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#160 - You're Probably Burning More Calories Than You Think (But Not the Way You Think)
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If you've ever finished a workout and thought "right, I've earned that treat" — this episode is going to shift your perspective.
Today I'm breaking down energy balance in a way that actually makes sense. Calories are just a unit of energy — not a dieting tool — and understanding how your body burns them is one of the most empowering things you can do for your health.
We cover the four components of calories out: your Basal Metabolic Rate (60–75% of your daily burn — this is why building muscle matters), the Thermic Effect of Food (protein costs the most to digest, ultra-processed food barely anything), exercise activity (only 5–10% for most people — so please stop trying to burn off your food), and NEAT — all the movement you do outside the gym.
NEAT can vary by up to 2,000 calories per day between people. That's your real secret weapon. I share 10 practical ways to increase it, and why daily walking plus 2–4 resistance sessions a week is the sweet spot for most women.
Timestamps:
- 00:00 Welcome and Overview
- 00:57 Energy Balance Basics
- 01:47 What Drives Calories In
- 02:37 Calories Out Explained
- 03:23 Basal Metabolic Rate
- 04:30 Build Muscle, Boost BMR
- 05:12 Thermic Effect of Food
- 09:57 Exercise Calorie Myth
- 12:52 NEAT — Your Secret Weapon
- 14:57 Daily Walking Wins
- 17:06 10 Easy NEAT Boosts
- 21:29 Key Takeaways and Next Steps
- 23:55 Wrap Up and Coaching
Links & Resources:
- Learn more about KHH coaching here
- Subscribe to my weekly coaching newsletter here
- Access my FREE calorie calculator here
- Connect with me on Instagram here
- Connect with me on Facebook here
- Connect with me on TikTok here
- Connect with me on YouTube here
If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with friends who might benefit.
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Transcript
Introduction to Daily Movement and Energy Balance
00:00:00
Speaker
Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of the Kate Hamilton Health Podcast.
How the Body Burns Calories
00:00:04
Speaker
So in today's episode we are going to talk about daily movement and energy balance. I'm going to help you understand how your body burns calories and how to make it work for you. So before we get into it, when I'm talking about calories in this episode, I think it's just really important to note that I'm talking about calories...
00:00:25
Speaker
as a measurement of energy in our body which is exactly what calories are so calories have gotten this name that's associated with dieting that are so associated with good calories bad calories burning calories off that's not what we're talking about when we're talking about energy balance we are talking about the measurement of energy in your body the amount of energy your body needs to function and then the amount of calories in foods that is used to fuel the energy that you need for you know your essential things in your life okay so the foundation of everything is energy balance so we are talking about calories in versus calories out but it's not that simple so you'll often hear personal trainers online being like it's just calories in versus calories out you just need to get into a calorie deficit it's
00:01:13
Speaker
Yes, you will not lose body fat unless you are in a calorie deficit, but it's not just as simple as eating less and moving more.
Energy Balance and Its Effects on Body Composition
00:01:21
Speaker
It's so much more complicated than that, which we're going to break down a little bit. So when it comes to whether your goal is fat loss, maintenance or muscle gain, it all comes down to energy balance.
00:01:34
Speaker
If you want to lose fat, you need to eat in a calorie deficit. If you want to maintain your body weight, you need to eat up maintenance. And if you want to gain muscle, you need to eat in a calorie surplus.
00:01:47
Speaker
So what affects calories in? I just want to get into this a little bit. What affects calories in is what I actually talk about a lot in a lot of the other episodes in relation to nutrition, in relation to mindset, in relation to habits in general. But some of the things that affect your calories in is appetite and hunger cues, your environment, macronutrient balance. So that's your balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats.
