Recipe of the Week

Fun, Facts & Fitness from Mary Morris MSc.

I am often surprised by the number of people I speak to who admit to being a 'poor sleeper' and who tell me how utterly debilitating it can be. I am not surprised, for when you read about the enormous benefits of a good night’s sleep you begin to realise the true value of this most basic of human habits. If you are one of those people, I seriously hope that, armed with some valuable facts about sleep and a few tips on what you can do that may help, we can lead you toward a better night’s sleep.

Professor Sara Mednick, a sleep researcher from the University of California explains that the need for sleep is due to living on a planet that has a Sun and a Moon and that all plants and animals follow these cycles of rest and activity. And there may lie part of the problem…

We need to have 'active' days to help to enable us toward better 'rest'. I deliberately say ‘part of the problem’ as I do know many active people who don’t sleep well. As we all know, modern living is complex and because of that it almost inevitably causes us to be more anxious and stressed than is good for us so it is not surprising that it affects our ability to get a good night’s sleep.

It's hard to overstate the importance of sleep in the whole spectrum of helping our body and mind to function well and I am sure we have all, at some point in our lives, recognised the consequences of poor sleep. We only need to have had a few disturbed nights to witness our inability to concentrate as we usually do, or have the ability to think clearly and quickly. We just feel exhausted so it is no surprise that we cannot give our best in that state. There are also links to an increased risk of heart disease, obesity and other serious health conditions. So, let's try and help those poor sleepers reach the land of nod!

The Stages of Sleep

Stage 1
Initially we doze between wakefulness and sleep which usually lasts around 5 minutes.

Stage 2
As we enter Stage 2 our breathing slows, our muscles relax and our core temperature falls. Our brain activity slows down too.

Stage 3
Some 10 - 15 minutes later, deep sleep begins which activates a particular type of brain activity called delta waves.  Researchers believe that this stage of sleep can last up to 40 minutes and is the most restorative stage when our immune system and other body systems get a kind of MOT. We digest our food, activate any bodily repairs and replenish our energy stores.

Stage 4
Lastly there is this final stage, called REM (Rapid Eye Movement). At this point we are 60 - 90 minutes into our sleep. This is when dreams will be most vivid and the body enters a sort of paralysis with the exception of the eyes, which move quickly under our eyelids.

Sleep and Exercise

Much research has focussed on the differences in physical activity levels between people who are poor sleepers and those who sleep well. The ideal is that we sleep between 7 and 9 hours each night and hopefully reach all those different stages explained above. It comes as no surprise to me that the conclusion is generally those who have poor sleep are less active than those with healthy sleep.

So, if you are poor sleeper and not very active then increasing your activity should ideally be your first port of call. Try it. Take a good 30-minute walk every day without fail and see if that improves your sleep. If you are already an active person then maybe you need to explore the 'timing' of your activity in order to get a better night’s sleep. 

Some people are ‘larks’ and others are ‘owls’. Because larks wake up more easily in the morning, they are more likely to take their exercise earlier in the day whereas owls, who are in no rush to go to bed, and are happy to exercise much later.  Basically, you need to play with different times of the day for your activity sessions and see which one gives you a better night’s sleep.

Of course, lifestyle can get in the way, and for some exercising early isn’t practical, and vice versa. It is accepted though that if you like to exercise in the evening then it should be at least 90 minutes before bedtime allowing sufficient time for the heart rate, body temperature and adrenaline levels to reduce enough to promote a good night’s sleep.  Definitely avoid high-intensity workouts before bed.  A moderate level of exercise works best. 

The Value of a Nap

Can having a nap during the day make up for lost sleep at night? Can you really catch up on lost sleep if you are a hardened insomniac?  Well, we only have to look at different cultures, such as the Spanish with their siesta to find that many think yes, it does.  According to Dr Brice Faraut, author of 'Saved by the Siesta', sleep is sleep. It doesn't really matter if you only grab five hours a night, if you can make up for it with 2 hours after lunch.  You're still putting the time in.

A word of advice though, don't nap for too long or too late in the day as it will very likely impact on your night-time sleep. The hope is that your nap will at least reach Stage 3 as these deep-sleep stages are known to be the most restorative, impacting on our blood pressure and various other elements linked to good health. The bottom line is that a short nap of around 40 minutes can provide us with all the benefits of a night’s sleep but, of course, on a smaller scale.  Maybe give it a try.

Tips for Better Sleep

• Breathe deeply. Controlled deep breathing calms the central nervous system moving us into a state of rest. Try breathing in for a count of 4 and out for a slow count of 8.
• If you are overweight and suffer from poor sleep then work at reaching a healthy weight to reduce the risk of sleep apnoea which can seriously disturb sleep.
• All types of exercise play a valuable part in a good night’s sleep. It also helps reduce anxiety and depression helping both the mind and the body to relax in preparation for sleep. Moderate aerobic activity and strength training are both valuable.
• Relaxation-type exercises like Yoga and stretching can be really helpful.

Waking up feeling well-rested can have a really positive impact on our day ahead. We are more likely to take more exercise after a good night’s sleep. Developing a consistent sleep routine is well worth the effort and I wish you well.

Did you know... 

The Siesta (meaning “nap”) is an old Spanish tradition that spread far and wide across the Mediterranean and beyond, but increasingly in modern times fewer people are putting it into practice. Even in Spain, the midday nap during the working week has largely been abandoned among the adult working population in the cities.

For the Spanish, lunch is still the biggest meal of the day. Since Spaniards don’t eat a large breakfast and dinner tends to be something light at the very end of the day, people tend to eat a lot at lunchtime. After a large meal, much of your blood goes to your stomach to help with digestion. This means there’s less blood flowing to your brain, and you start to feel drowsy and tired. This, combined with the high temperatures found in the Mediterranean around the middle of the day makes doing any type of physical or mental work an uphill battle.

These factors led to the Spanish custom of taking a lengthy (2 - 4 hour) lunch break. Traditionally most businesses and stores would close so employees could go home, eat, and take a rest from working during the hottest part of the day. Nowadays, however, most office workers are increasingly likely to have a shorter, lighter lunch and be back at their desks after just an hour or two.

It seems the lengthy Spanish Siesta is increasingly giving way to the more business-orientated Power-nap!