August is wellness month and here’s the wellness habit no one’s talking about: sleep.
You’ve heard it before—eat well, move more, drink your water. But here’s something that doesn’t get talked about nearly enough when it comes to wellness and weight: your sleep.
Yes, really. Poor sleep doesn’t just make you groggy. It can actively sabotage your weight loss—even when you’re doing everything else “right.”
Research shows that if you sleep fewer than 7 hours a night for just two weeks, your body can go into fat-storage mode—keeping up to 50% more fat than if you were well rested. Think about that. The difference between progress and plateau could come down to what happens between the sheets.
The Truth About Sleep and Weight
When you’re sleep-deprived, your body and brain can’t function properly. Here’s what’s happening under the surface:
- Blood sugar goes haywire: Just four nights of poor sleep can lead to insulin resistance, which means your body is more likely to store fat instead of burning it.
- Your hunger hormones misfire: Sleep balances the hormones ghrelin and leptin. Without enough rest, your ghrelin (the hunger hormone) goes up and leptin (the one that helps you feel full) goes down. That means you’ll feel hungrier—and less satisfied after eating.
- Your metabolism slows: Sleep helps regulate the pace at which your body uses energy. Skimp on sleep, and it’s like turning the thermostat down—your system gets sluggish and fat loss stalls.
- Your willpower takes a nosedive: Sleep deprivation dulls the part of your brain responsible for decision-making and self-control. Which is why that doughnut in the office suddenly looks like a very good idea when you’ve had a bad night.
This doesn’t mean you have to be perfect. But it does mean that sleep needs to be taken seriously—not just for how you feel, but for how your body works.
How to Get Back on Track
You don’t need to overhaul your life. Just start with some small tweaks:
- Stick to a sleep schedule – Go to bed and wake up at the same time each day, even on weekends. Your body loves rhythm.
- Create a wind-down routine – Switch off from screens, take a bath, listen to your Chillpod. Signal to your brain that it’s time to switch off.
- Cut caffeine and heavy meals before bed – Your body needs to wind down, not digest a steak or deal with a late-night espresso.
- Keep your room cool, dark and calm – Think of it as a cave: quiet, comfortable, and free from distractions.
These shifts might seem small, but they can have a massive ripple effect on your energy, mood, appetite, and yes—your weight.
If this is striking a chord, I dive even deeper into the science, psychology and solutions in my book The Weight’s Over. There’s a whole chapter on sleep and how it affects every part of your wellness journey. You can find out how to work with your body instead of pushing against it.
Because sometimes, the most powerful thing you can do… is go to bed.
Find out more in The Weight’s Over and take your next step towards feeling your best.