00:02:12
Speaker
food quality, palatability and food reward, and psychology and emotions and
Rethinking Exercise and Calorie Burning
00:02:19
Speaker
hormones. So all of these things will affect, so although your cat your calories in are coming from food, how you consume food and why you consume food and how much food you consume and what food you consume, all of this stuff really counts and it's quite complicated and it's very personal to each person. Today we are going to talk a little bit more about calories out. Now, I am so, so against exercising to burn calories. It's such a huge misconception. You can't eat a 400 calorie donut and then be like, oh, I have to spend two hours on the cross trainer to burn this off. That's not how it works. OK, so like we're separating the idea that we're exercising to earn calories or burn calories or anything like that. That's not what this is about.
00:03:03
Speaker
When we talk about calories out, This, what I mean is the way that our body burns calories. So there's four main ways our body burns calories.
00:03:13
Speaker
Basal metabolic rate, the thermic effect of food, non-exercise activity and exercise activity, which we're going to get into all four of them now. So basal metabolic rate, basically what that is, is the minimum calories your body needs just to stay alive.
00:03:31
Speaker
even at complete rest. So BMR covers breathing, heartbeat, temperature regulation and all vital organ functions. So this actually covers the most amount of calorie
Muscle Mass, BMR, and Resistance Training Benefits
00:03:43
Speaker
burn in your body. 60 to 75% of daily calories burned comes from basal metabolic rate. So most of the calories we're burning every day, we're doing effortlessly anyway, you know, by just being our fabulous selves.
00:03:57
Speaker
So when it comes to breathing and heartbeat, your heart pumps around 100,000 times per day. Your breathing never stops. These automatic functions burn significant calories around the clock. Temperature regulation. Keeping your core temperature stable requires constant energy. So your body is always working even while you're asleep. And when it comes to basal metabolic rate,
00:04:20
Speaker
You know, a lot of people think that they're they're destined to what God has given them. You know, that basal metabolic rate, yes, is affected by your height, your weight, your age, your gender. But there's one factor that also affects basal metabolic rate that we have a huge amount of control over. And it's quite exciting. It's quite empowering. And that is muscle mass.
00:04:39
Speaker
So the amount of lean muscle tissue you have on your body, the more, the the higher your basal metabolic rate is going to be. So although you won't notice immediate improvement, over the long term, if you start resistance training and start building a little bit of lean muscle tissue, you know, even while you're losing body fat, over time, your body is going to burn more calories at rest because you will have improved your basal metabolic rate and created a much healthier
Calorie Burning Through Digestion and Food Choices
00:05:08
Speaker
metabolism. So yeah, Marlon's story here is don't skip strength training.
00:05:12
Speaker
The next factor then that affects calories out is the thermic effect of food. So these are calories you burn by just digesting your food and it varies dramatically by macronutrient. So I bet like some of you are listening, you're like, I don't even know i was burning calories while I was digesting my food. But when you think about it, if calories are your body's measurement of energy, obviously it requires energy to break down your food when you think about it. So protein by far.
00:05:39
Speaker
has the highest thermic effect of all the macronutrients. So 20 to 35% energy burned in digestion with protein. So what's happening there is your body's working really hard to break down the protein. It's using more energy to break down protein than it does to break down carbohydrates or fats, which is also why you feel fuller for longer on a higher protein diet. So there's so many other reasons why it's really important to eat enough protein in your diet. And and and if you don't eat enough protein to increase your protein in your diet.
00:06:11
Speaker
But the thermic effect is is a really significant one there as well. Because if you are trying to stick to a slight calorie deficit to lose body fat, feeling full and satisfied for longer is super important. But also you might as well be burning more calories while you are digesting your food as well. Every little bit helps.
00:06:28
Speaker
Carbs and fats are also super important. The energy burned in digestion is 5 to 15%. So the thermic effects of these foods are not as high. This is why people who don't eat enough protein quite often experience cravings because your body can just break down carbs and fats much easier. And this is also why like endurance athletes will eat...
