Sleep Builds Strong Muscle Mass
By: Dr. Bill Misner Ph.D.
Sleep Is Important To Training Performance Gains
You and your bodybuilding training partner carefully measure the optimal protein intake for
the "max" in muscle growth response. You both take the exact same anabolic
state-of-the-art supplements and follow the same "perfect" workout dictated by
your aggressive, but prominent personal trainer. Your partner's gains are what
you'd hoped for...what went wrong? Deep sleep patterns may mean the difference
between big anabolic gains and none at all! Both bodily repair and anabolic
growth occur only during quality rest, and when deep sleep patterns become
routine. How many of us have been able to resist that nodding, drowsy, insistent
call to sleep?
If we give in, what are we going to miss? What could we be doing instead? Even
the most mature, health-conscious adults may, at times, view sleep as an
unwelcome intruder into their work, play, or leisure activities. Time spent
sleeping accounts for 27 to 35% of a person's lifetime; assuming a person sleeps
6.5 to 9.0 hours per day, this slumber time accounts for 166,000 to 230,000
hours over an average 70-year life span!
How long can a person go without any sleep? Based on small animal studies in
which the subjects have been exposed to extreme sleep deprivation, scientists
have estimated that the average human may not live past 10 days without sleep.
Not as clear, however, are the exact physiological mechanisms resulting from
sleep deprivation that ultimately lead to death. It has been suggested by some
that the hypothalamus, which regulates several of the body's metabolic
activities, is not able to control body temperature after being deprived of
sleep for many days.
While lack of sleep can have dire consequences, adequate sleep provides only
positive, healthful benefits. In a typical day, a person's waking hours are
consumed trying to meet the many mental and physical demands encountered at
every turn, as well as replenishing vital nutrients as they are being used up
during these daily activities. In the hours remaining--during sleep--the body
takes time out to rebuild and recharge, preparing for the day ahead.
Recuperation During Sleep Is Related To A Sensitive Built-In Biological Clock
Electrical activity measured in the brain during sleep indicates that healthful
physiological changes occur in 90-minute periods throughout the night, which
means that the active biological clock in a person is set to operate in a
circadian rhythm of 90-minute cycles that repeats every 25 to 28 hours. This
clock is set and reset according to the amount of natural daylight available
each day, thus evening sleep begins later in summer than in winter.1
Losing sleep during any 24- or 48-hour period interferes with the essential and
healthful cycle of physiological changes that occur during sleep and is
detrimental to both physical and mental recovery. Recovery in subjects deprived
of sleep for 24 hours has been measured at 72%, while recovery after a 48-hour
period without sleep further deteriorated to a level of only 42%.2
Other clock-like rhythms occur between 3:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. and from 3:00
a.m. to 6:00 p.m., when our body temperature dips a degree or two and drowsiness
results. We have all experienced this mid- or late-afternoon slump. In contrast,
when body temperature peaks between 6:00 and 9:00p.m., we may become aware of a
heightened sense of alertness. Then, as we tend to wind down from our daily
activities sometime after 9:00 p.m., our body temperature falls again, and we
are lulled into a state of drowsiness during which the brain converts
low-voltage "beta" waves into higher voltage "alpha" waves. As these alpha waves
are, in turn, converted to slower "theta" waves during what are known as sleep
stages 1 and 2, the skeletal muscles relax, causing the "hypnic jerk" or
"nodding" experience. When nodding off is not resisted or interrupted, the theta
waves soon turn into even slower "delta" waves of the third and fourth stages of
deeper sleep. During these stages, rapid-eye-movement {REM} sleep, dreams, and
actual muscle paralysis take place. If, for some reason, muscle paralysis does
not occur, the vividness of the dream state will physically draw the dreamer
into an active state of sleepwalking or, worse yet, intense physical activity
that will further break down exhausted muscle tissues already in need of repair.
Animal studies3 have shown that inhibiting the brain's ability to paralyze
muscle during sleep results in the animals jumping around, growling, howling,
and generally exhausting themselves while actively dreaming. During undisturbed
sleep or slow-wave sleep, the plasma growth hormone (HGH) in humans is found to
be at its highest levels.4
If the sleep stage process is interrupted, complete repair of soft tissues is
impossible due to the resulting decrease or absence of HGH.
