Does Sleep Increase Performance and Muscle Building?
You work hard to optimize the various aspects of your life.
You buy the best shoes for your training.
You spend extra money on local produce and meat from trustworthy sources.
You buy supplements to fill in the gaps in your nutrition.
You try many things that require your money and time and yet it’s common to overlook the low-hanging fruit that can give you guaranteed results.
What if I told you there was something you could do that was more powerful for your overall health than any supplement on the internet, and it was FREE?
Is sleep really that important?
Almost no one is making sleep a priority when it should be first on the list when looking to make improvements in your physical and mental health.
Remember… When you’re in the gym throwing barbells around and working up a sweat, you are breaking your body down.
The food you eat and the sleep you get are the things that allow you to make improvements after the time in the gym.
Here’s how the process goes:
Stress the body (train) —> Recover (eat and sleep) —> Adapt (get stronger, fitter, and more jacked)
How Much Sleep Do You Need?
Most people need about 7 hours of sleep to take advantage of the stage of sleep (non-REM) where hormones are released, and muscle rebuilding happens most.
So what are the consequences of not getting enough sleep?
Higher likelihood of getting sick
Increased risk of stroke, cancer, diabetes, and heart disease
Decreased brain function (focus)
Decreased libido (no hanky panky)
Decreased insulin sensitivity
Weight gain / Increased hunger (which you can read more about in our article about sleep sabotaging fat loss)
Not getting enough sleep is a bad idea friend.
Luckily, there are some things you can start doing THIS WEEK to try and get more sleep.
How To Get Better & More Sleep:
Stop drinking caffeine 4-5 hours before bed
Turn off all “screens” (phones and TVs) an hour before bed
Establish a nightly ritual that triggers your body to start downregulating (reading, drinking tea)
Go to bed earlier (this one seems obvious but is usually overlooked)
Set your thermostat to about 68 degrees or cooler
Wear a sleep mask or use blackout curtains
Make sleep a priority starting this week and start to see what a difference it can make.
Don’t judge your improvement based on 1 or 2 nights. Find a routine that works for your schedule and see how you look and feel after several months.
Create a spreadsheet and track 2 important metrics. #1 - How much did you sleep? #2 - What was your SFS that day?
Your SFS is your “Subjective Feeling Score”. Were you stressed? Did you crush your workout? Were you starving? Give yourself a ranking from 1 to 10 each day.
Watch how these metrics correlate over time.
Interested in talking with us about starting your own fitness journey? We’d love to welcome you to the Digital Barbell team! Start the conversation here.
All our best,
Jonathan & Blakley