Crazy Talk

Some Quick Tips (Sleep)

Here are some quick sleep tips (tune in next time for exercise):

Sleep
1)    Quantity, quality, and consistency.  These are the aspects of sleep to pay attention to if you feel like you aren't sleeping "enough".  The first one is obvious, you need a certain amount of sleep and if you are deprived, you'll feel tired.  The second points to the fact that it's not just spending time in bed that's important but getting good quality sleep.  Paying attention to the sleep environment (comfort, noise level, temperature) can help ensure good quality sleep.  Consistency means having a relatively stable bedtime and wake-up time.  Our brains are used to habits and we get thrown off when we don't have a stable routine (think jet lag).

2)    Don't ignore things the effects of things that can interfere with sleep.  Again, this one is pretty simple but people manage to overlook it.  I'm talking about things like caffeine, food, alcohol, and other substances that can make you groggy or too peppy to sleep.  Most people know that caffeine makes you stay awake but will often overlook their post-dinner espresso as a possible reason they can't sleep.

3)      Sleep helps consolidate memory.  There is a good reason to read before bedtime.  There is data that shows that memories can consolidate while we're sleeping.  We might assume that it is better to study early in the morning while we are fresh but in terms of retaining information, it is often better to study new material at night and then sleep on it.  (Remember, this doesn't justify the all-nighter because then you're not actually getting the sleep)

Some Quick Tips (Diet)

Here are some quick diet tips (tune in next time for tips about sleep):

Diet
1) Don't let others choose your portion sizes.  One key to controlling calorie intake is to be thoughtful about what and how much you put in your body.  Seems simple enough but we often get derailed and overeat because we let the portion size served to us determine how much we eat.  Start paying attention to the point at which you get satisfied during your meal.  Once you have an idea of how much is enough, get into the habit of setting aside just that amount before you start eating.  You won't get needless calories and will avoid that discomfort of having eaten a bit too much.

2) Put hunger in perspective.  If you're trying to lose weight, you should expect to feel hungry sometimes because hunger is your brain's signal that it is starting to burn stored calories.  Also, remember that you don't have to eat a lot to stop feeling hungry.  Even if you're very hungry, a little bit of food should take care of the hunger.  The best strategy is to not let yourself get overly hungry in the first place by eating small amounts throughout the day.

3) Don't reward exercise with food/drinks if you're trying to control weight.  Some people follow exercise by indulging in a treat rationalizing that they've just burned some calories so can afford to take in some extra.  If you're trying to lose weight, then at the very least you are preventing your exercise from working.  What's worse is that there is a tendency to overshoot or take in even more calories than you burned so you're actually better off in terms of weight on the days you don't exercise!