Quiet Please--Muscles are rebuilding!
Noise pollution has been shown to have a dramatic effect on a person's optimal
sleep. Aircraft noise endured by those living in homes near airports can reach a
level of 55 to 75 decibels inside the homes. Significant noise such as this has
been observed to raise the adrenaline and noradrenaline levels of all those
sampled during sleep, an effect which is detrimental to achieving normal,
healthy, recuperative sleep.5
Exposure to high levels of noise during the day can also interfere with getting
a sound night's sleep. Daytime noise pollution of 80 decibels or more tends to
elevate both heart and respiration rates, which may further disrupt full-stage,
recuperative sleep.6
Another enemy of a good night's sleep was found in a study in which the subjects
received sleep in fragments. As discussed earlier, uninterrupted deep-sleep
periods of at least 90 minutes are necessary for complete muscle recovery. When
subjects were periodically aroused from sleep so as to prevent them from
completing a full 90-minute period of sleep, muscle recovery was significantly
hindered.7
When sleep is altered---reduced or extended---performance and mood are both
affected. Two prominent researchers, Taub and Berger,8 observed altered sleep
time by delaying, extending, or advancing each phase of slumber by a 3-hour time
span. Their subjects suffered measurable declines in both performance and mood,
in spite of getting enough total sleep. Achieving that elusive perfect night's
sleep, then, would seem to depend upon enjoying a low-key day in a stress-free
environment followed by seeking sleep at a routine time in a quiet, totally dark
room. Another component of ensuring a good night's sleep is to maintain a
balanced ratio of macro- and micronutrients.
Balancing Macronutrient Intake With A Precise Ratio of Micronutrients
What we eat and drink has a remarkable influence upon our sleep. Relatively
small amounts of alcohol---as little as 0.8 grams per kilogram body
weight---will suppress plasma growth hormone values as much as 75% when consumed
just prior to sleep.9
Improper mineral absorption may also be a problem that contributes to poor
sleep. Dr. James Balch10 suggests that when micronutrient ratios of calcium to
magnesium are imbalanced or depleted, insomnia may occur. Most mineral
supplements do not contain chelated minerals, but only 10% of non-chelated
mineral supplements are absorbed in the small intestines, compared to 60 to 68%
absorption of chelated minerals. A symptom typical of a calcium/magnesium
deficiency is "blunt" arousal after only a few hours of sleep, or the inability
to fall back to sleep when awakened.
A vitamin deficiency may also cause loss of sleep. Dietary deficiencies of
vitamin B-complex micronutrients---specifically, B-5 and B-6---have been shown
to disrupt sound sleep patterns.
Other foes of sound sleep are prescription medications, caffeine, obesity,
thyroid gland disorders, or poor food choices.
Certain foods may not only reverse the replenishing effects of a good night's
sleep, but they may create an undesired loss of muscle mass gains. Any food high
in the amino acid, tyrosine, or its derivative, tyramine, will trigger the
release of norepinephrine by the adrenal glands, which induces an alert waking
state. Tyrosine- and tyramine-rich foods to be avoided at the evening meal
include cheeses, beer, wine, broad bean pods, chicken liver, sauerkraut,
chocolate, bacon, ham, sausage, eggplant, potatoes, spinach and tomatoes.
While certain foods should be avoided for the sake of a good night's sleep,
all-out fasting can also interfere with sleep. Low glycogen stores in muscles
resulting from excessive or prolonged fasting and
high-protein/low-fat/low-carbohydrate diets may have a negative effect on the
optimal sleep pattern.
Nutritive, sleep-inducing foods eaten at the evening meal will assist in
achieving sound sleep patterns. These foods contain high amounts of another
amino acid, tryptophan, a precursor to serotonin, which in turn is a precursor
to melatonin, the active neurotransmitter that makes us sleep. Foods found to be
high in tryptophan include bananas, figs, dates, yogurt, oatmeal, turkey, tuna,
and grapefruit. Complex carbohydrates, too, tend to enhance pre-slumber
drowsiness if eaten in several small meals throughout the day.
