“Your future depends on your dreams so go to sleep”. As cliché as this may sound, the truth is that more than your future may depend on your sleep. Your body’s tendency to loose or gain weight also depends on your sleep. So which is it: will sleeping less help you burn those pounds or will sleeping more do the trick? The answer is none. There is a certain balance that needs to be achieved in order for your sleep o have a positive effect on your weight. Here are some interesting links between sleep and weight loss
Lack of sleep leads you to the couch not the gym
When you are sleepy, the last thing on your mind would be going to the gym. Your body is on energy conservation mode which means even if you have planned out a workout routine, your body is not ready for that. For your body to be in condition to effectively carry out any kind of fitness routine, it needs to have the energy for it. Too much sleep on the other hand has the same effects of lack of sleep.
Lack of sleep pushes you to give in to cravings
The connection between having a good night’s rest and being able to lose weight easier has everything to do with what happens when you are deprived of sleep. Basically, the body’s production of insulin is disrupted. What that means in terms of gaining weight is that now your body has less hormone to break down fatty acid and prevent storage. The less insulin your body produces (due to accumulated late nights), the fat is stored in bad places like your liver.
Cortisol is another hormone that is affected with a lack of sleep. This ‘stress hormone’ levels are high when your body lacks sleep which then causes you to crave for food. The worst part is your body will end up craving for all the wrong food.
So the question is-just how much sleep do you need? Well, the idea that the older you get the less sleep you need is not true at all. The fact remains that all adults (regardless of age) need between 7 to 9 hours of sleep a day. If for whatever reason you find yourself getting less, then simply make up for it within the week. Off course simply sleeping well isn’t going to give you a perfect body but it will at least make sure that your diet efforts are not in vain.
