Make Every Z Count!
You’ve heard how important it is to get 7-9 hours of good sleep each night. This is when your body heals itself. When thinking about recovery most athletes think about sore muscles, but you also need to consider your structural system of ligaments, tendons and joints, your hormonal system, and your neurological system.
The demands of daily life and heavy training take a toll and if you skimp on sleep it will cost you. So, in addition to making sure your schedule allows enough time, here are some additional things you can do to make your sleep count and maximize your overnight recovery. A point that is not included in the list below that we want to give a quick mention to is the idea of your mattress being a key factor to not getting enough sleep. It may be old or just uncomfortable. If this is the case, you can look into a company like Leesa, who can provide you with high quality mattresses and bedding for you and your family to help get better sleep. Imagine going to sleep as Clark Kent and waking up as Superman!
The Basics
Stay Hydrated
Make sure you are getting enough water throughout the day, especially before, during and after training. In order for your body to be efficient with repairs and growth it needs to be hydrated properly. Drinking water throughout the day is better than trying to drink a large amount right before bed.
Avoid stimulants after 3pm
A lot of athletes have a bit of a slump a couple hours after lunch and might grab a coffee, energy drink, or energy supplement. Caffeine can stay active in the bloodstream for up to 5 hours and has a greater effect on men than women, according to recent studies. Some stimulants popular in herbal energy supplements can remain active as long as 8 hours. No stimulants after lunch is the best policy, but the later in the afternoon you take them, the more chance they will interfere with your natural sleep cycles.
Avoid Electronic Screen Use for 1 hour before bed
Studies show a dramatic improvement in overall sleep quality and time to fall asleep when participants avoided all electronic screen use for at least one hour before bed. This means turning off the TV, iPhone or computer a little earlier. You can use this time to catch up on reading (perhaps JJM?) or doing some…
Bedtime Yoga
Yoga before bed improves sleep. Even if you don’t have time for a full practice, a simple slow yoga sequence just before bed will help you physically and psychologically prepare for a good night’s sleep.
If you only have 10 minutes, try this simple practice just before climbing into bed. You can thank me in the morning.
You can purchase all of the individual supplements listed in the article, but we’ve found several products that combine ingredients to offer a ready-made solution for athletes. Here are our favorites:
Ronnie Coleman’s Resurrect-P.M.
Resurrect-P.M. is the unique combination of ingredients that Ronnie took while competing in order to maximize his recovery. Ronnie was known to sleep only 5 hours a night, and when questioned about how he managed to recover with so little sleep, he replied that he slept HARD. This formula is designed to replicate his experience and pack 8 hours of sleep into a 5-hour night.
Q5’s Overnight Recovery MaxiStak
MaxiStak is designed to help your body produce the maximum possible natural level of growth hormone during sleep, so that you wake up well rested with fewer aches and pains. Your body produces less growth hormone as you age and this formula was designed to offset that loss. It works best on grapplers over 30.
SNAC ZMA -5
SNAC ZMA-5 combines a unique formulation of zinc, magnesium, vitamin B-6, and 5-HTP to increase slow wave sleep (deep sleep stages 3 and 4) and REM sleep (dreaming). This formula is designed to help improve the quality of sleep without making you sleep longer or wake up groggy.
Nutrition and Supplementation
Your body needs the right building blocks to speed its recovery and repair. Here are the top supplements you should consider incorporating into your bedtime routine if you want to wake up feeling like Superman instead of Clark Kent.
Casein Protein
Casein makes up about 80% of the protein in cow’s milk. Casein is a solid protein that forms a gel when ingested, making it very slow digesting. (Casein’s cousin whey is a very fast digesting protein.) This fact makes it ideal for providing your muscles with a steady trickle of vital amino acids for hours after you go to sleep.
ZMA
ZMA is a blend of zinc, magnesium and Vitamin B-6 in a special form and ratio. Many athletes are deficient in both zinc and magnesium, which are critical minerals for a variety of processes, including testosterone production, which is extremely beneficial for recovery. It’s important to remember that calcium interferes with zinc and magnesium absorption, so ZMA should not be consumed with calcium. Casein protein listed above is high in calcium, so take your ZMA about an hour before bed and your casein right before bed.
Glutamine
L-Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in muscle tissue and plays a crucial role in many processes related to protein synthesis, energy production and recovery. Studies show that taking Glutamine before bed can help to raise growth hormone levels, which also has a huge effect on your overall recovery. Mix 5 grams of powdered L-Glutamine into your casein protein just before bed.
Amino Acids as Growth Hormone Secretagogues
There have been numerous studies showing that some amino acids administered in the correct dosage and combination can act as growth hormone secretagogues. This means that they can stimulate your body’s natural production of growth hormone to help accelerate repair and recovery and lock in muscle and strength gains, as well as improve sleep; specifically, the amino acids L-glutamine (mentioned above) and the pairs L-arginine with L-ornithine and L-lysine with glycine.
It’s important to emphasize that this is a natural effect and not the same as injecting HGH. You won’t test positive for PEDs or experience negative side effects by naturally encouraging your body to raise your growth hormone levels.
L-ornithine also has the added benefit of helping you to fall asleep and calming a busy mind.
If you want to take a look at reviews for more growth hormone supplements then I would recommend looking at the Andro HQ website for more info.
Melatonin
If you’re having trouble falling to sleep even after taking the above steps, you can try the supplement melatonin. Melatonin is produced in very tiny amounts by the pineal gland when we see it’s getting dark. The melatonin helps regulate the body’s sleep cycle, but we don’t always produce enough, especially as we get older. Melatonin works differently for everyone, so it’s best to start off with very small dosages (larger doses are not helpful and may not work as well) and see if your body responds. Take your melatonin at the same time as your ZMA.
Valerian Root
Valerian root has been used for at least 2,000 years to support healthy sleep and relaxation. The Greek physician Dioscorides mentioned it in 400 AD. You can take valerian in a tincture or as a tea, but most people don’t enjoy the taste so capsules are more popular. It is safe to take valerian with melatonin and the two can work synergistically to help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.
GABA
GABA is actually an amino acid with a unique role. It is called an inhibitory neurotransmitter for the central nervous system. In other words, it settles down excitability throughout the nervous system and calms the mind.
Conclusion
Good sleep is the single most important thing you can do to help your body recover from tough training. If you wake up groggy, feel sluggish throughout the day, or seem to take too long to heal from minor injuries, make sure to take a look at your sleep habits and try to improve them.