When you get zero sleep...

I'm entering a very very busy period with assignments etc at the moment and I know it's terrible but some nights I am literally up all night finishing them off, not going to bed at all!! I was just wondering...how do I count cals when this happens?

I obviously get hungry because I am awake longer, so I choose healthy snacks to keep me going, like fruit....but would my cals burnt be more, less, or the same as if I had gone to sleep? Just because I have heard lack of sleep is not good for weight loss...

Zero sleep?? you must be getting some sleep?

I don't know, but I would imagine that you would need to eat a few small meals or snacks during the night. Even lack of sleep aside, I'm always hungrier when I'm in "study mode" - just because it's not physical strain doesn't mean it doesn't require extra energy. I think it's better to just eat at maintenance when exams are looming.

I totally understand and sympathise (I'm going through college finals at the moment) but I really would try and squeeze in as close to eight hours sleep a night as possible. Even apart from the calorie-counting issue, your assignments etc. will be worth better grades if they weren't written by a sleep-deprived zombie!

Hope that was some help - best of luck with the assignments anyway! x

when you don't sleep your metabolism tends to slow down....i wouldn't worry too much about it....just try to eat as healthy as possible and when you are able to get back to a regular sleep pattern click back to your regular routine

I totally understand about the zero hours of sleep.  This is the only semester where I haven't skipped sleep in a regular basis.  Usually, I go sleepless (literally 0 hours) at least once a week.  Moreover, people shouldn't jump to conclusions that this means a student isn't planning her time well.  If you're taking challenging courses, sometimes all-nighters are practically unavoidable.  Of course, that's debatable (I could technically get 8 hours of sleep a week and just live in the library).

I just tried messing around on the account settings and changing my Average Hours Slept from 7 to 1 (it won't let me enter 0 XD).  For some reason, my estimated calories burned didn't change.  Funny..... what's the point of that average then?

If you look up activities, my account says that 1 hour of sleep burns 60 calories, whereas 'Sitting - Studying' burns like 120.  So, if you're used to 7 hours, maybe you burn an extra 420?  Of course, you should factor in slowed down metabolism, but there's a sure bet that you're burning some extra calories.  I would say 420 would be an upper limit.

The numbers don't quite make sense, though.  If I were to study for every waking moment, that means I would burn 2440 calories!  Since studying a lot was the reason I gained weight in the first place, this doesn't seem plausible.  'Sitting - Light office work' burns 101 calories, so an all-nighter might burn at most 280 instead.

Confusing.....

Original Post by risza:

Zero sleep?? you must be getting some sleep?

You'd be surprised how long you can go without sleep when you have too.  :P

Original Post by frokusblakah:

Original Post by risza:

Zero sleep?? you must be getting some sleep?

You'd be surprised how long you can go without sleep when you have too.  :P

Haha yeah I don't mean zero sleep EVER but periods of 24+ hours without any. Tonight is shaping up to be one of those nights! Thanks for your replies everyone, nice to know I'm not the only one!! Guess I will just eat a few healthy snacks throughout the night :)

Sleep is critical. Read this article. Weight is just one thing sleep effects. Heart disease, diabetes and other conditions can be caused by lack of sleep. Not just one night but if the problem is chronic.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20090515/lose- weight-with-a-good-nights-sleep?ecd=wnl_day_0 51809&em=bGl0dGxlc2hlbGx5QGdtYWlsLmNvbQ==

Original Post by littleshellys:

Sleep is critical. Read this article. Weight is just one thing sleep effects. Heart disease, diabetes and other conditions can be caused by lack of sleep. Not just one night but if the problem is chronic.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20090515/lose- weight-with-a-good-nights-sleep?ecd=wnl_day_0 51809&em=bGl0dGxlc2hlbGx5QGdtYWlsLmNvbQ==

Don't get me wrong, I know that sleep is very important. But, sometimes, no matter how hard you try, life gets in the way of you looking after yourself the best you can! These things happen...just want to know the best way to deal with it when it does :)

I feel you. Last week was my week from hell with assignments and no sleep and waaaaaay too much sugar free red bull. I just went ahead and switched over at midnight, just the way CC does.

I'll warn you that despite eating carefully, that week of allnighters and tons of red bull meant that I ended the week up .2 of a pound on weight.

Keep yourself hydrated, eat as well as you can (stuff that gives you longer-lasting energy helps), and know that this too shall pass. It's all well and good to warn that not sleeping is unhealthy. I don't think there's a single uni student who thinks it feels great, but finals and final projects are a fact of life, so we'll just keep on keepin' on.