Hi, I'm Jane and started this blog on my journey to lose weight and help me so far to stay on track since it's not always easy. Blogging about my ramblings will keep me on focus and I hope my writing will work the same way for you. I Definitely love hearing back from my visitors on my various weight loss tips.It’s Real: Sleep to Lose Weight
Did you know that you need sleep to lose weight ? No, I am not talking about some magic pill or a magic potion that will help you lose weight while you sleep. I am talking about the fact that a lack of sleep may cause you weight gain and/or hamper your efforts to lose weight.
Why Do We Need To Sleep To Lose Weight? An Interesting Observation
Our society has become more and more fast paced. Juggling the kids and careers, working long hours or keeping more than one job to keep ahead, leaves precious little time for luxuries such as sleep.
Less than 25% of people get the recommended 8 hours of sleep. That means that 75% of people do not! This is a fascinating finding, considering that between 75 – 80% of our population is overweight. It makes me wonder if this is just and interesting coincidence. Or, do people truly need to sleep to lose weight or to prevent weight gain? It makes me wonder if these two percentages are directly related.
Research Supports The Notion That One Needs to Sleep To Lose Weight
By now it is well established that you require sleep to lose weight. The less you sleep, the more weight you are likely to gain. As well, if you are on a diet to lose weight the less you sleep the smaller is the chance of effective weight loss to happen. Research shows that:
- people who sleep 6 hours increase their risk of gaining weight by 23%
- people who sleep 5 hours increase their risk of gaining weight by 50%
- people who sleep 4 hours increase their risk of gaining weight by 75%
The recommended amount of sleep is between 7 and 8 hours. This depends on the individual. It is believed that the sleep deprivation is perceived by the body as stress. At the time of stress your body refuses to give up its stored fuel (fat) for energy. As a result one feels tired and hungry and the body will do it’s utmost to gather more fuel. You eat more and make wrong food choices. Thus it seems that the reason you need to sleep to lose weight, or not to gain any, is that sleep relaxes the body. When it is relaxed, the body will slow down and willingly release the stored energy without you wanting to eat.
Biochemical Basis Of Why You Require Sleep To Lose Weight
Insufficient or impaired sleep appears to result in an imbalance of a number of hormones that influence our eating behaviour. Two of the major players are leptin and ghrelin. They pretty well dictate our satiety and hunger levels, respectively and they can also sabotage your diet to lose weight.
Leptin is a protein secreted by stored fat. Under normal circumstances, this protein shuts off your hunger and it makes you feel full. Leptin also stimulates your body to burn more fat.
Ghrelin is a protein that is secreted by the stomach when the stomach is empty. In a sense, it announces to the brain and the body that it is time to replenish because you are hungry.
When you lack sleep your ghrelin levels increase and you feel hungry. At the same time the leptin levels decrease and your hunger persists. Hence, the cravings. As you can see from this simple explanation you need to sleep to lose weight in order to keep “hormonal harmony” and primarily to keep your cravings and hunger pangs in check.
In addition, sleep deprivation also results in a diminished production of “feel god” chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine. The deficiency in these leads you to crave sugary and starchy foods.
In summary, a lack of sleep or interrupted sleep makes you tired, hungry and unhappy. It makes you crave the wrong types of foods. As well, it interferes with your body’s ability to burn fat for energy. As you are well aware, weight loss requires that you watch what you put in your mouth. As you can see you definitely need to sleep to lose weight so that you and not your hormones are in control of your food choices.
How to Lose Belly Fat Fast
In this post, I’ll talk about the best exercise to lose belly fat and what are some ways for diets for quick weight loss. The #1 myth I would like to talk about is people are saying that products such as ab machines, rocker and rollers will help you get flat abs. This is 100% false and those products do not help you at all! They are just trying to make a quick dollar from you. Now you’re probably thinking what are some exercises to reduce tummy fat. There are a lot of factors that will help you get a slim tummy such as dieting, exercise, sleep and of course the most important is the motivation in getting that flat tummy.
