I just came across a pretty interesting article in the latest American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that comes from researchers at the University of Chicago.
This study looked at the effects of lack of sleep and short sleep periods on increased food consumption. Basically the researchers had people sleep 8.5 hours or 5.5 hours per night (the actual sleep times were a little less) and they found that on the short sleep nights the study participants ate about 220 more calories per day from snacks.
The researchers also found that being up an extra 3 hours each day did not lead to an increase in activity (which makes sense as I would imagine that most people who stay up at night are either working or watching TV and NOT working out).
Other studies have also shown that sleeping less than 5.5 hours per night is associated with increased risk of obesity while sleeping people that sleep more than 7 hours per night have lower body fat levels.
So get more sleep and get leaner [Note: I am working on taking my own advice here as I have set a goal of being in bed by 10:30pm evch night.]
Of course if you count calories this is sort of irrelevant.
There's more to this than just snacking and extra exercise. If you read "Lights Out" by T.S. Wiley, you will find that the bodies percieved need to store fat is associated with daylight. Extending daylight hours with artificial light makes your body think it's summer and time to pack away calories for the long winter. People who don't sleep enough are basically keeping their body in this summer mode all year long. Lack of sufficent sleep will often lead to compromised health which is another potential cause of weight gain.
There’s definitely no way that any of this is irrelevant. Count as many calories as you may…if you don’t get enough sleep your body is going to react accordingly.
Thanks Mike
Donovan “DFitnessguy” Owens
I think you are on to something with this. Good sleeping habits lead to more restful sleep. This allows you to get up earlier and do some cardio and have a decent breakfast. You have more energy, so you are more likely to work out and on an on… Not to mention the cortisol levels and "lights out" data. It all seems to start with getting enough sleep!