Get fit while you sleep!
Sleep and exercise have a symbiotic relationship: when you’re well-rested, you’re able to workout at top efficiency. Likewise, the more efficiently you work out, the more quickly you’ll fall asleep at night.
Sleep is crucial for your health and fitness goal success, because muscle doesn’t grow in the gym — it grows while you are sleeping. Strength training causes microscopic tears in the muscle fibers and though it might sound like a reason for concern, this damage is a key component of muscle development. This damage triggers the healing process, which happens when you sleep!
Sleep enhances muscle recovery through protein synthesis and the release of human growth hormone (HGH). Muscle protein synthesis is a naturally occurring process in which protein is produced to repair muscle damage caused by intense exercise. While you are sleeping, your body releases HGH to repair muscle tissue after exercise, to assist in the building of muscle mass, to boost metabolism, and to burn fat.
The muscle fibers then increase in size and strength, resulting in an increase in muscle mass and strength that you experience when lifting weights regularly. In a nutshell, sleep gives your body time to recover and repair the muscles worked during exercise.
A good night’s sleep is the key to having the energy we need to conquer the day, but more than 30 percent of us don’t get the seven to eight hours of shut-eye we need per night just to stay healthy. According to a review in Sports Medicine, “sleep deprivation leads to less-than-optimal exercise performance;” a sleepless night can make exercise feel harder, which will only make you fatigue sooner. If you have to decide between working out early in the morning on less than 7 hours of sleep or getting in that extra hour of rest, experts suggest that you sleep in!
We can all benefit from making sleep a fundamental part of our daily regimen. If you’re not getting the recommended hours of sleep per night, rethink your schedule so you can make sure you do, not only for your health and well-being, but so that your weight training goals will be successful. SUCCESS IS getting seven to eight hours of shut-eye per night so you can get fit while you sleep!
Can’t Sleep?
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Avoid caffeine before bed: Caffeine is a stimulant to the central nervous system that speeds up the metabolism. Avoiding it before bed will give your body time to wind down and your muscles to relax.
2. Limit screen-time before bed. Studies show that the blue light from devices can hinder our ability to have a sound sleep.*
3. Take a hot shower: Taking a hot shower 90 minutes before going to bed will relax any tense muscles and reduce physical and mental stress on the body.
4. Drink some chamomile tea: Chamomile is widely regarded as a mild tranquilizer and sleep-inducer.
5. Try some yoga: Try practicing a few calming yoga poses post-workout or right before bed to counteract exercise-induced insomnia.