03 Sep Sleep

Sleep. 

Sleep is the ultimate ultimate weapon at getting any human right. It’s Free and “easily” attainable, yet it also is something that a good amount of us struggle to value and regularly get enough of. 

But how much sleep do we need?

Why is sleep important?

How can we maximize our sleep and sleep quality?

We’re going to answer all those questions and more so sit back, relax, and get cozy.

So how much sleep should we be getting?

The recommended amount is 7-9 hours per night.

If you’re more active, you may need more sleep. If you’re unable to sleep for that long in one stretch, then we encourage you to take a nap.

A nap! That’s right! A 30-45 minute nap is a great way for you to get some extra sleep if you’re feeling extra tired or if you’ve accumulated a sleep debt.

A sleep debt simply means that you haven’t been getting the amount of recommended sleep for the past few days and may have some hours to make up.

If you have a sleep debt, it may not just impact how you feel but also in how you recover. Not only in a  physical sense, but also in how your brain recovers. There’s research out there that sleep is the lymphatic system of the brain. In other words, sleep cleans up the junk that our brain produces throughout the day from all the things that our brains do. Similar to the things that we do to recover from muscle soreness (enter your favorite way to do this – compression boots, massage, foam rolling, going for a walk), that’s what sleep does for the brain. What’s the long term effect? Lack of sleep or the inability to effectively get rid of that junk is linked to an increased risk for dementia or Alzheimer’s later in life.

Sleep also helps us regulate the hormones in our system and our blood sugar. If we aren’t getting enough sleep, our blood sugar increases. Chronic increases in blood sugar is a precursor to diabetes. 

Besides all of the physical aspects that lack of sleep can affect, it can also impact your mental health. Lack of sleep will increase anxiety and can also exacerbate the symptoms of anxiety related disorders such as OCD and depression. 

Sleep also helps with emotional regulation so we don’t overreact or lessen the likelihood that we overreact in stressful situations. Moms, Dads, teachers, bosses, students, rescue workers, coaches, nurses, caregivers, uber drivers – we see you.

Lack of consistent sleep can affect your decision making process. According to the CDC, staying awake for 17 hours straight is the equivalent to a BAC (blood alcohol level) of .005% where being awake for 24 hours is the equivalent to a BAC of .10%. 

Now back to the physical impacts of sleep. If you are an athlete or someone that is more active, you are definitely going to want to prioritize your sleep. Why? Because lack of sleep increases your chance for your body to break down. Yes, even if you are hitting all of your protein intake goals and doing all the other things that make you the high performing human you are.

Any teenagers that play sports and struggle to get to bed at a reasonable hour because of sports, homework, and other obligations – are at an increased risk of developing an injury because the body is not getting the rest it needs.

We think we’ve gently targeted every possible demographic that is affected by this #everyone, so let’s get into some sleep tips that can help you holistically fall and stay asleep:

1. Get early sunlight exposure. Waking up and getting sun in your eyes kicks off your natural circadian rhythm. Try to get some sun exposure for at least 15 minutes. 
2. Establish a bed time routine. Think same wake up time, same bed time. Even on the weekends.
3. Use blue light blocking lenses to help with melatonin production.
4. Turn the lights down in your environment a few hours before bedtime.
5. Try a breath practice.
6. Do some soft tissue work with a massage ball or a foam roller.
7. Supplement with melatonin.
8. Try getting away from screens altogether. If you have to look at something before bed, see tip 3 or try reading from real books. Again, trying to reduce pre bedtime screen time.
9. Make sure the temperature in the room is appropriate–anywhere between 65-69 degrees is ideal.
10. Make sure your room is as dark as possible by turning off all lights, using blackout curtains, and placing tape over any electronics emitting light. If making the room completely dark is not a possibility, get an eyemask!

While these tips sound nice, we understand that a lot of it is easier said than done. The best thing you can do if you don’t know where to start is to try to create and adhere to a routine that works for you. Start with just one of these tips and see if you’re able to stick with it for a week. If it’s going well, try to stack on another one.

Have any more questions about sleep? We did an entire podcast episode on sleep that you can find here: 

All right, guys. As always, we appreciate you, now get a good night’s sleep!