00:06:49
Speaker
higher carbohydrate meals before like a long race so you know or if someone's doing a high rocks competition or they're doing a half marathon or a marathon or something any type of endurance event you're not going to have a super high protein meal before that before that event because your body is going to be busy digesting and using a lot of energy digesting and they want foods that are going to be absorbed by quicker by the body.
00:07:13
Speaker
So that is why kind of that it might be an opposite rule for for athletes when it comes to just before a competition or an event. It's like for us, for us normal mortals, it's still really important that we have carbs and fats. Try go whole grain carbohydrates as much as possible and get carbs from fruits and vegetables as well.
00:07:29
Speaker
Healthy fats as much as as much as possible. Get your fats from, you know, your nuts, your seeds, your avocados, your oils. things like that you can still of course include some of your the things you enjoy in your your diet it's really really important for adherence and you know long term yeah just sustainability of your diet but thinking about like the starchier whiter carbohydrates and processed foods they sit at the lower end of this five to fifteen percent and And they do very little to keep you satisfied because your body absorbs them so quickly. So this is why anyone who has a competition or an endurance event, they want to have more of that starchy stuff and runners will have jellies and things like that because they just want the sugar and the quick carbohydrates. that don't require much and much digestion. But when we're trying to stay in a calorie deficit and get as much food for as few calories as possible, we definitely want to be feeling fuller for longer and we want our body to take time to digest it. So we want to be going the higher end of that thermic effect. And that's why plenty of fruits, plenty of vegetables, plenty of healthy fats and plenty of whole grain carbohydrates is going to really complement the protein. Then if we look at like ultra processed foods, so things we enjoy like our chocolate or crisps or whatever else we we want to have, and it is around 3% energy burned in digestion. So very, very little energy required to absorb those foods, unfortunately. So processed sugary foods have the lowest.
00:08:58
Speaker
and They digest rapidly, they spike blood sugar and leave you hungry again quickly, which drives cravings. And this is what leads to overconsumption because it's very easy to get that amount of calories into you and for it to not actually fill you. So it's really just about smart food choices when it comes to this.
The Role of Exercise and NEAT in Calorie Burn
00:09:16
Speaker
But yeah, that is the thermic effect of food. So there's a little bit of nutrition lesson in the calories out. Although food is what or is what we're taking calories in from. I bet you didn't know there's a little bit of calories out going there as well. So there and there are some foods out there that are considered negative calories. So if we look at celery, for example.
00:09:34
Speaker
The amount of calories it takes the body to break down celery and digestion, that's more than the amount of calories that are actually in the celery. So that's pretty cool. So the lower calorie, high fiber vegetables are fantastic way you to really kind of bulk up meals and have you feeling fuller for longer and have your digestion in a really good, healthy position.
00:09:57
Speaker
right Next thing that affects your calories out is your exercise activity. And this is the one thing that people overestimate how much of a difference it makes. So you this is your deliberate exercise.
00:10:10
Speaker
And it doesn't take up that much of your daily calorie burn. I'm sorry. I know you don't want to hear it. and You might have killed yourself in the gym for an hour. But... Exercise activity, your deliberate exercise only makes up around five to 10% of your total daily energy expenditure for most people. Obviously, this is very general and it depends on the person, depends on the circumstances, depends on the intensity, it depends depends on so much. So exercise activity refers to your intentional workouts, lifting weights, running, cycling, sports, brisk walks. These are planned, deliberate sessions. Okay.
00:10:48
Speaker
They are so, so important for your overall health, your cardiovascular fitness and muscle building. But for most people, deliberate exercise accounts for a surprisingly small portion of your total daily calorie expenditure. Now, unless you're someone who's training for a marathon or an ultra marathon or, you know, that is ah is a professional athlete or, you know, someone who's training for hours on end training.
