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Why athletes should make sleep a priority in their daily training

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In 2008, Usain Bolt broke records at the Beijing Olympics by being the first person in history to hold both the 100m and 200m world records. By the 2012 Olympics, Bolt became the first man in history to win 6 Olympic gold medals in sprinting.

So what does Bolt consider to be the most important part of his daily training regime? None other than sleep.

“Sleep is extremely important to me – I need to rest and recover in order for the training I do to be absorbed by my body” – Usain Bolt.

At Fatigue Science we know how important sleep is to an athletes performance, reaction time and recovery time. Our fatigue measurement technology is used by professional sports teams such as the Vancouver Canucks to ensure enough sleep is incorporated into athletes training regimes.

So how much sleep do the professionals get? And how can sleep reduction effect your performance.

Key Infographic Takeaways

  • By incorporating adequate sleep into their routine, tennis players get a 42% boost in hitting accuracy
  • Sleep improves split-second decision making ability by 4.3%
  • After 4 days of restricted sleep, athletes maximum bench press drops 20lbs
  • Roger Federer gets 11 to 12 hours sleep per night
  • Lebron James gets 12 hours of sleep per night

 

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How napping can increase your alertness and performance

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Napping can be be an effective way to  increase your alertness and performance. So how long you should nap for? And which public figures famously napped?
Find out all about napping in the below infographic.

Key Infographic Takeaways

  • A nap of 60 minutes improves alertness for up to 10 hours – TWEET THIS
  • NBA, NHL and even NFL players are known to be nappers  – TWEET THIS
  • A “NASA Nap” of 26mins can enhance performance by 34% and overall alertness by 54% – TWEET THIS
  • Nike offers workers a nap-friendly room – TWEET THIS
  • Einstein napped frequently during the day to help him think more clearly – TWEET THIS

Napping infographic v2

Interested in learning more about data-driven fatigue management?

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or download our free eBook on the Science of Sleep for industrial workforces

The importance of sleep for professional athletes

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We often mistake sleep and fatigue to only effect those working shift work , but recent articles in the news have bought to light the importance of sleep in sports for professional athletes.

In the last week we have seen the spotlight being put on Wimbledon, where we learnt that the key to both Andy Murray and Marion Batoli’s recent victories was managing sleep and adding additional z’s into their daily routines. More recently, the press has highlighted the Indian cricket team’s demanding touring and playing schedule and the importance of sleep and recovery for Tour de France riders.

Fatigue can have serious effects on professional athletes performance and can reduce injury and recovery periods. However, measuring, managing and mitigating athlete fatigue can be hard.

In the news:

New Readiband features allow players to see when they need to sleep

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What was the key to Marion Bartoli’s recent win at Wimbledon? A 30-minute nap just before her match. Coaches, management and players all know the importance of sleep on recovery and performance. If sufficient sleep is not included in a training program then regeneration cannot occur and performance of the players plateaus.

But how do you ensure players are getting enough sleep when it counts the most?

New features on our scientifically validated Readiband watch allow players to track their real-time effectiveness scores and see in real-time how many hours until they need to sleep. The Readiband also collects aggregated sleep data to help athletes and sports organizations review and understand how fatigue is affecting their performance on a daily and hourly basis. The data can then be used as a proactive strategy for sports teams to ensure players attain adequate sleep for peak performance at game time.

By measuring sleep data using the Readiband sports organizations can:

  • Maximize player readiness
  • Boost player performance
  • Decrease recovery time and promote healing
  • Optimize travel schedules to reduce the effects of jet lag
  • Increase player durability while boosting health and morale
  • Reduce fatigue related injuries

Readiband has been used by some of the world’s leading sports organizations, including the Vancouver Canucks.