Skip to content
  • Register
    • We are pleased to announce that as of March 4, 2025, an updated Rich Text Editor has been introduced in the MyFitnessPal Community. To learn more about the changes, please click here. We look forward to sharing this new feature with you!

    Napping... Good or Bad?

    Posts: 44 Member
    edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
    I have been feeling extremely sleepy the last month. ( I do have a cold of course) But right after lunch, I just want to take a nap. Like I feel as if I could just pass out where I'm at. I take about an hour to hour n a half nap when my son takes his. Are naps bad if you are trying to lose weight?

    Welcome!

    It looks like you're new here. Sign in or register to get started.
    Sign In
    Register

    Replies

    • Posts: 37 Member
      They're not inherently bad, no. It just means you're not moving during that time. But you're not eating during that time, either. I wish I could nap. I either end up staring at the ceiling or sleeping for hours.
    • Posts: 50 Member
      I have nothing against naps. But i also dont know if they are good or bad for your dieting journey. I wouldnt think they are bad though really, i see it as resting up to wake up to have energy to tackle the rest of the day. maybe its a sign that you just need a little nutritious boost of energy and you should have a small snack and/or quick work out? I know working out helps wake some people up and get their energy back up!
    • Posts: 12,142 Member
      They are terrible if you've eaten right before as your metabolism will slow down and you'll store it as fat. Also make sure you eat right after waking back up to jump start your metabolism
    • Posts: 254 Member
      I have heard that sleep can have a positive effect on weight loss- essentially ensuring one gets enough sleep. So I would vote it's good!

      But then again, any excuse to take a nap is good by me!!

      http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/lose-weight-while-sleeping
      http://www.montrealgazette.com/health/Drop+donut+take+sleep+loss+lead+diet+says+study/6760254/story.html
    • Posts: 15,228 Member
      They are terrible if you've eaten right before as your metabolism will slow down and you'll store it as fat. Also make sure you eat right after waking back up to jump start your metabolism

      Oh noes!!! Have we lost you to broscience?? Did you finally get tired of researching valuable information only to have someone tell you that you are wrong and that your progress pictures are not proof that you are right?

      Did you finally give up on beating them and joined them?

      Oh, the humanity!!!!!!!!!!
    • Posts: 5,510 Member
      They are terrible if you've eaten right before as your metabolism will slow down and you'll store it as fat. Also make sure you eat right after waking back up to jump start your metabolism


      LOL.

      You realize a good chunk of people are going to read that and go "Oh yeah, duh".
    • Posts: 318 Member
      napping is the most awesome thing ever - i try and do it every day :)

      I set an alarm to keep it to 10 - 15 minutes and need a big glass of water and an espresso when i get up, but I feel awesome for it!!

      (I'm not losing much weight, but I've only just started this journey, so hopefully that'll happen soon...)
    • Posts: 2,317 Member
      My mom says to much of that and you'll go blind so I try to limit it.
    • Posts: 1,497 Member
      I won't rest until I've lost all the weight. I mean that literally. I have a pantry full of trucker drugs, and I haven't blinked since Feb.
    • Posts: 296 Member
      I don't think naps have any negative affect on weight loss. Now if you are napping after a huge food binge that is another story, but if you are staying active and eating healthy I can only see it as beneficial. There are lots of studies that show people who get enough sleep lose weight more effectively than people who do not. (and by enough sleep I mean enough sleep for you...everyone is different, some people require less sleep.)
    • Posts: 1,085 Member
      Napping is not bad, is very good for your body to rest. How is your sleep at night? The amount of rest you get per day does matter in your health and effects your exercise.
    • Posts: 202
      i think naps are just fine..as long as you are staying active the other times of the day. Sometimes the body just needs that extra sleep that a 30-40 min nap will take care of.
    • Posts: 1,087 Member
      funny_pictures_cat_has_naps_on_his_agenda_Cats_and_Dogs_and_one_Bunny-s500x375-2200111.jpg
    • Posts: 26
      To my mind, naps are GOOD. My brain misinterprets the signals for hunger, thirst, and tiredness all the time so it's really useful when I can identify that I'm sleepy and not hungry. Also, it has been well-documented that when you're underslept you're much more likely to make poor food choices. I know that if I'm tired, I have a tendency to compensate by snacking to get my energy levels up. Hence, nowadays I nap when I need to and it's easier to resist the extra snacks that my body doesn't really need.
    • Posts: 551 Member
      I don't think naps are bad for you. I love to nap and I nap whenever I get the opportunity, which is not that often because my work gets in the way :grumble: I want a nap now :yawn:
    • Posts: 4,078 Member
      I won't rest until I've lost all the weight. I mean that literally. I have a pantry full of trucker drugs, and I haven't blinked since Feb.

