How many meals did you eat yesterday? Wrong! However you answered the above question, chances are that you actually ate far more frequently than you recall. The majority of us now pack several mini-meals into each day, according to a recent study at The Salk Institute. And the longer we stay up, the more calories we consume. The scientists speculated that the best way to cut down on calorie intake may be simply to get more sleep, so they asked people who ate over the course of 14 hours each day to cut their grazing times to no more than 11 hours a day, and to sleep more of the time. After 16 weeks, subjects lost an average of 3.5 percent of their excess body weight — just by going to bed earlier. That means that just a few simple tweaks to your p.m. routine can mean serious weight loss success. So open your eyes: Here are 20 science-backed suggestions to lose while you snooze, compliments of Zero Belly Diet researchers. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #1 Tryp your sleep switch Don’t count sheep, eat lamb! (Or better yet, a bit of turkey.) Tryptophan, an amino acid found in most meats, has demonstrated powerful sleep-inducing effects. A recent study among insomniacs found that just ¼ gram—about what you’ll find in a skinless chicken drumstick or three ounces of lean turkey meat—was enough to significantly increase hours of deep sleep. And that can translate into easy weight loss. Eat This, Not That! tip: “Any tryptophan-containing food, which includes nuts, chicken, fish, lentils, and eggs, can help usher in sleepyhead syndrome,” says Julia Falamas, director of programming and operations at Epic Hybrid Training fitness studio. “If you’re the type who can’t sleep on an empty stomach, a healthy source of fat like avocado or nut butters can help stave off hunger, while providing restorative properties,” she adds. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #2 Schedule tea time “There is something about the ritual of sitting down to a soothing cup of tea that tells your brain to slow down and relax,” says Falamas. “Some of the best teas for sleep are chamomile, peppermint, lavender and valerian, which actually does have some sedative properties.” Eat This, Not That! tip: Certain teas also have magical weight-loss properties, from dimming your hunger hormones to upping your calorie burn to—literally—melting the fat that’s stored in your fat cells. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #3 Eat whole grains at lunch You know to avoid big meals, coffee, colas and alcohol before bed, but did you know that it’s best to eat your complex carbohydrates at lunchtime, not with dinner? “serotonin converts to melatonin in your stage 3 REM sleep, and serotonin is sourced from whole-grain complex carbohydrates. So you don’t need to have carbs before bed to sleep, just have them at some point through the day,” says Cat Smiley, owner of Whistler Fitness Vacations, a weight-loss retreat for women. Eat This, Not That! tip: Also, to meet your daily fiber goal, “about 20 grams of insoluble fiber is important to enable you to sleep, so aim to eat that daily, and you’ll ensure you can convert enough serotonin to sleep well.” That’s about two pieces of whole grain sprouted bread—avocado toast beckons!—or a cup of brown rice. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #4 If you eat at night, keep it small While you shouldn’t go to bed starving (that presents its own sleepytime problems), you also shouldn’t hit the sack completely stuffed. When you eat a large meal before bed, your body is working to digest it long into the night — and if your body is still worked up, so are you. The later you fall asleep, the less rest you’ll get, and you’ll wake up feeling groggy and more likely to reach for calorie-dense items. Eat This, Not That! tip: Instead of eating a monster meal for dinner, try to keep portions about the same as your breakfast and lunch, especially if you eat dinner on the later side. “You want to eat your last meal at least an hour or two before going to bed,” says Isabel Smith, MS, RD, CDN. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #5 Better yet, set strict kitchen hours Nighttime fasting—aka closing the kitchen early—may help you lose more weight, even if you eat more food throughout the day, according to a study in the journal Cell Metabolism. Researchers put groups of mice on a high-fat, high-calorie diet for 100 days. Half of them were allowed to nibble throughout the night and day on a healthy, controlled diet, while the others only had access to food for eight hours, but could eat whatever they wanted. The result of the 16-hour food ban? The fasting mice stayed lean, while the mice who noshed ’round the clock became obese—even though both groups consumed the same amount of calories! Eat This, Not That! tip: Experiment with closing the kitchen at 8pm and skipping breakfast. