THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SLEEP AND MUSCLE GROWTH

Whether you spend every day at the gym or merely enjoy a weekly jog, ask yourself this question: are you getting enough sleep?

We know you want to make the most of every minute of your busy day, but sometimes the most productive thing you can do for yourself is to get an early night.

Sleep directly affects your recovery after a workout and can be instrumental in increasing your muscle mass. Training without sleep will hinder your performance and prevent you from getting the best out of every session. Have you ever been out for a big night and then stepped foot in the gym the next morning? Yeah, bad idea.

If you haven’t already fallen asleep just reading about sleep and muscle growth, we’ll tell you why you need to prioritise sleep to enhance your muscle growth and how you can do it! Keep reading.

You must focus on your recovery if you’re eager to increase your muscle growth. If your body can’t rest, your body can’t function. As a general rule, you need seven to nine hours of sleep as an active adult. So if you’re running through your day on five hours and three cappuccinos - it might be time to readjust your routine.

While your post-workout protein shake can be great for helping your body recover, it is when you sleep that your muscles truly start to repair themselves. A whole night’s sleep allows time for your anabolic hormones to repair any tissue damaged during exercise, allowing you to perform at your best the next time you’re training (Chennaoui et al., 2021).

That’s not all that your body does while you sleep. Your body also replenishes your glycogen (your muscle’s energy source) and helps keep any inflammation under control (Chennaoui et al., 2021). 

If you’re looking for a great supplement that can help relieve your muscles while you sleep, then our  Evolve Magnesium RX  might be exactly what you need to help support your sleep quality and recovery.

Let’s learn about sleep! There are four stages of sleep, split into two branches:

Non-REM sleep: 

Stage one: the light sleeping stage is when everything begins to slow down - particularly your eye movement and muscle activity.

Stage two: this stage of light sleep includes muscle contractions alongside spells of muscle relaxation. Your eye movement stops, your heart rate slows, and your body temperature decreases.

Stage three: your body is in a deep sleep. You have no eye movement or muscle activity.

Non-REM sleep is the most critical stage; your body:

1. Builds bone and muscle
2. Repair and regenerates tissues
3. Strengthens the immune system

The Non-REM stage of sleep is the most important in increasing muscle mass while you sleep. Basically, your muscle fibres are formed by cells called myofibrillar proteins (the building blocks of myofibrils). The synthesis of these proteins is a metabolic process responsible for muscle mass changes after resistance training.

REM sleep:

The fourth stage of sleep is REM sleep, where your brain activity, blood pressure and heart rate increase. REM sleep is more disrupted, and you generally have more vivid dreams (Cleveland Clinic. 2020).

We know that was a lot of medical jargon to dump on you, so allow us to break it down. When your body is deprived of a decent night’s sleep, your body’s ability to restore muscle damage will decrease, reducing muscle mass over time. And if you're reading this, our guess is that you don't want that to happen.

We’ve already established that your muscles can’t recover without sleep, so naturally, your performance will suffer if you aren’t well rested.

Training without sleep has more negative effects than positive, so maybe you should reconsider before you jump on the treadmill with two hours of sleep.

Sleep affects all your bodily functions, from your brain activity to your immune system. Without enough sleep, your body will run on fumes, which means your performance at the gym will be far from gratifying.

Getting enough sleep each night is crucial in your post-workout recovery as it motivates your body to produce the Human Growth Hormone (HGH). This hormone is vital to your post-workout recovery, helping your muscles build strength and mass over time (Chennaoui et al., 2021). 

We know it’s hard to completely reset your internal clock to get more sleep, so if you’re looking for a sleep product that may help the quality of your sleep while helping you recover after a workout,  Switch Nutrition’s   Sleep+  might be just what you need to get started.

We’ll get you started with a few simple changes you can incorporate into your routine.

Go to sleep earlier

Yes, it’s obvious, but try it anyway. Switching up your sleep routine will benefit you greatly. Plus, who doesn't want a little extra beauty sleep each night?

Turn your electronics off

It won’t be easy, but turning your phone off just 30 minutes before bed can improve your sleep immensely. Not only is your phone’s blue light harmful to your eyes, but it also increases your alertness at night (Chennaoui et al., 2021). 

Eat fibre-rich foods

Some studies suggest that a high-fibre diet can lead to deeper sleep. Greens, fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds are just a few ways to increase your fibre intake  (Kawasaki et al., 2023). 

Reduce caffeine, alcohol and even water

You should avoid consuming caffeine, alcohol or water too soon before you sleep. While caffeine is a stimulant, alcohol and water can also affect the quality of your sleep if consumed too late in the evening  (Drake et al., 2013). 

Exercise

Exercising during the day will help to tire you out in the evening, allowing you to enjoy a better night’s sleep. It is also known to reduce anxiety and stress, two common factors that make falling asleep difficult. Avoid working out too late in the evening, though. This will have the opposite effect as you will likely feel awake and stimulated afterwards  (Kawasaki et al., 2023). 

Cleveland Clinic. (2023, June 19). Sleep. Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/12148-sleep-basics

Chennaoui, M., Vanneau, T., Trignol , A., et al. (2021). How does sleep help recovery from exercise-induced muscle injuries?Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2021.05.007

Drake, C., Roehrs, T., Shambroom, J., & Roth, T. (2013). Caffeine Effects on Sleep Taken 0, 3, or 6 Hours before Going to Bed. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 09(11). https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.3170

Kawasaki, Y., Kitamura, E., & Kasai, T. (2023).Impact of Body Composition on Sleep and Its Relationship with Sleep Disorders: Current Insights.Nature and Science of Sleep, 15, 375–388. https://doi.org/10.2147/NSS.S340946