Soooo how many of you get 8 hours of more of sleep ??? Sleep is probably the most underrated and most crucial recovery tool out there for ANYONE. Not only is sleep necessary for recovery, but it’s an essential ingredient in our desire to perform to the best of our abilities in workouts.
During the Christmas holidays, I actually performed a little experiment on myself. I normally sleep 6 hours or less during weekdays. During the holidays, I was able to sleep upwards of 7 hours, most of the time uninterrupted. The results were pretty clear to me: my heart rate for workouts was lower, my clothes fit better despite the fact that that I had more alcohol and refined sugars that I’ve had the whole year and my skin looked fresher…what was the big difference ? I was able to catch up on my sleep !! I’ve actually been sleep deprived all year without even noticing it !
Now, who has a hard time falling asleep ? Not only some of us don’t get enough hours of quality sleep, but most times we have a hard time FALLING asleep. How many times have you lied down in bed half asleep and all of a sudden your mind starts racing because you begin to think about that interesting project, tomorrow’s meeting or that kick ass workout you’ve got planned for tomorrow ? If you are an over-thinker type A personality like myself you probably have some difficult time falling asleep.
In this article, I will begin by giving you an overview of the sleep cycle and the negative impact of artificial light and digital stimulation (among others) on our circadian rhythm. I will then proceed with the benefits of sleep and its key role on weight control and recovery for athletes. Finally, we will look at some tips to help you fall asleep faster and improve the overall quality of your sleep.
THE SLEEP CYCLE
According to the research, sleep occurs in repeating periods in which the body alternates between two distinct modes: REM (rapid eye movement) sleep and non REM sleep (NREM). NREM sleep occurs first and after a transitional period it is called slow-wave sleep or deep sleep. The sleep cycle of alternate REM and NREM sleep takes about 90 minutes, occurring 4-6 times in a good night’s sleep.
THE CIRCADIAN RHYTHM: how artificial light and screen use after dark are making us chronically sleep deprived
The circadian rhythm is our 24-hour internal clock that is also known as our sleep/wake cycle. The circadian rhythm mechanisms cause the sleep hormone Melatonin to increase in the bloodstream. This process relaxes brain waves and muscles, and lowers body temperatures, blood pressure, heart rate and respiration. You eventually drift off to sleep, commencing the sequence of sleep cycles described above.
The circadian rhythm mechanisms work best when we have regular sleep habits, like going to bed at night and waking up in the morning around the same times from day to day (including weekends). Ideally, our sleep habits would honour our internal circadian rhythm by going to bed soon after it gets dark (or at least soon after we make our environment dark) and by waking up when the sun rises – without the need of an alarm.
However, in this fast-paced world of work, commuting, training, artificial light and digital stimulation, a good night’s sleep is not always a priority. In fact, in most high tech cultures like Canada and the US, sleep is perceived as a flexible commodity rather than as top priority resulting in a lifestyle of chronic sleep deprivation. And our need to use the screen (TV, Ipads, cell phones) well into the night has totally compromised our circadian rhythm. Yes, indeed. The light emitted by the screens stops the secretion of Melatonin. This means that not only it will take you longer to unwind, but it will take you longer to sleep even though you may be all cozy under the covers. This direct assault on your circadian rhythm will also totally compromise the quality of your sleep.
THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF SLEEP
Research is unanimous with regards to the positive effects of a good night’s sleep. Sufficient quality sleep without circadian rhythm disruption is necessary to promote high levels of attention, productivity, cognitive performance and generally good health. Enough good quality sleep bolsters immunity and promotes a healthy gut flora, it also reduces stress and rejuvenates all body systems by enabling hormones to repair organs and strengthen and and rebuild muscles. It is during the slow-wave/deep sleep phase that the brain recovers from its daily activities.
SLEEP, WEIGHT CONTROL AND FAT BURNING
A restful sleep can have a very positive effect on weight control. However, if your aren’t getting enough sleep, the opposite is true. Research has shown that sleep deprivation can compromise fat burning and wreak havoc on key weight control hormones like stress hormone Cortisol, satiety hormone Leptin, appetite hormone Ghrelin and human growth hormone GH.
The first effect of sleep deprivation is an increase in Cortisol which in turn promotes the development of insulin resistance, a risk factor for obesity and diabetes. Sleep deprivation is also associated with reductions in Leptin and an elevation of Ghrelin which result in increased hunger. Furthermore, sleep deprivation curtails the production of GH. GH (which is secreted in higher bursts during slow-wave sleep) promotes the utilization of fat and helps build lean muscle.
