IF YOU’VE EVER played sports in the evening, you’ll know it can be tough to get to sleep afterwards. Your blood is still pumping; adrenaline is still spiking and replays of missed goals or overzealous tackles are still buzzing around your brain. You can lie awake for hours.
But while rigorous exercise before bed is a recipe for a poor night’s sleep, University of Otago researchers have found short bursts of light activity can lead to better shut-eye.
In a world first study, published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise, participants completed two four-hour evening intervention sessions of prolonged sitting, and sitting interrupted with three-minute activity breaks every half hour.
The researchers found that after the participants completed the activity breaks, they slept for 30 minutes longer. Why’s that? Moving around could offset the amount of sugar and fat in your blood stream after eating.
“We know that for many of us, our longest period of uninterrupted sitting happens at home in the evening. We have found that getting up and doing 2-3 minutes of exercise every 30 minutes reduces the amount of sugar and fat in your blood stream after a meal,” says lead author Jennifer Gale, a PhD candidate in the Department of Human Nutrition.
The light exercise in the study consisted of exercises anyone can do at home during ad breaks – if you still watch free-to-air TV – such as chair squats, calf raises, and standing knee raises with straight leg hip extensions.
“These simple, bodyweight exercises were chosen because they don’t require equipment, or a lot of space and you can do them without interrupting the TV show you are watching,” says primary investigator Dr Meredith Peddie. “From what we know from other studies, you could probably get a similar effect if you walked around your house, marched on the spot, or even danced in your living room – the most important thing is that you get out of your chair regularly and move your body,” she says.
The fact this exercise resulted in longer sleep is important because insufficient sleep can negatively affect diet and has been associated with heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
“We know higher levels of physical activity during the day promotes better sleep, but current sleep recommendations discourage high-intensity exercise before bed because it can increase body temperature and heart rate resulting in poor sleep quality,” Dr Peddie says. “It might be time to review these guidelines as our study has shown regularly interrupting long periods of sitting is a promising health intervention.”
So, set a timer for 30 minutes and get moving on your next binge watch.
Related:
Doctors reveal what happens if you only sleep six hours a night
How poor sleep affects your ability to lose body fat