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #6 Shake things up Having a protein shake before hitting the sack may boost your metabolism, according to one Florida State University study. Researchers found that men who consumed an evening snack that included 30 grams of protein had a higher resting metabolic rate the next morning than when eating nothing. Protein is more thermogenic than carbs or fat, meaning your body burns more calories digesting it. Eat This, Not That! tip: Use vegan protein—recommended in the bestselling Zero Belly Diet—which will give you the same fat-burning, hunger-squelching, muscle-building benefits, without the bloating that comes from whey. For 150+ recipes that will make your belly flat, including amazing vegan smoothies, buy the brand-new book from Abs Diet creator David Zinczenko that helped panelists lose up to 16 pounds in 14 days: Zero Belly Cookbook! SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #7 Make a mint Certain scents can make your mouth water, and others can actually suppress your appetite. One study published in the Journal of Neurological and Orthopaedic Medicine found that people who sniffed peppermint every two hours lost an average of 5 pounds a month! Banana, green apple, and vanilla had similar effects. Eat This, Not That! tip: Consider burning a minty candle until you head to bed to fill the room with slimming smells. If you don’t want to bother with blowing out candles before you turn down the covers, try adding a few drops of peppermint oil to your pillow. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #8 Let in the cold A striking new study published in the journal Diabetes suggests that simply blasting the air conditioner or turning down the heat in winter may help us attack belly fat while we sleep. Colder temperatures subtly enhance the effectiveness of our stores of brown fat—fat keeps you warm by helping you burn through the fat stored in your belly. Participants spent a few weeks sleeping in bedrooms with varying temperatures: a neutral 75 degrees, a cool 66 degrees, and a balmy 81 degrees. After four weeks of sleeping at 66 degrees, the subjects had almost doubled their volumes of brown fat. (And yes, that means they lost belly fat.) Eat This, Not That! tip: Keep it cool. And speaking of turbocharging your body’s fat burn. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #9 Throw out the night light Exposure to light at night doesn’t just interrupt your chances of a great night’s sleep, it may also result in weight gain according to a new study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Study subjects who slept in the darkest rooms were 21 percent less likely to be obese than those sleeping in the lightest rooms. Eat This, Not That! tip: That leads us to our next sleep-slimming trick…. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #10 Hide the iPad Research suggests that the more electronics we bring into the bedroom, the fatter we get — especially among children. A study in the Pediatric Obesity journal found that kids who bask in the nighttime glow of a TV or computer don’t get enough rest and suffer from poor lifestyle habits. Researchers found that students with access to one electronic device were 1.47 times as likely to be overweight as kids with no devices in the bedroom. That increased to 2.57 times for kids with three devices. Eat This, Not That! tip: Leave your iPad in the living room. You spouse might thank you, too. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #11 And switch off Fallon, too Did you know lean people watch less TV? A recent analysis of studies found that for every two hours spent watching TV, the risk of developing diabetes, developing heart disease, and early death increased by 20, 15 and 13 percent, respectively. Scientists are still figuring out exactly why sitting is so detrimental to health, but one obvious and partial explanation is that the less we move, the less fuel we require; the surplus blood sugar floods the bloodstream and contributes to diabetes and other weight-related risks. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #12 Blackout with blackout shades Light-blocking curtains make a huge difference when it comes to falling asleep. Outside light makes it harder for your mind to shut down, even if you think you’re immune to such instinctive signals. Melatonin, the hormone involved in putting your body to sleep, is compromised when light is present. Eat This, Not That! tip: “Darken your room so that going to bed, even early, feels natural,” says Smiley. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #13 Take a hot shower If you normally bathe in the A.M., listen up. “A hot shower is great for ensuring a good night’s sleep because it can help relieve tension and relax sore muscles. Additionally, it can increase the level of oxytocin—a "love” hormone released by your brain—which can be very soothing,” says Falamas. The heat from the shower also gives your body temperature a lift, resulting in a quick drop in temp when you get out and towel off, a dip that helps relax your entire system. A hot bath will also have the same effect. Eat This, Not That! tip: A shower takes just minutes. But there are even quicker ways to lose weight, and we’ve collected them in this special story. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #14 Get the night-time blues There’s a reason why McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s all have the same red-and-yellow theme colors. Those tones supposedly send us subliminal messages that help make us hungry. Does the same trick work at home? An experiment published in the interior design magazine Contract presented partygoers with three identical venues painted different colors: red, yellow and blue. Participants reported the red and yellow rooms to be equally appetizing (and ate the most in the yellow room), but found the food in the blue room only half as appealing. Eat This, Not That! tip: A separate study also found a blue room reduces blood pressure and slows your heart rate! SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #15 Don’t work out late Regular workouts have been found to help ease sleepless nights, but hitting the gym too late can mess with your body clock. Exercising close to bedtime—within about two hours—can energize your body so much that it may not be able to wind down when it’s time to call it a night. Eat This, Not That! tip: If you’re not a morning person, try to exercise right after work or midday if your schedule allows. That way, you can head home, eat dinner and relax knowing you’ll be able to fall fast asleep when the time comes. If you’re stuck at the office really late, you’re better off skipping your workout for the night and hitting the hay early. If your body gets the rest it needs you’re more likely to stay on track with your healthy eating and workouts in the days that follow. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #16 Instead, get your “Om” on Striking some poses before bed can have a powerful influence on sleep quality because of yoga’s focus on breathing and meditation. “Yoga offers a variety of benefits, from increased flexibility and strength to a calmer mind,” says Mark Balfe-Taylor, director of yoga at TruFusion. Eat This, Not That! tip: He recommends the Deaf Man’s Pose. “It can calm the nervous system, release the shoulders and neck and, most importantly, allows you to focus inward, block out stress and relax,” he says. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #17 Make dinner—then make whoopie Wanna sleep better and lose more weight? Have more sex. A new study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine shows that for every extra hour of sleep women got, their sexual desire increased accordingly. And a separate study showed that the more sex you get, the better you sleep, and the more weight you lose. Eat This, Not That! tip: Women. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #18 Splurge on a pillow When it comes to a better night’s sleep, some gadgets are total ripoffs (like those as-seen-on-TV anti-snoring contraptions), but investing in the right pillow is key. “Buying an orthopedic pillow keeps your neck aligned. You’ll wake up in the morning with no neck pain,” says Smiley. Eat This, Not That! tip: You can find one at your local chiropractor’s clinic, or most places that sell bedding. SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #19 Skip the chocolate Don’t get us wrong; we love chocolate. In fact, any bar that contains at least 70% cacao is one of our favorite low-sugar snacks or desserts because of its high concentration of antioxidants and stress-busting abilities. Unfortunately, if eaten too late that chocolate could be the reason you can’t fall asleep. Dark chocolate contains caffeine, which can prevent your body from shutting down when you want it to if you’re sensitive to the compound. Eat This, Not That! tip: Chocolate bars have varying amounts of caffeine, but an average two-ounce, 70 percent dark chocolate bar contains around 79 milligrams. For reference, an eight-ounce cup of coffee contains around 145 milligrams. For a different late-night indulgence, try these filling, guilt-free 50 Best Snacks for Weight Loss! SLEEP-SLIMMING TRICK #20 Have just the right amount of wine Wine is our favorite “healthy” alcoholic drink due to its resveratrol—a plant compound that has been linked to heart-healthy benefits. However, that evening glass of wine is also considered a high-sugar beverage, according to Smith, and drinking too much can hinder your ability to snooze. It may feel like that nightly glass of wine is relaxing you and helping you fall asleep faster, but it actually prevents your body from fully indulging in its REM (Rapid Eye Movement) cycle, which is where truly restful sleep and dreaming occurs. Eat This, Not That! tip: Enjoy a glass earlier in the night—about two hours before bedtime—to avoid sleep disruption, and close the home bar after one or two glasses, tops. Source