00:11:10
Speaker
most days a week that's different I'm talking about us normal people who you know go to the go to the gym three times a week and you know might get out for a run twice a week or go for a walk or you know what mean like but that we're these normal people that is myself and most of you listening I'm sure that are doing just normal amounts of exercise it's really not adding that much to your calorie total but please keep doing because it is so important like I said basal metabolic rate we want to be building muscle on our frame to improve our metabolism among all the other reasons why i know I've done in other episodes of why this strength training is so important your heart health your mental health actually just if I have a day where I don't get out for a walk I it's I'm i'm not a very nice person So I think, you know, it's really important to that, that we keep these things. They're so important for our health. So please don't just give up going to the gym because you're like what? I'm only burning whatever i amount of calories.
00:12:04
Speaker
The gym is not for burning calories. Your walks or your your brisk walks or your runs or your cycling, they shouldn't be for burning calories. They should be for fitness, for energy, for health, for enjoyment. OK, so like if you actually think about the calorie burn, so strength training, 60 minutes strength training, about 300 calories burned.
00:12:23
Speaker
Running 30 minutes, about 280 calories burned. That's shocking. That's an awful lot of effort. 30 minutes. Cycling 45 minutes. About 350 calories burned.
00:12:34
Speaker
A HIIT workout. 30 minutes. About 250 calories burned. so as you can see it's not. Like you are obviously expending a little bit more energy. But not a huge amount.
00:12:46
Speaker
Where the secret is to really making a huge difference to your energy burned, your calories out, is your NEAT, your non-exercise activity thermogenesis. And this is the most underrated tool for fat loss. And these are all the calories that you burn from movement that isn't exercise, that you burn from daily movement. Okay, so cooking, shopping, walking, cleaning, fidgeting even. This is where the magic happens. So the research has shown that there can be a variation between people of the same height and age, say like same details, and there can be a variation of up to 2000 calories per day.
00:13:31
Speaker
between a really active person and a really sedentary person. So it makes it one of the most powerful levers for fat loss that most people really, really do
Practical Tips for Increasing Daily Movement
00:13:42
Speaker
overlook. So when it comes to NEAT, non-exercise activity thermogenesis, let's just call it non-exercise activity.
00:13:49
Speaker
This could be walking to the shops, walking your dog, taking the stairs, Housework and cleaning, playing with your kids, cooking meals, gardening, parking further away from places, grocery shopping. These kind of things make a huge difference. So it is just about increasing your daily movement. That that can include, what like, although I say walking as deliberate exercise, Obviously, walking is neat. Like going for a walk is adding to your non-exercise activity as well. You know, this is where like, you know, giving people step goals is really helpful because it makes them move more, makes them go out for mini walks. But, you know, if you think that sitting at a desk all day and going for one walk is is going to make a massive difference to your energy burn, it won't. It's about how much you can actually factor in all throughout your day is is what's really, really important. Obviously, a deliberate, brisk walk is going to help your
00:14:43
Speaker
your health and your fitness was your actual daily movement needs to kind of be a regular thing throughout your day and there's loads of different little hacks that we can do and we'll talk more about it now in a minute as well so like when you think about like daily walking okay and you know i know a lot of you will have heard me say it before you do not need a rest day from walking you if you're going to the gym if you're lifting weights if you're running if whatever you're doing you need rest days to recover
00:15:14
Speaker
You don't need a rest day from walking. You should be walking seven days a week. Become someone who walks every day. And again, you might have heard me say that. Become someone who walks every day. Your dog needs to be walked every day. So do you. But this is why 30 minute walk every day could burn around 300 calories. OK, 300 calories a day, seven days a week. That's calories a week.
00:15:38
Speaker
OK, a gym session, let's say you burn 400 calories a set for one gym session, which, you know, is a bit of a push. But, you know, if you did i you did three sessions a week, that's 1200 calories in the week.
00:15:51
Speaker
That's 900 calories less than just going for a daily walk. Like keeping mind, walking burns fat directly, is low impact, aids recovery. So you can do it on a rest day, reduces stress, reduces cortisol and improves your insulin sensitivity.
