If you are like most people you could stand to lose a few pounds and you dont get nearly enough rest. However, studies show that people who want to lose weight need to get plenty of rest in order to do so. Dont believe it? Consider the following facts and you will change your tune and start getting enough rest, combined with a healthy diet and a little exercise, so you can drop those extra pounds.


Gaining Weight? Get Some Rest

A large study of many participants found a connection in individuals who get little rest and obesity. In fact, individuals who do not get enough sleep are plagued by an increasing risk factor for obesity. This might seem absurd to you, however there is plenty of medical evidence to back up the fact that a lack of rest results in overweight individuals. The results of this study are staggering. For example, the recommended hours one should sleep each night is 7-8. However, individuals who sleep only half the recommended amount are 73% more likely to be overweight or even obese than those getting enough sleep. The risk factors go down with the more sleep you get, however they still remain high. Individuals sleeping 5 hours a night are at a 50% risk level and those sleeping 6 hours are only at a 23% increased risk. However, you only need 7 or 8 hours each night to really reduce your risk of becoming obese, so find the time in your schedule to sleep the recommended amount and you just might see your pant size shrinking.

Why Do You Need Rest To Lose Weight?

Most people dont really believe in the get more rest theory to losing weight because it just doesnt make sense, at least on one hand it doesnt. That is because individuals burn fewer calories while they are sleeping than while they are awake, so obviously this is a big hole in the theory. Or, so many people think. However, despite the fact you burn fewer calories when you are asleep than when you are awake you do not eat when you are asleep and this is what makes the biggest difference in this claim. Consider if you only sleep 4 hours a night. That means you have an extra 3-4 hours to consume calories that might be making you overweight rather than if you went to sleep for 7 to 8 hours and ate nothing during this time frame. You will be surprised how many calories you would not consume in a day simply by sleeping the recommended daily amount of 7 hours.

Another point is that when you are deprived of sleep, grehlin, a substance in your body, is increased and this makes you want to eat more. Not to mention that sleep deprivation reduces the amount of leptin in the body, a substance that suppresses appetite and lets you know when you are full. So, when you are sleepy your body tells you it is hungrier than it is and cannot let you know when you have filled up as efficiently as it could if you got enough rest.

Rest is Not the Only Answer to Losing Weight
While getting sleep is important to helping your body function properly and keeping you from eating practically 24 hours a day, it is not the only element one should include in their life to lose weight. If you are interested in losing weight or maintaining weight then you need to eat right, exercise and get plenty of rest. Doing this will keep you slim, healthy, and full of energy so it is a great plan to incorporate into your healthy lifestyle because simply getting more rest each night is not going to melt the pounds away although it will help some.

If you dont know how to get started then consider talking to a nutritionist and even a personal trainer to develop a plan for you to get moving and eating healthy. Remember, you must include plenty of sleep in your plan and you will surely lose weight quickly and efficiently. As long as you follow the plan you will also be able to maintain your weight for a lifetime. So, go ahead and get some sleep. It could be what is holding you back from the body you have always dreamed of.