Take A Nap And Lose Weight

You hit the gym about four times a week. You sincerely watch what you eat. But you don't seem to be losing weight!!!!

The reason could be all those late nights that you are awake. If you want to lose weight, experts say you need to get enough sleep. Specifically, researchers have reported that women who sleep 5 hours or less per night generally weigh more than women who sleep 7 hours per night.

Sleep deprivation plays havoc on hormones. Leptin and ghrelin work in a kind of "checks and balances" system to control feelings of hunger and fullness. The hormone 'Ghrelin' is responsible for creating the hunger pangs and the hormone 'Leptin' tells the brain when to stop. When you don't sleep the Ghrelin levels increase and the Leptin levels decrease. The result is increased craving for food and not being satisfied inspite of eating more than you normally do.

So what's the connection to sleep? "When you don't get enough sleep, it drives leptin levels down, which means you don't feel as satisfied after you eat. Lack of sleep also causes ghrelin levels to rise, which means your appetite is stimulated, so you want more food,"

Secondly, the growth hormone is secreted, for the most part, during first round of sleep. This hormone plays a very vital role in managing the body weight as it controls the body's proportion of muscle and fat. When you don't get enough sleep the body tends to secrete less of this hormone resulting in increased body fat. Aging is another factor which reduces the time we spend in deep sleep which in turn reduces the secretion of growth hormones. This significantly increases the chances of weight gain.

A session of peaceful sleep helps reduce stress. Lack of sleep increases the stress and increased glucose levels. Sleep deprivation puts your body into a starvation mode. Sleep deprived people tend to eat high calorie sweets, salty snacks. This is because of the increased craving for food. Sleep deprivation and sluggishness go hand in hand. Lack of sleep reduces the physical activity levels. Even small activities like siting, standing, fidgeting are significantly reduced and hence you burn fewer calories there by making weightless difficult.

How many hours of sleep does one need?

If you are unsure of how many hours of sleep you need, then experiment. Sleep as much as you can for four nights in a row. The amount of time that you sleep the last night is the approximate hours of sleep that you need every night. That's because by the fourth night your body is refreshed completely and the body clock will reach the natural rhythm. Make sure you are on a balanced diet and also exercise 4-5 times a week. The health tip for a healthy body is a good night's sleep.

Tips for Good night's sleep

1. Don't go to bed hungry. This does not mean that we should have a heavy dinner, A light dinner diet rich in sleep inducing amino acid tryptophan can help.
2. Exercise at least three hours before bed time. Physical activity contributes to sleep. But exercising too close to bedtime increases the metabolism rate and alertness thus preventing sleep.
3. Take a warm water bath before bedtime. The body temperature will drop once you finish your bath thus inducing sleep.
4. keep your days active. Resist the temptation to nap during the day, so that your body is ready to sleep during the night.