SLEEP DEPRIVATION

   How many of you feel like you are putting 100% into your workouts, feel you are eating right, and feel like you are doing everything you are supposed to do to lose weight but it is just not happening. What you read below may be a road block that is slowing you down in your fitness and weight loss goals.  Sleep Deprivation.

    There have been surveys by the Harvard Women’s Health Watch that show more and more people are sleeping less than 6 hours per night.  75% of people experience some sort of sleeping difficulty at least a couple of nights a week.  This lack of sleep is really not that big of a deal right now but can lead to long term difficulties. This is called chronic sleep loss.  This most likely will lead to health problems such as high blood pressure, weight gain, and a decrease in the immune system.  How many of you are getting 6 hours or less of sleep every night? 

1. Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation.  In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.
2. Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite.
3. Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.
4. Mood:  Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness.  Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do. (P90X, Insanity, BBL, Turbo Fire, Running)
5. Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.
6. Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.