Sleep for Fatloss and Toning
Not getting enough sleep? š“
Maybe you feel that 6 hours is all you needā¦
With busy working, training and social lives these days sleep is often overlooked and is put on the back-burner. So here below we have laid the truth about sleep with help from Dr. Matthew Walker.
Dr.Walker is one of the worlds leaders in the area of sleep research.
He also has a fantastic soothing voice that might also help too if you are reading this and in need of some sleep solutions right now! š
8 minute interview explaining the below notes in video form.
Top Tips
Regularity.
Set a āGo to bed alarmā and remove the habit of using the snooze button.
Alarm 1: (Night Time Alarm)
A āGo to Bed Alarm,ā like last orders at the bar the brain benefits from the wind down time. So try this:
One hour before bed get ready. Pyjamaās on, teeth brushed, alarm set. Phone/alarm in corner of bedroom.
Alarm 2: (AM Alarm)
When it goes off in the morning have it in the corner of the room. This helps with getting rid of the use of the snooze button.
Why should you not use the snooze button?
When the alarm goes off it is a stressor. The heart rate immediately spikes and it can release cortisol. This short, small spike in heart rate might be small. But if you hit snooze 2-5 times every morning and then you compound that habit that can result in a LOT of unnecessary stress on the cardiovascular system.
Dont think of it on a daily basis. If you hit snooze 2-3 times a day over the course of a single day, week, month, year lifetime. That can add up as a LOT of cortisol / stress. (Remember cortisol and stress is also linked to stubborn belly fat and fat.).
Temperature: Keep it cool.
For optimal sleep the Brain and body need to drop core temp by 1 degree Celsius in order to initiate sleep and then stay asleep. Try to fall asleep in a room that is too cold rather than too hot. 18 degrees Celsius for optimal sleep.
Darkness
Needed to trigger the hormone melatonin. Melatonin helps regulate the healthy timing of sleep. Soā¦Dim down lights. No screens in last hour of sleep. Try an eye mask. Black out shades. It will all help regulate your sleep.
Cant sleep? Tossing and Turning
Cant fall asleep after 25 mins then get out of bed and go and do something different. The Brain is an associate device. If you cant sleep the brain begins to recognise that the bed is now a place / trigger for being awake. Change the focus so the brain can then recognise the bed isnāt such a place.
Get up walk around. Change the space you are in.
Cant fall asleep immediately?
Falling asleep immediately is rare. Falling asleep is like landing a plane. It takes time for your brain to descend to to the firm bedrock of sleep.
In the last hour try do something relaxing. . Disengage. Watch TV programmes that are not highly anxious. Watch programmes that are āsillyā light hearted.
NOTE:
With sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, insomnia these tips may not help. This may need the attention of a doctor. In order to begin the path of fixing such disorders.
Caffeine
Simply. No caffeine in the afternoon. 1pm - 3pm final time. Weāre not going to spend too much time on this one I think we all know what caffeine does! If you dont just give it to the closest toddler and watch what happens. (Disclaimer: Dont give caffeine to a child š )
Alcohol.
The famous night cap.
Alcohol knocks out the ācortexā and it will ālitterā your sleep. However you wont remember waking up and therefore wont recognise this. It works as a sedative however this is hugely harmful to your sleep (Watch video below)
REM (Rapid eye movement sleep) sleep:
Alcohol blocks this resulting in the removal of deep sleep. Studies in 1980ās show that if you deprive rats of REM sleep they will die quicker as if deprived of food. Donāt go to bed too tipsyā¦. Cut it out for 1 month a year (Larrys advice)
Caffeine and Alcohol.
Recommended Sleep for Perfromance:
7-9 hours everyday.
Consistently across 7 days.
It is not a credit system like a bank. Sadly you canāt catch up on missed sleep. However if you are struggling with a new family a baby this is a phase you are trying to manage and everyone goest through it.
Getting a good nightās sleep has been shown to improve athletic, physical and mental performance. We all know how grumpy we can get when we've had a poor run of sleep.
The use of extended sleeping time has been explored in past research within athletes who habitually endure sleep deprivation or experience signiļ¬cant sleep debt. Comparing athletes who were sleep deprived on a 4-week baseline sleep pattern to the same group of athletes who then had a 7 week period of extended sleep each night showed improved results in performance. Basketball performance measures were enhanced (23), sprint times were faster and shooting accuracy improved by 9% coupled with decreased reaction times, reported āsleepinessā and improved proļ¬le of mood states (Mah CD, et al. 2011).
'But what does this have to do with me losing weight, getting strong and just being healthy?'
Recommended Sleep For fatloss?
With better sleep comes better choices in food. Your training is more effective as you have the energy to push harder and lets face it.. you're in a better mood overall.
Research has shown that between 7-9 hoursā sleep depending on the activity level of the individual is recommended each night, which corresponds with the 7ā9 h recommended by the National Sleep Foundation for healthy sleep.
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 at game time. It may also slow recovery post-game (sleepfondation.org).
Getting less than the recommended sleep time resulting in acute sleep deprivation can lead to the following.
Elevated Blood Sugar
Elevated Ghrelin (Hunger Hormone)
Impaired cognition
Impaired Recovery.
You are not alone:
Are you struggling to put practices into place to develop a healthier approach to exercise?
This is exactly what one of our clients Ciara was struggling with. But with the right exercise approaches in place and by eating MORE. She got to where she personally wanted to be.
So if this is something that interests you make sure to click the button below and Apply for your FREE strategy session.
References
Mah CD, Mah KE, Keziran EJ, and Dement WC. The effects of sleep extension on the athletic performance of collegiate basketball players. Sleep 34: 943ā950, 2011.
National sleep foundation. 2017. Sleep, Athletic Performacne and Reovery. (online) Available at: https://sleepfoundation.org/sleep-news/sleep-athletic-performance-and-recovery