Sleep Your Way to Fat Loss

I’m writing this blog post on National Nap Day.  Is it the world’s best coincidence or meant to be?! Either way, it’s totally awesome! Let’s learn about how to Sleep Your Way to Fat Loss.

We all know sleep is important.  It's the only time for the cells of our body and brain to repair and replenish themselves. There are a TON of benefits to getting at least 7 hours of sleep per night but today, we are going to focus on the importance of sleep when it comes to fat loss.  

You could be eating the perfect diet and getting enough exercise, but if you aren't sleeping -- you are never going to reach your weight loss goals.

My quick story:

10 years ago, I used to wake up around 5:30/6 AM every day for the gym.  It didn’t matter what time I went to bed.  Getting to my spin class or out for a run was the most important thing when it came to losing weight.  I would always start my day off strong.  Following my morning workout, I would eat a healthy breakfast and usually have a salad for lunch.  Around 3 PM, however, that afternoon slump always hit.  I’d usually start with an apple and then grab a spoon and hit that jar of peanut butter like a rebel without a cause!  After that, I would mosey on over to the office break room and find the Dunkin' munchkins I spent all day avoiding!!  From there, I'm sure you can imagine what the rest of my night looked like...

Today’s me, skips the workout if it means I’m going to get less than 6 hours of sleep.  In general, I work out less (and less intensely) than I ever have before.  I also weigh less than I ever have before.  Even after having my first child.  (Well, pre-my current pregnancy!)  Why and how?  Because fat loss (and maintaining a healthy weight) is about so much more than calories and exercise.  It’s about HORMONES and keeping them balanced.  Outside of a blood test, we can’t really measure our hormones but we can follow some simple rules to help keep them balanced.

One of the easiest ways keep your hormones balanced and make fat loss more effortless?

You guessed it... Getting enough sleep!

The 3 biggies when it comes to fat loss:

• Leptin - a hunger hormone responsible for telling you that you are full and satisfied.
  

• Ghrelin - a hunger hormone responsible for telling you that you are hungry.
  

• Cortisol - our stress hormone, that when present in the body puts us into fat storage mode (the opposite of fat-burning mode -- which is where we want to be for fat loss most of the time!).

Basically -- we want more Leptin, less Ghrelin and less Cortisol.  And I’ll say it again, the best way to get there is to prioritize SLEEP!

Think back to a time when you got less than 5 hours of sleep... Or, just a night of poor quality sleep... (I can remember some poor sleep back in the college and post-college days after too many drinks.)  What happens? 

When I don't get quality sleep, I am a bottomless pit with food.  I crave sugar and simple white carbs like bread and chips.  No matter what I eat or how much, I’m not satisfied.

Now that we know more about our hormones, we know that I am not full or satisfied because my body didn’t have the opportunity to make enough Leptin during sleep.  I’m legit feeling hungry too (it’s not boredom) because Ghrelin is running wild in my system.  Lastly, I’m craving “comfort food” and quick fuel in the form of sugar because Cortisol has my body all stressed out!

I hope this information was helpful.  Any questions, just shoot me and email!  And, go get some sleep, my friend! ;)