00:16:09
Speaker
Now the gym or your home workouts, your resistance training is essential for building muscle and strength and for improving your basal metabolic rate, but it cannot replace the cumulative impact of daily movement. So the ideal combo here really is to lift weights two, three, four times a week, whatever works best for you, minimum two if possible, and walk every single day and you will experience maximum results.
00:16:33
Speaker
Obviously, if you enjoy swimming or dancing or running, you know, you can swap out the walk for that. That's absolutely perfect. and But, you know, and including your sports you enjoy, it it's really important. You don't have to go for a walk and get a football match in. If you don't have time to get a walk and a football match in, your football match will count as your cardio. It'll count as your movement. You'll be moving nonstop during your football match. Likewise, if you're going for a 5K run,
00:16:59
Speaker
That can count as your walk for the day. But you still want as much daily movement, which we'll get into now again.
Incorporating Daily Movement for Health Benefits
00:17:06
Speaker
I'm to give you 10 ways that you can increase your NEAT a little bit more, your non-exercise activity. So like I've explained, daily walk. Just be someone walks every day. 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 45 minutes, whatever you've time for, get it into your day, schedule it.
00:17:21
Speaker
Standing desk. So... Standing while working actually burns 50 extra calories per hour versus sitting. You don't need to go out buy a standing desk. Maybe some of you already have them. But just, you know, standing at up at a shelf or a counter can be a really, really great way to just, you know, and sometimes we actually feel better by standing and working. If you don't want to do that. Now, in fairness, I don't stand and work. I like to sit and work because I'm not great at multitasking.
00:17:47
Speaker
And I know that shouldn't be multitasking, but it probably would be for me. uh movement breaks you know getting up and actually you know setting a lot of our watches have these little alarms that go off anyway don't they that remind us time to move and they kind of does it every hour if you haven't moved that hour it'll remind you to move if not set little a little reminder that on the hour every hour you get up and you just go to the toilet go get a glass of water whatever just to have a little bit of movement have a few steps in each hour housework Hoovering, mopping, cleaning the bathrooms, sorting laundry, tidying, all of this stuff counts. Like, and it all adds up. Gardening, digging, mowing, weeding, pets and kids, just playing with them actively adds up.
00:18:29
Speaker
it It adds up quite quickly. so even if it's not adding up so these things aren't adding up steps you're still moving your body so you are actually burning more calories and one that i really rely on here as well is walking the school run so i'm fortunate enough to be walking distance from where my kid goes to school when the weather allows for it i will walk him to school it's 15 minutes away i'll walk him to school and then i'll walk back and then i'll walk back up to collect him and then i'll walk home with him later that afternoon So it's that's four little 15 minutes walks.
00:19:01
Speaker
That's up to an hour's walk for throughout the day. And so Where you can drive less and walk more, it really, you know, if you need to go to the shop and get bread and it's walking distance and you have the time, just walk up.
00:19:12
Speaker
Like if these things really make a difference. Parking further away. So if you're not in a position to walk somewhere, like collecting your kids from school or work or whatever, or the shop or whatever, just park a little further away. Extra steps every trip add up over time. And, you know, even if you're getting the bus, getting off a bus stop early and walking the rest of the way.
00:19:31
Speaker
Another great little hack. Obviously, you know, it depends on the time available as well. But, you know, sometimes you'll have more time than others as well. Taking the stairs, skip the lift. Every flight counts. I do this in the airport all the time. I always feel really smug when I'm the one walking up the stairs, everyone else going on the escalators. I'm like, I'm getting the steps in. But all these things add up, though. All jokes aside, you know, if you're in a shopping center, you're in work, you're in a car park.
