P.E.D.s - How Sleep Impacts Performance (cont..)
February 1, 2018
Sleep reduces injury rates and improves overall health. The 2017 D10 events hosted almost 1000 athletes. Many of our athletes trained for months leading up to the event. In addition to their rigorous training schedule, athletes are expected to excel at work. That often requires more time than the traditional 40 (or 80) hour work week. Let’s be honest: there aren’t many 40 hour a week workers in our community. This means that our community is at best a little short on sleep. So what?
A little sleep deprivation significantly impacts performance as noted above. Continued sleep deprivation has a negative impact on your immune system, rendering you more susceptible to illness. Most importantly, inadequate sleep (even one night) significantly impacts your ability to recover from those taxing workouts. Like the lumberjack that never sharpens his axe, you will have to work harder to produce the same or worse results.
Game Day is 10 events contested over approximately 4 hours. The healthier and stronger you are coming into Game Day the more likely you are to have a great day.
Take-away: As you prepare for the D10, you might encounter periods of recurring fatigue or minor muscle tweaks. If so, you want to look at your workouts. AND you want to take a look at your sleep. If you’re burning the midnight oil from both ends, you might consider a couple nights of additional sleep.
Stay tuned for next's week final entry on the amazing benefits of sleep!