Sleep

I need to work on getting enough sleep. Up until now I have realized intellectually that I need more sleep, that it is not heart- healthy, and is a major trigger to overeating. However I have been  loathe to give up the activities that are keeping me up late at night.

   So today I read on Spark people a few articles on sleep, and here are a few additional gems:

1)      In fact, if you’re sleep-deprived you’re likely to have higher concentrations of sugar in your blood, which could contribute to development of a pre-diabetic condition.

2)      Sleep is instrumental to good health and even weight loss. A disruption in your hormones and your different metabolic processes has all kinds of adverse effects. Your fat cells respond to the food you eat differently, based on your hormones. Sleep loss affects the level of certain hormones, putting your body in a position to gain weight.

3)      Sleep is also important in developing lean muscle tissue. When you work out, you are actually tearing your muscle – sleep and proper nutrients help re-build the muscle.  [ie, lack of sleep may be why I am not seeing so much difference in my muscles, even though I am doing toning exercises]

OK- so I DO need more shut-eye…..now I need to try and think of a plan to do it, to deal with the activities that are keeping me up….