Does sleep play a big role in losing weight?

shinhye1

I'm wondering if sleep plays an important role to lose weight. Are there certain hours that I need to sleep in order to achieve my ultimate goal?

eDonatti

Yes - I've read somewhere that if you sleep less than 7 hours a day you tend to overeat (or have more cravings).

galgenstrick

I don't think it affects fat loss too much, but it does tremendously affect muscle recovery, which is much more important imo.

shinhye1

Okay, thank you!

TimothyFish

eDonatti wrote: »

Yes - I've read somewhere that if you sleep less than 7 hours a day you tend to overeat (or have more cravings).

Really? I rarely sleep six hours, much less seven.

pineapple_peach10

I think it depends on the person, since everyone requires different amounts of sleep.

I know for me, if I haven't slept well or had a very short sleep (4 or 5 hours) before a weigh in, I usually see it reflected on the scale.

I do also find that I tend to be a bit hungrier when I am really tired.

azulvioleta6

Yes, it does...but I've never read that you need to sleep on a particular schedule.

Everybody has a different normal--some people need more than others. 8 hours a day is average, but not everybody needs that much.

FitForL1fe

sleep is awesome

egorre

i'd say yes. i sleep around 5-6 hours on a weekday and i lose nothing. my weight fluctuates -1lb to 3lb... then comes saturday morning where i slept much longer 8-10 hours where i get new lows.

ahoy_m8

Google "sleep leptin ghrelin." Inadequate sleep (as azulvioleta says, diff for everyone) messes with hormones that regulate hunger.

gothchiq

MOST, not all people need a minimum of 7 hours. Your body will be looking for energy somewhere. If you're run down from fatigue, your body will prompt you to look for more energy from calories, but instead, it will just make you fat.

TiffanyR71

Also, exercise more likely gets neglected if you'd rather nap...

7lenny7

shinhye1 wrote: »

I'm wondering if sleep plays an important role to lose weight. Are there certain hours that I need to sleep in order to achieve my ultimate goal?

You can't eat if you're not awake!

I do my worst damage when I'm up late at night and "grazing".

evileen99

ahoy_m8 wrote: »

Google "sleep leptin ghrelin." Inadequate sleep (as azulvioleta says, diff for everyone) messes with hormones that regulate hunger.

Yes. If you get less sleep than normal, you tend to crave carbs the next daya--the thought is that your body wants the extra energy that carbs provide.

SweetestHoney

Yes. I ignored that fact for a long time. I found that when I get 8 hours of sleep I lose more weight and look less bloated even if I don't workout.

TimothyFish

egorre wrote: »

i'd say yes. i sleep around 5-6 hours on a weekday and i lose nothing. my weight fluctuates -1lb to 3lb... then comes saturday morning where i slept much longer 8-10 hours where i get new lows.

I doubt that five additional hours of sleep on one day will make much difference long term. The "new lows" are likely due to going for more hours between drinking fluids. You would probably get the same results if you slept for five hours, waited another five hours before drinking or eating, and weighing before you drank something.

SideSteel

Yes.

irejuvenateme

Just make sure you are getting ENOUGH. I know for myself, if I get less than six hours, I am way more likely to start hitting the caffeine and sugar and it throws everything off. If you lose more sleep over a course of days it really can affect everything.
I have never really been able to sleep eight, more power to the folks that get that much! I have twin toddlers and they get up quite early, and yes, even on weekends

Unknown

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cwolfman13

draznyth wrote: »

sleep is awesome

betuel75

7lenny7 wrote: »

shinhye1 wrote: »

I'm wondering if sleep plays an important role to lose weight. Are there certain hours that I need to sleep in order to achieve my ultimate goal?

You can't eat if you're not awake!

I do my worst damage when I'm up late at night and "grazing".

^^ this here . I get on average about 5-6 hrs per day of sleep and i never had a problem losing in a calorie deficit. I do notice that my energy levels during the day are lower when i sleep less but other than that i doubt the difference in weight loss rate from not sleeping enough is really significant lower.