A great day. Got 7 hours of sleep, ate well this morning, then walked 3 miles. Had a salad for lunch with a friend who is starting a new business, then worked. Good healthy dinner with the wife and no snacking today.
Going to start logging my sleep, along with my BP and weight. Was reading something on the Mayo Clinic web site on # of hours of sleep you need to be healthy. It recommends 8 hours. I'm getting closer to 6-7 hours, and plan to work on this.
I found this informaiton on WebMD pretty interesting:
Leptin and ghrelin work in a kind of "checks and balances" system to control feelings of hunger and fullness, explains Michael Breus, PhD, a faculty member of the Atlanta School of Sleep Medicine and director of The Sleep Disorders Centers of Southeastern Lung Care in Atlanta. Ghrelin, which is produced in the gastrointestinal tract, stimulates appetite, while leptin, produced in fat cells, sends a signal to the brain when you are full.
So what's the connection to sleep? "When you don't get enough sleep, it drives leptin levels down, which means you don't feel as satisfied after you eat. Lack of sleep also causes ghrelin levels to rise, which means your appetite is stimulated, so you want more food," Breus tells WebMD.
The two combined, he says, can set the stage for overeating, which in turn may lead to weight gain.
Bottom Line: Watch your sleep! A morning swim would be great, but that would mean 6.5 hours of sleep, so I will not swim in the morning. I'll work in the yard/garden and ask the little wife if she wants to take a morning walk. That's better than floundering in the pool at 6:30am!
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