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SLEEP………..  Are You Really Getting Enough?

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How many of us think we are getting enough hours of sleep?  How many of us think we are getting enough good quality sleep?  Can anyone guess what the biggest Bandit is that’s Robbing us of something so important?  

 

Whether we want to admit it or not, there are many of us (at all ages) who are not getting the proper amount of quality sleep our bodies require daily.  We tend to overlook that a good night’s sleep is just as important for our health as eating healthy and exercising.  Unfortunately, there are many factors that interfere with our natural sleep patterns.

 

 

Let’s start with some basics

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  1. How much sleep do we really need?  According to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), they recommend the following:

  • Newborns (0-3 months ): Sleep range narrowed to 14-17 hours each day (previously it was 12-18)

  • Infants (4-11 months): Sleep range widened two hours to 12-15 hours (previously it was 14-15)

  • Toddlers (1-2 years): Sleep range widened by one hour to 11-14 hours (previously it was 12-14)

  • Preschoolers (3-5): Sleep range widened by one hour to 10-13 hours (previously it was 11-13)

  • School age children (6-13): Sleep range widened by one hour to 9-11 hours (previously it was 10-11)

  • Teenagers (14-17): Sleep range widened by one hour to 8-10 hours (previously it was 8.5-9.5)

  • Adults (26-64): Sleep range did not change and remains 7-9 hours

  • Older adults (65+): Sleep range is 7-8 hours (new age category

  1. Pros of why good sleep is important?  No matter what website you look up or what physician or health coach you ask, everyone is pretty much going to have the same information for you:

    • Good sleep tends to lead to people eating fewer calories during the day

    • Good sleep can improve productivity and concentration

    • Good sleep can enhance your athletic performance

    • Good sleep can improve your immune system

    • Good sleep can positively affect emotions and social interactions

 

  1. Cons of getting poor sleep?  Now here’s where we want to argue that they are wrong.  But there is so much research and statistics out there, that the red flags and warning signs should be hitting most of us:

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  • Poor sleep is strongly linked to weight gain

  • Poor sleep leads to greater risk of stroke and heart disease

  • Poor sleep can cause pre-diabetes by affecting glucose metabolism

  • Poor sleep is linked to mental health issues, depression being a top runner

  • Poor sleep *****

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Now that we understand how much sleep we should be getting and seen some positive and negatives of what is means to get good sleep, lets dive into how all this ties into your athletic journey.

There are so many of us that eat, sleep, breathe, and live for our sport.  But did you know that in addition to physical conditioning and conscious eating, the amount of good quality sleep you get nightly plays a huge role in your athletic performance and competitive results? The quality and amount of sleep athletes get is often the key to winning. REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep in particular provides energy to both the brain and body. If your sleep is cut short, the body doesn’t have time to repair memory, consolidate memory, and release hormones.  The importance of REM sleep, in particular, is attributed to the fact that during this phase of sleep, your brain exercises important neural connections which are key to mental and overall well-being and health.

A study (conducted by NSF) in the journal SLEEP confirms the role of sleep in performance with results that show declines in split-second decision making following poor sleep. Results also showed increased accuracy in well-rested subjects.

Exercise depletes energy, fluids, and breaks down muscle. Hydration and the right fuel are only part of training and recovery. What athletes do in the moments during and immediately after competition also determines how quickly their bodies rebuild muscle and replenish nutrients. This helps maintain endurance, speed, and accuracy.

Some research suggests that sleep deprivation increases levels of stress hormone, cortisol. Sleep deprivation has also been seen to decrease production of glycogen and carbohydrates that are stored for energy use during physical activity. In short, less sleep increases the possibility of fatigue, low energy, and poor focus during competition time. It may also slow recovery post-sport.

Whether you’re at the top of your game or just in it for the fun of it, getting the proper amount of sleep is necessary to face the world with your best food forward. Sleep will help you on the road to good fitness, good eating, and good health.

So, let’s make Sleep a priority!  You must schedule sleep like any other daily activity, so put it on your "to-do list" and cross it off every night. But don’t make it the thing you do only after everything else is done – stop doing other things so you get the sleep you need.

What can we do to ensure we are ready to get good quality sleep?

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