The Sleep Whisperer is a series of columns offering insights and advice about sleep health. It is not a substitute for seeking professional medical care.
We often hear that active days lead to restful nights. Indeed, exercise reduces stress hormones, triggers dynamic body temperature and cardiovascular changes, stabilizes the biological clock, and strengthens the microbiota – all of which can in turn facilitate sleep. Yet, many people wonder if the type of exercise and the timing of the workout makes a difference. Some worry that high-intensity sports or late-night trips to the gym may be detrimental for sleep.
Luckily, researchers have spent quite some time studying these questions. Here are some things to know about how to leverage exercise to naturally boost your sleep, or at least not wreck it…
Timing and regularity matter
While some people like to head out for a fast run or spin class shortly before hitting the sheets, others prefer slower activities such as yoga or taking the dog out for a walk. But is one option better than the other for a good night’s rest?
A meta-analysis on the effects of evening exercise showed that, while it doesn’t generally disrupt sleep for healthy adults, it can worsen sleep quality depending on the intensity and timing. Specifically, doing 30 to 60 minutes of acute high-intensity exercise (e.g. a short, isolated bout of sprinting, fast cycling or intensive interval training) within four hours of bedtime can take a toll on your REM sleep and trim your overall sleep duration, especially if done closer to bedtime. Conversely, acute exercise of lower intensity in the evening (e.g. walking or gentle yoga) did not seem to disrupt sleep and may drive modest sleep improvements.
In other words, although sudden isolated periods of high-level physical activity could indeed not be the best for your sleep, the occasional milder exercise should not be an issue, but may not yield strong sleep benefits if this is your goal.
Integrating regular exercise in your routine is likely to produce much better results. A systematic review showed that three to 10 sessions a week of either aerobic or strength-training programs spanning five weeks to a year reduced the time needed to fall asleep and improved sleep quality, probably by enhancing deep sleep.
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Choose something you enjoy
If you’re wondering what type of exercise is best for promoting sleep health, don’t sweat it.
Some research suggests that Pilates may have slightly stronger advantages for sleep compared with other types of exercise because it integrates respiration and relaxation techniques with exercise. For older adults, moderate-intensity walking combined with muscle endurance training for 40 to 60 minutes at least two times a week was found to be the optimal exercise regimen.
Yet a wide range of exercise has been shown to improve sleep, from tai chi and yoga to running, cycling, resistance training and other sports. Picking something you enjoy is likely to help you stick to your program and further boost your mood while lowering stress for stronger sleep effects. If you can do it in good company, even better, as it may also enhance your motivation and tap into the positive effects of social contacts on sleep.
Don’t skimp on sleep so you can hit the gym
Studies show that the time we spend exercising often directly competes with our sleep time. But sacrificing your sleep to make more time for exercise has serious drawbacks.
For instance, if you are exercising to shed weight, cutting down on your sleep can drive you to raise your caloric consumption while also reducing the proportion of fat body mass that you can lose if you are on a diet.
Also keep in mind that sufficient sleep is key to boosting physical performance, minimizing injuries, restoring your muscles’ wear and tear after training and sharpening your focus. Even Olympians often share that protecting sleep is part of their training plans.
If you have sleep issues, physical activity can help
One in five Canadians suffer from insomnia. If you’re one of them, exercise should be on your radar as part of the solution.
A review of all research with people experiencing insomnia concluded that exercise reduces the time spent awake at night, favours more consolidated sleep and tones down insomnia symptoms. These benefits seemed to be more prominent with higher intensity exercise. To help alleviate insomnia, researchers proposed either 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week, which could be as simple as 30 minutes of walking five days a week; or 75 minutes of higher intensity training – for instance, three sessions of 25 minutes of interval training.
For people with sleep apnea, exercise is also an effective tool. Apnea, defined by involuntary pauses in respiration, can create dips in nocturnal blood oxygen, but regular exercise reduces the number of these by about 20 per cent.
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The final score
All in all, to make your exercise regimen optimal for sleep, regularity is critical. If you start from a more sedentary lifestyle, taking a gradual approach to increase your activity levels may be best to minimize transient negative effects on sleep. Canada’s 24-hour guideline recommendations for activity may be a good place to start to set your own target. Although exercising in the evening may be fine if you keep it mild to moderate, try to leave at least one to two hours of buffer before bedtime so your body has time to wind down before you nod off.
Dr. Rébecca Robillard, PhD, is a clinical neuropsychologist and associate professor at the School of Psychology at the University of Ottawa. She also leads clinical sleep research at the Royal mental health hospital. She co-chairs the Canadian Sleep Research Consortium, a national hub of sleep scientists and clinicians.