Lose Weight While You Sleep

I saw this on The Mike & Juliet Morning Show. Apparantly I have been trying to lose weight the wrong way. This is from glamour.com -


Lose Weight While You Sleep!
Don’t believe it? We didn’t either, until we saw our testers lose up to 15 pounds just by getting more sleep every night. It’ll work for you, too—turn the page to get started!
February 2, 2009
by Jenny Stamos Kovacs

When a doctor recently swore to a Glamour editor that he could help women lose weight just by making over their sleep habits, we were dubious. Research has linked lack of sleep to weight gain, but certainly weight loss requires hard work, diet and exercise—right? We decided to put it to the test. Sleep and medical experts Michael Breus, Ph.D., and Steven Lamm, M.D., created a plan for seven Glamour readers of varying weights. The women’s one simple goal: Get at least seven and a half hours of sleep a night. That’s it. In fact, we asked the women not to make any significant diet or exercise changes—we wanted to see if sleep and sleep alone would make a difference. Did it ever! Week by week, we were amazed by the results the women reported. At the end of 10 weeks, Réal Hamilton-Romeo, 30, dropped seven pounds; Kate Foley, 25, lost six; Lisa Braverman, 34, took off nine pounds; Brelyn Johnson, 28, lost 10 pounds; Paige Barr, 35, shed 12; and—are you ready for this?—Ehmonie Hainey, 33, lost 15.
We don’t want to give the impression that this makeover was effortless; finding time for more sleep does take work. In fact, one of our testers, Natasha Crawford, 33, wasn’t able to stick to the plan for more than two or three nights a week because of a crazy job schedule. But even though she didn’t lose weight, by the end of the plan she had still lost a total of two and a half inches off her waist, bust and hips.
At least two dozen studies have documented that people tend to weigh more if they sleep less, says Sanjay Patel, M.D., a researcher at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. In a 16-year study of almost 70,000 women, Dr. Patel and his colleagues found that those who slept five hours or less a night were 30 percent more likely to gain 30-plus pounds than those who got more rest. In fact, some experts believe lack of sleep is one reason for America’s obesity epidemic. The average woman gets six hours and 40 minutes of sleep most nights, according to the National Sleep Foundation—much less than the seven-and-a-half-hour minimum our experts say healthy women need.
What exactly is the sleep-weight connection? Science shows that sleep deprivation wreaks havoc on hormones that control appetite, cravings and the metabolism of fat. See how these findings translate to your body.
Whether you notice it or not, you probably eat more, sometimes much more, when you’re tired. Proof: Researchers at the University of Chicago allowed people to sleep five and half hours one night and eight and a half on another, then measured how many free snacks the participants downed the next day. They ate an average of 221 calories more when sleepy—an amount that could translate into almost a pound of fat gained after two weeks! “When women are deprived of sleep, they have an increase in ghrelin—what we call the ‘go’ hormone—because it makes you want to go eat more,” says Breus, clinical director of the sleep division at Southwest Spine & Sport in Scottsdale, Arizona, and author of Beauty Sleep. “They also have a drop in leptin, the ‘stop’ hormone that tells you to stop when you’re full.” Not only do you want more food when you’re sleep-deprived, you also want junkier food: Your body craves simple carbohydrates (chocolate, pastries, candy) that it can break down fast for quick energy, explains Breus. “I used to eat a ton of sugar every afternoon,” Glamour volunteer Johnson says. “But now I can have just a small piece and feel satisfied.
Even before seeing the number on the scale drop much, our testers noticed other changes. Three weeks into the plan, Braverman easily put on a pair of pants that used to be too snug. And at the two-month mark, Hamilton-Romeo told us, “My stomach is getting flatter and my love handles smaller.” By the end of 10 weeks, she’d shaved almost five inches off her waist, hips, bust and thighs—even though, at 5’4” and 133 pounds, she wasn’t overweight to begin with. The explanation? “During deep sleep, your brain secretes a large amount of growth hormone, which tells your body how to break down fat for fuel,” explains Breus. “Deprive your body of deep sleep, and when extra calories get stored as fat, there isn’t enough growth hormone to break it down. So your body takes a shortcut and packs it away in your butt, thighs, belly—wherever you tend to put on weight.” Says Braverman, who lost a total of two and a half inches: “The changes in my body fascinate me, because I really haven’t changed anything except my sleep habits. I eat the way I always have and exercise the same amount, maybe even less because my schedule is tighter now that I have to go to bed earlier!”
Perhaps not surprisingly, all of the women on our plan said they felt much less tired. And though we told them not to make any conscious exercise changes, a couple of them couldn’t help themselves. “I’ve always worked out,” Barr told us, “but I’m spending more time at the gym because I finally have the energy!” Says Foley, “I used to have days when I’d want to go home and just veg out on the couch; now I’d rather run or do something physical—a complete revolution in my lifestyle.” Breus wasn’t surprised. “Your perception of how hard or easy exercise is to do is directly affected by how sleep-deprived you are,” he says. Ready to get some of these same benefits?

