[youtube_video id=”u0mKGysuIgs”]
Sleep
Or rather – a lack of it – is a grossly underestimated factor in the fat loss stakes.
If you’re tired of spending countless hours in the gym, sacrificing your social life, and spending more money on your supplements each month than you do on your grocery bills…it’s time to look at correcting your most basic and fundamental behaviors.
Sleep is very important! Plus, it doesn’t cost you anything! It doesn’t even take any effort, so let’s look at why sleep is just so important.
Why a lack of sleep is screwing you up
A more interesting take could be from the opposite angle. Here’s hoping the following might scare you into getting to bed a little earlier!
1. Increased Cortisol Levels
Cortisol is a stress hormone and having higher levels of it is correlated with storing more body fat, particularly around your mid-section.
While cortisol is released any time the body is under stress (such as when training) this release is transient, and a natural part of life. If you’re chronically sleep-deprived however, cortisol levels can build up over time, and be a major player in your lack of progress.
2. Reduced Glucose Control
Sleep deprivation impairs your body’s ability to manage carbohydrates and makes you more resistant to insulin. This means that more insulin circulates in your bloodstream. Insulin is a storage hormone, and one of its key roles is – you guessed it – to store fat.
3. Your Training Sucks
Training hard and efficiently is so important in achieving your dream body that you’d be a fool to do anything that compromised your workout intensity.
Yet that’s exactly what you’re doing by missing out on sleep.
Not only will hormonal changes mean you don’t feel on top of your game, but general tiredness makes you more likely to cut workouts short or skip the gym altogether.
Add to that the fact your body builds, repairs, and grows new cells while you sleep, and it’s easy to see how just missing a half-hour here and there can have a serious impact on your physique.
If you want some proper tips to get more shut-eye, check our blog on the importance of sleep and how to improve it.
Contact OBF Gyms for a complimentary assessment to get started with one of our trainers today!