“Sleep is essential for athletes. It plays an important role in physical and mental recovery, cognitive function, injury prevention, and immune defense. Adequate sleep should be an absolute priority for athletes striving for top performance.”
- Dr. Lutz Graumann, sports physician, nutrition expert, and chiropractic specialist, member of the Dagsmejan Scientific Advisory Board.
RECOVERY AFTER SPORT – WHY IT MATTERS
TRAIN HARD, RECOVER HARDER
Intense training and intense effort are prerequisites for success in many areas – including sport. However, recovery is just as important as training, especially if you want to improve your performance. During the recovery phase, our body repairs and renews muscle tissue, enhancing our strength, endurance, and fitness.
TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY
As soon as you push yourself to your limits in training or competition, your body is exposed to stress and fatigue. Recovery then becomes key to repairing and renewing stressed muscles. Active recovery is beneficial because the gentle exercises promote blood flow and stimulate muscle recovery. Examples of active recovery methods include foam rolling, stretching, and light endurance exercises.
Too little sleep (<Bh) increases the risk of injury by a factor of 1.7.
SLEEP IS YOUR SUPERPOWER
In addition to active and passive recovery, good sleep is essential for optimal recovery. It should be restful and undisturbed, which is easiest to achieve in a sleep-promoting environment that is dark, quiet, and cool.
ACHIEVING PEAK PERFORMANCE WHILE ASLEEP
Adequate sleep supports our immune system and can prevent illnesses that could thwart athletes’ training and competition plans.
SLEEP PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN PHYSICAL AND MENTAL REGENERATION
During sleep, our bodies produce growth hormones that ensure the muscle tissue damaged during training or competition is repaired and renewed. This is important for athletes because it helps their muscles recover and become stronger.
SLEEP IS ESSENTIAL FOR OUR COGNITIVE FUNCTION
A lack of sleep can affect our decision-making ability, reaction time, and concentration. These are all important for top athletic performance. In addition, sleep deprivation increases the risk of anxiety disorders, depression, and other mental health problems that can negatively impact athletic performance.
SLEEP PREVENTS INJURIES
Studies have shown that sleep deprivation increases the risk of injury in athletes. This is due to decreased cognitive function and greater fatigue.
SLEEP STRENGTHENS OUR IMMUNE SYSTEM
Adequate sleep supports our immune system and can prevent illnesses that could thwart athletes’ training and competition plans.
50% of all top athletes sleep badly (Kollinger et al. IJSPP (2019))
RECOVERY MEASURES FOR ATHLETES
ENERGY:
Eating a snack or meal high in carbohydrates and protein 30 minutes after a workout can help stimulate the recovery process and replenish energy stores. To optimize your recovery, your sleep, and therefore your overall performance, as an athlete you should pay attention to proper nutrition, sufficient fluids, and the timing of energy intake.
PASSIVE REGENERATION:
With rest and relaxation, you allow your body to recover from the physical and mental strain of training. You can promote passive regeneration with massage therapy, red light therapy, and sauna sessions.
MENTAL REGENERATION:
This is just as important as physical recovery. Athletes should seek activities that reduce stress and promote relaxation, such as meditation or breathing exercises.
ICE BATHS:
Cryotherapy can reduce inflammation and relieve muscle soreness. Athletes can take an ice bath or apply cold compresses sore areas.
STRETCHING AND FOAM ROLLING:
Stretching and foam rolling can relieve muscle pain and increase flexibility. Athletes should schedule both after each workout.
SLEEP:
Getting enough rest and sleep is essential for recovery. Athletes should sleep 7–9 hours a night and include rest days in their training schedule.
SLEEP ROUTINE OF CHAMPIONS
ALWAYS GO TO BED AT THE SAME TIME:
If you always go to bed and get up at the same time, you will help your body maintain its biorhythm and improve your sleep quality. Therefore, despite your busy schedule, try to keep your bedtimes as consistent as possible.
THINK ABOUT A RELAXING EVENING RITUAL:
Do something calming before bedtime – read a book, take a warm bath. This is the best way to prepare your body for sleep.
AVOID STIMULATING ACTIVITIES BEFORE BEDTIME:
In the hours before you go to bed, refrain from activities that can disrupt your sleep such as using electronic devices and strenuous workouts.
CREATE A SLEEP-PROMOTING ENVIRONMENT, AT HOME AND WHILE TRAVELING:
Make sure your bedroom is dark, quiet, and cool. Invest in a comfortable mattress and pillows. Try to create an environment as similar as possible to home when traveling.
YOUR SLEEP SYSTEM FOR OPTIMAL THERMOREGULATION:
Sleepwear, bedding, toppers, and mattresses should work together to create a system that helps you stay in the ideal thermal comfort zone at night.
LIMIT CAFFEINE AND ALCOHOL:
Caffeine and alcohol can disrupt your sleep, so athletes should consume less of it, especially in the hours before bedtime.
DO RELAXATION EXERCISES:
Learn relaxation methods such as breathing exercises or meditation to calm your mind and best prepare you for sleep.
USE SLEEP TRACKERS:
Wearable devices can help athletes understand their sleep patterns and identify areas for improvement. If you prefer to go without technology, you can also keep a sleep diary.
SLEEP & RECOVERY EXPERT ANNA WEST
Optimal sleep is important for you, for athletes, for all people to recover from the mental and physical stresses of everyday life. However, many of us do not sleep enough and often unknowingly reduce our sleep quality. If you want to create the best conditions, maintain balance and performance, and stay healthy and happy, you have to know your 24-hour rhythm and support your body in a targeted way. Dagsmejan provides effective and excellent support for this.
- Anna West, member of Dagsmejan’s Scientific Advisory Board, BScN/Founder of Sleep2perform, a consulting company focused on sleep and recovery, working with leading sports teams and companies across Europe.
SLEEP AND TEMPERATURE
Our body is able to balance its temperature thanks to thermoregulation. This process is important for sleep, as our body temperature plays an important role in our sleep-wake rhythm. The core temperature of our body must drop in the evening and reaches its lowest point during the night, and this cycle controls our sleep. During exercise, our body generates heat. If it cannot dissipate this heat effectively, our body temperature can rise, which negatively affects our sleep quality.
This is why a sleep system that helps our body to stay cool and in its thermal comfort zone at night is so important for optimal recovery. What we wear on our skin for one-third of our lifetime – our sleepwear – makes a big difference.
HOW SLEEPWEAR FROM DAGSMEJAN IMPROVES SLEEP
TEMPERATURE CONTROL:
High-tech functional fabrics made from natural fibers keep the body in its thermal comfort zone at night: never too warm, never too cold.
MOISTURE MANAGEMENT:
Moisture is wicked away from the body to keep athletes comfortably dry and cool throughout the night.
FUNCTIONAL DESIGN:
An optimal fit ensures sleepwear moves with the body, not around it. NATTRECOVER™ technology is designed for optimal recovery.
