Can we burn calories while we sleep? Yes! The exact amount of calories burned during sleep depends on a complex interplay between sleep, diet, exercise, and other variables.
Even though sleep requires much less energy than most daytime activities, it is still a time when our brains and certain other bodily functions are active. But how many calories do you burn sleeping? Here are reasons why you should sleep if you intend to lose weight.
Why Does Sleeping Burn Calories?
Ever heard of resting metabolic rate? It’s the number of calories a person burns while resting. It’s essentially the minimum amount of energy needed to sustain the basic physiological functions we need to survive.
When we sleep, we are most rested, so our caloric expenditure is based on this. The factors that affect our caloric expenditure are based on things that affect our metabolism. This includes information about your lean body mass, whether you exercised that day, and what kind of food you ate.
How Many Calories Do You Burn Sleeping?
According to a study, a person weighing 60 kilograms burns about 40 calories per hour of sleep on average. With 7-9 hours of adequate sleep, such a person can shed up to 360 calories overnight.
Sleep is a time when the body repairs and regenerates. Our body temperature drops, our breathing slows down, and our metabolism slows down. Most people burn an average of 15 percent fewer calories when they sleep compared to their basal metabolic rate during the day.
However, the amount of calories burned during sleep varies from person to person, depending on their individual basal metabolic rate. For most people, basal metabolic rate accounts for about 80 percent of the total calories burned in a day. The brain itself burns glucose for energy, which accounts for about 20 percent of the calories we burn at rest. You should keep in mind that oversleeping and not getting enough sleep are bad for your health and can cause metabolic disorders.
How to Lose Weight by Sleeping?
Getting enough sleep is a good way to prevent weight gain. However, if you want to burn calories more efficiently during sleep, you should also be active during the day. Physical activity increases your basic metabolic rate and encourages your body to lose more weight. Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat.
If you’re trying to lose weight. And you can’t seem to shed the extra pounds. Then it’s time to incorporate sleep into your fitness program. Studies indicate sleep may be the key factor missing for individuals who find it hard to lose weight.
a) Get Enough Hours – Mounting evidence shows that insufficient sleep syndrome is associated with weight gain and a higher body mass index (BMI). Poor sleep is associated with increasing the risk of obesity. To lose weight, sleep for at least 7 hours.
b) Sleep in A Cooler Environment – Sleep in a cooler environment increases metabolism by up to 10% and increases brown fats’ burning down by 42%. Set your thermostat to 65 degrees.
c) Go to Bed Earlier – Going to bed earlier leaves you less time to roam in the house, where you’d probably grab a snack. Also, going to bed earlier allows you to get enough sleep.
d) Eat A Small Dinner – studies show that individuals who ate heavy snacks broke down fewer fats at night. However, if you eat the same amount during the daytime, more fats will be broken down.
e) Get Rid of Lights in Your Bedroom – light from your nightlight, cellphone, iPad, laptop, or television interrupts your sleep. The light interferes with the secretion of melatonin, a sleep hormone.
Conclusion
To be precise, how lack of sleep affects our ability to lose weight has a lot to do with our nightly hormones. If you don’t get enough sleep, your metabolism will not function properly. You can make a treatment plan so that you get more high-quality sleep, and you may even lose weight. So if you want to see the result of your hard work, SLEEP!
