Working out is great for your body and mind – and it can also help you get a good night’s sleep. But, for some people, exercising too late in the day can interfere with how well they rest at night.
How Does Exercise Help You Sleep?
Moderate aerobic exercise increases the amount of slow-wave sleep you get. Slow-wave sleep refers to deep sleep, where the brain and body have a chance to rejuvenate. Exercise can also help to stabilize your mood and decompress the mind.
In addition to improving the quality of sleep, exercise also can help you increase the duration of your nightly rest. Being physically active requires you to expend energy, and helps you feel more tired and ready to rest at the end of the day.
Exercise can be an effective natural therapy for some sleep disorders including insomnia. Some studies suggest that aerobic exercise may be particularly effective in helping reduce insomnia symptoms and have also found that exercise can help lower the severity of sleep disordered breathing and may help to reduce the severity of obstructive sleep apnea.
Should You Exercise in the AM or PM?
Aerobic exercise causes the body to release endorphins. These chemicals can create a level of activity in the brain that keeps some people awake. These individuals should exercise at least 1 to 2 hours before going to bed, giving endorphin levels time to wash out and the brain time to wind down.
Exercise also raises your core body temperature. Elevation in core body temperature signals the body clock that it’s time to be awake. After about 30 to 90 minutes, the core body temperature starts to fall. The decline helps to facilitate sleepiness.
How Much Exercise Do You Need for Better Sleep?
It’s not going to take months or years to see a benefit. People who engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise can see a difference in sleep quality that same night. Pick an exercise you like and will stick with.
For example, powerlifting or a yoga class can elevate your heart rate, helping to create the biological processes in the brain and body that contribute to better quality sleep.
How You Can Help
When you become a Certified Sleep Science Coach, you will learn how to help your clients dramatically enhance their metabolism, memory, creativity, immune function, hormone balance, hunger management, disease prevention, sports performance, accident avoidance, memory, reaction time, good judgement, surgery recovery, happiness and over 100 additional functions and behaviors.
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