METs: Understanding, Benefits, and Strategies to Boost Your Energy Expenditure

How to Increase METs?

To effectively increase your Metabolic Equivalents of Task (METs), focus on elevating the intensity, duration, and overall volume of your physical activity, incorporating both structured exercise and non-exercise movement throughout your day.

Understanding METs: What Are They?

Metabolic Equivalents of Task, or METs, are a practical unit used to estimate the energy expenditure of physical activities. One MET is defined as the energy cost of sitting quietly, equivalent to an oxygen uptake of 3.5 milliliters per kilogram of body weight per minute (3.5 mL O2/kg/min). This serves as a baseline for all other activities. For instance, an activity with a MET value of 4 requires four times the energy expenditure of sitting quietly. MET values allow for a standardized way to quantify the physiological demands of different movements, making it easier to compare the intensity and caloric burn across various exercises.

Why Increase Your METs?

Increasing your METs, whether through higher intensity exercise or greater overall daily activity, confers a multitude of health and fitness benefits:

• Enhanced Cardiorespiratory Fitness: Regularly engaging in activities that demand higher METs directly improves your cardiovascular system's efficiency, leading to a stronger heart, improved lung capacity, and a higher VO2 max (the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during intense exercise).
• Effective Weight Management: Activities with higher MET values burn more calories per unit of time. Consistently performing higher MET activities contributes significantly to a negative energy balance, which is crucial for fat loss and maintaining a healthy body weight.
• Reduced Risk of Chronic Diseases: Higher levels of physical activity, often quantified by cumulative MET-minutes, are strongly associated with a reduced risk of developing chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, certain cancers, and hypertension.
• Improved Functional Capacity and Longevity: By increasing your METs, you enhance your body's ability to perform daily tasks with greater ease and stamina, leading to better quality of life and contributing to a longer, healthier lifespan.
• Optimized Body Composition: Higher intensity activities and increased overall movement help build and maintain lean muscle mass while reducing body fat, leading to a more favorable body composition.

Strategies to Increase Your METs

To elevate your average METs and overall energy expenditure, consider the following evidence-based strategies:

Increase Exercise Intensity

The most direct way to increase the METs of a given activity is to perform it with greater intensity. Higher intensity movements require more oxygen and energy, thus yielding higher MET values.

• High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT): This involves short bursts of maximal or near-maximal effort followed by brief recovery periods. For example, sprinting for 30 seconds followed by 90 seconds of walking. HIIT sessions can yield very high average METs during the work intervals and contribute significantly to overall energy expenditure.
• Vigorous-Intensity Continuous Training (VICT): Engage in sustained periods of vigorous activity, where you can speak only a few words at a time. Examples include running, fast cycling, swimming laps, or playing high-intensity sports. These activities inherently have high MET values (e.g., running at 6 mph is ~9.8 METs).
• Progressive Overload in Resistance Training: While resistance training MET values vary, increasing the intensity (heavier weights, more challenging exercises like compound movements), reducing rest times, or performing plyometrics will demand more energy, leading to higher METs during the session and an elevated post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC), which also contributes to overall energy expenditure. Building more muscle mass also increases your resting metabolic rate over time.

Increase Exercise Duration

While intensity determines the MET value per minute, increasing the duration of an activity increases the total METs accumulated.

• Prolonged Moderate-Intensity Activity: Extend the length of your walks, jogs, or cycling sessions. Even if the MET value per minute remains moderate (e.g., brisk walking at 3.5 mph is ~4.3 METs), performing it for 60 minutes instead of 30 doubles your total MET-minutes.
• Accumulating Activity Throughout the Day: Break up sedentary periods with short bouts of movement. Even 10-minute walks several times a day add up to a significant increase in total daily METs.

Incorporate NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis)

NEAT refers to the energy expended for everything we do that is not sleeping, eating, or sports-like exercise. Increasing NEAT is a powerful, often overlooked way to boost daily METs.

• Stand More, Sit Less: Use a standing desk, stand during phone calls, or stand while watching TV. Standing has a higher MET value than sitting.
• Active Commuting: Walk or cycle to work or for errands instead of driving.
• Take the Stairs: Opt for stairs instead of elevators or escalators.
• Active Chores: Engage vigorously in household chores like gardening, cleaning, or yard work, which often have moderate MET values.
• Park Further Away: Increase your walking distance to and from your destination.

Optimize Exercise Modality

Choose activities that inherently have higher MET values when performed.

• Running vs. Walking: Running at a moderate pace (6 mph) has nearly double the MET value of brisk walking (3.5 mph).
• Swimming: Vigorous swimming can have MET values ranging from 8 to 10+.
• Cycling: Cycling uphill or at higher speeds significantly increases METs compared to leisurely flat-ground cycling.
• Team Sports: Engaging in dynamic sports like basketball, soccer, or tennis involves bursts of high intensity, leading to high average METs.

Improve Fitness Level

As your fitness improves, you'll be able to perform activities at higher intensities for longer durations, naturally increasing your capacity for higher MET activities.

• Consistency: Regular physical activity builds endurance and strength, allowing you to sustain higher MET-demanding tasks.
• Structured Progression: Gradually increase the intensity, duration, or frequency of your workouts to continuously challenge your body and improve your physiological capacity.
• Adequate Recovery: Allow your body sufficient time to recover and adapt to training stress, which is crucial for long-term progress and injury prevention.

Practical Application and Considerations

• Individualization: The "right" way to increase METs varies by individual. Consider your current fitness level, health status, preferences, and goals.
• Gradual Progression: Avoid sudden, drastic increases in intensity or volume, which can lead to injury or burnout. Gradually challenge yourself to allow your body to adapt.
• Listen to Your Body: Pay attention to signs of overtraining, fatigue, or pain. Rest and recovery are as important as the activity itself.
• Consult a Professional: If you have underlying health conditions or are new to vigorous exercise, consult with a healthcare provider or a certified exercise professional (e.g., an exercise physiologist or personal trainer) to develop a safe and effective plan.

Conclusion

Increasing your METs is a fundamental objective for enhancing overall health and fitness. By strategically elevating the intensity and duration of your structured workouts, integrating more non-exercise movement into your daily routine, and consistently challenging your body, you can significantly boost your energy expenditure, improve cardiorespiratory fitness, and reduce your risk of chronic disease. Embrace a more active lifestyle, and watch your METs – and your health – soar.