Following up from Tim’s post the other day regarding sleep and health I decided to do a little more research into the science behind this and how it relates to fat loss.
There is a strong correlation between little sleep and body fat gain. It is thought this is due to nutrients being shuttled to fat mass, rather than lean muscle mass, an effect known as nutrient partitioning. This may be due to an increase in insulin resistance, or a poor management of blood glucose; I.E. the sugar in our bloodstream is less easily disposed of.
Another indirect mechanism is due to low levels of sleep increasing appetite, with one study showing sleep deprivation increased calorie intake by 20%.
Other studies have also shown that we decrease our levels of various hormones that are important in our quest for a better body, with testosterone, growth hormone and thyroid hormone all significantly dropping after even just one night’s bad sleep and our stress hormone cortisol increasing significantly too.
You might be thinking what can we do to improve our quality of sleep? The first thing to do is to try and go to sleep and wake up at the same time every evening and morning. This regulates our circadian rhythm, which is our body’s internal clock, keeping everything running smoothly!
Secondly, try and establish a “sleep hygiene” routine, just like you would a dental hygiene routine. If you always have a bath/shower, clean your teeth followed by reading a book under dimmed lights your mind will eventually associate this routine with sleep, making it easier to get off.
My final tip is to invest in some eye shades, especially useful for the summer months when the daylight in the very early morning might wake you up! When trying to fall asleep exposure to even light from an alarm clock display or a street lamp outside your window can suppress the release of melatonin, your sleepy hormone, making your body initiating sleep very difficult.
Now get out of bed
James B