It's the most wonderful time of the year

No, I'm not talking about Christmas. Although I really love Christmas. I'm talking about my birthday month! March is the most wonderful time of the year. It is a time to celebrate my life with my family and friends - and in my case I celebrate it all month long!


One of the biggest perks of your birthday month is all of the freebies you get. (See the above picture. YUM! )Derric and I went to Buffalo Wild Wings last night as it was Tuesday and that is our regular dinner spot. I got an email from B-dubs giving me a free dessert for my birthday. While there is a choice of cheesecake and apple pie, I cannot pass up the chocolate fudge cake. It is seriously to die for. This cake is so worth cheating on my diet for.

Besides Buffalo Wild Wings I've also received freebies for: Houlihans, Qdoba, Baskin-Robins, and Cold Stone Creamery. I'm sure there are tons more places that offer free meals, etc. on your birthday but these are ones that are so worth having a birthday for. If you are interested in the freebies check this out.

Fat Tuesday 2009

Me and Derric - look @ all the beads!

These were cool

Kewl LED lights

The Shriners & little cars

Why is the studio sign on a port-a-potty?

I want my MTV...to actually play music videos!

We were 'beggin' for some beads!

Show me the beads!!! So we didn't make it down to Soulard for this year's Mardi Gras, but we did the next best thing. We went to the Fat Tuesday Parade downtown. They changed up the route this year. It began at Lumiere Place at Washington and Broadway and continued down Broadway to Market.

Derric and I parked at the Casino and walked up a couple blocks. I brought along my beverage of choice and we parked ourselves right at the beginning of the parade. What a great idea that was! We got tons of beads! We also saw the drunken craziness that goes along with the festivites. No - not me - I can handle my liquor. There were drunken girls doin what D calls the "drunken switch". Which reminds me...D why were you lookin at their switch ?!?! Hahaha. It was short but sweet - just 30 minutes - so we walked around Laclede's Landing and got a few pictures.

What Goes Around

I was going to blog about my biggest pet peeve: inconsiderate drivers, but my experience yesterday has me changing topics. I truly believe in Karma. It is the result of energy that puts things into action. What goes around comes around - and if it doesn't, then wait a minute because it will.

I was on my way home after work yesterday, heading down Oakland Avenue towards Kingshighway. There was a big red Chevy Silverado in the lane next to me. As I approached the light at Kingshighway this truck proceded to swerve over and cut me off. What a jerk! I know that there are only one of two ways you can go but why do you gotta be rude?!? Yeah I'm talkin to you Mr. OYA 777 - MO license plate!!! I ignored him after I released my anger by yelling at him. He obviously didn't care about what he did.

Once the light turned green we were off. He was driving how I thought he would. On the bumper of the car in front of him. I got over to the right to exit onto 64/40 and surprise Mr. Truck did too. We had to stop and yield for the oncoming traffic from Kingshighway. Mr. Truck kept pulling up and up - driving like a jerk. I told him he will get what's coming to him...just be patient. All of a sudden I heard a crunching sound. Mr. Truck had ran into the back of the minivan in front of him. I didn't see it, but I heard it, and then saw them both pull over off to the side of the entrance ramp. How's that for Karma?