SLEEP AND ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE
Sleep is probably THE most important aspect of recovery when it comes to training. A good night’s sleep is critical to athletic performance. If you are not getting at least 8 hours of sleep you are not completing the cycles of recovery. In his book ”The Athletes Guide to Recovery’‘, Sage Roundtree states that getting plentiful sleep should be a key feature of your recovery plan. Ideally, you’d sleep until you were done sleeping without needing an alarm. In times of heavy training, he recommends we block off extra time for sleep as part of our stress-management plan. In his book ”Primal Edurance” former triathlete and all around badass Mark Sisson states that if you are an athlete or a peak performance enthusiast of any kind at any level “even a slight deficiency in sleep is highly destructive to your goals and your overall health”. He continues: “sleep is TOP PRIORITY for your fitness progress and preservation of health. If you are short on sleep, consider everything you have read so far in this book to be IRRELEVANT.”
HOW MUCH SLEEP SHOULD WE GET ?
Human sleep needs vary by age and amongst individuals. In an ideal world adults between the ages of 18-64 should get between 7-9 hours of sleep (Max Hirshkowitz, Kaitlyn Whiton et al. National Sleep Foundation’s sleep time duration recommendations: methodology and results summary. Sleep Health Journal). The objective for us is to honour our circadian rhythm by going to bed at a convenient time and sleep until we wake up satisfied without an alarm.
TAKING A NAP
Experts believe that napping is a great way to supplement night time sleep. It can either be a 20 minute power nap or a longer nap (max 1h30 minutes) as long as it doesn’t interfere with you unwinding properly and going to bed at an appropriate time.
SOME TIPS TO HELP YOU UNWIND AND PREPARE FOR A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP
In order to properly unwind and have a good night’s sleep, we need to set up the conditions in the hours before we actually go to bed. Here are some of the suggestions most researchers and authors agree on :
- Avoid caffeine after lunch time
- Don’t have a heavy meal too close to bedtime
- Minimize screen time and digital use at night (some experts recommend to avoid all exposure to screens for at least 90 minutes before going to bed)
- If you have a late-day workout, do it earlier in the evening in order to properly unwind before bedtime
- Aim to go to bed at the same time every night and wake up around the same time every morning, including on weekends
- Make your sleep environment dark and calm as well as colder (experts recommend a +16C to +20C for evening sleep)
OTHER SUGGESTIONS THAT MAY BE HELP YOU FALL ASLEEP (some of which I have tried):
Taking a Magnesium supplement. Magnesium has wide-ranging effects in the body and may influence some of the processes that promote sleep. Among others, experts believe that Magnesium helps activate neurotransmitters that are responsible for calming the nervous system. Not only can Magnesium help you get to sleep, but it plays a part in helping you achieve deep and restful sleep as well. In fact, Magnesium is believed to regulate the hormone Melatonin which guides sleep-wake cycles in our body. I usually take a 500mg magnesium pill along with a multivitamin and extra D3.
Setting up a calming routine. Get a calming routine going in the hour before you go to bed (like doing some easy Yoga moves or taking a warm Epsom salts bath).Lately, I have moved my recovery tools near my bed and have started doing my muscle recovery routine in the hour prior to going to bed. So I dim the lights, and in my pyjamas I get down on the floor and do some easy Yoga stretches, some gentle rolling, a leg massage with my electronic foam roller, etc.
Drinking some warm milk or having some calming tea. I’ve tried this, I particularly like to make myself some Golden Milk (http://goldenmylk) BUT I must be careful to drink this at least two hours prior to going to bed (otherwise my need to pee can interfere with my need to go to sleep !).
Sleep with a heavy blanket. This one works for me. Every time a use this blanket below the quality of my sleep improves and I sleep like a baby. I don’t even know what brand it is but I’ve had it for a while.
Sleeping aids, like Melatonin. Unfortunately, I’m one of those who takes Melatonin regularly. I take a 3mg pill. Trying to get rid of this habit and hoping to go to sleep without this aid soon.
Aromatherapy. Aromatherapy shouldn’t be overlooked when trying to sleep better. Placing an essential oil diffuser in your bedroom could help with reducing stress and promoting faster sleep. Some people use lavender as it relaxes the body and calms the mind. I haven’t tried this but I believe this could be an easy and very affordable stress reliever, specially if used close to bedtime.
White noise sound machines and apps. I haven’t tried this but some people swear by this. They believe white noise masks distracting sounds to help you relax and help you sleep better. There are machines and now there are also apps like the Noisli app (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.noisli.noisli&hl=en ) which is a noise and colour app that claims to help you relax before going to bed and helps you create an environment that will promote a good night’s sleep.
