Congratulations to Linda Wortman for being the first person to loose 10lbs in our weight-loss challenge. For those of you who have signed up, don’t give up you still have two months to win the grand prize. Whether you are in our weight challenge or you have your own weight-loss goals, here is one easy way to help in your fight against fat: Get a good-nights sleep!
Not only can a good-nights sleep help keep you alert and mentally focused, it can also help melt those pounds off. There is actually scientific evidence that your mothers ‘beauty rest’ was just that. Here how it works:
We all have a special hormone in our bodies called Human Growth Hormone (HGH), this hormone is responsible for increasing lean body mass and freeing fat cells for energy production (therefore decreasing stored fat). It should now be clear how important HGH is in the fight against fat, so now you may be asking, what does sleep have to do with it?
HGH is released in its greatest quantities at night and during strenuous exercise. According to Yutaka et.al., “the secretion pattern of HGH is closely correlated with the depth and the course of sleep.” (1969), meaning that not only is it important to get to sleep but also to have uninterrupted deep sleep. To get a better idea of how important deep sleep is, you have to know just how much HGH is produced during this time; according to Brad King, author of Fat Wars, “75% of HGH is produced while we are in our deepest phase of sleep” (2002).
To put it simply, full and deep sleep = a better environment for fat loss. Hope this simple step helps in your quest to loose fat and gain a leaner you.
References:
King, Brad J. Fat Wars: 45 days to transform your body
Wiley Publishing Inc, NY , 2002
Yutaka Honda, Kiyohisa Takahashi, Saburo Takahashi, Kazuo Azumi, Minoru Irie, Maki Sakuma, Toshio Tsushima and Kazuo Shizume: Growth Hormone Secretion During Nocturnal Sleep in Normal Subjects, 1969
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 29, No. 1 20-29doi:10.1210/jcem-29-1-20
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