Snooze or you lose – Why athletes need sleep
Part 2 Matthew Walker – Why we Sleep
How often as a therapist or coach do you ask your athlete about sleep quality and sleep quantity? Are you aware of research findings that suggest lack of sleep quality and quantity can affect sports performance? In his book “Why We Sleep” Matthew Walker highlights just how important sleep is to all athlete’s health and performance:
- Time to physical exhaustion drops by 10 to 30 percent (especially < 6 hours sleep)
- Less power – Reduced vertical jump height
- Decreases in peak and sustained muscle strength
- Aerobic output is significantly reduced (especially < 6 hours sleep)
- Lower levels of testosterone – this can be associated with fatigue, lack of concentration and loss of bone density. In athletes trying to build strength, lack of testosterone limits the building of muscle mass.
- Faster rates of lactic acid build-up
- A reduction in the ability of the body to cool itself during physical exertion through sweating
- Reduction in concentration – Walker stresses the danger of driving when sleep deprived but what impact might that have on a sports field and decision making with regards to the timing of tackles and concussion for example.
- Emotions and rationale thinking – we become more emotional when sleep-deprived and the connection between the prefrontal cortex (brake) and our amygdala (emotional accelerator) is lost all of which may potentially have an impact on decision making.
- Post-exercise, sleep helps to accelerate physical recovery from inflammation, stimulates muscle repair, and helps restock cellular energy in the form of glucose and glycogen.
In my previous blog, I described how lack of sleep also affects skill development and our ability to create effortless movements we can rely on when in competition.
Walker reminds us “Practice does not make perfect. It is the practice followed by a night of sleep that makes perfection” Sleep can help us grasp skills we found hard and help organise them in our brain overnight making them easier to perform the next time you try them. At night, motor memories are shifted to areas of the brain below the subconscious level where they become automated and habitual rather than requiring great effort so that when you perform, they become effortless. The increases in speed and accuracy and automation of the motor skills were associated with the last two hours of an eight-hour night of sleep. Consider that if you are an athlete who regularly has early morning training sessions that these might affect your ability to create lasting motor memories and may not be an effective use of your time.
For more information about other aspects of recovery and athlete development follow me @angiejphysio on Instagram and Twitter and check out my courses for athletes and therapists www.angelajacksonphysio.com
