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Sleep…We all need it…But do we get enough?

We all live busy lives, early starts and late nights, but do you know what sort of effect this can have on your body? Today, I’m going to talk a little bit more about SLEEP!

Getting an early night is as important to our health as exercising and eating well. We all know we need it, but most of us don’t get enough. The requirements vary based on the individual, but as a rule of thumb the average person should be getting between 7 and 9 hours of good sleep per night.

The benefits of sleep

increasing or improving learning, memory, metabolism and immune function. Studies have shown that we actually perform better after a good sleep, as we process and retain the information that has been learnt over night

Sleep and exercise

During sleep our bodies produce protein molecules, which help your immune system repair your body at a cellular level. If you’re exercising, your cardiovascular system is being put under a lot of strain, sleep will help to reduce the levels of stress and inflammation in your body. The two also lower your blood pressure and elevated levels of stress hormones which are an effect of today’s fast paced lifestyle.

Sleep and weight loss

Sleep helps to regulate the hormones that affect and control your appetite. A lack of sleep can imbalance your hormones which results in an increase in appetite. We all know that this means an escalation in cravings for carbs and sugars and never for a small chicken salad. Of course sleeping isn’t going to make you slim, but by balancing your hormones, you will give your metabolism the best chance it has to burn those unwanted calories.

Do you ever find that you reach for a fatty snack when you’re sleep deprived? Feeling tired can cause us to reach for a biscuit or fizzy drink in the quest for an energy boost. We then get an insulin spike which concludes with a feeling of tiredness. This starts off a cycle we all want to avoid! Feeling drained sometimes means we eat out or get some sort of fast food instead of cooking fresh meals, we go to bed bloated and don’t sleep, feeling frustrated…and so the cycle continues.

At PGPT we promote and support a healthy lifestyle in the quest for good physical health and emotional wellbeing. This includes a good night sleep, so put those worries to rest at night…you’ll deal with them in a more efficient and productive way the next day if you do!