00:19:54
Speaker
you know that taking the stairs rather than taking the lifts or the escalators like these things really really add up if you're at home and you're like sorting laundry and you're bringing it upstairs to put them put it in the hot press or whatever and instead of taking the big giant lazy man's load which i do all the time break it into smaller and smaller little piles and carry it up in more trips up the stairs all these little things make a huge difference and if you have the time You could physically go to your grocery shopping rather than online. Now, again, i would never do that because I would hate to give up those two hours that it would take me on and to grocery shop to do something else. But obviously, you know, if you're someone who enjoys going grocery shopping, getting moving around the shop is going to be better than sitting there on the laptop. if Especially if you've been sitting at a computer all day, it's a way to get your body moving a little bit um and burn a little more energy because everyone's different. So it depends. Some people might like going to the grocery shop.
00:20:48
Speaker
um or walking while on calls. So if you like, isn't it Steve Jobs that was famous for his walking meetings? So if you have a meeting where you can walk it instead of sitting for it, and that can it can actually be more creative as well. If you're on on a phone call, take a walk while you're on a phone call. It's a great way for, it could even just be pacing, but it's a great way to to just get a little bit of movement in. it It also sometimes, especially if it's a stressful call, helps to move the anxious energy around. Another one as well is when if you're meeting friends for coffee,
00:21:18
Speaker
meet for a coffee walk instead. So, you know, you can, you don't have to walk that fast. You can still just be strolling and taking in the scenery and the fresh air and having your coffee and your chats instead of being seated still. But what I would say for you to take from everything that I've talked about today is just ask yourself every day, how can I move my body today?
00:21:39
Speaker
That's all. Like it doesn't need to be overcomplicated. You're not always going to be able to get your walk in and get your little extra bits of movement in and get your workout in and, you know, like on top of all of our other responsibilities. So I think simplifying things and just being like, how can I move my body today?
00:21:55
Speaker
And then just look at that and then at every little but moment be like, is there a way where you can just get a little bit of movement in? Because we're born to move. We're not born to sit. We're not born to be still. We're not born to be in these rigid, stiff seated positions all the time with our shoulders rounded forward in front of computers. We are so like we're born to move and we owe it to our bodies to to give us what it needs. You know, prioritize our dogs more than we prioritize ourselves. So, you know, our dogs need that walk. So do our bodies. Neat is your secret weapon.
00:22:24
Speaker
So small daily movement adds up to thousands of calories per week. So please don't underestimate the that the power of daily movement. If you're feeling a bit st stuck in your journey, just try increase your daily movement. And counting steps is a great way to keep track of that. So
Combining Walking and Resistance Training
00:22:42
Speaker
it doesn't matter. Like you don't have to have a set. Like this 10,000 steps a day rule. Some people hate it. I don't hate it because I think, you know, it's a good... target for people to have. But you don't have to be hitting 10,000 steps. Just move more than you used to. So if you're currently someone who does about 3,000 steps a day, start by aiming for 4,000 or 5,000 steps per day. And that increase in movement is going to make a huge difference. like if you If you increase your movement
00:23:09
Speaker
by 2000 steps per day seven days a week that's going to be a huge extra amount of energy that your body's using which is going to to widen that deficit that you're trying to be in which is going to make a huge difference second point I want to round up there is that walking every day beats your gym sessions for total week calorie burn okay so it doesn't matter how hard you worked okay three gym sessions four gym sessions a week will not burn more calories than your daily walk.
00:23:38
Speaker
And the final point I make here is combine daily walking with two to four resistance training sessions for the best fat loss results. Don't underestimate it. You
Conclusion and Coaching Service Plug
00:23:49
Speaker
will be so surprised at how much of a difference that that will make to your progress.
00:23:55
Speaker
I hope that was helpful and thank you so much again for listening and as I always say please do share this with your friends tag me if you're sharing on stories and if you would like help or support or community or structure on your journey that's exactly what I do offer at Nourish Her Coaching. So I will share the link below to my online coaching service, Nourish Her.
00:24:20
Speaker
If you'd like to learn more about it, click it. You'll be able to get all the information there. We take clients in once a month. You'll be able to see when our next intake is. And thank you so much for listening and i will talk to you all on the next episode