WomensHealth
  • News
  • Health
  • Fitness
  • Sex & Love
  • Food
  • Lifestyle
  • Weight Loss
  • Women In Sport
  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Video
WomensHealth
  • News
  • Health
  • Fitness
  • Sex & Love
  • Food
  • Lifestyle
  • Weight Loss
  • Women In Sport
  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Video
This Simple, Effective Ab Workout Will Shred Your Six-Pack
Watch 0:23

This Simple, Effective Ab Workout Will Shred Your Six-Pack

{headline}

{headline}

Kate Middleton’s New Long, Straight Look Is Our 2021 Hair Inspo

Kate Middleton’s New Long, Straight Look Is Our 2021 Hair Inspo

We Finally Know The Name Of Gigi Hadid And Zayn Malik’s Baby Girl!

We Finally Know The Name Of Gigi Hadid And Zayn Malik’s Baby Girl!

Lady Gaga’s Inauguration Makeup Look Will Go Down In History

Lady Gaga’s Inauguration Makeup Look Will Go Down In History

Are Women Healthier Than Men?

Are Women Healthier Than Men?

{headline}

{headline}

This Is What Your Beauty Routine Should Look Like If You Have Sensitive Skin

This Is What Your Beauty Routine Should Look Like If You Have Sensitive Skin

6 Drugstore Beauty Products That'll Save You Major $$

6 Drugstore Beauty Products That'll Save You Major $$

The Diet Behind Hilary Duff's Unreal Abs

The Diet Behind Hilary Duff's Unreal Abs

{headline}

{headline}

Jennifer Lopez Just Shared A Rare No-Makeup Selfie

Jennifer Lopez Just Shared A Rare No-Makeup Selfie

Your August 2020 Horoscope Is Here To Remind You That Everything's Gonna Be Okay

Your August 2020 Horoscope Is Here To Remind You That Everything's Gonna Be Okay

Rebel Wilson's Matching Activewear Is Going Straight On Our Lust List

Rebel Wilson's Matching Activewear Is Going Straight On Our Lust List

Chrissy Teigen Just Shared Graphic Photos Of Her Breast Implant Removal

Chrissy Teigen Just Shared Graphic Photos Of Her Breast Implant Removal

False Alarm: NASA Hasn't Changed Your Star Sign After All

False Alarm: NASA Hasn't Changed Your Star Sign After All

July 2020’s New Moon in Cancer Is Here To Give You An Emotional Temperature Check

July 2020’s New Moon in Cancer Is Here To Give You An Emotional Temperature Check

Kate Middleton Has Honey Blonde Hair Now And We're Obsessed

Kate Middleton Has Honey Blonde Hair Now And We're Obsessed

  1. Home
  2. Lifestyle

Bedtime Habits That Will Help You Lose Weight

Sleep yourself slim - by K. Aleisha Fetters
  • 18 Jul 2016
Bedtime Habits That Will Help You Lose Weight
Getty Images

Getting a better night’s sleep is one of the easiest ways to lose weight. And, impressively, it’s one of the most effective. Case in point: In one Annals of Internal Medicine study, dieters who got 8.5 hours of sleep per night lost twice as much fat as those who scraped by on 5.5 hours—even though they all cut the same number of kilojoules each day.

 

As you might have guessed, how you get ready for bed has a huge impact on whether or not your sleep results in weight loss. And no, we aren’t going to tell you to shut off your cell phone or reserve your bed for “sleep and sex.” We're sure you already follow those rules of good sleep hygiene, right? (Wink, wink.)

 

Add these six habits to your bedtime routine, and you’ll make your weight-loss journey sooo much easier:

...
Getty Images

1. Get Your Dairy On

A glass of milk, cup of Greek yogurt, or even a protein smoothie before bed can do more than fight the pre-bedtime belly growls. They also help you build more muscle while you sleep. That’s because dairy is chock-full of casein, a slow-to-digest form of protein that keeps exercisers’ muscles fueled with amino acids, so they can build lean mass all night long, according to research published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Just a refresher: Building muscle is the No. 1 way to increase your metabolic rate and burn more calories every damn day.

RELATED: Despite All The Haters, Dairy Might Actually Prevent Weight Gain 

...
Getty Images

2. Turn Down The Temps

Fine-tuning the thermostat a couple of hours before bed can make drifting off to dreamland (and actually staying in it) way easier. “We need our body temperature to drop in order to sleep through the night,” says Dr Rebecca Scott, research assistant professor of neurology at the NYU Langone Comprehensive Epilepsy Center—Sleep Center.

RELATED: Dominate Your Winter Workout

Plus, research published in Diabetes shows that when people sleep in rooms set to 19 degrees, they convert some of their calorie-storing white fat into calorie-burning brown fat. Why? Because brown fat’s in charge of heating your body, says board-certified family and bariatric physician Spencer Nadolsky, a doctor of osteopathic medicine.