I've experienced Karma many times over - some good and some not so good. Another great experience sticks out in my mind. Several years ago I decided to try the online dating thing. Many of my friends had and they married their online romances. When I set up my profile I needed help. I had no idea what I was doing. My friend helped me and after awhile I added some more to it. I know it's cheesy, but my tag line was "The Greatest Fan of Your Life". I really like the artist Edwin McCain and that was a line from his song. Well many people know that I met my fiance online. He proposed to me on Christmas morning. As we were driving to my mom's house we were listening to the radio and that Edwin McCain song came on. I started bawling. Derric looked at me like I was crazy. I asked him if he knew the song and what it meant to me. He did. It was all I needed to know that things were the way they were supposed to be. This is the man that I'm supposed to spend the rest of my life with. What a great feeling! *smile*

New Table

Derric and I went to Value City Furniture this weekend to check out a table they had. Derric worked there pre-Melissa days and has a friend that still works there. D told him we were on the lookout for a new table and he said they had a few in the back clearance section. At first Derric was eyeing this one. I kinda liked it since it matches the leather chairs we bought from there awhile back. But it is a pub height table which means it's taller; therefore we would have to get new chairs or use the cherry stools we bought for the island we had out in St. Peters.

I was looking around a bit more and this table caught my eye. It too was on clearance. I really liked the dark granite because it matches our counter tops. I liked the color too cause the stools match it. It was really heavy to move, but we unfolded it to see the leaf. Unfortunately a bracket was broken (this is why it was clearanced out). We were able to ask for more of a discount and got a really good deal.

Romance

Derric completely overdid himself this year. We agreed to do dinner and a movie at home this year for Valentine's Day. I told him that the only thing I wanted was some chocolate covered strawberries. (YUM!) Late Friday afternoon these flowers were delivered to me. Awww! That was so very sweet of him. When I got home he had bought my strawberries and steaks from Whole Foods. We had a few strawberries that night just because. We both had to work Saturday. When I got home I cleaned the house and wrapped his gift & card. He was running late because he had sold a car (yay!) so I entertained myself with reading a book. I am obsessed now with the Twilight series. When he got home he handed me a huge heart filled with turtles and a card. I told him I wasn't expecting anything else. He went all out this year! We made dinner together and had a lovely evening at home - just the two of us.

Catching Up

It has been a good 2 months since I blogged. As a good friend said "sometimes life just gets in the way." That is so true. A lot has happened in the last 2 months. This is my attempt at catching up.

I wanted to blog about the year in review. 2008 was an eventful year. Many of my friends had babies. The first one born is already a year old. So hard to believe! Time sure does fly when you least expect it to. Having all these babies around does start to give one baby fever. Derric has said he wanted one awhile ago. Actually he said he wanted 11 - his defensive line. I have talked him down ( I think). I'm trying to take one thing at a time right now.

After living in the too cramped piece-of-crap apartment that made me sick, we were fortunate to find the home of our dreams. We found a loft downtown on Washington Avenue. It's a 2 bedroom, 2 bath on the top floor. We face north-west towards Delmar & Grand Avenue. We moved in the first weekend of August. It took awhile but we finally settled in. We still have quite a few things in storage at my mom's house, but one resolution is to clear that out. We've done a few projects including building a gallery down the hall and painting. It's been over 6 months now. Where does the time go?

My youngest brother, Greg, came home on leave for 30 days over the holiday. He re-enlisted in the Marines and was given quite a nice leave. I was fortunate enough to have a week and a half paid vacation from work. I got to spend time with my family and relax from work.

Christmas day my life changed. My boyfriend of 3.5 years asked me to marry him! Of course I said yes. I had to wait 10 days for my ring to be sized. Those were the longest 10 days of my life! Now my free time is spent looking for venues, caterers, and everything related to weddings. I've been to 2 bridal shows and learned a lot. On my most recent trip to the Container Store I purchased a bag to store my wedding loot, magazines, samples, etc. It even matches the color & pattern that I want for the wedding.

In January we had another party. The after holiday destressor party. It was a fun time with lots of great friends & family, great food & drinks too. This one didn't run as late as previous parties but it was after the 3am timeframe. We know how to have a good time.

