Why sleeping is super important?
The advised hours for sleeping for any adult is 7+ hours. “We have all had that idea “I can get by on 5 or 6 hours because I am busy”. Yes you will survive but will you really perform as well during the day and will it really have long terms effects? If only doing it for one day it will never become a problem. If you make it a bad habit to always only need 6 hours of sleep then it will have effects. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, discovered that some people have a gene that enables them to function well on six hours of sleep a night. This gene, however, is very rare, appearing in less than 3% of the population. For the other 97% of us, six hours doesn’t come close to cutting it.
Advised Hours of Sleep |
||
| Young adults (18 to 25 years old) | 7 – 9 hrs | 6 – 11 hrs |
| Adults (26 to 64 years old) | 7 – 9 hrs | 6 – 10 hrs |
| Older adults (65+) | 7 – 8 hrs | 5 – 9 hrs |
It is not only the hours that matter. It is also the quality of sleep that matters. How often are you woken or disturbed by sounds, lights and other disturbances? These highly impact the stages of sleep which matter greatly to our wellbeing.
The deep sleep stage is the stage where the body repairs cellular damage and rebuilds the body. So being woken during this stage is generally very bad as it hinders your ability to recover after the previous day.
REM sleep is a lighter sleep stage that is fairly short and can come multiple times in a sleep cycle. This stage highly impacts our mood and ability to handle stress during the following day. This stage is extremely easy to wake from and typically benefits you most during the morning hours. So take that extra half hour of sleep to assure you are prepared for the day.
You are sleep deprived if you…
- Need an alarm clock in order to wake up on time.
- Rely on the snooze button.
- Have a hard time getting out of bed in the morning.
- Feel sluggish in the afternoon.
- Get sleepy in meetings, lectures, or warm rooms.
- Get drowsy after heavy meals or when driving.
- Need to nap to get through the day.
- Fall asleep while watching TV or relaxing in the evening.
- Feel the need to sleep in on weekends.
- Fall asleep within five minutes of going to bed.
Sleep deprivation effects include…
- Fatigue, lethargy, and lack of motivation.
- Moodiness and irritability; increased risk of depression.
- Decreased sex drive; relationship problems.
- Impaired brain activity; learning, concentration, and memory problems.
- Reduced creativity and problem-solving skills; difficulty making decisions.
- Inability to cope with stress, difficulty managing emotions.
- Premature skin aging.
- Weakened immune system; frequent colds and infections; weight gain.
- Impaired motor skills and increased risk of accidents; hallucinations and delirium.
- Increased risk of serious health problems including stroke, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and certain cancers.
But how does that affect my fitness and nutrition?
Ever noticed how when you’re short on sleep you crave sugary foods that give you a quick energy boost? There’s a good reason for that. Sleep deprivation has a direct link to overeating and weight gain.
There are two hormones in your body that regulate normal feelings of hunger and fullness. Ghrelin stimulates appetite, while leptin sends signals to the brain when you are full. However, when you don’t get the sleep you need, your ghrelin levels go up, stimulating your appetite so you want more food than normal. At the same time, your leptin levels go down, meaning you don’t feel satisfied and want to keep eating. So, the more sleep you lose, the more food your body will crave.