Avoid Winter Blues by Working Out or Sleeping

We spend one-third of our day (and lives) in bed sleeping. Not only does a good night’s sleep feel great, but it is ideal for overall health and wellness. I’m sure you’ve often heard people brag about sleeping only four hours per day and functioning better than ever. While this tends to be a macho idea, the truth is, the body needs to rest and repair itself during sleep. When you sleep a mere few hours per day, not only are you likely to be less alert, but your energy levels are likely to be in the pits. Let’s look further into the topic of sleep and how it can benefit your health and spirits.

The Primary Benefits of Sleep

• Live Longer. Studies show that if you sleep at least seven hours per day you are more likely to live longer than those who sleep less than that. This is pretty encouraging since many of us are looking to find the fountain of youth.
• Controlled Food Cravings. Food cravings tend to lead towards poor eating habits and meal choices later in the day. This is primarily controlled from the hormones leptin and ghrelin, which are your hunger and appetite hormones. With sufficient sleep, you are more likely to control and manage food, which leads to better eating choices.
• More Energy. With adequate sleep, you are more likely to hit the gym and perform better during workouts. Proper sleep at night allows your body to release growth hormones to heal muscles and to provide you with energy. This happens during your REM sleep cycles at night. If you are not sleeping well enough or not long enough, you may wake up feeling groggy and tired, which may have you ditching the gym or not performing your best.
• Stress Management. Stress is a part of life. When are rested and energized, you have the ability to better manage stressful situations. Our bodies release more stress hormones without sufficient sleep, which means blood pressure and heart rate are higher than normal. In addition, when your body releases stress hormones (cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine), you are more likely to attract unwanted body fat, leading to unhealthy weight gain.
• Better Focus. Ample sleep promotes many healthy habits, including better mental focus. With at least seven hours of sleep per night, you tend to have more awareness, which allows you to think without the groggy fog, spend more time reading and learning, and have more alert conversations with friends and family.

Track Your Sleep Patterns

With this helpful information on the benefits of sleep, you can take proper steps for achieving restful sleep. First, exercise every day to help improve overall circulation as well as your quality of sleep at night. Second, use a fitness and sleep tracker, such as the Basis Peak, that can help in monitoring your overall health program. Fitness trackers are now the go-to gadget used for many individuals since they include accelerometers, which is an instrument that uses technology to measure acceleration. Now you can track sleep patterns for your health. The less you move while you sleep at night, the better you sleep. Basis is a leading fitness technology brand that helps every individual improve overall quality of life by providing valuable data including heart rate, steps, distance walked or run, and sleep. Similar brands out there market similar aspects, but the Basis brand is more accurate and stylish. Use this tracker to monitor your sleep for the rest of your winter (and throughout the year) for better health and fitness. 

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