Better sleep for better weight loss, do you believe it? This technique may seem so insignificant that it's hard to believe it works, but it's true - all the more reason to learn how to fall asleep. You won't notice spectacular changes, but rather a way to stay slim and avoid gaining weight through a healthy and well-rested life.
At the heart of the story, a matter of hormones: when you sleep, you secrete leptin, and when you wake up, ghrelin. Despite their unfriendly names, they are not a pair of trolls living in your body but two types of hormones secreted by your white adipose tissue (your fat mass).
- Leptin
It metabolizes fat and gives you a feeling of fullness: thanks to it you don’t get up in the middle of the night to satisfy a small hunger.
- Ghrelin
It makes you hungry: specifically for fatty and sugary foods.
When you sleep too little, your body’s hormone production is disrupted and you produce more ghrelin, which makes you hungrier than normal... and leads you to consume fatty foods.
Unequivocal studies
Joëlle Adrien, neurobiologist and research director at Inserm, led several studies examining weight loss in light and heavy sleepers.
In an initial study, two groups of people were examined, the first group sleeping only 5 hours per night, and the second 8 hours per night. It was found that after 3 weeks, members of the first group had gained 2 kilos, while members of the second group remained the same.
Then, researchers put overweight people on a diet for 2 weeks, then divided them into two groups based on their sleep times.
All individuals lost the same weight... with a big caveat. Those who slept more than 8 hours lost about 1.5 kg of fat and 1.5 kg of muscle, while those who slept less than 6 hours lost only 500g of fat but 2.5 kilos of muscle.
Be careful, then - poor sleep would make you gain weight, but also lose muscle. Enough to end up big and not very strong...
Taking advantage of deep sleep to lose weight
To fully benefit from your body's natural ability to lose weight, you need to improve the quality of your deep sleep.
Deep sleep, along with slow-wave sleep, is the most restful stage of sleep. Your heart rate and breathing become more regular, your body uses its energy to heal and rebuild itself, and you are harder to wake up.
- No stimulants before bedtime
Besides stimulating you and keeping you awake, drinks such as coffee, tea, and other caffeine-containing beverages make your sleep lighter. This is especially contraindicated if you want to lose weight, because the deep sleep phase is when your body burns the most calories (about 500 per night - not a bad return considering you are not even conscious).
- No sleeping in
Avoid lounging in bed until noon, even if it gives you a few extra hours of sleep in your room. Sleeping late disrupts your sleep rhythm and meal frequency - uncertain about the time of your next snack, your body will store extra pounds to protect itself against all possibilities.
- Exercise during the day
The more you exercise during the day, the more your body will work during its deep sleep phase to develop your muscles. After working out well through sports, you will sleep more restfully... and slimming.
Sleep and nutrition
Don't make the mistake of thinking that just sleeping well excuses you from eating anything; one doesn't go without the other!
- Eat at regular times
You've been told many times, but breakfast is the most important meal of the day: this is when you need to fuel up with good nutrition. Also take a good lunch break, but in the evening it is better to eat light and at least 2 to 3 hours before bedtime, with a small herbal tea (chamomile or valerian) to start your sleep well.
- No alcohol
By disrupting your neurotransmitters (more precisely serotonin and tryptophan, which regulate your sleep), alcohol disrupts your sleep and especially your deep sleep.
Not to mention that the sleep-inducing properties attributed to alcohol should be taken with caution, because although it quickly makes you drowsy, in high doses it is a stimulant. In small repeated doses, watch out for your liver and dependency...
- No fat or sugar for dinner
Sugars and fats warm your body, while the ideal temperature to fall asleep is 18°C. A low temperature promotes deep sleep. Also, eating heavy meals in the evening causes your body to naturally store fat, which it works to cement during the night.
So, ready to become slim and handsome? Go take a nap(w)! :D
On the same topic:
Discover the effects of sleep deprivation
Sleep and children, a special relationship
5 positions for a good night's sleep
