Find yourself yawning during the day? Trying to quickly boost your energy with a bag of overly processed chips or cookies? Drinking massive amounts of coffee? Drinks pep me up drinks like Red Bull and Monster? Have you ever noticed that when you don't sleep enough, your weight goes up? Sleep is directly related to your physical health! That's why it is important that you get--at the very least--the recommended 7.5 hours a day in order to function properly and keep your waistline trim!Sleep and Weight:
Sleep causes weight gain for two reasons: 1) hormones and 2) poor decision making.
When you don't sleep enough, the satiety hormones leptin (signals: fullness) and ghrelin (signals: hunger) don't function properly. Basically, leptin levels decrease and ghrelin levels increase. Consequently, you eat more and you're not satisfied.
Aside from the hormonal aspect, you are also just plain ol' tired. You're not thinking straight. So instead of munching on broccoli or hummus, you might reach for the easiest thing in the fridge that provides the quickest energy high. Refined sugars in snacks, cookies and beverages, anyone? Calories don't magically disappear at night, folks! Calories always count. Poor decision making on your part could add up to substantial weight gain over time!
Get Enough Sleep!
Here are a few ways:
1) Keep a regular bedtime and wake up time. Your body will get used to this routine, and automatically start getting tired at the same time every night. Similarly, you'll feel well rested and won't feel the need to push the snooze button five times in the morning! My recommendation, go to bed early and wake up early so that you can hit the gym by a reasonable hour! Morning workouts boost your metabolism throughout the day!
2) Take naps-within reason. Too much napping will throw off your entire sleep schedule, but if you are truly dealing with sleep deprivation, a short nap (15-30min at a time) could be both invigorating and help you make up some of that debt.
3) Avoid bright lights before bed--that means phones, iPads, TV and computers! They trick your body into thinking it's still day time, throwing off your entire bodily cycle. People probably slept a lot better before the age of technology--let's be more like them!
4) Bed=sleep. Not work. Not TV time. Sleep. If you associate your bed with sleep, your body will respond accordingly. Save your work for the office, or at least another room other than your bedroom which is to be your sleep room / hibernation chamber!
5) Time your workouts. Although working out in the early a.m. is optimal for weight loss, if you truly struggle with sleep you should try to workout between 3-5 pm at the latest. An afternoon workout will give you the energy boost you need to get through the hump of the day, but by dinner time you will start to wind down and slowly get into sleepy mode. However, if you workout any later, you will have too much energy, too late, and you could be up all night! Plan your workout times accordingly.
6) Watch caffeine intake. Caffeine can stay in your body for up to 10 hours! Try to limit your last caffeinated beverage (coffee or tea, possibly lightly sweetened, but no soda!) to lunch time, if possible.
Well, folks, I hope these tips help you get a good night sleep tonight, so that you are well-rested for the week (and the workouts!) ahead :)
Best,
Dr. Abu Pigott
Aurora Baxter
