Enough sleep, anyone?

One common myth, which I have almost convinced myself in my case too, is that you can acclimatize your mind and body to do with less sleep without any negative effects. As a doctor you pride yourself about this. However, as the years roll by and you listen to your body more and analyze yourself with detachment, one reaches the conclusion that you DO need MORE/ ENOUGH sleep.

That gets us to the question of how much is enough sleep. The answer is pretty straightforward, no ifs and buts: 7-9 hours a day for ages 18-64 and 7-8 hours for age 65 years and above.

And why: Because it is linked to your emotional, mental and physical health, quality of life and safety. Inadequate sleep leads to irritability, poor concentration, anger and depression. Sleep is important to process new information and remember it. Sleep deficiency is linked to higher incidence of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and strokes. Not to forget lower immunity, making you more prone to infections, especially virals. Sleep deprivation leads to slower reaction times, impaired decision-making and more risk taking behavior: all of which leads to higher chances of accidents and injury. 

Ever felt that a lecture didn’t make complete sense or don’t remember how you got from point A to B while driving? I will raise my hand to the latter!!😅 Quite likely because of Microsleep. Microsleep are brief episodes of sleep while you are normally awake and probably not even aware of it. A sign of sleep debt. 

What about runners and sportspersons in general? They might be some of the fittest people going around, but their need for sleep is no less. Actually, high performing athletes and the amateurs amongst us who are at peak training need more sleep than the average person. Closer to 8-10 hours a day, because the body needs more time to repair and recover. No doubt, adequate sleep improves performance: be it speed, endurance, power or accuracy and also results in reduced chances of injury. 

 

So how do we ensure good sleep, both qualitatively and quantitatively? It’s what we medical types call sleep hygiene:

·       Reduce stress. Easier said than done, but mental stress does affect sleep quality and impacts performance.

·       Keep naps brief, if you take them at all. Naps should be no more than 30-40 minutes and not after 4 p.m.

·       Appropriate sleep environment: Your sleeping space should be relaxed, dark, cool and with little or no noise/ other distractions. 

·       Avoid alcohol and caffeine close to bedtime. These can interrupt sleep or lead to disturbed sleep. Dinner should be light and preferably 1-2 hours before bedtime.

·       Stay away from electronics after evening. No TV, mobiles and computers. The blue light emitted by these devices is known to mess up the circadian rhythm.

·       A wind-down routine: Reading, listening to soothing music, taking a bath, or meditating helps one relax and drift off to sleep.

·       Get out of bed if you can’t fall asleep after 20 minutes of trying. Do a quiet activity in another space until you feel sleepy.

·       Don’t fret about/ overthink sleep: The more you worry about sleeping, the more it keeps you awake!

 

Sleep extension and Sleep banking for runners/ sportspeople: It would take some scarifice of your professional or work commitments, but increasing sleep times by as little as 15-30 minutes a day for a few weeks before competition is known to improve performance. Getting an afternoon nap in and extending night sleep for as little as 5-7 days before race day helps. The couple of weeks before competition you are anyway tapering your training intensity, so you have more time on your hands. Use it wisely…sleep more. The night before D-Day most of us don’t sleep well and usually it’s a very early morning start anyways for long distance events. So build a ‘sleep bank’ in the days leading up to race day.

 

That’s it for now. Sweet dreams.😇😴