Whole grains are good for you for a lot of reasons. They are high in fiber, can lower your cholesterol levels, give you some of the calcium and Vitamin C

that you need and also reduce your risk of gum disease. Whole grains can actually help you to get a better night’s sleep because they cause your glucose levels to

first spike and then crash.

For losing weight, whole grains are a good for you because they make you feel fuller after eating them and that helps you with portion control. So,

maybe grab a sandwich made from whole grain bread or some whole grain pasta for a late lunch... you'll sleep better and maybe even shed some pounds.

There’s nothing like a warm cup of tea to help you to sleep better. The warm temperate soothes your system and the herbs help to calm your body. Teas that

are best known for contributing to weight loss include peppermint, ginger, rose and rooibos. (Green tea does too but double check that it's not caffeinated). Don’t forget to drink your tea about

an hour before bedtime, otherwise you could find yourself getting up in the middle of the night to pee.

If tea isn’t your thing, a protein shake will work too. First, protein helps

you to build muscle mass and sleep helps to rejuvenate your body so that your muscles can develop. Protein also reduces hunger cravings while booting your metabolism. Studies reveal that

consuming protein can reduce your late-night cravings by as much as 50 percent. If you have a protein shake with bananas, almond milk and honey (for instance), the potassium and

magnesium in the bananas will relax you, the almond milk will provide the protein and the honey will give your brain enough energy to keep you asleep (read more about

how that works here).

A lot of people have a hard time falling asleep because they are too hot. It's not typically right when they go to bed, but rather during the middle of the

night. This happens because throughout the evening, our body temperature shifts. That’s why it’s good for your health---and your electricity bill---to keep your thermostat set to around 65 degrees. Also,

a cooler room helps to burn belly fat. The theory is that people who sleep in cooler temperatures end up having more brown fat (the kind of fat that keeps

you warm as it helps your body to burn belly fat).

If you’re constantly waking up groggy and you work out in the evenings a lot, the two things are connected. Studies indicate that people who work out early in the

mornings have better sleep cycles and enter into a deeper state of sleep. For the record, exercising outside can help you to sleep better too, thanks to the fresh air

and Vitamin D that you receive. On the flip side, if you work out at night, that can make it harder for you to rest because it will raise your

body temperature. Also, you’ll end up with a sluggish metabolism and it’s hard to shed pounds when your metabolic rate is all out of wack.

If you’re fortunate enough to have someone sleeping right next to you, they are an exercise and sleeping pill all rolled into one! Research reveals that people who have sex two times

a week have stronger immune systems. They also have a stronger heart, lower blood pressure and far less stress. You know what else sex does? It improves the quality of

your sleep (thanks to the hormone prolactin) and also help you to lose weight. The amount of calories you burn depends on how much you have and the

position you’re in. On average, it’s around 100 calories per session for a man, 70 calories for a woman.

Good sleep has a lot to do with great posture. How you position your head speaks volumes for how your back aligns. So, here are the cliff notes on pillows: If

you sleep on your back, get a thinner (foam) one. If you sleep on your side look for a firm (latex) pillow. If you’re a stomach sleeper (the least healthy

position of them all, by the way), your pillow needs to be almost flat memory pillow. There are some that will help to reduce your body temperature. For weight loss

purposes, opt for those. That will keep your head from sweating in the middle of the night. A cool head means a cooler body which equals out to more weight

loss (due to the whole brown fat thing we already talked about).

On the nights when you’re not being intimate, curl up with a good book. It helps to relax you. Some people make the mistake of watching television or playing on

their smartphone right before going to bed, but those are stimuli that only keeps you more alert. A dark room, at a comfortable temperature with no electronics at all is

the perfect environment for a good---and uninterrupted---night’s sleep. This is important because sleep deprivation leads to an increase in the hunger hormone ghrelin and a decrease in the fullness hormone

leptin. When these are off, cravings set in and that could lead to overeating and weight gain. Moral to the story: get no less than six hours of rest. Your entire body

(and scale) will thank you for it!