Are you losing sleep over your weight? If you want to reduce your weight best not lose sleep.
Because research shows that not sleeping enough reduces the benefits of both exercising and dieting. It also directly contributes to weight gain. While not getting enough sleep reduces your will power to control cravings, it also creates hormonal imbalances.
The two main hormones that get effected are Ghrelin and Leptin. Ghrelin, the ‘hunger hormone’ is what tells the brain when to eat. More Ghrelin in the system translates to more hunger. And less sleep drastically increases Ghrelin production making one eat more than they normally would.
Leptin, the ‘satiety hormone’ tells the brain when the stomach is full. Sleep deprivation reduces the production of Leptin and combined with increased production of Ghrelin body continuously craves for food. Usually of the high calorie kind totally negating all efforts to lose weight.
In addition to the effect on Ghrelin and Leptin production, there is the cortisol spike. This ‘stress hormone’ spike tells the body to conserve energy which the body does by storing fat. So when you exercise or diet with high cortisol levels you lose muscle instead of fat which can lead to several other health problems.
Less sleep hampers body’s metabolism in various other ways too and leads to several health problems arising from obesity.
So don’t lose sleep. Lose weight.