There are a lot of people that try to lose belly fat by going on gadgets or buying expensive pills. I’ll be honest, some do work and some don’t, but the best way to lose the belly fat is doing it naturally. Doing it naturally is faster (yes it’s true), but it takes a bit of work. This is where your motivation comes in. As long as you have the motivation, it will be easy.
One thing you need to do is get rid of drinking soda (even diet soda), coffee and sports drinks. You should only be drinking water. This is one of the easy ways to lose weight. Water contains no fat, no sugar, and no calories. There are so many benefits of drinking water such as from helping with digestion to eliminating toxins. I know it’s very hard to just kick the habit, but if you want to get a flat belly, you need to stop drinking everything besides water.
Diets for Quick Weight Loss
Out of the many weight loss diets, here you can find a diet that will help you lose those 2-3 kilograms that have been annoying you so much. It is simple to follow, you can eat tasty food, you don’t have to follow it forever (the maximum period is 5 days) and, last but not least, it makes you feel comfortable about yourself and your body.
The quick weight loss diet lasts for 5 days and is recommended only for emergencies: a weekend party or an unplanned outing at the beach.
First day
Breakfast: a glass of unsweetened fruit juice, 3 rice biscuits with honey;
11 o’clock: a fruit;
Lunch: a bread bun with light ham;
5 pm: a fruit;
Dinner: a helping of grilled meat, a salad with a teaspoon of oil.
Second day
Breakfast: a glass of unsweetened fruit juice, 2 fruits, a cup of barley coffee with a teaspoon of sugar; 11 o’clock: a fruit;
Lunch: a helping of plain tuna, boiled shrimps, a salad;
5 pm: a fruit;
Dinner: a helping of spaghetti with tomatoes and basil, a salad with a teaspoon of oil.
Third day
Breakfast: cereals with yoghurt, a cup of coffee with a teaspoon of sugar;
11 o’clock: a fruit;
Lunch: a helping of beef, cereals, a bread bun;
5 pm: a fruit;
Dinner: a helping of fish with vegetables, a salad with a teaspoon of oil.
Fourth day
Breakfast: a glass of unsweetened fruit juice, 2 slices of bread and jam, barley coffee with a teaspoon of sugar;
11 o’clock: a fruit;
Lunch: a salad with a teaspoon of oil;
5 pm: a fruit;
Dinner: a hard egg, a slice of toast with a tomato, a salad with a teaspoon of oil.
Fifth day
Breakfast: a coffee with a teaspoon of sugar, a muffin;
11 o’clock: a fruit;
Lunch: a slice of pizza;
5 pm: a fruit;
Dinner: a helping of fried white meat, a salad with a teaspoon of oil.
Low Calorie Foods
When I finally decided it was time to lose weight and get back in shape, I didn’t know where to begin or exactly what I should be eating. There are so many fat diets available and I did get sidetracked on the low-carb, Atkins diet, only to quickly discover that it wasn’t for me.
A few years ago, I found a website that helped me understand what it takes to lose weight and gave me the motivation to do it. I have looked for it again for my own benefit and that of our readers. Unfortunately, I cannot find it. I did include all that I learned and listed what worked for my diet on our weight loss tips page so hopefully it can help you too.
Taking it from there, it would have been much easier to lose weight if I had known right from the start just what foods were low calorie and low fat, and what to combine for meals. We already know that most fruits and vegetables are beneficial, so this list excludes most of them.
Low Calorie / Diet Food List
I have compiled a list of low-calorie (and mostly low-fat) foods that were easy to prepare and healthy. Sometimes I make some tasty sandwiches and add them to my list of meals.
You can make your own list of meals and sandwiches and write down the calories that you figured in a weight loss journal. This way you don’t have to add them up every time you eat. Keep in mind, these are not foods low in carbohydrates, just low in calories. I found that by reducing the calories per day and adding some exercise was the easiest way for me to lose weight.
