The Importance of Sleep.

[VulgarDisplay]

I recently have reached plateau's in my weight loss and muscle building, and I know diet has a major part to do with my problems. I've started watching what I eat a lot more, but I haven't gotten scientific about my intake yet. The other thing I've seriously neglected is sleep. I usually sleep around 4-5 hours a night which just isn't cutting it anymore. Could not getting enough rest be a serious detriment to further growth?

 

[SociallyChallenged]

There are several important aspects of recovery: sufficient protein intake (not usually a problem for Americans), good diet overall (with a caloric surplus in your case), stress levels (the lower, the better), and SLEEP. Muscle don't hypertrophy when you work them out. They do so when you rest (i.e. when you sleep). If you aren't getting enough sleep, your strength and size goals may suffer as a result. Get at least 6 hours of sleep (or more, until you aren't savagely tired when you wake up).

 

[brikis98]

As SC mentioned, diet and sleep are two of the most important aspects of recovery. If you're slacking on both, it's not surprising that you'd be plateauing.