Why Is Sleep So Important?

Struggling with your weight? Feeling bummed out? Sluggish during workouts? Or just sluggish in general? These are common complaints from new  Precision Nutrition Clients. And poor diet isn’t always to blame.

Everything from lucid thinking, to good decision making, to proper digestion, to high performance is heavily dependent on getting good quality sleep.

Unfortunately, more than a third of adults get fewer than 7 hours of sleep each night, the minimum needed to keep your risk of health problems in check.

And that’s not counting the millions of folks who likely over-estimate how much sleep they’re getting, or whose sleep quality is poor because of other, seemingly unrelated lifestyle factors.

In this infographic, we unpack early indicators that you’re not getting enough rest. Then we share exactly how to prep for the best night sleep, starting with when you wake up.

People will go to great lengths to ensure that they have a smart and well structured exercise program, nutritional plan and supplementation regimen.  Yet they often forget about or abandon their sleep and sleep quality.

Sleep is essential to health and survival. Even if you don’t eat very well, you can still expect to live around 75 years. But if you don’t sleep, you’ll likely check out in a couple of weeks — the Guinness World Record for sleep deprivation is 11 days.

“Sleep loss due to voluntary bedtime curtailment has become a hallmark of modern society… Chronic sleep loss, [whether] behavioral or sleep disorder related, may represent a novel risk factor for weight gain, insulin resistance, and Type 2 diabetes.”
— Spiegel, K.

Regular exercise can reduce a woman’s risk of cancer, but the benefits may slip away if she gets too little sleep, say US researchers.

Donald Grandy

Precision Nutrition Certification - Pn1

Sport and Exercise Coach

dongrandy@gmail.com

*This content is strictly for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of medical advice or treatment from a personal physician. All viewers of this content are advised to consult their doctors or qualified health professionals regarding specific health questions. All viewers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should consult their physicians before beginning any nutrition, supplement or lifestyle program.