why do our bodies need sleep?

a good night of sleep is the best! but have you ever wondered why? it’s hard to understand how and why sleep is so important for our health until you don’t get enough … We can’t survive without sleep. A decrease in mental functioning, a lack of awareness and attention to the world, a distorted sense of time, and awful fatigue are all side effects of prolonged sleep deprivation.

RECOVERY

For every two hours of time an athlete spends awake and stressed, it takes one hour of sleep to recover. This means that if an athlete is awake and under stress 16 hours a day, at least 8 hours of sleep are required. Short-term recovery is crucial to maintaining and improving performance and preventing injury in all levels of athletic training. Short-term recovery, sometimes called active recovery, includes the lower intensity cool-down phase after a tough workout as well as an entire rest day that involves low-intensity exercise like walking, stretching or yoga or other cross training. Short-term recovery also requires replenishing energy and fluid lost during exercise and getting adequate sleep.

Mental functioning

Sleep is a very important time our our brains. getting enough sleep helps with attention span & concentration. Sleep also supports numerous other aspects of thinking including memory, problem-solving, creativity, emotional processing, and judgment. Thankfully, there is evidence that improving sleep can boost both short- and long-term mental performance. Better sleep can promote sharper thinking and may reduce the likelihood of age-related cognitive decline.

Awareness and attention

sleep deprivation leads to low alertness. This can cause confusing, little to no focus and hinder your ability to perform tasks. GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP FOR YOUR BODY TO FUNCTION CAN MAKE YOUR DAILY DOS EASIER AND KEEP YOURSELF FOCUSED AND READY FOR THE DAY. PAYING ATTENTION WHILE DRIVING, WORKING, TRAINING IN THE GYM OR JUST SIMPLY GETTING READY TO LEAVE IN THE MORNINGS IS IMPORTANT.