Are your sleeping habits keeping you from losing weight?

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Getting less than the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep each night can cause more than constant fatigue. While sleep deprived, the hormone responsible for your appetite spikes. The worse thing is that the hormone charged with telling you to stop eating dips. These two things together can cause an increased desire for calorie-dense foods.

On another level, your body repairs itself when you sleep. If you do not get into a deep sleep because of shortened hours then your body can not properly heal and repair damaged tissues. Remember, weight training damages the muscle. It is only when you sleep that the body can recover and get ready for the next day.

Lack of sleep is also related to stress and more importantly your cortisol levels. Increased levels of cortisol can quickly sabotage your weight loss efforts. There is a reason that cortisol is also called the fat storage hormone. This hormone causes the body to store fat in the abdominal area. Visceral fat, or the fat around your organs is the most dangerous type.

Various studies have also shown that caffeine raises levels of cortisol in the body. Not only can caffeine affect your ability to sleep but it can also force your body to store fat. For weight loss, it is best to have your caffeine early in the morning. This will keep your cortisol levels down and reduce the risk of losing precious sleep.

Here are a few tips for getting more sleep........

1. Limit caffeine to early mornings. Caffeine can stay in your system for hours and keep you from getting your much needed rest.

2. Develop a routine that you follow right before bed.

3. Keep your bedroom dark and cool.

4. Don't do homework or read in bed. You don't want to associate your bed with anything other than sleep.

5. Avoid taking naps during the day unless you are already getting 7 or 8 hours of sleep each night.

As always, let me know if you have any questions.

Enjoy!