Have you ever heard the term metabolic rate? It’s your bodies natural rate at which it burns of calories. There’s more science behind it then that, but at its most basic level your body burns calories through the day doing everything from sitting at your desk to sleeping. Some people burn more then others and those that burn more are said to have a higher resting metabolic rate.
Recently Dr. Orfeu Buxton, who is an assistant professor at Harvard medical school set out to conduct an experiment to illustrate just how bad lack of sleep from shift work, travel or just general sleeplessness can be on our metabolic rate and in turn weight gain.
His experiment was conducted with the help of 21 men and women who went through various changes in their sleeping patterns for several weeks along with modifications to their diet and eating routines.
Participants started getting adequate sleep of 10 hours per night which was gradually modified to reduce the amount of sleep each participant received. At one point volunteers were asked to go to sleep and wake up 4 hours later each day. This was done to simulate a 24 hour trip from east-west coast time zones.
The results of this study?
Well after five weeks the resting metabolic rate of the participants was 8% lower then when they had started. A slow down of this magnitude could potentially mean a 10 pound weight gain over a year if a persons diet and exercise habits didn’t change.
So what does this mean in terms of abdominal belts?
Well, it means that on top of following a healthy diet, getting adequate exercise and using your ab belt consistently you should be making sure you’re also getting enough sleep each and every night.
When you’re struggling to lose belly fat, get a flatter tummy and some great looking abs you need to do everything you can to ensure things go in your favour. So get a good nights sleep every night. It can only help on your journey to a healthier you.
Source: Time.com
