Does lack of sleep affect your weight loss?

kaylanlynnNW
kaylanlynnNW Posts: 122 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been having really good losses for the last month and a half. For the first time ever in my life I have not been able to sleep or rest for the last 4 days I have been feeling so wired mentally. Someone told me it is from stress but I thought it came from working out too much. Any suggestions on how to get a good nights sleep. I'm a single mom of 5 year old twins and I guess I can say I'm stressed. I need to rest without eliminating my work out time. Oh by the way I gained a pound this week and I don't think I ate too bad plus I worked out 5 or 6 days last week so I should not have had a gain. Can sleep no do it?

Replies

  • Hildy_J
    Hildy_J Posts: 1,050 Member
    Hey,

    Lack of sleep won't affect your weight but it DOES impact upon your decision-making abilities ie choices about food/alcohol... anything!

    I'm amazed how well you sleep (usually that is) - my kids woke up through the night every night until they were about nine. I was a zombie for years.
  • happysherri
    happysherri Posts: 1,360 Member
    I know stress and lack of sleep have caused me to have Vertigo and had to take meds for it. If lack of sleep and stress can do that then I would think it could play a big part in losing weight.

    Also, last week I know lack of sleep hindered my workout on Thursday, I was so tired I couldn't push as hard as I normally would. So I would say yes.
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    Weight gain could be a combination of new exercises(muscle repair) and lack of sleep. I have actual been sleeping better after working out in the morning. Sometimes if I work out too late (after 8:30) I have trouble sleeping.
  • p4ulmiller
    p4ulmiller Posts: 588 Member
    Lack of sleep won't affect your weight but it DOES impact upon your decision-making abilities ie choices about food/alcohol... anything!

    Whilst it is true about sleep deprivation affecting decision making, we also make a hormone called Leptin when we sleep. Leptin basically tells you when you are full and to stop eating.

    There's also something called Grehlin, which tells you that you are hungry. When we are sleep-deprived, we have too much Grehlin.

    A combination of too much Grehlin and too little Leptin is a bad combination for weight loss!

    So the way to sleep well if you are stressed is this. Lie in a comfortable position and take five deep breaths. Imagine each of your worries in a simple visual form. Now, tie each of these images to a balloon and watch them fly away on the wind. As you do so, count backwards from 100, and don't stop until you reach 1. I've never got to 80 with this technique.

    You could also get a movement monitor like a fitbit. You'll be amazed how much you do actually sleep when you think you are awake. (Google alpha and beta sleep). When you realise this, you stop stressing about it so much!
  • MyaPapaya75
    MyaPapaya75 Posts: 3,143 Member
    Lack of sleep DOES have an effect on weight loss go for a sleep study and you will see just how much. You don't build up what your body needs at night which controls and suppresses your appetite during the day. Hence why a lot of people with apnea have such issues with being overweight..it also has a huge effect on your heart. ...you need your sleep just as much as you need exercise ..I would try tea, a warm bath, reading a book and avoiding working out 1hr prior to bedtime if possible.....I myself didn't know lack of sleep could hinder weight loss until I had a sleep study done.
  • DymonNdaRgh40
    DymonNdaRgh40 Posts: 661 Member
    YES! It is very important part of weight loss. Your body needs adequate rest to repair muscles and keep your metabolism in check.
  • patrickfish7
    patrickfish7 Posts: 190 Member
    In short, yes it does. If you train during the day your body needs to rest. Sleeping allows this. HGH levels at night are twice that of the daytime, including weight loss. This is one of the reasons why it is bad to eat before bedtime. If you are tired, your physical stress levels increase, causing an increase in cortisol which forces the body to keep the fat as its built-in method of self-defence (fight or flight etc). Put on top of this Leptin and Grehlin and the effects of low and high amounts of these respectively and you're in for a nasty surprise.
  • LittleCulturedPearl
    LittleCulturedPearl Posts: 71 Member
    Generally, I find that lack of sleep slows my metabolism, and I of course, don't have enough energy to workout as intensively as I normally would. So, I would say, adverse effects as a result of poor sleep habits.
  • kaylanlynnNW
    kaylanlynnNW Posts: 122 Member
    You all are GREAT!!! Thanks I will try to de-stress my life!!!! I hope to get some zzzz's tonight!!! :smooched: Be blessed!

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