I am very much one of those people. On both parts. As much as I know that sleep is important and that I should go to bed earlier, it very rarely happens and obviously I don't feel very good for it. I tend to be in a bad mood more often than not and always feel tired.
Along with the benefits I mentioned briefly above, another benefit of better sleep is an increase in performance during exercise and aiding in recovery. As of late, I've been trying to make more of an effort with my training. Rather than just plod along and make very little progress, I want to try and get faster and stronger and beat my times in races.
So, along with ramping up my training and incorporating some speed runs, I knew the other part I needed to focus on was my recovery and sleep!
Why is sleep important for exercise?
When we train hard, our muscles need time to rest. When we sleep, it gives our body the time it needs to repair and regenerate damaged tissues from a work or a run and builds muscle(and bone!) ready for our next session.
When you're sleep deprived, not as much of this hormone is released and therefore our muscles don't get repaired properly, this can lead to injury.
How much sleep do you need?
Everyone is different! Some people only need six hours whilst others might need nine, like me! ;) Your lifestyle, stress, age and gender can all contribute to how much or little sleep that you need.
How do you know when you've had the correct amount of sleep for you? Sleep until you wake naturally. Though, that's not always possible with commitments! Go to bed a little earlier or if you have trouble falling asleep easily, try some of the following tips..
How to improve your sleep quality.
- Get on a schedule - Go to bed and wake up at the same time everyday, or at least as close to as possible. This will set the body's 'internal clock' to expect to go to sleep and wake up at a certain time each day.
-Turn off the electronics - The harsh lights from electronics like a tv or your phone tend to keep you awake and can distract you from falling asleep. Turning all electronics off and preparing yourself for sleep may help. I also find that reading a book can make me more relaxed and sleepy too!
Avoid Caffeine - As you'll know, caffeine is a stimulant that can give you energy and keep you awake, so it's best to avoid any types of drinks prior to getting into bed for some shut eye!
- Exercise Earlier! - Regular exercisers tend to find that they sleep better and feel less sleepy during the day. However, it's important to time your exercise right. As much as people might be led to believe that exercise makes you tired, it actually makes you feel more awake at first. Exercise boosts your metabolism, stimulates the release a hormone known as cortisol and it elevates your body temperature. These can make it harder for you to fall asleep. So make sure you exercise a few hours before deciding to sleep!
Sleep on a comfortable mattress and pillows - You obviously need to be comfortable in order to have a good nights sleep. If you're uncomfortable, you're more likely to toss and turn during the night and could wake not feeling as refreshed as you'd like and you may not recover from your training as well!
To follow on from that last point.. About 2 weeks ago, I received an Ergoflex Memory Foam Mattress with the intention of seeing whether it would have any effects inrelation to my training and recovery.
As a background, prior to receiving an Ergoflex Mattress, I had a pretty bog standard pocket sprung mattress. It was never super comfortable and I would sometimes get backache after a full nights sleep, which obviously wouldn't help with recovery if I am constantly being disturbed from sleep to get more comfortable.
Over the next few months, I'll be doing some short updates here on the blog documenting my findings of using an Ergoflex mattress as part of my training. I'm interested to see whether or not the change between our old pocket sprung mattress and a memory foam mattress will have any difference and whether it will have any significant difference to my training.
Disclosure: I received an Ergoflex Double Mattress for free in return for blog updates on how the Ergoflex effects my training. I am not being paid to talk about or advertise their products. All opinions are as always, my own. See my policy page HERE for more detail.
How much sleep do you need?
Everyone is different! Some people only need six hours whilst others might need nine, like me! ;) Your lifestyle, stress, age and gender can all contribute to how much or little sleep that you need.
How do you know when you've had the correct amount of sleep for you? Sleep until you wake naturally. Though, that's not always possible with commitments! Go to bed a little earlier or if you have trouble falling asleep easily, try some of the following tips..
How to improve your sleep quality.
- Get on a schedule - Go to bed and wake up at the same time everyday, or at least as close to as possible. This will set the body's 'internal clock' to expect to go to sleep and wake up at a certain time each day.
-Turn off the electronics - The harsh lights from electronics like a tv or your phone tend to keep you awake and can distract you from falling asleep. Turning all electronics off and preparing yourself for sleep may help. I also find that reading a book can make me more relaxed and sleepy too!
Avoid Caffeine - As you'll know, caffeine is a stimulant that can give you energy and keep you awake, so it's best to avoid any types of drinks prior to getting into bed for some shut eye!
- Exercise Earlier! - Regular exercisers tend to find that they sleep better and feel less sleepy during the day. However, it's important to time your exercise right. As much as people might be led to believe that exercise makes you tired, it actually makes you feel more awake at first. Exercise boosts your metabolism, stimulates the release a hormone known as cortisol and it elevates your body temperature. These can make it harder for you to fall asleep. So make sure you exercise a few hours before deciding to sleep!
Sleep on a comfortable mattress and pillows - You obviously need to be comfortable in order to have a good nights sleep. If you're uncomfortable, you're more likely to toss and turn during the night and could wake not feeling as refreshed as you'd like and you may not recover from your training as well!
To follow on from that last point.. About 2 weeks ago, I received an Ergoflex Memory Foam Mattress with the intention of seeing whether it would have any effects inrelation to my training and recovery.
As a background, prior to receiving an Ergoflex Mattress, I had a pretty bog standard pocket sprung mattress. It was never super comfortable and I would sometimes get backache after a full nights sleep, which obviously wouldn't help with recovery if I am constantly being disturbed from sleep to get more comfortable.
Disclosure: I received an Ergoflex Double Mattress for free in return for blog updates on how the Ergoflex effects my training. I am not being paid to talk about or advertise their products. All opinions are as always, my own. See my policy page HERE for more detail.
Question: What do you find helps you sleep better? What kind of Mattress do you have?
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