Sleep Matters

Not too many lay people would make the connection between sleep and nutrition. But there is one. And apparently it's fairly significant.

Researchers have found a link between certain hormones and not only what you eat but how much. Limiting subjects to just four hours of sleep for two straight nights, scientists at the University of Chicago say, affected their levels of leptin, a hormone that signals the brain that you are full, decreasing it nearly 18%.

Another hormone, ghrelin, which increases one's urge for so-called comfort foods, increased 28%, according to these researchers. And that's not all. Lack of sleep can spike cortisol levels pushing your hunger button, making your appetite surge.

So trying to get by, as many of us do, on less than 8 hours sleep, especially if you're training hard and trying to lose or make weight, is a recipe for failure. Sleep matters and it matters more than most think, once again proving how connected most things are.

In our piece on cognitive recovery we mentioned the importance of sleep. Sleep is mysterious, to be sure, apparently more beneficial than just recharging the mind, but with yet much to learn about its mysteries. A July, 2011 study in the journal Sleep discussed the impact on athletic performance extended sleep had in college basketball players.

Conducted at the Stanford University Sleep Disorder Clinic and Research Laboratory, Palo, Alto, California, college basketball players extended their usual 7-hours of sleep per night to a minimum of 10 hours with an objective mean total sleep time of 8.5 hours. The study involved 11 members of Stanford's varsity team and  covered two full seasons.

The results surprised researchers. Workout sprint times improved by nearly a second, their shooting accuracy by 9% on free throws and three-pointers. Similar improvements were noted in reaction time, fatigue and mood. One researcher summed up the study, saying: "an athlete's nightly sleep requirement should be considered integral to attaining peak performance."

Another study on the impact of sleep deprivation or poor sleep habits appeared in the journal of the American Medical Association just one month earlier, June, 2011: "Sleep Loss Dramatically Lowers Testoserone in Healthy Young Males."

It's been known for some time that after the age of about 30 testosterone levels decline at the rate of 1-2% per year. Besides sexual performance, testosterone plays an important role in building strength, muscle mass and bone density. Low levels also have been linked to poor concentration and fatigue.

According to the researchers, 15% of the adult working population in America gets by on 5 hours or less sleep a night, the same parameter used for the young men in the study. Healthy young men were defined here as slim with normal medical histories and an average age of 24. Testosterone was monitored through out the study. The lowest levels were recorded between 2 and 10 pm on their sleep-deprived days. Bottom line, the study concluded sleeping habits "can reduce testosterone levels in healthy young men to that seen in people 10-15 years older."

In our blurb on cognitive recovery we stated our bias that there are no over-trained athletes, only under-rested or under-recovered ones. An important aside is this: Many of the recommendations we hear about almost daily touting healthy living habits, whether its food or water or rest, center on average people. Hard training amateur and professional athletes are hardly average. Their needs are different, just as the needs in the pediatric and geriatric sets are different.

And this applies to not only the above but also to supplements like vitamins and minerals, proteins and carbohydrates. Fail to add them to your regimen at the peril of your own performance.

Here are a few tips from the Stanford sleep study.

*Prioritize sleep as part of your regular training regimen
*Extend nightly sleep for several weeks to reduce your sleep debt before competition.
*Maintain a low sleep debt by obtaining a sufficient amount of sleep (7 to 9 hours for adults and 9 or more for teens and young adults).
*Keep a regular sleep-wake schedule, going to bed and waking up at the same times every day.
*Take brief 20-30 minute naps to obtain additional sleep during the day, especially if drowsy.
j.z. plato