5 Best Ways to Burn Calories without Exercise

Countless programs claim they can help you burn calories without any exercise and see substantial results in a couple of weeks. However, the consensus, supported by fact-based research, states that no such program claiming to do so is valid, nor does it have any substance or reliability.

However, it isn't impossible to shed off an extra couple hundred calories without engaging in strenuous sports, cardio, or lifting. Here are the 5 best ways to do so.

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Best Ways to Burn Calories without Exercising

1) Sleep

Sleeping can help you burn some extra calories. (Image via unsplash/Matheus Vinicius)

Yes, you heard that right. You can burn calories in your sleep. According to estimates, the average human being burns calories at around 50 calories per hour while asleep. Although our body is inactive, the brain is still working and needs calories to function.

Sleep is required by our body to recuperate and regenerate, and while our metabolism lowers while sleeping, our body can still burn calories. While the exact amount of calories burnt while asleep depends from person to person, based on their BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate), height, weight, genetics, and other scientific factors, 50 is a respectable estimate. This means that during 8 hours of undisturbed, good-quality sleep, you can easily burn about 350-400 calories. Light work.

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2) Caffeine

Caffeine is a proven means to burn calories. (Image via unsplash/Emre)

Studies have proven that caffeine can significantly increase the number of calories you burn. Caffeine can increase your BMR, just like sleep, and aid in burning fat.

However, there is a catch.

These somewhat magical perks of coffee don't last forever. Research has indicated that after a prolonged period, regular consumers of coffee and other caffeinated products eventually become immune to its fat-burning benefits.

However, this isn't the end of the world if you're an avid coffee drinker trying to burn calories. It can indirectly help you achieve that goal by stunting your appetite, causing you to feel less hungry, thereby consuming fewer calories and creating a larger deficit. However, for newcomers, 100 milligrams of caffeine, the estimated amount in one serving, will burn around 70-110 calories.

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3) Laughing

Laughing is an excellent remedy and an even better exercise! (Image via Pexels/Pixabay)

Laughter is often touted to be the best medicine, but it even doubles as an exercise! While it can't offer the magical qualities of caffeine or the luxury of burning calories without putting in absolutely any effort like sleeping, laughter is still incredible.

Laughing more will allow you to smile and be happy, which is a far greater benefit than burning calories. However, the added benefit of burning 20-50 calories for every 10 minutes of laughter is quite enticing.

If you fired up your favorite comedy film at around 90 minutes, you could be looking at a whopping 400-450 calories burnt, provided you're laughing every minute and not eating any popcorn. This is a great option, not just for its calorie-burning abilities, but because of the positive mindset and joy that would follow.

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4) Breakfast

The most important meal of the day. (Image via unsplash/Rachel Park)

While it may seem counterproductive when trying to burn calories, breakfast plays a crucial role in doing so. They don't call breakfast the most important meal of the day for no reason. A healthy, wholesome breakfast can set you up for the day and give you the energy you need to stay active for long hours.

Breakfasts have an incredible impact on our cognitive functions, overall growth and development, and energy levels throughout the day. Studies have showcased that people who eat breakfast burn twice as many calories compared to people who don't. So, while it may seem redundant to eat to burn calories, remember the impact that breakfast has on your body, calories and otherwise.

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5) Dietary Changes

What you eat is crucial. (Image via unsplash/Louis Hansel)

Your diet plays the most important role in how your bodily functions are performed. While staying within your calorie limit is good, monitoring what you eat and how much of it you eat is extremely important.

For most people, a good, balanced diet will achieve most of their goals. Want to lose weight? Just watch what you eat. For most problems in an average human's lifestyle, a good diet is the solution.

For starters, eliminating junk/processed food is half the journey. Stick to whole, organic, and unprocessed foods, i.e., foods made of one or two ingredients.

Try to add more fiber and protein to your diet. Fibers will aid in slowing down the digestion process and keeping you full while doing so. Protein will keep you satiated for the longest amount of time, much more than any other nutrient, thus causing you to consume fewer calories.