HE vs. SHE (she post #8)
Day 10, start of week 4
I had a great weekend! Spring has finally sprung and I didn’t have work or family commitments to prevent me from making good food choices, proving I can do it! I was also able to squeeze in a spin class on Sunday with Spencer, damn good class! All-in-all, a fabulous weekend and only one glass of wine on Saturday (yes, I journaled it). My cheat day was Friday and I thoroughly cheated and splurged. I enjoyed a couple of glasses of red wine, sushi at Wondrous Azian Kitchen, and dinner at Bar La Grassa, two of my favorite places. I feel good and my confidence is building.
Another benefit to participating in the BodySHED Boot Camp is that I sleep really well. I suffer severe bouts of insomnia on a fairly regular basis but I’ve noticed that during BodySHED I never have a sleepless night, can fall asleep quickly, and can sleep the entire night through, which almost never happens. So, when Katie sent last week’s group discussion, “Stress and Sleep”, I thought I could get some answers.
STRESS
Can too much stress really cause us to gain weight, yes! When we’re stressed, our bodies respond as though we are about to be harmed and need to fight for our lives, the fight or flight response. This response triggers a whole slew of hormones to be released, one trouble-making hormone that remains elevated during chronic stress is cortisol. Too much cortisol slows your metabolism and causes you to store fat, in particular in the abdominal region (that is me!).
SLEEP
Recent scientific studies show a strong relationship between sleep deprivation and weight gain, here are some findings:
-People who slept less than six hours a night experienced an increase in their body mass index (height-to-weight ratio) more than those who slept seven to eight hours.
-Women who slept five hours a day, or less, gained more weight than those who slept seven hours a day, according to a 16-year study.
Some researchers believe that the slow-wave sleep, the deep, dreamless sleep that you get about 3 to 4 different times a night, may actually help regulate your metabolism. In fact, stage 4 slow-wave sleep, which begins about an hour after you fall asleep, is when you release your biggest surge of growth hormone which is the hormone that tells the body to burn stored fat.
So, my solution for insomnia and to stop gaining weight in my mid-section is to get regular exercise. It will reduce stress and promote a more restful sleep. Who knew sleeping more would be the answer, I can totally do that!
Measurements will be taken Wednesday so watch for the numbers, I am hopeful I will emerge as the victor in the inches category!!
Stay Classy!
April 4th, 2011 at 4:19 pm
Great article. If anybody has sinus problems or feels a little tired during the day, enough to need a nap, you might want to talk to your doctor about having a sleep study done. If you aren’t getting enough oxygen into your system during your deepest sleep period, the blood backs up in your heart and trust me this isn’t good. I was positive I didn’t have a sleep problem, hey, once in a while a 20 minute power nap did me good. I did the sleep study. My last two deep sleep periods I was hardly breathing 80% of the time. Now, I have a CPAP machine that works! I am rested after 7 hours of sleep. The machine is quiet. Dog doesn’t like it but hey, more energy to take him for walks, so live with it. Don’t put it off, have the sleep study done, see if there is a problem with your sleep stages.
B