My goal this year is to get organized. I want to get organized financially, householdly (is that a word?), and physically. I have read a lot about getting your finances organized. I think the idea is simple, but actually following through is the tough part. I am paying my student loans, credit cards, utilities, and rent while trying to save up to have a spectacular wedding. That is impossible for me to do right now. I am determined though to make all this work.

Derric bought a great magazine on how to organize your home top to bottom in 12 months. You take a different room each month and totally organize it. I haven't made much progress since it's already February and I haven't organized a room yet. I lost the magazine. That should tell you how organized I am! Geez!

Every year I make a resolution to get in shape (and who doesn't?) This year I'm going at it again. After Christmas I stepped on the scale and realized that I weighed more than I ever have in my life. I was not happy with myself over that. Since then I have lost 10 pounds by eating healthier and working out. Derric mentioned wanting to do the low carb diet. We decided to do that together. I did it when I was in grad school and lost over 40 pounds. It was at that time I met Derric and became 'fat and happy'. But now I'm serious about it again. I forgot how hard it is initially to get in the low carb mindset. I am doing better than Derric, but it is still difficult.

I also wish to be more active in posting blogs, taking pictures, and documenting life.

Private Practice

Private Practice is my must see tv during the week. For those who have never heard of it, it is a spin off from Grey's Anatomy. I was disappointed that TIVO did not record it for me. I thought I had set up a season pass. The three thumbs up were even marked. I was able to catch the last 5 minutes of it tonight. Those last 5 minutes made me ball like a baby. There was a newly deliverd baby that was handed to the father who was in the waiting room. The mother did not live and after reading the info about the episode she had been in a coma. The father wanted to see his wife one last time with baby in tow. He held the baby next to his deceased wife and said something like "Look at what we made". I just lost it! I hope to catch the episode online when I get a chance.

On a much happier note I got an early Christmas present tonight! Derric got me a Sirius/XM radio system for my car. Not only can I listen to it in my car (blasting the 90s on 9) but I can bring it in and plug into the stereo or it's own docking station with speakers. Merry Christmas to Me!

Happy Thanksturkeyparadeball Day!

Derric and I had our family and friends over to our place this afternoon. It took some hard work and a lot of preparation, but it turned out wonderful! We started the day off early to get the turkey cooking and preping the sides. We watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and listened to music all morning. All the hard work paid off. We received so may compliments on the food. We ended up having 16 guests (including ourselves) so we had to be crafty with the seating arrangements. I set up a card table and brought in the patio table. We also used the coffee table in addition to our kitchen table.

We went shopping last week at SNS to take advantage of the $10 off $50 or more. I had to make a quick Schnucks stop last night after work. Big Mistake! They had a guy directing traffic to available parking spots! Luckily it was a quick trip and I was in and out in less than 10 minutes. We had such good food. I'm still stuffed now. We had turkey, ham, dressing (2 kinds), mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberries (2 kinds), macaroni and cheese, broccoli rice caserole, sweet potato souffle, stuffed mushrooms, rolls, pumpkin bars, pumpkin dip, pumpkin pie, and apple pie. I also made a signature drink that consisted of gingerbread syrup, sprite zero, and captain morgan rum. 

We drove our friend home after the festivities and decided to drive by some of the big stores to see if anyone was getting ready for the Black Friday sales. Keep in mind this was 6:30 pm. We drove by Circuit City first. We didn't see anyone at first but we saw a guy once we drove by. He had a sleeping bag, backback, and a small tv. Wow! I couldn't believe it. The next stop was Best Buy. There were not 1, not 2, but 3 tents pitched by the door. There were also approximately 15-20 chairs set up there as well. Everyone had their Post Dispatch checking out the ads for tomorrow morning. When we drove by again to leave the lot there was a guy lighting a heater that was attached to a propane tank. Flames were flying out. Damn! Our final drive by was Walmart. We saw people walking around the store but realized they were employees that were preparing for tomorrow's festivities. People were lined up around the side of the building. I saw at least 1 tent and police were out too. I guess some shoppers have the tendency to get out of hand. Derric and I decided that we are going to start a tradition of driving around Thanksgiving night and laugh at all of the crazy people who are camping out over night at the stores.

