You know you are supposed to get 7-9 hours of sleep a night, but you often squeak by with 5-6 hours. You wake up, have a cup of coffee, and feel fine. So those lost 2 hours aren’t a big deal, right?
Sleep isn’t just to make you not feel sleepy. If that were so, we would all trade sleep for 10 cans of Red Bull and some Clear Eyes. Sleep is very important for many bodily functions, many of which you might not even realize are effected.
Lack of sleep can cause:
- Disruption of the response fat cells have to the food you eat and the calories you burn. In other words, fat cells don’t break down properly, or at all, when you do not receive enough sleep.
- Hormone levels are disrupted, causing hunger, weight gain, irritability, delayed or slowed motor function and mental process.
- Sleep loss can cause lack of desire and motivation.
- The brain solidifies learning and memories created through the day during sleep. If this process is cut short or delayed, the brain does not retain this information correctly or in its entirety.
- Muscle fibers torn during exercise heal during rest and sleep. Sleep is a must to make sure you are receiving all the benefits from your workouts.
To get the best sleep avoid caffeine before bed time and try and get to bed the same time every night. If you cannot get enough sleep at night, naps are better than nothing- but the deep, uninterrupted sleep achieved at night is when most of the above processes happen, so make time for your 8 hours of ZZZ’s.
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