I love to sleep! It's one of my most favorite things to do, so I honestly don't mind talking on the subject. I'm an expert at it, really. I do it every night, for several hours at a time. I can't wait to spend hours buried in pillows and blankets. I take it seriously and I really go deep. In fact, I don't really have to think about it. That's the beauty of it, it comes naturally. There are no responsibilities. The only place you have to be is between the sheets.
Sleep is the easiest part of losing weight. No exercise required. The only movement are your eyelids closing and your in and out breathing. That feeling of drifting off, letting your body take you to never land and really knowing it's alright to go into that peaceful place.
So many people don't think sleep is important and don't give it the attention it deserves. I say, practice makes perfect!
I just wanted to let you in on some interesting aspects of the state of sleep, so you might reconsider how you rank sleep with your lifestyle. You might want to slow down and examine those bedsheets a little closer. Here are some under cover, lights out activities that take place, that might give you a reason to want 'snore' sleep.
Just think about it for a moment. All mammals have to sleep. Sooner or later unseen physiological forces coax us into lullaby land. Some creatures require as much as twenty hours a day, like felines. Even newborn human babies sleep 18-20 hours a day. With the epidemic of obesity, insomnia and sleep problems nowadays, a definite link between the two is undeniable.
I must admit I lost some sleep because it was so fascinating to me. Let me show you what I found.
Cortisol
By not getting enough shut eye, the hormone cortisol, which is produced in an area inside the adrenal cortex, increases, which stimulates your appetite and I don't even have to tell you what stuffing down lots of carbs does to your waist line. Now, you may start to understand why you crave carbohydrates. As well, cortisol influences glucose levels which then increases insulin, that leads to greater body fat storage. If that wasn't enough to make you stop and sleep, it lowers your leptin levels, which controls your appetite, or I should say it increases your appetite and you crave carbs again. All of this activity takes place unknown to the average human being, who thinks that by staying awake they get more accomplished and enjoy life to the max! 
You are certainly maxing out on life, taking more from your body that will lead to diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, thyroid disfunction, and the list goes on!
This important sleep induced hormone regulates fat and muscle cells. The highest growth hormone values occur during your sleep between ten o'clock at night until two o'clock am. It actually allows more muscle growth and repair when you are sleeping.
Circadian Rhythms
We have a circadian rhythm that is perfectly in tune with night and day. Each cell is affected and communicates to all the other cells, to be awake and functioning in the day time and to sleep at night. This 'cell talk' changes at night. It lowers our body temperature so we sleep better, as well as works on damage control from what we have thrown at it throughout the day.
Ever used the expression, I can't think clearly today or my mind is fuzzy? Was it because you had a bad night's sleep?
Sleep is a natural state of bodily rest and we all need a certain amount. 
If someone thinks they can go on 5 or 6 hours of sleep, needs to reevaluate. Your sleep cycle has several phases , which requires a certain amount of time asleep in order to complete the cycle. Each cycle has to have a certain time to go through each phase and they repeat several times during the night. You body requires 7-9 hours to do what it is supposed to do. Let it! If you burn the candle at both ends, it will burn down and then out!
Metabolism
If we don't get enough asleep time our metabolisms heads south. There was a study done by Bonnet and Arend in 2003 about how our bodies burn fats and calories. The study group that slept 7-8 hours had a much higher metabolism than the group who slept less or didn't have normal sleep patterns.
I read that elephants only sleep about 4 hours a night. Now, what does that tell you about how much sleep you need for weight loss? I would be getting more than 4 hours of sleep, that's for sure!
Caffeine and Chocolate
I would never suggest anyone give up chocolate or caffeine. I don't want a boycott on my blog! I'll just say that specific chemicals in caffeine and chocolate interferes with or binds to the same receptors that adenosine, a neurotransmitter which helps us feel fatigued and sleepy. Some people are more sensitive than others, so you need to judge for yourself. That's all I'm saying on that subject.
Melatonin
Melatonin is specifically manufactured by your body for sleep. It is made when trytophan is converted to serotonin and produces melatonin. If the cortisol
levels are too high, then guess what? The tryptophan, serotonin,and melatonin connections won't happen. Melatonin is so important that it has an effect on leptin, which is an appetite controlling hormone related to fat. Together insulin and melatonin regulate leptin at night while you are sleeping to control your appetite. Otherwise, you would be up in the middle of the night breaking your fast, (that's where the word breakfast comes from), raiding the fridge.
