WHY SLEEP IS ESSENTIAL FOR ATHLETES?

Brigita Kuhar

Brigita Kuhar
17.12.2019

Enough sleep and regular physical exercise are essential for our health. Although everyone recognises this, it is not well known that the two activities influence each other.

In our latest blog we will explain how to get the most out of these two essential activities.

Adequate sleep is of prime importance for health of the human body. Scientists tell us that it is essential to sleep between seven and nine hours a night. However, quality rest during sleep does not only depend on the duration of the sleep but also on the intensity of it. The deeper the sleep stages are, the more efficient the sleep is. During the deep stages of sleep, also known as non-REM sleep, growth hormones that are responsible for the growth of muscle, skin, and hair are released. This deep sleep also has a positive effect on the body’s defence system.

INTERACTION BETWEEN SPORT & SLEEP

The body achieves the best sports results only when it has enough sleep as the muscles regenerate and grow achieving maximum performance.

People who have very little physical exercise usually experience poor quality sleep, often suffering from fatigue leading to depressed moods and anxiety.

Sports, regular physical activity reduces stress and sleep disturbances, contributes to concentration and elevates mood therefore increasing the quality of sleep. However, the intensity of physical activities and sports should not be exaggerated as the quality of sleep might be negatively affected.

Excessive physical activity and playing high intensity sports such as basketball at NBA level is having a negative impact on these athletes.

NBA players are one of the best examples of the consequences of insufficient and inadequate sleep and the problems it can cause, resulting in medical professionals expressing their concerns.

Players, coaches, and others started to realize the cost of the NBA gruelling season’s schedule on the NBA players, which were not recognised at the time.

NBA players spend six to eight months travelling through different time zones causing disruption of their biological rhythm that is further stressed by the high physical and mental demands of the sport itself.

Did you know that on average each NBA team:

Plays 82 games over a six-month period
Plays on average every 2.07 days
3 times a season plays games in two consecutive days with no proper rest time
Flies 50,000 miles each season (roughly 20,000 miles more than NFL teams)
Flies 250 miles a day for 25 consecutive weeks.
Circles the globe twice each season

“Not surprisingly, poor sleep affects performance and, more importantly, can cause significant and long-term health risks.”– Timothy G. Royer, Psy.D.

As a result of this, some experts are collecting data and the preliminary findings indicate lack of sleep being a silent ”killer” of the NBA league players and other high calibre athletes with gruelling schedules that harm their bodies and minds with profound and long term negative consequences.

Possible solutions include adjusting and extending the seasons’ schedule and duration to include more rest days.

A comprehensive and long-term solution is required as soon as possible for these top athletes and players to continue providing us with the thrills of the game.

What are your suggestions how the NBA season can be adjusted to benefit both the players and the game?

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