Every night while you are asleep, your body is burning calories just to keep you alive. A 2009 study conducted by Walter Moraes, M.D., of Universidad Federal Sao Paolo, Brazil, showed that rapid eye movement (REM) sleep increases metabolism, so the longer you sleep, the more time your body will have to be in this state and the more calories you will burn. Increasing your metabolism is the key to losing weight while asleep. What you do during the day will also affect your metabolism. Eating frequently and exercising at a high intensity will boost your metabolism. Higher intensity workouts as well as breaking workouts into multiple sessions will lead to higher excess post-exercise consumption (EPOC), according to the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). EPOC describes the state that moderate to high intensity exercise puts your body in. During EPOC, your metabolism is elevated.
What to Do During Your Days
Step 1
Start with light exercise if you are mainly sedentary. Jumping into a high-intensity exercise program without a proper foundation can lead to injuries and over-training. Do brief 10-minute or more exercise sessions two to three times a day, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for beginners. Work up to five days a week of exercise. Choose whatever type of activity you wish, although walking is a popular choice because it is free and easy on your joints.
Step 2
Increase your exercise intensity. Work up to 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity exercise. Jogging, dancing, hiking and cycling can all be moderate-intensity activities. The activity you choose is not issue, though; it is how hard you work while doing it. You should be able to hold a conversation but not working so lightly that you can sing your favorite workout song, according to the CDC.
Step 3
Work in some high-intensity days. Add two days or more of high-intensity training once you are comfortable with your moderate-intensity routine. High-intensity exercise will prohibit you from having a conversation but not from talking completely. The CDC says that every minute of high-intensity training is worth two minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, so shoot for 15 to 30 minutes of exercise on high-intensity days.
Step 4
Break your meals up into five small meals or snacks a day. Eating frequently, as in four to six times a day, will boost your metabolism, according to NASM.
Step 5
Reduce your stress. Try yoga, meditation, breathing exercises or talking to someone. Stress disrupts your sleep and may lead to bad eating choices and behaviors, according to a Daily Mail Online article titled "Why Sleeping More Could Help You Lose Weight."
What to Do During Your Nights
Step 1
Get to bed early enough to give yourself at least eight hours to sleep.
Step 2
Sleep eight hours or more each night. Do not lie in bed awake. You will only burn 0.6 grams per minute lying in bed versus 1.9 grams per minute (which equals a 1/4 lb. per hour) on average while asleep, according to Moraes.
Step 3
Wake up at the same time every day to promote healthy sleep patterns.
Step 4
Try reading or listening to soft music to help you fall back asleep if you wake up during the night, advises Charles Morin, M.D., who conducted a study on cognitive behavioral therapy published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association."
Step 5
Consult a cognitive behavior therapist if you have difficultly falling asleep or staying asleep.
Tips and Warnings
- Use a resting metabolic rate calculator to estimate the number of calories your body burns per day, without additional exercise. To accelerate your weight loss, eat fewer calories than your resting metabolic rate.
- Not getting enough sleep can also cause changes in the hormones leptin and ghrelin. These hormones regulate hunger and how full you feel. Not sleeping enough can therefore increase your chances of over-eating because of the imbalance in these hormones.
References
- NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training: Course Manual; National Academy of Sports Medicine; 2008.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Psychology Today
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