Ever since I started Menopause, it has sometimes been hard for me to get a good night’s rest consistently. In between experiencing night sweats and overall restlessness at random times throughout the night, I can hardly get comfortable enough to fall back asleep. But, intermittent fasting is one of the techniques that has improved my sleep quality immensely. You may not realize it, but how you eat and when and how you fast impact your sleep quality greatly.

Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent Fasting has become very popular in the fitness world lately. Intermittent Fasting – also known as time-restricted feeding – benefits range from weight loss, improved health, body fat loss, simplified meals, boosted energy, and reduced inflammation in the gut lining. In my post, you can find out more about the 5 amazing ways intermittent fasting helps you in midlife.

Studies also show that intermittent fasting aids with cellular repair, which is what happens when we sleep. That’s what we’re interested in today! But, keep in mind that fasting is not for everyone, pregnant women, children, or those at risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) are among those who should consult with a doctor first.

What Eating Habits Disturb Your Sleep?

1. Eating a large meal can affect how long it takes you to fall asleep, how well you sleep, and how much REM or deep sleep you get. After consuming a large meal late at night, you’ve now forced your body to digest and try to go to sleep at the same time.

2. Eating too close to bedtime. You already know that you “technically” should wait 3 hours after a high carbohydrate meal in the form of a bowl of pasta until you sleep. If you eat your dinner at 7 pm, then you should wait until 10 pm for the body to finish digesting your dinner so that you can get a good night’s sleep.

3. Late-night snacking can also interrupt your sleep pattern and digestive pattern. Instead of your body resting and your gut healing, it now has to digest, and that disrupts sleep.

How Intermittent Fasting Can Help You Sleep Better

Does Sleep Count As Fasting?

Yes, it does, and it’s the easiest way to start intermittent fasting for a beginner. Your body fasts naturally when you sleep. Take advantage of your internal clock and align your fasting window with it.

The Science of Fasting and Sleep

Studies show that restricting eating from an 8 or 12-hour window can help us maintain healthy body weight and avoid high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and diabetes—regardless of the nutrient breakdown of the food we eat within those windows.

Intermittent Fasting can also strengthen our 24-hour circadian clocks, which are dominating our sleep. If the circadian clock is more synchronized it’s easier to fall asleep, stay asleep, and wake up feeling refreshed on a regular basis.

As we age, we want to feel and function at our best, and a combination of consistently good sleep helps to protect our health over time.

What is a Circadian Rhythm?

The natural cycle of physical, mental, and behavioral changes that the body goes through in a 24-hour cycle. Circadian rhythms are mostly affected by light and darkness and are controlled by a small area in the middle of the brain. Examples would be the sleep-wake cycle and menstrual cycle.

What Happens to Your Sleep When You Fast Regularly 

When you fast regularly, your body adapts to your new schedule, and your circadian rhythm becomes more pronounced (in a good way). Intermittent fasting causes insulin levels to drop and melatonin levels to rise. Melatonin is your body’s primary sleep-promoting hormone and can help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.

Fasting also promotes the release of human growth hormone, one of your body’s vital resources for repairs while you’re asleep.

Strategies That Help Improve Your Sleep While Fasting

Listen to your body.

Everyone is different, and our bodies react differently in all aspects of life. We all have different fasting cycles and eating plans that fit our lifestyles best. Restricted feeding after sundown may help you sleep better, while that fasting window may not work for others.

We also need to tweak our bedtimes and wake times to find our optimal sleep window. Based on what you experience, you’ll have to fine-tune your eating and fasting routine.

Stay hydrated.

It’s important to drink plenty of non-caffeine or non-sugary liquids when fasting during the day to curb your hunger because being properly hydrated assists in mental focus, energy levels and promotes better sleep. Mild dehydration can cause restless sleep, dehydrating your mouth and nasal passages. You also might experience leg cramps because of a lack of proper hydration.

The solution is not to guzzle down an entire bottle of water either, as this will set you up for nighttime trips to the bathroom, disrupting your sleep. Instead, make sure that you stay hydrated properly during the day with at least 11-15 glasses of water. Experiment with what works for you. I recommend not to drink too close to your bedtime.

Keep track of your meals.

What we eat before dinner can make a huge impact on how we sleep – just think of how lethargic you get after eating the Thanksgiving turkey (which contains melatonin). For some people, tart cherry juice works wonders for restful nights, while others found that eating salmon 3x per week promoted better sleep. Start tracking what you eat for dinner and how you sleep for two weeks and see if there is a correlation between the two.

You don’t want to go to bed either hungry or stuffed. Create your ideal fasting window and maintain a healthy diet during non-fasting times. Limit processed foods and sugar (that includes wine) and instead focus on whole foods, foods rich in fiber, plenty of vegetables, lean proteins like chicken and fish, and healthy fats from nuts and seeds.

Building a solid foundation for your health and fast lifestyle will help you boost your energy throughout the day, and you’ll find that you’ll sleep much better more often.