LACK OF SLEEP HAS KILLED ME!
Over the last week I have experienced first hand how important sleep is! I am an 8 hour a night girl and a few consecutive nights of below 6, has wiped me out!
I have noticed 3 big things this week:
1. I haven’t recovered from workouts.
When we sleep our body can direct energy into rebuilding muscle tissue – we are in a state of recovery.
2. My food choices have been bad – when I get tired I get hungry – and I’ve been craving high calorie foods all week.
Studies have shown that when people don’t get enough sleep they have increased levels of a hunger hormone called ghrelin and decreased levels of the satiety/fullness hormone called leptin, which could lead to overeating.
3. I picked up an injury – and the bottom lip is now out!
Our bodies are more susceptible to injury after sleep deprivation as the tissues have had less time to recover and repair.
My big takeaways from this week
DON’T TRY TO OUT TRAIN BAD SLEEP!
I shouldn’t have pushed my body when it was all ready struggling to recover because of poor sleep.
One or two nights of bad sleep is a big deal.
Even though you CAN get a hard workout in after a poor night’s sleep, doesn’t mean you SHOULD.
I should have adjusted my training to my recovery level and avoided higher intensity in favour of active recovery.
DON’T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE I DID!
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE IMPORTANCE OF SLEEP.
HEALTHY ATHLETES ARE FAST ATHLETES!
How does a lack of sleep affect you?
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