SLEEP GADGETS AND DEVICES
The market for sleep gadgets and devices has been growing at a meteoric pace. There are two distinct streams of products: (1) devices that aim to help you fall asleep faster by relaxing you and/or enhancing your sleep environment and (2) devices that track the quality of your sleep. Here are some of them:
(1) Devices and gadgets that help you fall asleep faster
Dodow. This is a digital sleep lamp/metronome developed by insomniacs to help you drift off fast. It uses a hypnotizing blue light to coordinate and slow down your breathing in order to stimulate your body’s natural resting state. When I discovered the Dodow and read about its benefits, I immediately ordered it to try it out and review it for this article. Dodow helps restore the balance of the autonomic nervous system by stimulating the baroreflex : a physiological mechanism that can be stimulated by slow and regular breathing. After 8 minutes of doing the exercises you will be in the ‘rest and digest’ state where your metabolism slows down and your body will be completely relaxed and ready to sleep. I received my Dodow last Monday and I have been using it for a week now. Very easy to use and it comes with a very handy pamphlet explaining all the breathing exercises that you can do. In addition, the company has now created an online advice platform for Dodow users in order to help and encourage them in their quest for better sleep. On the first two nights, I drifted off after 20 minutes, just getting used to the device. As of last Thursday, I was able to drift off after 8 minutes. Pretty incredible. I would definitely recommend this device. Easy to use and very affordable. Click on the following link for more info: https://www.mydodow.com/#ae216
Somnox.This is supposed to be a ”sleep robot” which looks and feels like a pillow and claims to help you sleep. It is designed to simulate breathing and play soothing music to help you fall asleep. https://meetsomnox.com/
HealthE Good Night LED Sleep Enhancing Light. Using this light bulb one hour before bedtime is said to help you sleep faster. The spectrum of the light bulb helps produce Melatonin which in turn supports the body’s natural circadian rhythm.https://www.lsgc.com/products/good-night-led-sleep-improving-light
(2) Sleep Tracking Devices
Eight Smart Mattress. Sensor-based mattress engineered to help people sleep better by monitoring sleep patterns through the night. It gives suggestions on what to do in order to improve the quality of your sleep. https://eightsleep.com/
Sleep Sheperd. Headband that tracks sleep patterns by tracking brainwave sensors. It comes with an app where you are able to track your data. It will also play tones to help you fall into deeper sleep. https://sleepsheperd.com
Beautyrest Sleep Tracker Monitor. This Amazon Alexa-enabled gadget can track the sleep patterns and monitors respiration, heart rates and sleep behaviours. https://www.beautyrest.com/Sleeptracker
Neuroon Open Smart Sleep Mask. This mask is able to analyze your sleep stats and habits (such as brainwaves, pulse, temperature and more) while you sleep and send the info to a mobile app. This should help you maximize the quality of your sleep. https://neuroonopen.com
Philips Smart Sleep. Headband which monitors your brain activity during sleep by sensing when you’ve entered deep, or slow-wave sleep, then generating customized audio tones to enhance the depth and duration of your slow-wave sleep. https://www.usa.philips.com/c-e/smartsleep.html
The S+ Sleep Tracker by ResMed. Using low-energy radio wave technology, this system is able to track your sleep patterns without disrupting your sleep. It includes a bedside sleep monitor, a smartphone app and a web-based app so you can view and track your biological stats as well as environmental factors like noise, light and temperature. https://www.resmed.com/us/en/consumer/s-plus.html
SLEEP, MEDITATION AND SLEEP TRACKING APPS
The website Health Line recently selected the Best Insomnia Apps for 2018. The selection was based on the apps’ quality, user reviews and overall reliability (see the following article: https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sleep/top-insomnia-iphone-android-apps ) . Here are some of the apps reviewed but many more are mentioned in the article:
Sleep Cycle. https://www.sleepcycle.com/
Relax & Sleep Well by Gleen Harrold. https://www.glennharrold.com/products.html
Pzizz. https://pzizz.com/
Digpill. http://digipill.com/
Sleep Genius. http://sleepgenius.com/
There is also Calm, an app focused on mindfulness and meditation. https://www.calm.com/
CONCLUSION
I hope you all liked reading my article on sleep. I loved writing it for you and I. I learned a lot while doing my research and have definitely gained a new found appreciation for the need to have enough sleep – both in terms of QUANTITY and QUALITY. For some reason, since my University days, I’ve always gone to bed late. First, it was studying, then working late, then an autistic kiddo with sleep issues, and these days a big culprit for me : digital screen use !! Anyways friends it is definitely a work in progress for me, but I am making some small strides. Since writing this article, I’ve tried to avoid all exposure to screens for at least an hour before going to bed (not easy, sometimes I catch myself cheating hahaha !!). I’ve also adopted a pre-sleep calming routine: dimming the lights in the bedroom, doing some gentle Yoga moves, some stretching, some gentle rolling and massaging, etc. I’ve also started using the Dodow device mentioned above which makes me sleepy in about 20 minutes or less. These days I am getting about 6h30 of uninterrupted sleep. Aiming to go to 7 hours, specially as Boston Marathon training increases in both intensity and volume. Wishing you some amazing pillow times ahead my friends !!! Don’t hesitate to comment or asks questions below.
With LOVE, Claudia
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