I do not partake in the early morning craziness of Black Friday. I also do not shop the stores that stay open on Thanksgiving - Kmart & Garden Ridge to name a couple. I've had to work retail on holidays and believe there is no reason for places to be open on holidays with the exception of gas stations and the occasional Walgreens. People should be with their families on holidays, not working retail!

I have so many blessings to be thankful for. I'm thankful for my family - I wouldn't be here or the person I am today without them. I'm thankful for my friends who mean so much to me. I'm thankful for my job which I have been at for the past 3 years. I'm thankful for having a (very trendy) roof over my head especially since the way the economy is. I'm thankful for my car which gets me where I need to be despite all of the problems it encounters. Finally I'm thankful to have someone in my life that loves me as much as I love him - my rock, my partner in crime, the love of my life, and my best friend. 

What a relief

The gas prices have been falling continuously for awhile now. It is like a bloodpressure cuff that was pumped up until we could hardly take it anymore. Now it's being slowly released and the prices are falling. I saw gas for $1.49 tonight when I was coming home from having dinner with my mom in Illinios. The Mobile behind our loft has the cheapest gas around. We can almost see the sign for gas prices. As soon as the last of the leaves fall off the tree we'll be able to see it. Back in Illinois gas is $1.79 which is cheaper but not as good of a deal as it is over here. I hope it continues to go down, but I know what goes down must eventually come up.

The Block is Back!

This is the boyband back then...


And here they are now, 20 years later...
Still lookin mighty fine after all those years....
I heard that The New Kids on the Block aka NKOTB were coming to St. Louis on 11/10/08. When my friend asked if I wanted to go to the concert I immediately said yes! We thought we would fashion up some Tshirts but later decided that it would be fun to put together our own outfits. 

I was a huge NKTOB fan back in the day. I had the cassette tapes, tshirts, hats, posters, magazines, puzzles, and of course the buttons! Unfortunately I didn't keep any of it. Lucky for me I was able to find bits and pieces everywhere cause the 90s are coming back in style. I don't know why it is coming back, but it is. 
Nina, Rachel, and me ready to go.
I still have my old crimper from back in the day. My friend Rachel not only had hers too, but it was the exact same brand and color of mine. How weird! I have so much hair that it took me about 1.5 hours to crimp it. 
Me, Nina, Rachel, & Jessica ready to ROCK with NKOTB!
Poor baby Darin was attacked by the NKOTB fans before they rushed out the door to the concert.
Darin with his NKOTB obsessed mommy and aunt.

The concert absolutely ROCKED! I was not sure what to expect. But they were GOOD. They started with a new song. They mixed the old with the new. I had bought the Greatest Hits cd & dvd combo from Walmart to get ready for the concert. Derric was glad when the concert finally came so he didn't have to listen to NKOTB in the car. They sang a couple of songs I vaguely remembered, but I knew the chorus. Then they sang the classics - Step by Step, Cover Girl, Hangin Tough, Please Don't Go Girl, The Right Stuff. My Favorite Girl, and Tonight. 

 

The RFT is a local paper in St. Louis. They were down at ScottTrade Center taking pics and reporting on the concert. Check out the link to our pic! Also there is a blog from the reporter. She gives a great play by play of the concert. I had so much fun and screamed at the top of my lungs most of the night -  so much that my throat was sore for a couple of days afterwards. But it was SO worth it! The New Kids had Natashia Beddingfield open for them, with Lady Gaja opening for her. Once the Kids began playing, they sang for over 2 hours. Oh what a night!

Being thoughtful

I have to give a shout out to the love of my life, Derric. He can be so sweet when I least expect it. I wanted to take a bath and relax last night. I had turned on the water and went to get ready. When I returned to the bathroom he had the jets going with Calgon in the tub (take me away) and candles burning. I was so happy that my boyfriend was so thoughtful. As I began to relax he came in with a glass of wine for me. Awww...

I'm not ready yet

I'm so not ready for Christmas. Years ago I worked retail at Garbage Ridge when I was in undergrad. We received Halloween/Fall decorations in June and Christmas decorations in July. I always hated that. Nobody buys that stuff that early and those who do are just crazy!

