3rd Golden Rule: Sleep well and Flat Belly go hand -in -hand.Sleep Well and Flat Belly There are a few reasons why adequate sleep is essential to losing weight and getting rid of your belly fat-a particular concern for the premenopausal and menopausal woman. Loss of Self Control Sleep is essential for self control and if you get less than 6 hours a night, or your sleep is of very poor quality, then your decision-making abilities will suffer resulting in a decreased ability to stick to your diet or to control your binging. Your ghrelin will rise Grehlin-what’s grehlin?- is a hormone that triggers hunger. Research has shown that men and women who got less than 4 hours of sleep for 2 nights in a row experienced a dramatic increase in their grehlin levels and in turn, their appetites. The participants craved salty snacks and also sweet ones. Your cortisol levels will rise Cortisol has a bad name when it comes to belly fat. Of course, it has a purpose when the stress is short term such as: cortisol maintains blood pressure; stimulates insulin release; and allows the body to deliver fast energy. However, chronic stress is hazardous to your health. Long-term stress in any form, whether it is sleep-deprived stress, work stress, relationship stress, financial stress etc, increases your cortisol levels which in turn increase your fat deposition, especially in the hips and around the waist. Conclusion Sleep is so important for all the symptoms of the perimenopausal and menopausal woman, but I wonder if you knew that your belly fat is one of the nasty results of insomnia. If you really want to fight the belly bulge, dieting and fitness alone isn’t good enough. You also have to learn to relax, have fun, and sleep well. This is the 3rd article in a 10 article series.
|
