Dr. Ritamarie’s Sleep Commitment Blog Day 5

I am back after a couple of days hiatus.  I got back into the rat race, stayed up until 4AM an was too embarrassed and tired to write.

I am back on track tonight.  It’s jusrt about midnight.

I did eat after 8 as I hadn’t eaten much all day as I went from all to call.  So after my B4 Be Gone group coaching call ended at 9, I ate some stuffed peppers and tomatoes.  It was a simple meal, quick and easy and very yummy and filling.

There’s an exact recipe in the B4 Be Gone recipe guide, but in general,  cut a red bell pepper in half.  Fill with baby arugula or other greens, sprouts, sauerkraut and cashew macadamia nut “cheese”,  It’s the same for tomatoes, only you slice them and layer the ingredients on top.  Sprinkle with kelp powder for a power meal.

I am off to bed now.  Changing this habit is the hardest one ever for me.  Giving up gluten and ice cream was easy by comparison.

In my article Crawl, Walk, Run Fly, I explain the progression.  I am willing to give myself the space to conquer this in baby steps.

Dr. Ritamarie’s Appreciations for Today

1. I appreciate the amazing group that’s connecting for B4 Be Gone
2. I appreciate my brain.  Yes, I     mean it.  It is quick to grasp things and figures things out.
3. I appreciate my appreciation practice, which helped me stay cool calm and collected while my technology failed me during the B4 Be Gone Kickoff call.

My Sleep Commitments for Tomorrow

1.  In  bed, lights out by midnight
2.  No food after 8 PM

What Sleep Commitment are you ready to make?

Write your comments below

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

Optimizing Melatonin for a Sound Night’s Sleep: Dr. Ritamarie’s Sleep and Appreciaton Blog Day 4

We sprung the clocks ahead, which means I got out of bed at 11, not 10 as I thought.  I went to bed at midnight.

That means I slept 10 hours.  Congratulations me.

I was full of energy all day, went for a 3 mile run and got a lot of work done.

But there are so many more things I was planning to do.

One critical piece was not working and it needs to be before tomorrow .  SO I stayed up longer than expected trying to fix things.  Urg….

Today’s Sleep Tibbit

Melatonin is a hormone that promotes deep sleep.

To help you fall asleep more easily, turn down the lights beginning no later than 9PM.  Read or do other activities that don’t require bright light by candle light.  Turn off the TV and computer within an hour of bedtime.  Within two hours of bedtime would be even better.  This will increase melatonin.  Melatonin has been found to protect against estrogen related cancers.

Dr. Ritamarie’s Appreciations for Today

1. I appreciate the lovely spring weather that began on Sunday, after three days of rain to fill the reservoir.
2. I appreciate my amazing team that support me in getting my message of health and healing out to the world.

I appreciate my glucose meter, which has guided me to identify how my bad sleep habits have effected me and helps me to choose the foods and activities that keep me in balance

My Sleep Commitments for Tomorrow:

1. In  bed, lights out by midnight
2. No food after 8 PM

I’ll keep trying til I get it right then increase the challenge

What Sleep Commitment are you ready to make? 

Write your comments below

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

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Burn Fat While you Sleep: Growth Hormone Tidbits for Dr. Ritamarie’s Sleep Commitment Blog Day 3

I am happy to report that after going to bed at almost 2 last night, I did indeed stay there for 8 hours.  I woke up at 8 feeling ready to go, but because I committed to 8 hours, I fell back to sleep until 10.

I am doing much better tonight.

After I finish writing this, I am off to sleep so I can make my adrenal glands happy.  It’s 10:56.

One day I will truly follow the healthy habits to balance sleep and hormones that I teach in my B4 Be Gone program for balancing blood sugar and getting rid of belly fat, brain fog and burnout. Skimping on sleep is a sure fire way to give yourself adrenal fatigue.

It’s not that I don’t believe in the value of sleep, it’s just that, like I said on Day 1, I have an addiction and I am working on breaking it.

I am also realistic and aware that it might take a little time and a few falls off the horse.

SO I plan to offer you, my readers, tidbits of important information about sleep and it’s value to us as humans, and also that I might be reminded and stick to my commitment.

Growth Hormone and Sleep

Growth Hormone is secreted by your pituitary gland and is the most important hormone to regulate the rate of fat burning and lean muscle building.  It’s sometimes called the anti-aging hormone, or the fountain of youth hormone.

