Sleep or gym?
It’s 4:45 a.m. Your alarm goes off. That’s your signal to get up, feed the dog, and hit the gym before the kids have to get up for school. But as you roll over to shut off your alarm, you feel soreness in your shoulder from yesterday’s workout. Do you still get up and hit the gym, or do you opt for more sleep? Will you even get an opportunity to work out later? If you do hit the gym, will you have any energy for the rest of the day?
Oh, the deliberation…
Being a dad, especially a busy one, can be challenging. You have numerous responsibilities both at work and at home that seem to be never-ending. With all these things to do, it can be hard to find time for good, quality sleep and exercise. If we’re fortunate and plan things well, we can get both. For many, though, one comes at the expense of the other.
More sleep. Less opportunity to exercise.
More exercise. Less opportunity to sleep.
So sleep or gym? I’m here to tell you that you need both in good, quality amounts. Quality sleep and exercise. I know. It sounds heavenly. However, many dads are in a season of life where getting both is nearly impossible. So some sacrifices have to be made, right?
Perhaps if we discuss the benefits of both sleep and exercise, we can better gauge when it’s okay to prioritize one more than the other. So let’s do that…
Here are 10 reasons why you need sleep, regardless of whether you’re a gym rat or working out for the first time:
1. Recovery and Repair: When you sleep, your body is able to repair and rebuild muscles that were broken down during your workout. This means better muscle growth and improved performance in the gym.
2. Hormone Regulation: Lack of sleep can disrupt hormone levels, leading to increased hunger and cravings for unhealthy food choices. Getting enough sleep will help regulate hormones responsible for appetite and metabolism, making it easier to maintain a healthy diet.
3. Mental Clarity: Sleep is crucial for mental clarity and focus. Lack of sleep can lead to brain fog, poor decision-making, decreased productivity, and even increased risk of accidents or injuries.
4. Overall Health: Adequate sleep plays a vital role in maintaining overall health and well-being. It helps to regulate blood pressure and heart rate, and improve mood and emotional stability.
5. Exercise Performance: Quality sleep is essential for optimal exercise performance. Without enough rest, you may experience fatigue, decreased strength and endurance, and longer recovery times after workouts. In turn, you increase the likelihood of an accident or injury while exercising.
6. Immune Function: Quality sleep is crucial for a strong immune system. During sleep, the body produces cytokines, a type of protein that helps fight infection and inflammation. Without adequate rest, the body may not be able to produce enough cytokines, leaving you more susceptible to illness and infection. More research on the link between sleep and immune function here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3256323/
7. Better Sex Drive: Chronic lack of sleep can lead to a decrease in libido and sexual desire. This is due to disruptions in hormone levels and overall fatigue, making it difficult for the body to maintain optimal energy levels for sexual activity.
8. Better Skin Health: Not getting enough sleep can also negatively impact skin health. During sleep, the body repairs and rejuvenates skin cells, leading to a healthier and more youthful appearance. Without adequate rest, the body is unable to properly repair skin damage, resulting in dullness, dark circles, and even premature wrinkles.
9. Mental Health: Chronic sleep deprivation has been linked to an increased risk of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. Lack of sleep can disrupt hormone levels and neurotransmitters, leading to mood swings, irritability, and difficulty coping with stress.
10. Decreased Risk of Seizures: Poor sleep has been linked to an increased risk of seizures, especially in people with seizure disorders like epilepsy. This is because sleep helps regulate brain activity and promote healthy brain function. This one hits home personally because of a couple seizures I had in my early 20s. I was put on anti-seizure meds for a few years, but after coming off them years later, I started noticing seizure aura at random times during the day. The culprit: multiple all-nighters every week required as part of my IT job. It took a long time to figure it out, but once I established solid, healthy sleep patterns and dropped the late night work, the seizure aura went away!
This is a lot of benefits to digest, but hopefully it’s got your wheels turning. In Part 2 of this post, I’ll get into the benefits of exercise so you can compare and contrast and make a more informed decision about how to prioritize that against sleep.
Should you sleep or go to the gym? Stay tuned for the next post in this series and we’ll unravel this fun debate a little more. In the meantime, please share your thoughts below.
