Poor Sleep can Cause Weight Gain!
How can I get a good night sleep?

Sleep is crucial for many important processes in the body including healing, immunity,
energy, focus and memory. But most people might not realize that poor sleep is one of
the most common causes of weight gain.

If you do not get proper sleep on a regular basis, you may experience any or all of the
following symptoms:
  • Fatigue
  • Brain Fog
  • Weight Gain
  • Muscle Pain
  • Irritability
  • Depression/Anxiety
  • Gut Disturbances
  • Frequent Illnesses
  • Bad Skin
  • more

What is proper sleep?
In order for you to get restful sleep many things must happen.
  • First, you must get to bed at a decent time; no later than 11:00 for most people.
    Any later than that and you will likely miss your chance to release a bunch of
    healing growth hormone and all of the benefits that go along with growth
    hormone. Growth hormone helps your muscles, gut and other tissues heal on a
    nightly basis. Without enough growth hormone, you r muscle mass will decline and
    your metabolism will decline with it. This could cause you to gain weight.
  • Second, you must fall asleep in about 5-15 minutes. If it takes much longer
    than 15 minutes, you are suffering from insomnia to some degree. Don't worry,
    there are many natural aids that can relieve insomnia that are much more gentle
    than prescription sleeping pills.
  • Third, you must sleep all through the night for 7-8 hours without waking.
    Getting up once to use the restroom may be ok as long as you go immediately
    back to sleep, but if you wake up more than once you are not getting proper sleep.
  • Forth, you should have mild dreams or no dreams at all throughout the night.
    Wild, epic dreams or nightmares will prevent you from achieving deep restful
    sleep.  
  • Fifth, when you wake up you must feel rested and be hungry within 30 minutes
    of rising. If you do not feel rested and are not hungry, it is almost guaranteed that
    you did not sleep properly.

The Sleep Cycle
Here is what happens when all five of the above steps above occur properly.  You will
start off in a light sleep (stage 1) and gradually drift into a deeper and deeper sleep until
you hit stage 4 sleep. It is stage 4 sleep where your body heals itself. After you have
spent a few minutes in stage 4 sleep you will cycle into another stage called REM sleep
where your eyes will involuntarily move in order to activate your brain a bit. This is
another very important stage of sleep.  After REM, the whole sleep cycle will start over;
stage 1 through 4 and back to REM again. Each cycle can take 45-90 minutes to
complete if you are sleeping properly. Typically the cycles early in the night last longer
and the cycles shorten as you approach morning.
Here are some great tips on getting better sleep.

Sleep and Hormones
Your body releases and produces a bunch of important chemicals and hormones when
you sleep, all of which are important for your health and well being. If you are sleeping
properly, growth hormone is released around 1:00AM to help you body heal from the
stresses of the day. Your gut depends on this growth hormone each night because the
gut has to rebuild itself every single day. Muscles and other tissues are also dependent
on growth hormone released while you sleep. Leptin is a chemical that tells your brain
that you are full after you have eaten a meal. If you don't sleep, you don't make leptin,
and that can lead to problems with over eating, satiety, and weight gain.

What are some Common Sleep Disorders?
There are many disorders that can prevent proper sleep. They may disrupt any or all of
the necessary steps listed above. Some of the disorders listed below are common, some
are serious and others are very rare.
  • Insomnia- the inability to fall asleep or get enough sleep
  • Restless Leg Syndrome- uncontrollable twitching or jerking of the legs
  • Snoring- I think we all know what this is
  • Sleep Apnea- when you stop breathing momentarily during sleep
  • Night Terrors- similar to nightmares but often more severe
  • Sleep paralysis- waking and being unable to move your body or limbs
  • Waking in the middle of the night- could be from low blood sugar or adrenal
    fatigue  

Any of these disorders can disrupt sleep and lead to a number of health problems.
Sleep apnea is one particular sleep disorder that is closely related to body composition,
and it works both ways. Not only does sleep apnea cause your metabolism to slow down
resulting in excess body fat, but weight gain can cause sleep apnea. It can be a vicious
cycle once it begins.

Take our free sleep evaluation to see if you are sleeping properly.

If you have any of the above symptoms or sleep issues, it is very likely that we can help
you.

Call Complete Health and Weight Loss today.
972-735-0707

If you have sleep issues but you don't live in the Dallas Fort Worth area, we can
still help you through phone consultations.

Click for more great Weight Loss Tips

Complete Health and Weight Loss
5000 Legacy Dr. #240
Plano, TX 75024
972-735-0707
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