June 10, 2008 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

Getting extra sleep over an extended period of time improves athletic performance, mood and alertness, according to a research abstract that will be presented on June 9 at the SLEEP 2008 22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS) in Baltimore, Md.

“These results begin to elucidate the importance of sleep on athletic performance and, more specifically, how sleep is a significant factor in achieving peak athletic performance,” said lead author Cheri Mah of the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory. “While this study focuses specifically on collegiate swimmers, it agrees with data from my other studies of different sports and suggests that athletes across all sports can greatly benefit from extra sleep and gain the additional competitive edge to perform at their highest level.”
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080609071106.htm

Sleep Preference Can Predict Performance of Major League Baseball Pitchers

June 11, 2010 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

A Major League Baseball pitcher's natural sleep preference might affect how he performs in day and night games, according to a research abstract presented June 9, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

"These results are important as they are potentially giving insight into an entirely new way to grade or classify an athlete, in this specific case a pitcher," said Winter. "This study may provide insight as to which pitchers would be best in a given situation based upon when the game is being played. For example, a critical game being played in the evening might be a better situation to pitch an evening-type pitcher versus a day-type pitcher."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/06/100609083223.htm

Sleep Extension Improves Athletic Performance And Mood

June 10, 2009 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

Athletes who extended their nightly sleep and reduced accumulated sleep debt reported improvements in various drills conducted after every regular practice, according to a research abstract that will be presented on June 8, at Sleep 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.

Results of the study indicated that sleep extension in athletes was associated with a faster sprinting drill (approximately 19.12 seconds at baseline versus 17.56 seconds at end of sleep extension), increased hitting accuracy including valid serves (12.6 serves compared to 15.61 serves), and hitting depth drill (10.85 hits versus 15.45 hits).
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608071939.htm

 

Extra Sleep Improves the Athletic Performance of Collegiate Football Players

June 9, 2010 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

Getting extra sleep over an extended period of time improves athletic performance, alertness and mood, according to a research abstract presented June 8, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

Results indicate that football players' sprint times improved significantly after seven to eight weeks of sleep extension. Average sprint time in the 20-yard shuttle improved from 4.71 seconds to 4.61 seconds, and the average 40-yard dash time decreased from 4.99 seconds to 4.89 seconds. Daytime sleepiness and fatigue also decreased significantly, while vigor scores significantly improved.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/06/100608091858.htm

 

Regular Daily Exercise Does Not Increase Total Sleep Time

June 8, 2009 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

According to a research abstract that will be presented on June 8 at Sleep 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, days with increased activity were followed by nights with lower total sleep time (TST), while nights with lower TST were followed by increased activities during the next day.

"It has long been recommended, even championed, that getting exercise is part of the recipe for improved sleep. Our data do not support that notion," said Eliasson. "The longest sleep and best sleep efficiency occurred after days with low non-exercise exertion. Similarly, we expected that better-rested subjects would be more inclined to get exercise or have busier days; however, better-rested subjects got less exercise and had less calorie expenditure. After relatively more sleep (more than six hours), all measures of exertion decreased."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608071937.htm

 

Moderate Exercise Can Improve Sleep Quality of Insomnia Patients

June 12, 2008 —

Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine

An acute session of moderate aerobic exercise, but not heavy aerobic or moderate strength exercises, can reduce the anxiety state and improve the sleep quality of insomnia patients, according to a research abstract that will be presented on June 11 at SLEEP 2008, the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS).

"These findings indicate that there is a way to diminish the symptoms of insomnia without using medication," said Passos. "This study is the first to look at the importance of using physical exercise to treat insomnia, and may contribute to increased quality of life in people with one of the most important kind of sleep disorders around the world."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080611071129.htm