The Sleep Diet

There are so many diets out there - Detox, Paleo, GI, Dukan, Weight Watchers, and the list goes on and on.  But, here's a diet that seems really interesting, and in this post, I will take some liberty to surmise on the possibilities of why it could work, as it did for this woman in Japan.

It's the Sleep Diet.  You change none of your eating habits, none of your exercise regimens (or lack thereof), and really nothing in your life except for the number of hours you sleep (and I assume this means getting non-stressful, non-wakeful sleep).  The rule is to sleep a full eight hours a night (and a little more if your body needs it), EVERY night.  That's it.  You can still eat your ramen, pudding, desserts, bacon grease, but you must consistently sleep, and sleep around the same hour every night (the goal is consistency).

A woman in Japan tried this.  At the start of the study, she was around 265 pounds.  She always ate a HUGE breakfast, drank tons of pop (soda, for all you non-Midwesterners), ate lots of ramen and the spread was comprehensive!  I have attached at the bottom the video, and even if you don't understand Japanese or Chinese subtitles, you will still get the gist of what is going on from the footage.

One thing to note is that before the study, she typically did not sleep 8 hours.  She spent so many hours eating and her body digesting that she probably slept on average 4-6 hours, which is what happened in the first few days of the study.  After 4-5 days, she started to adjust and sleep her eight hours.  After the first week/week and a half, no progress, change or weight loss...(keep reading...) 

But, one phenomenon that started was that she gradually had trouble finishing all the food she used to consume (she used to polish off the plate).  She couldn't even get to the two packs of Ramen that she used to top off at lunch time.  Another development, towards the end of the second week, her skin started to clear up.  She is a regular patron at a certain restaurant, and the restaurant owner told her, your skin!  It looks so good, it has gotten so clear!  Wow.  

By the end of the second week, she stepped on the scale and couldn't believe her eyes, with no change except for sleep, she shed a few pounds!  Any less consumption of food she started this week was not forced on her, it was purely her body reacting with less cravings.

After a little more time in the study, she lost 11 pounds!  Lost 11 pounds from just sleeping more!!  When sleeping enough, it seems that the hormonal balance is more in check and our body (or brain) ends up craving less, therefore consuming less rather than thinking that the body is starved and needs to eat.  I think this would explain my situation when I used to work around the clock, perhaps at first losing some weight, but over a long period of time, my body was going through major cravings for all food, especially unhealthy.  The result of satiating those cravings was putting on weight.

The doctor on the show said that many of his patients lose somewhere from 5.5-6.5 pounds from just sleeping more (i.e. eight hours).  Granted this woman's weight loss results are more than average, it is still amazing just how sleep can change our bodies!

Pressures from work, family, activities, etc. may be causing us to sleep less or get lower quality sleep, resulting in the hormonal imbalance as mentioned, producing more cravings, and putting on more weight.  I think a very interesting theory, and seems to make some sense.

 The video below!

睡覺減肥法 3-3

Fatty Restaurant Encounters

Healthy or fatty?  What do you think of when you hear of Jason's Deli?  Panera Bread?  Corner Bakery?  In-and-Out?  Yummy....I bet.  Maybe healthy restaurant?  Or healthy fatty restaurant?  Their marketing department probably answers to healthy.  But, how does anything on the menu with uber cheese or buttery delight constitute as healthy?  Does healthy in this context mean fatty too?

My opinion on these restaurants is that they are great alternatives to fast food or greasy spoons because these restaurants care about their ingredients.  But, don't be fooled that the Club Royale at Jason's Deli or the blueberry muffin at Panera is going to help you stay slim.  Culprits to weight gain are still the same: sugar, cheese, butter, etc.  However, if you are going to splurge, restaurants who offer better ingredients will likely taste better and be better for you in the long run than processed junk.

I found an interesting article off Yahoo! Health that helps you understand menu jargon.  Go to a place that serves quality ingredients, and know what will be fatty and what is not so much.  For instance, picking scampi means lots of butter.  Picking parmigiana means breaded and fried.  Picking au gratin means cream, cheese, and some other buttery goodness.  And, one of my own learnings, picking crispy means deep-fried!

Check out the link:
Fattiest Restaurant Words to Avoid

Two culprits to low energy and burgeoning waists

Think bread, baked goods, noodles, bagels, pretzels, flavored yogurt, non-fresh juices...These used to be my staples.  Foods that I LOVED to eat.  And, I thought they were "low fat," which in my mind was "healthy" (I have learned totally not true).  I remember in college, I would eat 3 bagels a day.  Morning would be with cream cheese, lunch with peanut butter, and dinner with some other concocted condiment.  After so many years and always wondering why working out 4-5 times a week would not get rid of my belly fat, I have found two major culprits: refined flour and sugar.  These caused me to retain belly fat and made me tired (but I just didn't know it).  In recent years, I have been cutting them out.  In fact, I have found that the more I eat sugar and refined/processed flour, the more hungry I am.  I believe by eating refined flour and sugar, I am starving my body of nutrients it actually needs; therefore, I eat more and I just don't feel satisfied until I have a stomach ache from over-eating!  I now eat primarily whole grains and check labels for sugar content.  Belly, thighs and butt have all slimmed down, energy level is much higher, and my appetite is in more control.  There are a couple days when I can tell I have eaten too much, but the former struggle is less, making my days more blessed.