"Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” Who can argue with Benjamin Franklin? Sleep makes such a great difference in how our body feels, handles food intake, energy output and stress levels. If you find yourself staying up late to get in more work, watch Netflix or get in an extra snack before bed, you might be adding to the fat storage regimen especially when you grab coffee first thing the next morning (caffeine = stressor). Not only does sleep keep the body feeling more energized, but it reduces our mental stress. Sleep is when the mind can focus on resting and processing our day. Without this important time we stay in the anxious mind during waking hours more often. As you’ll see on our next slide, stress greatly contributes to weight gain.