Research on the importance of sleep has revealed that getting a
good night's sleep is essential to good health and maintaining your
weight. The University of Wisconsin and UC-Berkley conducted one of the
largest sleep studies to date. They found that when test subjects were
limited to less than 6 hours of sleep per night, three of their hormones
were thrown out of balance.
The hormones thrown out of balance from lack of sleep included leptin, ghrelin and cortisol. Unfortunately, these hormones are all important for regulating weight. When they were out of balance, people experienced an increase in appetite, a decrease in satiety (feeling satisfied after eating) and an increase in fat being stored in the abdomen or stomach.
Ideally, your goal should be to get at least 7 hours of quality sleep per night. Some adults will need closer to 8 hours of sleep per night. I know this is often easier said than done, but there are a few proven strategies to help you reach this goal.
#1) The first thing you need to do is to make your body physically tired. This can be as easy as taking a 30 minute walk at some point in your day. You could also choose to wear a pedometer to aim for the goal of walking 10,000 steps daily. Either choice will help you fall asleep easier when you go to bed.
#2) Taking a hot bath with some Epsom Salts will help you fall asleep easier. The Epsom Salts contain magnesium, which helps calm us and balance the calcium in our diets. The hot water will help warm your body temperature and cause a deep relaxation response. Try to crawl into bed shortly after taking this relaxing bath for the biggest benefit to your sleep.
#3) Watch your beverages. Limit caffeinated beverage intake to the morning, as later in the day consumption can keep you awake. Avoid drinking alcohol prior to going to bed, as it often disrupts sleep and will cause you to wake up just a few hours after going to bed. Moderation is one drink for a female and no more than two drinks for a male. This amount should not cause a problem with premature waking.
#4) Keep electronics in your bedroom unplugged, as they continue to emit radio frequencies even when turned off. This will be easy to do if you have all electronics plugged into a power strip. Then you can just flip the switch off before going to bed to kill the power to all of your electronic equipment. If you alarm clock is plugged into the wall, you will want to be sure it is not positioned within two feet of your head while you are sleeping. My alarm clock has a battery. At hotels, I often place the alarm clock on the floor.
#5) Set a specific time for you to go to bed every night. It works best if you allow 8 hours from the time you go to bed until you need to be up. This allows for some time for reading to unwind from your busy day. Keeping a notebook and pen next to your bed will help you do a "brain-dump" of all of the to-do's that are running through you head for the next day.
#6) Keep a notebook & pen by the side of your bed. Before going to sleep, do a "brain-dump" from your head to the paper. Maybe you are thinking about your to-do list for tomorrow or something fun you want to do. Once it goes onto the paper, you can stop thinking about it. Worry & a busy mind tend to keep many people up for hours.
#7) Now close your eyes and deep breathe for a few minutes before going to sleep. This is also a great time to visualize your optimal health goal. Think about how grateful you are for your amazing body and all that it does for you. Breathe into the feeling of health and peace. Visualize how you feel in the body you have now come to love!
The hormones thrown out of balance from lack of sleep included leptin, ghrelin and cortisol. Unfortunately, these hormones are all important for regulating weight. When they were out of balance, people experienced an increase in appetite, a decrease in satiety (feeling satisfied after eating) and an increase in fat being stored in the abdomen or stomach.
Ideally, your goal should be to get at least 7 hours of quality sleep per night. Some adults will need closer to 8 hours of sleep per night. I know this is often easier said than done, but there are a few proven strategies to help you reach this goal.
#1) The first thing you need to do is to make your body physically tired. This can be as easy as taking a 30 minute walk at some point in your day. You could also choose to wear a pedometer to aim for the goal of walking 10,000 steps daily. Either choice will help you fall asleep easier when you go to bed.
#2) Taking a hot bath with some Epsom Salts will help you fall asleep easier. The Epsom Salts contain magnesium, which helps calm us and balance the calcium in our diets. The hot water will help warm your body temperature and cause a deep relaxation response. Try to crawl into bed shortly after taking this relaxing bath for the biggest benefit to your sleep.
#3) Watch your beverages. Limit caffeinated beverage intake to the morning, as later in the day consumption can keep you awake. Avoid drinking alcohol prior to going to bed, as it often disrupts sleep and will cause you to wake up just a few hours after going to bed. Moderation is one drink for a female and no more than two drinks for a male. This amount should not cause a problem with premature waking.
#4) Keep electronics in your bedroom unplugged, as they continue to emit radio frequencies even when turned off. This will be easy to do if you have all electronics plugged into a power strip. Then you can just flip the switch off before going to bed to kill the power to all of your electronic equipment. If you alarm clock is plugged into the wall, you will want to be sure it is not positioned within two feet of your head while you are sleeping. My alarm clock has a battery. At hotels, I often place the alarm clock on the floor.
#5) Set a specific time for you to go to bed every night. It works best if you allow 8 hours from the time you go to bed until you need to be up. This allows for some time for reading to unwind from your busy day. Keeping a notebook and pen next to your bed will help you do a "brain-dump" of all of the to-do's that are running through you head for the next day.
#6) Keep a notebook & pen by the side of your bed. Before going to sleep, do a "brain-dump" from your head to the paper. Maybe you are thinking about your to-do list for tomorrow or something fun you want to do. Once it goes onto the paper, you can stop thinking about it. Worry & a busy mind tend to keep many people up for hours.
#7) Now close your eyes and deep breathe for a few minutes before going to sleep. This is also a great time to visualize your optimal health goal. Think about how grateful you are for your amazing body and all that it does for you. Breathe into the feeling of health and peace. Visualize how you feel in the body you have now come to love!
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