The Importance of Sleep

Even though some say sleep is the cousin of death it is quintessential to optimize our overall health and well being.   Personally, I've dealt with several sleeping issues as I'm sure everyone else has as well.  Everybody is different and everyone's body requires a different amount every night to feel your best each and every day.  It wasn't until

The Importance of Sleep

recently that I got back to a normal sleeping pattern.  The reason for my sleep loss before October 2010 was stress.  Stress is one of the leading factors of sleep loss and it caused me to have insomnia (the difficulty getting to sleep or staying asleep, or having nonrefreshing sleep for at least 1 month. Symptoms: Difficulty falling asleep on most nights; Feeling tired during the day or falling asleep during the day).  Once I got hired at GYM 5 to open it Monday through Friday my stress was relieved but I had to get up at 5am which led me to having to take naps everyday and feeling groggy.  More side effects of lack of sleep include irritability, grogginess, the inability to make decisions or follow through with cognitive functions. It will cause hallucinations, dozing off during activities and even throughout the day, etc. A continued lack of sleep can contribute to weight gain, anxiety, depression, lethargy and fatigue. A chronic, or pathological, sleep disorder will often result in an immune system deficiency. Severe sleep deprivation can ultimately lead to death. These inevitabilities clearly show the importance of sleep. Sleep is our bodies’ way of rejuvenating. It is the period in which we lower the energy levels expelled each day, our muscles and soft tissue are repaired and revitalized, and our mind is able to process memories and things we have learned for the day.  I'm happy that I've gotten back to a normal schedule and I'm listening to my body more to stay away from weight training or cardio when my body needs rest.