Written By: Olamilekan Akinsulure on 12th October, 2021

Excess of everything is bad. Actually, sleep is not an exception, alright. Funny thing is some people try to stay awake almost all night, doing whatever it is they want to do, either with the mindset that having very little sleep will make them a serious-minded person or maybe they’re too engrossed in what they’re doing that they forget to sleep. LOL. Whichever way, having inadequate sleep is very bad for your emotional, physical and even mental health.

You’re asking why, right?

Have you ever woken up from a deep, sound sleep and then you feel like you’re the healthiest person on earth? Have you ever stayed up, without sleep for say two or three days and then it feels like you’re going to faint any minute?

You have? That feeling, yeah, I know, right? Having adequate sleep greatly revitalizes you. A lot of activities occur in your body whilst you sleep:

Blood pressure reduces, heart rate and breathing rate reduces, body temperature reduces, the nerves calm down, the brain cleans out trash, body becomes inactive as muscles stop working, tissues are repaired, bones and muscles are built, growth hormones are pumped out in large amounts and that’s why growth occurs mainly when we sleep.

All of these benefits we enjoy just by sleeping.

On the other hand, lack of adequate sleep can cause acne outbreak, restlessness, wrinkles, depression, health issues like mental breakdown, diabetes, heart failure etc. So, take sleep seriously.

What Is The Relationship Between Sleep And Muscle Growth?

Like I stated earlier, when you sleep, muscles grow and build. The hormones that help the muscles to grow, recover or rebuild are released during the NREM. NREM (Non Rapid Eye Movement) stage of sleep is called the deep sleep or slow-wave stage of sleep. In this stage, muscle toning and body revitalization occurs significantly. The BP and breathing slows down, the brain activity greatly lessens and this allows for the supply of blood to the muscles, increasing the supply of oxygen and nutrients to the muscles which helps the muscles to rejuvenate.

NOTE: REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep stage occurs around 90-120 minutes after sleep. It also occurs at the latter time of sleep, close to when one wants to wake up At this stage, your eyes move around, brain activity increases, BP, breathing all speed up. It’s at this moment dreaming occurs. REM is important for learning.

In conclusion, let’s look at the standard hours of sleep for every age range.

• Children between 3-5 years — 10 to 13 hours daily

• 6-7 years — 8 to 10 hours daily

• 17-64 years — 7 to 9 hours daily

• 64 and above –7 to 8 hours daily

So, try as much as possible to have the right quantity of sleep daily.

In the case of INSOMNIA, there are a couple of solution to it:

– Avoid large meals or beverages before sleep

– Avoid caffeine

– Attend to every pain; deal with it

– Avoid too much naps

– You can visit your doctor if you have tried all you can.

So, dear friends, sleep is more important than many of us think. Get enough ZZZs daily. Stay fit, stay healthy!

Don’t forget to like, share, and comment on the comment section below. You can also reach me on my social media platforms. I’d be happy to know what you think. Merci 💪