Prepackaged, frozen meals – Weight Watchers has “Smart Ones,” there’s Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, and now the South Beach diet. I buy whatever looks good and/or is on sale, not because I am following a particular diet. These foods are healthy and offer variety.
Canned soup – Read the labels. Companies usually list more than one serving per can, so the calories and sodium are more that what you see at first glance. Healthy soups are costlier but the cans are larger and they’re chunkier. Regular soup is fine as long as you keep track of calories, fat calories, and sodium.
Fat-Free hot dogs or chicken patties – These take some getting used to but they’re filling and guilt-free. Some brands are unpalatable and simply not worth the extra money.
Lean lunch meat – A sandwich with lean lunch meat and some mustard or fat-free mayo will get you by until your next meal. It may cost more but there’s no denying the difference between lean and regular. Again, read the labels.
Rice cakes – Plain rice cakes are only around 35 calories. Unsalted ones have very little sodium and are healthier. Other flavors are available and quite good. Even though they have a few more calories, they’re worth the extra treat.
Bullion cubes – Dieting often makes you feel chilled. Drink bullion cubes dissolved in hot water to warm up and get a little food content. The only downside is that they’re packed with salt, so don’t get carried away.
Reduced calorie crackers & chips – These are good snacks that satisfy a need for crunchy foods. By keeping this craving under control, you’ll reduce the chance of binging later on. Yes, you need to count the crackers and chips if you’re counting calories. My favorites are reduced-calorie Cheese Nips, Wheat Thins and fat-free Pringles.
Breakfast and granola bars – Crunchy breakfast bars come in many different flavors and can be eaten as a fast meal if you’re eating several times a day or as a satisfying snack.
Lowfat cottage cheese – Add a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese to your diet to balance it out. You’ll get dairy benefits and only about 80 calories.
Cherry tomatoes – Besides the other fruits and vegetables that I like, a medium cherry tomato is packed with flavor. There are only about ten calories in four medium (2 oz.) cherry tomatoes.
Light yogurt – Light yogurt has more calories than what I’d like, but it’s a treat. Pick your favorite flavor and reward yourself when your sweet tooth kicks in.
Popcorn – Surprised? I don’t mean the prepackaged popcorn that you pop in the microwave, most of it is packed with calories and sodium. What’s healthy is the old-fashioned, natural kernels that you need to pop in a hot-air popper. This gives you control of what is added. Still, you need to eat in moderation.
Pickles – Load up on dill pickles and dill slices. This makes a nice “side dish” or snack and helps fill you up without giving you calories. Other pickles, such as “bread and butter” give you calories, so make sure you read the label.
Cool Whip Light – Are you an ice cream addict? Next time you have a craving, eat some frozen Cool Whip Light instead.
Sugar-Free Jello – Available in a large variety of flavors, you’re in for a refreshing treat. Prefer pudding? look for Jello pudding cups that contain a mere 60 calories per cup.
Light Bread – Wonder light bread has only 40 calories per slice. Regular bread is around 60 per slice. That means eating a sandwich with light bread will save you 40 calories — another slice of light bread!
Condiments and spreads – Did you know that mustard has zero calories? The calorie content of ketchup varies by the brand. Either way, you need to count and add them to your daily list. Mayo is packed with calories so it’s best to stick with the fat-free version (Kraft is my favorite brand.)
Butter or margarine is another no-no but you can find brands that offer fat-free spread although they sacrifice taste. Look for low-cal sprays for tasty veggies and grilled-cheese sandwiches. For a welcome change, spruce up a salad with healthy salsa sauce instead of salad dressing.
Beverages – Water is very beneficial to feeling full and satisfied. Drink liberally. Add some to your prepackaged meals and soup to add content and help you feel full, quicker. Your body needs extra water when it’s eliminating fat, so stay hydrated. Tea, diet sodas and sugar-free drink mixes add variety. Fat-free hot chocolate is perfect for chocolate cravings and warms you up on a cold winter day.