Sleep. We all need it, but how important is it to our training and our pains?
Probably not so surprising it's very important.
Studies show that with poor sleep we are more at risk of having an injury and it has a negative effect on our recovery.
I've been there before. Had a poor night sleep, tried to train at my usual intensity, my body wasn't there and SNAP, I pulled a muscle.
Not only this, but we are also more likely to experience our current niggles and pains as feeling much worse than they may have felt before.
And this in turn can be a horrible cycle. Poor sleep makes your pains feel worse, so you can't sleep, which makes your pains feel worse. Until you break the cycle this could go on for quite a while.
So here are a few tips to help get a better sleep so you can train injury free, recover quicker and reduce the current niggles;
1) Get a sports massage
Treatments have been shown to reduce heart rate, blood pressure and stress all allowing you to get a better sleep
2) Avoid big meals before bed
I'm guilty of this, but a large meal means your body has to work on digesting instead of letting you get quality sleep
3) Get some physical activity during the day
This will help promote better sleep and switch the mind off
4) Avoid technology before bed
We've all heard this one and sometimes it seems impossible to do. But if you're struggling definitely try to stay off the technology at least an hour before bed
Do yourself a favour and do what you can to catch some 💤 tonight and start training injury free and living pain free!
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