Toward Beneficial Sleep
Some ergogenic experts, such as Dr. Michael Colgan11 argue for the healthful
advantage of taking naps during the day between heavy lifting, "two-a-day"
workouts. Others, such as Paul Moses3 warn against any interruption of normal
sleep cycles enjoyed during the night in the absence of sunlight and noise. All
sport researchers agree, however, that the more muscular or mental energy spent
during the day, the greater the need for quality, continuous, multiple-stage
sleep.
To ensure a healthful night's sleep, try these "Guidelines":
1. Plan on a daily transition from stimulating activities to less active,
relaxing pursuits up to 3 hours prior to sleep---such as reading, listening to
music, soaking in a warm bath, or taking a walk.
2. Two hours or less prior to bedtime, eat only foods that are rich in complex
carbohydrates and tryptophan and contain a 2:1 ratio of calcium to magnesium in
chelated form, augmented with high optimal intake of vitamin B complex
(especially B-5 and B-6).
3. Avoid consumption of caffeine, alcohol, or foods rich in tyrosine or tyramine
at least 6 hours before going to bed.
4. Avoid stimulating arousal from exercise, stress, or medications at least 6
hours prior to sleep.
5. See if you can synchronize your sleep pattern with available sunlight by
developing the habit of going to bed when the sun sets and waking near the time
when it rises. While this is not always possible, you can try to reinforce your
basic sleep cycles (circadian rhythms) by providing a dark, quiet environment
for sleep.
6. If you nap between two-a-day workouts, attempt to sleep for at least 90
minutes to complete a deep-sleep cycle for optimal recuperation and muscle mass
growth during sleep.
There is no more a need for you to be the spectator, watching your
partners-in-training grow and gain, while your progress plateaus in stagnation.
As the above "Guidelines" for quality sleep are employed along with
aggressive-progressive training, sound nutrition, and all the right supplements,
anabolic gains may increase in direct proportion to the quality of sufficient
rest and sleep achieved...Sweet Dreams!
References
1. Honma, K. et al., Sensational variation in the human circadian rhythm:
dissociation between sleep and temperature rhythm, Am J.Physiol., 265(5),
885-891, 1992.
2. Rosenthal, L. et al., Enforced 24-hour recovery following sleep deprivation,
Sleep, 14(5), 448-453, 1991.
3. Moses, P.L., FAQs: self analysis, (trnutreq@dgys.com), 1997; an
interpretation of Lavie, P., The Enchanted World of Sleep, Yale University
Press, New Haven, CT, 1994.
4. Prinz, P.N. et al., Plasma growth during sleep in young and aged men, J.
Gerontl., 38(5), 519-524, 1983.
5. Maschke, C. et al., The influence of nocturnal aircraft on sleep and
catecholamine secretion, Schriftenr. Ver Wasser Boden Lufthyg., 88, 397-407,
1993.
6. Fruhstorfer, L. et al., Daytime noise and subsequent sleep in man, Eur J.
Appl. Physiol., 53(2), 159-163, 1984.
7. Levine, B., et al., Fragmenting sleep diminishes its recuperative value,
Sleep, 10(6), 590-599, 1987.
8. Taub, J.M., and Berger, R.J., The effects of changing the phase and duration
of sleep, J. Exp. Psychol.[Human Percept.], 2(1), 30-41, 1976.
9. Prinz, P.N. et al., The effect of alcohol on sleep and nighttime plasma
growth hormone and cortisol concentrations, J. Clin. Endocrinal. Metabol.,
50(4), 759-764, 1980.
10. Balch, J.F. and Balch, P.A., Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Avery
Publishing, Garden City, NY, 1990, 221-222.
11. Colgan, M., Optimum Sports Nutrition, Advanced Research Press, New York,
1993, 73-76.
Books and Courses
|
Great Websites
|
Excellent Stores
|
Recipe Cook Books
|
|
