Sleep is an important component of overall health, and when it comes to weight, it matters both directly and indirectly. Poor sleep increases appetite and may decrease metabolism (though studies on metabolism are somewhat equivocal). Indirectly, poor sleep can make intentional behaviour change much more challenging.
While sleep alone won’t replace efforts around food and fitness, taking time to optimize yours may provide significant dividends.
Let’s start with the direct effects of sleep deprivation on weight—hunger. Poor-quality or insufficient sleep can lead to increased hunger, and hunger, of course, wins. When we’re hungry, we don’t typically crave green leafy salads.
This connection was highlighted in a highly controlled study where sleep-deprived participants consumed more than an extra meal’s worth of calories daily compared to the well-rested control group.
Really, it’s the indirect effect sleep deprivation can have that likely has the greatest impact on weight. From poor mood, to low energy, to decreased motivation, sleep deprivation saps those very things that are crucial to any long term intentional behaviour change effort. If you’re tired and cranky the likelihood of you taking the time to prioritize healthful living strategies is that much lower.
While there are courses and apps designed to help improve your sleep, it’s worth starting with some basics.
For more a deeper dive on creating an optimal sleep routine, check out our earlier blog post: Looking to Improve Your Sleep? Let’s Talk About Sleep Hygiene.
The amount of sleep you need can feel like a riddle wrapped in an enigma, served with a side of mystery. Some people feel great after only 5 hours while others might need 10 hours to feel well rested. According to the National Sleep Foundation, adults typically need between 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night. However, if you’re following all the basics of good sleep hygiene and still struggling to get quality rest, there might be an underlying medical issue.
Sometimes it’s not that your sleep hygiene is poor but rather that you have a medical condition interfering with your sleep. One of the most common and under-diagnosed is sleep apnea. Here is a quick scoring system you can use to evaluate whether you might want to pursue testing
The STOP-BANG Questionnaire is a simple screening tool used to identify individuals at risk for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Answer the following questions to determine your score:
This self-assessment tool is not a diagnosis. It helps identify individuals who might benefit from further evaluation for sleep apnea.
Other conditions that commonly interfere with sleep are menopause, heartburn/reflux, and mood disturbances. All of these are worth discussing with your MD if you feel they may be interfering with your ability to obtain quality sleep.
Exercise has also been shown to be helpful with sleep whereby exercise, regardless of the time of day you undertake it, helps you to fall asleep more quickly and to stay asleep longer and more deeply than if you hadn’t.
While sleep isn’t a magic solution for weight loss, optimizing your rest can enhance your efforts around food and fitness. Better sleep supports hunger regulation, boosts mood and energy, and strengthens motivation—factors that can help you sustain intentional behaviour changes.
Yes, as higher quality and duration of sleep may help to decrease appetite, improve energy, and lead to better overall well being which in turn is helpful in trying to change behaviours
There of course isn’t a right number. But if you can obtain on average more than 7 quality hours of sleep per night you’d be going a long way to removing poor sleep as a contributor to your weight
Poor sleep seems to increase daytime hunger and hunger of course does not generally lead to cravings for health food.
If the only thing you change are your sleeping patterns it’s not likely that you will see any dramatic direct effort on your weight. For that you’ll need to employ other changes and efforts.
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