A Better Night's Sleep

Who doesn't want a better night's sleep? For some people it doesn't seem to matter if they get four hours, eight hours, or ten hours - they still aren't feeling well rested when they wake up. I recently had to change my schedule so that I was getting up almost an hour earlier than I was used to, but I also added in 45 minutes of exercise to my day. With this new schedule I was asleep an hour and a half earlier each night and woke up refreshed in the mornings. According to a study I read over the weekend, those who add vigorous exercise to their daily routine sleep better at night. Let my story be proof that this study might actually be on to something.

The National Sleep Foundation completed a 2013 Sleep in American Annual poll. The poll surveyed 1,000 adults between the ages of 23 and 60 years old. Those who self-reported that they exercise also reported better sleep, even though they slept the same amount as non-exercisers (an average of 6 hours and 51 minutes on weeknights). More than three-fourths of exercisers (76 percent to 83 percent) say their quality of sleep was very good or fairly good in the past two weeks compared to slightly more than one-half of non-exercisers.

^{Maybe not what the doctors had in mind. Image Credit: Indianapublicmedia.org}

Those who reported that they participate in vigorous exercise were twice as likely to report they had a good night's sleep almost every night during the week and are less likely to report problems with their sleep. More than two-thirds of vigorous exercisers say that in the past two weeks they rarely or never had symptoms commonly associated with insomnia. These symptoms included waking up too early and not being able to get back to sleep and difficulty falling asleep. In contrast, one-half of non-exercisers say they woke up during the night and nearly one-fourth had difficulty falling asleep every night or almost every night (this was totally me).

The poll task force chair, Max Hirshkowitz, explains that they can't easily determine cause and effect. Shawn Yougstedt, a poll task force member, suggests that poor sleep leads to negative health because it makes people less inclined to exercise. This was supported by 57% of the total sample reporting that their activity level was less than usual after a poor night's sleep. Hirshkowitz predicts that exercise improves sleep and a "good sleep is fundamental for good health, productivity, and happiness."

Non-exercisers also report being tired or "sleepy" more often twice as often as exercisers. About 61 percent of non-exercisers say they rarely or never have a good night's sleep on work nights. This sleepiness interferes with the safety and quality of life of non-exercisers including trouble staying awake while driving, eating or engaging in social activity at least once a week in the two weeks before the poll. This is three times the rate of those who exercise. Being sleepy every now and then is normal but if "excessive sleepiness is your normal state it warrants a conversation with your doctor and could be a red flag that something is wrong with your health." Excessive sleep could come from a condition known as sleep apnea, which I've explained here. The sleep poll also showed that spending too much time sitting can decrease the quality of sleep. I've written before about the dangers of sitting.

The poll goes on to show that it doesn't matter what time of day the exercising occurs, as long as it happens and vigorous exercise is the most effective for getting the best quality of sleep. Other tips for a better night sleep include

• Creating a "sleep environment" which is dark, cool, and comfortable
• Keep this space for only sleeping by removing any work related items
• Try to go to bed and wake up the same time each day
• Save your worries for the daytime. If you can't stop your mind from wandering, try writing concerns down on paper so you can address them later.
  

^{Image Credit: Total Fitness Experience}

In the two weeks that I've changed by sleep schedule and exercised habits I've noticed a significant increase in the quality of sleep I get each night. I go to be easier (and earlier) and I wake up easier. I would highly suggest adding just 20 minutes of vigorous exercise to your daily routine and notice if it affects your sleep. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Resources

National Sleep Foundation poll finds exercise key to good sleep