The Importance Of Sleep.

As an Everyday Athlete you'll often find yourself trying to find ways to get an extra 1%.

How to perform better.

How to recover better.

How to build more muscle.

How to never get injured.

You'll likely already be spending money every month on supplements or gadgets that promise these outcomes.

Because you really do want to maximise your potential, and do that alongside an already demanding lifestyle.

Anything that can get you more form the same training time is a good investment right?

Well you CAN have all of these things from the most proven performance enhancer of them all.

It is so potent that if it came in a pill it would be instantly banned by WADA and illegal in all sporting competitions.

Yet it's legal.

And it's also ethical. You won't get side-eyes if you mention it amongst your training group.

If anything, they won't even rate it and leave you to get all the benefits on your own, then question why you're always beating them in the gym and on the pitch a few months later down the line.

Plus, the benefits you experience in the gym and on the pitch will translate into your day to day life too.

You'll perform better there too, with more energy, better health, and increased vitality.

And best of all. It's free.

So what is this totally legal, totally ethical, highly potent and totally proven performance enhancer?

It's 8 hours sleep at night.

Sleep really is the best performance enhancer out there. Here's how... Higher Testosterone This study suggests that restricted sleep between 12:30am and 5:30am resulted in 10-15% lower testosterone compared to participants going to bed at 10am and getting up at 8am. With testosterones role as the main promoter of muscle growth and subsequent strength gain to men who resistance train, that's a big deal. Reduced Injury Risk A chronic lack of sleep is associated with increased sports injuries in adolescent athletes in this systematic review and meta-analysis. And when you're injured, you can train as effectively to improve, and your capacity to compete as an everyday athlete is greatly reduced. Improved Health/Immune Function This study suggest that if you sleep less that 7 hours per night, you are almost three times (2.94x) more likely to catch the common cold. than those with 8 hours or more of sleep. If you're unwell it impacts you ability to train hard (or at all), and will reduce you ability to recover between sessions as you bodies energy is being used elsewhere to fight the illness. Plus, hard training can negatively impact your immune system anyway, so adding an extra hit from a lack of quality sleep and you may be exacerbating the problem further. Faster Skill Development When learning new skills, a lot of the neural adaptation will occur when we are asleep. That means that reduced sleep can slow our learning of new skills related to our sport, or skilled activities we add into our training to improve our performance like Olympic weightlifting. This study looked at this in terms of soccer skills and found a steeper learning curve in sleep deprived athletes on basic skills like continuous kicking and change of direction. If you want to master something quickly, make sure you get your sleep. Faster Sprint Speeds Speed kills in sports, and subjects in this study demonstrated faster timed sprints after sleep extension alongside other performance benefits in mens varsity basketball players. Even if your sleep is compromised, a nap has also been shown to have a positive effect on sprint times. A well rested athlete has the potential to be a fast explosive athlete. Application For The Everyday Athlete By definition, as an Everyday Athlete not everything is in your control. You likely have work stresses, social and family commitments, and maybe even a young family. These things can negatively impact your sleep even if you do get to bed on time. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't aim to improve it, because as shown above it can be of HUGE benefit to your performance, recovery, wellness and ability. Any extra time you can get, even if it's a 30 minute swing in your sleep schedule, or a 20 minute nap, is going to be beneficial. Any any work you can put into managing your sleep quality will also be hugely productive. Aim for a clutter free, extra dark sleep environment, reduced screen time before bed, using an unwinding routine 1-2 hours before bed, no caffeine within 8 hours of sleep, and getting some early morning sunlight to cement your circadian rhythm. Not everything about your sleep is within your control as an Everyday Athlete, but some of the aspects above will be, so absolutely make them a priority. They will improve your performance, health, robustness and recovery a whole lot more than a cold shower, an overpriced supplement, or a massage gun session. Get your sleep athletes! Ian.