lately is called the soleus pushup. Literally, it mean heel raises.
This can be done while you are sitting at the dinner table or while doing the dishes. This doesn't necessarily make you lose fat, but it helps in boosting blood sugar regulation, therefore improving your metabolism. The older you are anything that can improve metabolism is welcome as this slows down with age.
Marc Hamilton, Deborah Hamilton and Theodore Zdericet, in their article published last year, noted: "Slow oxidative muscle, most notably the soleus, is inherently well-equipped with the molecular machinery for regulating blood-borne substrates."
The soleus is a muscle that is fatigue-resistant and can raise "metabolism to high levels for hours without fatigue, during a type of soleus-dominant activity while sitting, even in unfit volunteers," according to the three authors.
I sat down with Sifiso Khumalo, a personal trainer based in Johannesburg and asked him what tips he had for this season. “It has been a long year and people are tired. People will be going home and some will not have access to gyms or it will be limited. So I suggest the following:
1. Hydrate … have lots of water as alcohol intake is higher at this time;
2. Move daily … walk (active rest) and take a hike, especially if you are in the rural areas surrounded by nature;
3. Engage your mind by reading, take your mind off the usual rat-race rush;
4. Sleep enough hours, the year has been hectic, so get some rest; and
5. Limit your sugar intake! I am not saying don’t have it, just limit it.”
Yoga instructor Mark Dent suggests that people should give themselves love and time, "especially this time of the year as you are under so much pressure to buy presents and be there for everyone. But sometimes you just have to put yourself first".
READ: Runners should sprint to yoga class
In his list of tips Dent suggests that:
1. Love yourself first;
2. Do everything in moderation; and
3. If you have time to check your Facebook you can do 15 jump jacks.