Growth hormone levels peak about an hour after you fall asleep.  That means you get maximum lean muscle building and repair of vital body parts in the first couple of hours after you fall asleep.  Assuming an 8 hour sleep cycle, you can have 3-4 growth hormone peaks during the night.  If you go to bed past midnight, you miss the first peak which is the highest.  If you eat before bed, you mis the first growth hormone peak entirely because insulin is in your system.  Avoiding food during the last 3 hours before you fall asleep is one of the primary tenants of my  B4 Be Gone System and can quickly lead to weight loss and waking up more energized in the morning.

Listen in for details about Growth Hormone HERE

My Sleep Commitments for Day 4:

1. In  bed, lights out by midnight
2. No food after 8 PM

What Sleep Commitment are you ready to make? 

Write your comments below

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

Dr. Ritamarie’s Sleep Commitment Blog Day 2

I didn’t do so well today.  The main reason is I had a critical email to send and it took me about 3 hours to write.

I sent myself a test to check it out and to my dismay it was back  almost to where I had started 3 hours before.

I had no success retrieving it so I had to start all over.

Now that it’s sent I am going to bed.

It’s 1:51 which is almost 2 hours later than I planned.

However it’s Saturday, so if I sleep til 10, I will have gotten 8 hours of sleep.

Baby steps.

No time today to include a sleep tidbit, other than to mention a hormone called Growth hormone that is at it’s best in the early hours of sleep.

More on optimizing it tomorrow.

What are you willng to commit to regarding sleep habits? Comment Below.

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

Sleep as a Vehicle for Success: My 30 day Sleep Commitment: Day 1

I have a confession to make. I am an addict.

My drug of choice is adrenaline, and the rush of “getting things done”. And to get my fix, I stay up later than I should. I forgo sleep far too often — and that’s not good.

I have really good habits other wise

• My diet is pristine – no sugar, no processed foods, only fresh whole foods.
• I am committed to exercise. In fact I’ll admit it publicly – I love to sweat. I love to feel my muscles burn.
• I have a really simple stress transformation process and I rarely lose my cool any more. I’ve given up worry about the uncertainty the future holds.

But sleep? No matter how much I research and learn about the benefits of sleep and the dangers of lack of sleep, I persist in believing that it’s okay, because I “do everything else right”.

I kid myself into thinking it’s not hurting me.

I am fit; I am energetic; I am focused and strong.

Yet in spite of the fact that externally everything seems to be fine with me, I know there are things inside that are not.

 My Bad Sleep Habits Put Me at Risk

I discovered an imbalance last fall, in the process of running my B4 Be Gone program, which is all about consistently making the diet and lifestyle choices that balance blood sugar and hormones, and result in increased energy, less fat around the middle and crystal clear mental functioning. I bought a brand new glucose meter so I could make a video and teach my class how to test their own blood sugar.

I tested myself and discovered that after eating fruit, my blood sugar readings rise into the diabetic range.

You can only imagine my shock, my horror and my dismay!

How could that be? I eat a pristine diet, I exercise and I manage stress. So what if I don’t sleep much?

“3 out of 4 ain’t bad.”

So I started to research sleep, and what I discovered was shocking!

Even one night of poor sleep can contribute to insulin resistance in a HEALTHY person!

Yikes. No wonder my sugars shot up to 167 after eating a bowl of fresh pineapple.

So I decided to sleep.

My goal was to go to bed by midnight most nights. That may not seem early to you, but for me it was at least 4 hours earlier than I was used to going to bed.

But I couldn’t start it the next day or the next because “I had too much to do.”

About a week later I tried the going to bed early thing.

And the next day I felt awful.

Tried it again the next day and same thing.

Next night I stayed up until 4AM and felt great the next day.

And then it hit me.

Adrenal Fatigue and Sleep

My adrenals are on the brink of disaster.

I had to do something.

Finally, I started going to bed by midnight regularly and was really enjoying it. That lasted a few weeks. Until I got so behind on a project that I “had to” stay up late and the addiction started all over again.

Perhaps you’ve had a similar experience with food?

My bad habits have returned, and I’ve been consistently going to bed between 4 and 6 and getting up between 8 and 9 every day for a couple of weeks now.

And although I feel great most of the day, I know it’s wearing me out.

I was called on it on a phone call today and in front of 50 people, I recommitted to myself.

I will put myself and my health first and get the sleep I need, even if it means falling behind on projects.

I also committed to keeping a sleep blog for 30 days. It takes about 21 days ot create a habit, so I figure 30 days gives me 9 for good measure.

If you too have a bad sleep habit to break, or any other habit to break for that matter, join me for a 30 day adventure.

I’ll post my bedtime daily along with a juicy nouget or two for good measure.

It’s 11:03 and as soon as I hit send I am off to bed.

Will you join me for a 30 Day Sleep Commitment?

What are you willing to commit to?  Comment Below.

Love,Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie