MensHealth
  • News
  • Health
  • Fitness
  • Sex
  • Nutrition
  • Style
  • Weight Loss
  • Life
  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Motoring
  • Video
MensHealth
  • News
  • Health
  • Fitness
  • Sex
  • Nutrition
  • Style
  • Weight Loss
  • Life
  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Motoring
  • Video
Bjornsson Deadlifted 1,026 pounds On The Elephant Bar To Win 2020 Arnold Classic
Watch 0:10

Bjornsson Deadlifted 1,026 pounds On The Elephant Bar To Win 2020 Arnold Classic

{headline}

{headline}

Nappers Vs Non-Nappers: Here's Who Is Better Off

Nappers Vs Non-Nappers: Here's Who Is Better Off

5 Ways to Sleep Better Every Night

5 Ways to Sleep Better Every Night

How To Beat Jet Lag

How To Beat Jet Lag

John Cena's WWE Pre-Show Ritual Includes 10,000 Calories In Tic Tacs

John Cena's WWE Pre-Show Ritual Includes 10,000 Calories In Tic Tacs

{headline}

{headline}

This Guy Ate 8,000 Calories A Day While Running Across America

This Guy Ate 8,000 Calories A Day While Running Across America

Everything You Need To Know About ASMR

Everything You Need To Know About ASMR

5 Ways To Fix Your Snoring (And Help Your Partner Sleep Better)

5 Ways To Fix Your Snoring (And Help Your Partner Sleep Better)

{headline}

{headline}

Just Four Nights Of Poor Sleep Can Make You Fat, Study Finds

Just Four Nights Of Poor Sleep Can Make You Fat, Study Finds

Here's How The Mountain Eats 17,000 Calories On His 'Cheat Day'

Here's How The Mountain Eats 17,000 Calories On His 'Cheat Day'

How To Fall Asleep According To A Sleep Expert

How To Fall Asleep According To A Sleep Expert

New Study Reveals The Secret To Curbing Cravings For Sweet and Salty Food

New Study Reveals The Secret To Curbing Cravings For Sweet and Salty Food

This Ripped Gym Junkie Is Actually A Competitive Eater

This Ripped Gym Junkie Is Actually A Competitive Eater

Study Says You Should Wear This To Bed For A Better Night's Sleep

Study Says You Should Wear This To Bed For A Better Night's Sleep

3 Daily Habits We Can Take From Cavemen

3 Daily Habits We Can Take From Cavemen

  1. Home
  2. Weight Loss

How Many Calories Do You Burn While You Sleep?

Not surprisingly, a LOT of you are Googling this
  • 21 Sep 2018
How Many Calories Do You Burn While You Sleep?
Getty Images

When you think of how to burn calories, sleep doesn't often come to mind. But your body is still burning them, even when you're sleeping. Studies have shown that your brain uses 20% of your calorie intake per day, and it continues to do this even when you're asleep.

"Burning calories [during sleep] is certainly necessary, because sleep is not a passive activity," says Mary Ellen Wells, director of Neurodiagnostics and Sleep Science at UNC School of Medicine.

Just how many calories you burn, however, is tough to track.

"There is no magic number of how many calories are burned during sleep," says Dr. Wells. "It is highly variable throughout the sleep stages, and highly variable based on the person’s daytime activities and of course genetics."

That said, there is a good baseline to determine how many calories you've burned. Basically, it comes down to a simple formula (yes, you have to do a bit of math here):

You start with the number of calories your body burns at rest (called basal metabolic rate). BMR varies depending on mass, height, and age (you can determine yours with this calculator), but on average, this has been found to be about 45 calories per hour.

"BMR is measured after 8 hours of sleep, in a fasted state, and in neutral temperature conditions, so that one is truly measuring how much energy is being used to simply rest," says Christopher Winter, MD, sleep researcher and owner of Charlotesville Neurology and Sleep Medicine.

During sleep, your body functions at about 95% of what it does at simple rest. So if you can find an average caloric expenditure for an individual at rest (e.g. 45 calories/hour), you can calculate nocturnal calories burned by this equation:

(hourly BMR or calories burned) x .95 (same as 95%) x hours slept

Uc Berkeley College GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

"So 45 x .95 x 8 = 342 during 8 hours of sleep. 45 x 8 = 360 calories burned during 8 hours of rest...5% more than when one is asleep," says Winter.

Your body burns the most calories during deep REM sleep, when your brain is most active because it requires the most oxygen to function. "We cycle through several sleep stages (light to deep and REM) about every 90 minutes and repeat this cycle several times during the night. And likewise, metabolic activity also cycles throughout the night. Our brains are just as active (or even more active) during REM sleep, as they are while we are awake," says Wells. 

If you're truly looking to maximize the amount of calories you burn during sleep, turn the room temperature down: according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, you should aim to sleep in a room that is between 15 and 19 degrees celsius.

"Sleeping in a colder room forces the body to burn more calories to keep you warm," says Winter.

Asleep Jerry GIF by HULU - Find & Share on GIPHY

You should also be sure to get enough sleep, as sleep deprivation can negatively affect your overall metabolism. "The less sleep you get, the slower your body burns calories to preserve energy — which can lead to your metabolism slowing down," says Winter.

And this can lead you to start packing on the pounds: a 2012 study found that men who slept 5 or less hours a night were almost 4 times more likely to be obese. Sleep deprivation has also been found to mess with the hormones leptin and ghrelin, increasing feelings of hunger.

Bottom line: if you keep your bedroom cool and dark, and you get your recommended 7-9 hours of sleep per night, you'll be more likely to burn a few hundred calories while you sleep. But it's a fairly negligible amount, so don't throw out your gym membership just yet.

This article originally appeared on Men's Health US.

  • Health
  • Weight Loss
  • Life

Subscribe Now-

Subscribe Now
Subscribe Now

Subscribe Now-

Subscribe Now
Subscribe Now

Recommended to you

Bjornsson Deadlifted 1,026 pounds On The Elephant Bar To Win 2020 Arnold Classic
Watch 0:10

Bjornsson Deadlifted 1,026 pounds On The Elephant Bar To Win 2020 Arnold Classic

{headline}

{headline}

Nappers Vs Non-Nappers: Here's Who Is Better Off

Nappers Vs Non-Nappers: Here's Who Is Better Off

5 Ways to Sleep Better Every Night

5 Ways to Sleep Better Every Night

How To Beat Jet Lag

How To Beat Jet Lag

John Cena's WWE Pre-Show Ritual Includes 10,000 Calories In Tic Tacs

John Cena's WWE Pre-Show Ritual Includes 10,000 Calories In Tic Tacs

{headline}

{headline}

This Guy Ate 8,000 Calories A Day While Running Across America

This Guy Ate 8,000 Calories A Day While Running Across America

Everything You Need To Know About ASMR

Everything You Need To Know About ASMR

5 Ways To Fix Your Snoring (And Help Your Partner Sleep Better)

5 Ways To Fix Your Snoring (And Help Your Partner Sleep Better)

{headline}

{headline}

Just Four Nights Of Poor Sleep Can Make You Fat, Study Finds

Just Four Nights Of Poor Sleep Can Make You Fat, Study Finds

Here's How The Mountain Eats 17,000 Calories On His 'Cheat Day'

Here's How The Mountain Eats 17,000 Calories On His 'Cheat Day'

How To Fall Asleep According To A Sleep Expert

How To Fall Asleep According To A Sleep Expert

New Study Reveals The Secret To Curbing Cravings For Sweet and Salty Food

New Study Reveals The Secret To Curbing Cravings For Sweet and Salty Food

This Ripped Gym Junkie Is Actually A Competitive Eater

This Ripped Gym Junkie Is Actually A Competitive Eater

Study Says You Should Wear This To Bed For A Better Night's Sleep

Study Says You Should Wear This To Bed For A Better Night's Sleep

3 Daily Habits We Can Take From Cavemen

3 Daily Habits We Can Take From Cavemen

MensHealth
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Chris Hemsworth Hugo Boss
  • Terms
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Chris Hemsworth Hugo Boss
  • Terms
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement

Brands

  • Women's Health

Our Network

  • Paragon Media Pty Ltd
© 2021 Are Media PTY LTD
Get more from Men's Health

Magazine Subscription Offer

Subscribe Now-

Shop This Offer
Subscribe Now