      :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
    • Posts: 2,206 Member
      They are terrible if you've eaten right before as your metabolism will slow down and you'll store it as fat. Also make sure you eat right after waking back up to jump start your metabolism
      I just read about 15 foods that will boost your metabolism. Would be best to keep them next to you as you rise from the nap, so as not to induce the dizziness that sometimes accompanies starvation mode that I feel when I nap and then get up too quickly without eating something.
    • Posts: 15,228 Member
      funny_pictures_cat_has_naps_on_his_agenda_Cats_and_Dogs_and_one_Bunny-s500x375-2200111.jpg

      Awww!

      You knew this was coming, right?
    • Posts: 50 Member
      My mom says to much of that and you'll go blind so I try to limit it.

      I think you're thinking of a different kind of "nap" lol :blushing:
    • Posts: 166 Member
      Looooovvvve me some nappy time! I find that a good 30 minutes will perk me right up but anything over that will leave me groggy, although I'd happily nap for 2 hours if I could!
    • Posts: 134
      Naps are the best! :D
    • Posts: 247 Member
      I don't think napping is necessarily "bad." But it could be a sign of something bad. Are you getting enough, good quality, sleep? Are you eating a healthy, well-portioned lunch (not carb- or sugar-loaded)? If you answered yes to both questions, then I don't see anything wrong with the nap. But I know I only want a nap if I'm lacking sleep (e.g., if I had cr*ppy sleep from drinking the night before). Some people will tell you that it's beneficial to nap since adequate sleep is important for weight loss. However, I am doubtful of this since you are not going to get real quality, deep, sleep from a nap. It's more important to get enough sleep throughout the night than to try to "make it up" with a nap.
    • Posts: 194 Member
      They are terrible if you've eaten right before as your metabolism will slow down and you'll store it as fat. Also make sure you eat right after waking back up to jump start your metabolism

      False.
    • Posts: 744 Member
      Wish I could nap - I just wake up feeling groggy and a little angry and remain that way until it's actual time to go to bed. I go through regular bouts of insomnia so naps would be awesome :-((
    • Posts: 823 Member
      sorry...did somebody say something? i was napping
    • Posts: 194 Member
      I don't think napping is necessarily "bad." But it could be a sign of something bad. Are you getting enough, good quality, sleep? Are you eating a healthy, well-portioned lunch (not carb- or sugar-loaded)? If you answered yes to both questions, then I don't see anything wrong with the nap. But I know I only want a nap if I'm lacking sleep (e.g., if I had cr*ppy sleep from drinking the night before). Some people will tell you that it's beneficial to nap since adequate sleep is important for weight loss. However, I am doubtful of this since you are not going to get real quality, deep, sleep from a nap. It's more important to get enough sleep throughout the night than to try to "make it up" with a nap.

      The benefits of sleep are not all in REM sleep. You can get benefits from a 15-20 minute nap where you are in stage 2- it is good for alertness and motor skills.
    • Posts: 44 Member
      Many studies have proven that naps are extremely beneficial in TONs of different ways (if I wasn't on my iPad I'd find some links to back this up). I can't imagine naps harming your weight loss in any way, unless the naps somehow contribute to worse sleep at night, or additional eating or something. :huh:
    • Posts: 57
      I won't rest until I've lost all the weight. I mean that literally. I have a pantry full of trucker drugs, and I haven't blinked since Feb.

      This made me LOL. :-)
    • Posts: 247 Member
      show previous quotes

      The benefits of sleep are not all in REM sleep. You can get benefits from a 15-20 minute nap where you are in stage 2- it is good for alertness and motor skills.

      Perhaps I wasn't clear, but I didn't mean that the only benefits of sleep come from REM. I was referring specifically to sleep as it pertains to weight loss. The impact of sleep on weight loss comes from the role sleep plays on the regulation of hormones (leptin and ghrelin) that influence appetite. Not getting enough deep sleep interferes with these hormones, which could increase your appetite, thus preventing you from losing. E.g.: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC535701/

      I'm sure napping can help some be more alert, etc. It can make others more groggy, though. But I never knocked napping. I just said it could indicate another problem, especially considering it's a new phenomena for the OP.
    • Posts: 4,383 Member
      They are terrible if you've eaten right before as your metabolism will slow down and you'll store it as fat. Also make sure you eat right after waking back up to jump start your metabolism

      Well yeah duh, everyone knows that. I get up in the middle of the night to eat cuz I don't wanna go more than 4 hours without food so i don't go into starvation mode.....not eating overnight is fasting, and fasting is bad! Plus I have coffee to jump start my metabolism in the morning....
    This discussion has been closed.

    Welcome!

    It looks like you're new here. Sign in or register to get started.
    Sign In
    Register

    Quick Links

    Categories