This past Friday evening I met a friend and her two kids at MidRivers Mall for dinner and shopping. I was informed that at 6:45 the man in red would be parading around the mall. Sure enough after we finished eating we heard the boom, boom, boom of a drum followed by the out of tune sound of musicians honking away at Jingle Bells. It was a mini-parade complete with candy canes, a marching band, and the man of the night.....Santa. Friday was opening night for pictures with Santa. I couldn't believe the line of people that were there to get their children photographed. We waved and smiled at Santa and reminded the kids that Santa was watching so they had better be on their best behavior.

Just last night I saw the Hershey's commercial with the kisses as bells playing "We wish you a Merry Christmas". I love these commercials but come on! Why do we have to start the season so early? After Thanksgiving I am all ready for the Christmas season. I go every year to the Santa Claus parade in Belleville on the day after Thanksgiving. Early to middle November is too soon for Christmas! 

I Barracked the Vote!

This year was the first year I am truly interested in politics. I have seen what the economy is doing to those I work with and what it's doing to me personally. That is why I registered to vote this year and I joined millions of others in doing what others have worked so hard to do. I voted!


Derric and I woke up about 6am and went to our polling place. Lucky for us it was just a couple blocks away. It was chilly but I was excited to be there. We waited over 2 hours in line just to get to the door. Once we got there another long line was inside. This place was so disorganized but by observing I was able to figure out where to go and what to do. I made sure I got my sticker so that I could wear it proudly.

We decided to have a last minute party. Why do you ask? Because we are always up for a party! And this is the most important election in history. So we threw together some fun. I made beer cheese dip, hot wing dip, spicy nacho dip, pigs in a blanket, brownies, and we had a giant sandwitch. We had decorations, red and blue cups, as well as political themed games: pin the tail/trunk on the donkey/elephant, USA trivia, casting ballots, and of course color the state as the results come in. We were going to make a drinking game out of key phrases that were being said, but everyone seemed to be having fun drinking anyway. We welcomed everyone regardless of party affiliation. We had such a great time! I was disappointed that Missouri's results were not posted last night and they still are not ready this morning!

I Love Surprises!

This weekend I went for a short road trip to Tulsa, OK to surprise my best friend, Amy. On Saturday she was hosting her 2nd annual Halloween Party. I thought it would be so much fun to surprise her. Boy was she surprised!

I had to work on Saturday until 3pm. I packed my bag Friday night and filled up the gas tank Saturday morning. I hit the road as soon as my last client left. I was so excited to get there that the 6 hour trip didn't quite seem that long. The drive was a straight shot down Interstate 44 & the Turnpike. The fall colors were so amazing! I loved having some me-time to myself. Gas out west was cheaper. I filled up my car for $2.55 in STL and then $2.08 just past Joplin. Coming home I saw it for $1.99. I like that trend!

I had planned on stopping at the QT down the street from Amy's house to finish my costume. I braided my hair at work that day with pipe cleaners. I was Pippi Longstockings. I wore jeans & a tshirt and striped socks. Well there was tons of road construction on the street and I couldn't figure out how to get over to the gas station. I kept going on until I reached Amy's house. I did my makeup and freckles in the dark in my car.

I rang the doorbell and one of Amy's friends answered the door. I told him to go get Amy and have her answer the door. She came over and screamed at the top of her lungs! She couldn't believe I was there. We had such a blast! There was tons of food and some type of punch concoction that I kept drinking. I had to catch up with everyone else.

We requested songs to be downloaded and sang and danced the night away. We finally wrapped up somewhere around 3am. I passed out from the punch and all of the sudafed I was taking for my cold. The next morning Brian, Amy, and I had hangovers so we went out to a local breakfast place similar to Dennys. After lounging around the house for a few hours I was feeling good and ready to hit the road. I left around 4 for my trip back east. Going home took longer (not really but it felt like it). It was really windy too which made it difficult to drive and my car started doing silly things like the turn signal kept clicking like it was on and the window didn't want to work. It was such a fun quick weekend! Too bad I had to work Monday.