Student Athletes: Sleep And Sports Performance

We have all heard that getting enough sleep is important, but this is especially true for athletes. Studies show that good sleep can improve speed, accuracy and reaction time in athletes. What is good sleep, how much is enough sleep and how can your student athlete get more sleep?

Key Takeaways: Sleep For Student Athletes

• Sleep improves athletic performance. Getting enough sleep can improve speed, accuracy and reaction time, and insufficient sleep can impair reaction time and lead to a quicker onset of exhaustion.
• Athletes need more sleep than the average person. While teenagers are recommended to get at least 8 hours, student-athletes should aim for more. Kids ages 6 to 13 should get between 9 and 11 hours.
• Good sleep habits are crucial for children and teens. To get better sleep, it's important to have a consistent sleep schedule, create a good sleep environment (quiet, dark, and comfortable), remove electronic devices from the bedroom, and avoid large meals and caffeine before bed.

Why Sleep Is Important For Student Athletes

Many athletes understand that eating healthy and regular exercise are important factors when thinking about performance, but sleep is often overlooked as a way to improve your sports performance.

“Sleep has a lot of benefits. It improves memory, mental health and more, not just performance in sports,” said Carly Day, MD, sports medicine physician with Franciscan Sports Medicine at Purdue University.

As children enter adolescence, changes in sleep and circadian rhythms make it easy for teens to stay awake longer at night. Less sleep results in daytime sleepiness, poor academic performance, and behavioral and mental health problems

According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association, sleep isn’t a passive activity; it’s an active state that leads to repair, recovery and regeneration for an athlete’s body and mind.

How Much Sleep Do Athletes Need?

While the basic recommendation is for teenagers to get at least 8 hours of sleep per night, getting more sleep on a regular basis can help those pursuing sports goals to reach their peak athletic performance.

For kids ages 6 to 13, the recommended amount of sleep is between 9 and 11 hours, meaning your budding soccer star should really be aiming for 10 to 12 hours. (And yes, that can mean 7:30 p.m. bedtimes some nights!)

Dr. Day noted that it is important to know that sleep needs can vary for each student athlete.

“It is an individual determination,” she said. “People need different amounts of sleep.”

The Power Of Napping

According to the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, athletes suffering from some degree of sleep loss may benefit from a brief nap, particularly if a training session is to be completed in the afternoon or evening. In terms of cognitive performance, sleep supplementation in the form of napping has been shown to have a positive influence on cognitive tasks following a night of sleep deprivation.

Dr. Day stated that short naps can help.

“The most optimal time to get enough sleep is at night, if you can,” she said. “If you can’t sleep at night, a nap is better than nothing at all.”

Does Sleep Help Improve Sports Performance?

According to the National Sleep Foundation, sleep can improve skills specific to various activities. For instance, logging more snooze time can increase shooting accuracy among basketball players and the accuracy of serves among tennis players.

By contrast, insufficient sleep or sleep deprivation (such as pulling an all-nighter) can impair a student athlete’s reaction time, lead to decreased exercise tolerance, and a quicker onset of exhaustion while playing sports. According to the National Sleep Foundation, children who get fewer than eight hours of sleep per night are 1.7 times more likely to get hurt while playing their sport, compared with those who get eight or more hours of sleep.

Tips For Better Sleep For Your Student

Good sleep habits (sometimes referred to as “sleep hygiene”) can help your student athete get a good night’s sleep.

“Having a consistent sleep schedule every day, waking up and going to bed at the same time, is important,” said Dr. Day. “If you can stay on the same schedule that’s the best thing that you can do for your body. If you can’t and need to catch up on sleep, like on the weekends, that is okay.”

Make sure your child’s bedroom is quiet, dark, and a comfortable temperature, as this can help signal to the body that it’s time for sleep. Remove electronic devices like phones, TVs and computers from the bedroom, since the light from screens can make it harder to fall asleep.

Encourage your student athlete to avoid large meals and caffeine before bedtime, because these can disrupt the natural sleep cycle.

Having a consistent, relaxing bedtime routine—such as reading a book, listening to calming music or podcast, or taking a warm shower—can make it easier for your child to fall asleep and stay asleep through the night.