On the second day of my fourth Whole30, I didn’t get enough sleep. I was tired that morning, and it was all my fault. I will pass some of the blame to video games, but at the end of the day, the buck stops with me, so it was my fault. I did the same thing Sunday night, the sixth day of my Whole30. I guess I need to learn to get to sleep earlier.

Sleep is an important and often overlooked part of any healthy lifestyle. I rarely see it mentioned, yet I know when I get enough sleep because my body sheds weight as I sleep (as does everyone else’s). When I don’t get at least 7 hours, it’s impossible for me to lose any weight. Once, when I was stuck in a plateau, I realized that I wasn’t getting enough sleep. As soon as I changed that and started getting a minimum of 7 hours a night, the weight loss started anew.

One rule I am breaking (again) on this Whole30 is I weigh myself daily. I am doing this to make sure I’m eating enough, as I tend to undereat when I’m on Whole30’s. It’s not that I’m trying to hold or maintain a weight; I’m not. The the contrary, when I don’t lose weight on a Whole30, it’s typically due to one of two reasons: either I didn’t get enough sleep, or I didn’t eat enough and I am putting my body into starvation mode.

I don’t feel hungry today, but I do feel tired. Yesterday, I did have some cravings due to the unhealthy snacking I was doing over the holidays, but I got through them by playing video games. I also did some gunsmithing, and a little organizing in a closet, but the point is that I kept my mind busy to keep from eating. Oh, and coffee helps, too.

If you want to ensure your success in weight loss, get your sleep. Burning the candle at both ends is actually counterproductive to weight loss (which seems counterintuitive to me). Some people need more sleep. For me, the sweet spot is 7.5 hours. If I can guarantee that much sleep each night, along with good eating habits, I can almost guarantee some weight loss.