Lights Out For Better Sleep
When I go to bed at night, before I lay me down to sleep, I create my dark dungeon for deep sleep. I use a dark colored sheet for my window. I notice drapes, even with blinds, aren't enough to keep out all the light so my body is in total darkness. I do this because it helps keep the melatonin at levels for a good night's sleep. Even if a body part is exposed to light, it will slow down or stop melatonin production. So, seal up any light from a hallway or night light or clock. Just drape with a cloth. You need total darkness for this to work. My husband calls our bedroom 'the cave'.
Now, I have seen 'experts' on sleep say to do something relaxing, like watching tv. or reading in bed. Humm... not so sure about that. You would be awake, right? The lights would be on. Not such a good idea if you want to sleep. However, a white noise, like a fan or a CD of ocean waves, etc., would be perfect, especially if you live near a busy street or are easily disturbed by bumps in the night. If you get up and go for a walk, then you are stopping melatonin production and your sleep cycle is stopped. If you really can't sleep and it's that bad, then get up. You aren't sleeping anyway, right? It happens to the most seasoned sleeper. Just read on about help for that.
De-stressing Before Lights Out
One cup of baking soda and one cup of epsom salts, with a few drops of lavender oil in a hot bath, soak for twenty minutes.
Reading before going to the bedroom would be fine. Try not to read work related material, so you don't lay in bed and think about it. If you can't sleep and you just are tossing and turning, then think about what it is that is keeping you awake. Talk it through. I pray and ask for God to knock me out, literally, and He does it. Whatever it is, I know thinking about it and not sleeping is a horrible feeling. We all do it.
If insomnia seems more like a part of your sleep cycle,(by the way, there was nothing in the sleep cycles about insomnia being part of sleep phases), then just an occasional intruder, then you might want to talk to someone about it. I mean that. It doesn't have to be a psychologist. Just have someone who will listen and not judge you. I tell my clients the same things I am telling you. Sometimes they don't have anyone who will listen, and that's where I come in. It helps to unload and share. I always explore sleep as part of my coaching arsenal. If you do meditation, that would be great. I think just some simple deep breathing if you aren't into yoga type meditation, is perfect. You just breathe in 3,4 or 5 breathes, and slowly exhale twice as many counts, 6, 8 or 10. This gets the parasympathetic nervous system involved, so you really get the tension out of your body and mind. Do this for about 4 or 5 minutes. Put your hand on your abdomen, and focus on how the breaths come out. Make sure your stomach is involved, not just shallow breaths. I often do this while I am in the hot bath with my baking soda, epsom salt, lavender oil soak. It feels so very, very nice. I feel like melted butter. Just pour me into the bed.
Snacks
I would say a carb, small serving, like a graham cracker or 1/2 peace of whole wheat toast, or something like that. It will raise your blood sugar quickly and then it will make you feel drowsy when the sugar drops. Eat it an hour or so before hitting the hay.
Maybe some yogurt or kefir, too. People say milk is good because it contains tryptophan which is a natural tranquilizer, but it doesn't have much, unless you use fermented dairy like yogurt or kefir. If you like to drink milk, then drink it. It would be better than an alcoholic beverage or pop. Also, the traditional chamomille tea has a chemical flavanoid called Apigenin that relaxes the body.
Exercise
Yes, exercise. Not right before bed, though. Exercise releases those feel good endorphins and helps with being tired at the end of the day. I know for myself, if I do something earlier in the day that is out of norm physically, like a new strength training set up or a different hiking route, something that makes my body move differently, I am more tired and ready for bed. Just think about that and try a different way to exercise.
Well... did I put you to sleep or did I wake you up to the facts that you absolutely need a good nights sleep in order to be successful at weight loss. Learn to love it and welcome it. Instead of gaining weight, you will lose weight with your eyes closed, literally! Sweet dreams and sleep tight.
Please feel free to let me know about your sleep tips and 'tragedies'. 
I am going to start offering a great nutritional supplement to help with sleep. It helps with the melatonin production pathways, so keep watching.