...
Getty Images

3. Schedule In Solo Time

“Winding down before bed can seem like a waste of time when most of us are rushing to get everything done right up until we get in bed,” says Scott. But it's actually better to take the 30 minutes before hitting the hay for yourself—even if that means going to sleep a little later, she says.

Do a relaxing activity that you truly enjoy, like reading. This helps protect your sleep and energy, he says.

RELATED: The Scary Ways Using Your Phone At Night Can Impact Your Health

4. Set Some Mood Lighting

Even without a bedtime gadget habit, bright lights coming through your bedroom windows can cut down on your body’s production of sleepy-time melatonin, interfering with sleep quality, says Nadolsky.

That explains why, in one 2014 University of Oxford study, women who slept in the darkest rooms were 21 percent less likely to be obese than women who slept in the lightest rooms. But if you want to get the biggest benefit from “lights out,” you need to dim your indoor lights along with the setting sun. Think about it: If you spend your evening hours in a brightly lit living room, you’re missing out on a ton of melatonin that boosts your sleep, he says.

...
Getty Images

5. Do Some Bedtime Yoga

While intense exercise scheduled too close to bed can backfire by energizing you, performing some light stretching or yoga before (or even in) bed helps the body relax, says Nadolsky.

For even more relaxation, incorporate deep, diaphragmatic breathing into your moves. Here's how to do that: Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth, focusing on taking slow, complete breaths that raise and lower your belly, rather than your chest. Doing so activates your “rest and digest” parasympathetic nervous system to reduce tension and help you fall asleep, he says.
 

RELATED: The Benefits Of Quitting Drinking

6. Avoid The Nightcaps

It might help you drift off (errr, pass out?), but it won’t help you stay that way. “Alcohol consumed too close to bedtime can interfere with sleep quality in the second part of the night,” says Scott. That's becuase metabolizing the sugar in alcoholic beverages doesn't let your body actually rest, he says. That results in longer light sleep stages, decreased dream sleep, and more fragmented dream sleep. In one 2015 University of Melbourne study, researchers said that the disruptions in a sleeping brain’s wave patterns after a night of drinking are similar to those induced by mild electric shocks. Sounds like fun, right? 

Subscribe Now-

Subscribe Now
Subscribe Now

Subscribe Now-

Subscribe Now
Subscribe Now

Recommended to you

This Simple, Effective Ab Workout Will Shred Your Six-Pack
Watch 0:23

This Simple, Effective Ab Workout Will Shred Your Six-Pack

{headline}

{headline}

Kate Middleton’s New Long, Straight Look Is Our 2021 Hair Inspo

Kate Middleton’s New Long, Straight Look Is Our 2021 Hair Inspo

We Finally Know The Name Of Gigi Hadid And Zayn Malik’s Baby Girl!

We Finally Know The Name Of Gigi Hadid And Zayn Malik’s Baby Girl!

Lady Gaga’s Inauguration Makeup Look Will Go Down In History

Lady Gaga’s Inauguration Makeup Look Will Go Down In History

Are Women Healthier Than Men?

Are Women Healthier Than Men?

{headline}

{headline}

This Is What Your Beauty Routine Should Look Like If You Have Sensitive Skin

This Is What Your Beauty Routine Should Look Like If You Have Sensitive Skin

6 Drugstore Beauty Products That'll Save You Major $$

6 Drugstore Beauty Products That'll Save You Major $$

The Diet Behind Hilary Duff's Unreal Abs

The Diet Behind Hilary Duff's Unreal Abs

{headline}

{headline}

Jennifer Lopez Just Shared A Rare No-Makeup Selfie

Jennifer Lopez Just Shared A Rare No-Makeup Selfie

Your August 2020 Horoscope Is Here To Remind You That Everything's Gonna Be Okay

Your August 2020 Horoscope Is Here To Remind You That Everything's Gonna Be Okay

Rebel Wilson's Matching Activewear Is Going Straight On Our Lust List

Rebel Wilson's Matching Activewear Is Going Straight On Our Lust List

Chrissy Teigen Just Shared Graphic Photos Of Her Breast Implant Removal

Chrissy Teigen Just Shared Graphic Photos Of Her Breast Implant Removal

False Alarm: NASA Hasn't Changed Your Star Sign After All

False Alarm: NASA Hasn't Changed Your Star Sign After All

July 2020’s New Moon in Cancer Is Here To Give You An Emotional Temperature Check

July 2020’s New Moon in Cancer Is Here To Give You An Emotional Temperature Check

Kate Middleton Has Honey Blonde Hair Now And We're Obsessed

Kate Middleton Has Honey Blonde Hair Now And We're Obsessed

WomensHealth
  • Contact Us
  • About Paragon Media
  • Contact Paragon Media
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement
  • Contact Us
  • About Paragon Media
  • Contact Paragon Media
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement

Brands

Our Network

  • Paragon Media Pty Ltd
  • Men’s Health
© 2021 Are Media PTY LTD
Get more from

Magazine Subscription Offer

Subscribe Now-

Shop This Offer
Subscribe Now