weight loss while sleeping

Loss weight while sleeping - is that really possible? Slim while you sleep diets promise easy overnight weight loss and are designed to boost metabolism and burn fat while you sleep. But can we specifically lose weight and become slimmer while we sleep? Here you can find out what influence our sleep has on body weight and whether a restful night contributes to successfully losing weight.

Table of Contents

1. Slim while sleeping
2. How sleep affects weight loss
1. Natural metabolism & fat burning
2. Control of energy and fat metabolism
3. Promotion of muscle building and fat burning
4. Regulation of the feeling of hunger and satiety
3. Slim & healthy with good sleep
4. Conclusion

1. Slim in sleep

More than two thirds of men and women in Germany are considered overweight. Nowadays, an increasingly unhealthy and inactive lifestyle in particular means that we cannot always maintain our normal weight, although our weight is also crucial for the healthy functioning of body and mind. Numerous weight loss methods such as low-carb, paleo and especially slim-while-sleep diets promise quick success in the fight against excess kilos. In this way it should be possible to lose weight and lose those annoying pounds as if by yourself while you are asleep, without great effort or rigid renunciations. But what influence does sufficient and restful sleep really have on body weight?

2. How sleep can affect weight loss

Natural metabolism & fat burning

Excess energy is basically stored by our body as an energy reserve in the fat and muscle cells in order to be used and "burned" later. Because our organism constantly needs energy, the fat metabolism and the associated recourse to the body's own fat stores is a continuous process that runs constantly. During sleep numerous building, repair and regeneration processes take place in the cells, the metabolism and hormone production run at full speed and our brain processes the experiences and information of the day. The body also needs a lot of energy during sleep, which is why the fat metabolism is active and the fat stores continue to be emptied - we lose weight.

How long we sleep is, according to studies, decisive for how much of the energy required during sleep comes from the breakdown of muscle mass or excess fat reserves. With a sufficiently long sleep it was shown that more than 50% of the lost weight consists of fat, while in comparison after 3 hours less sleep per night significantly more muscle mass and only up to 25% fat could be broken down.

Here you can find out how much sleep we need every night.

Control of energy and fat metabolism

Cortisol, known as the stress hormone, is significantly involved in our sleep-wake cycle. While the sleep hormone melatonin makes us tired in the evening, the increased release of cortisol at the end of our sleep ensures that we wake up again in the morning. Together with other messenger substances, cortisol is responsible for our energy level and regulates, among other things, the supply of energy in the body by triggering the breakdown of sugar, protein and fat. Accordingly, healthy sleep promotes a balanced cortisol level, which promotes fat loss, which is important for weight loss and can in turn have a positive effect on sleeping behavior.

Promotion of muscle building and fat burning

At night and especially in the deep sleep phases, essential growth hormones (Human Growth Hormone) are released, which are significantly involved in the development of new cells and muscle structures and also boost fat burning. A healthy, deep sleep therefore has a beneficial effect on muscle and cell growth, while at the same time supporting the breakdown of excess fat reserves.

Regulation of the feeling of hunger and satiety

The feeling of hunger and satiety is mainly controlled by the two hormones leptin and ghrelin. While we produce more of the appetite-stimulating ghrelin when we are awake, the leptin that is produced directly in the fat cells ensures that there is no pronounced feeling of hunger during sleep and that we do not feel an appetite. Studies show that a lack of sleep impairs the ghrelin-leptin cycle and thus promotes a pronounced feeling of hunger during the day. Anyone who sleeps sufficiently and restfully contributes to a healthy function of the body's hunger and satiety and prevents, for example, nasty cravings that stand in the way of a balanced diet and targeted weight loss.

3. Slim & healthy with good sleep!

Finally, it becomes clear that sufficient and restful sleep is certainly one of the important prerequisites for healthy weight loss. How effective the natural fat burning and the hormone and metabolic processes that take place during sleep really work in the weight loss process depends on many other factors. Nutrition during the day and before going to bed plays a decisive role, for example because our body is not able to digest and burn fat at the same time. However, good sleep alone is not enough to lose weight sustainably and maintain a healthy body weight. "Slim while sleeping" is not really a myth, but one of many building blocks of a healthy lifestyle, which is ultimately the basic requirement for achieving and maintaining a normal body weight and a healthy everyday life.

4. Conclusion

• Fat burning and fat metabolism also take place during sleep in order to provide the body with energy for regeneration
• The length of sleep determines whether we break down more fat or muscle mass overnight
• Sleep is important for a balanced cortisol level, which in turn has a positive effect on sleep patterns and promotes the breakdown of body fat
• Growth hormones released during sleep boost fat burning and the development of cell and muscle structures
• The hormone leptin is produced during sleep and acts as an appetite suppressant against excessive appetite or hunger pangs
• Weight loss through sufficient and restful sleep is possible, but ultimately depends on other factors and is just one of many factors for healthy weight loss and a healthy body weight

Greetings and see you soon!