BryantheRyan.com Challenging conventional wisdom about nutrition, fitness and overall health

6 Reasons Why We Need Sleep

credit: Pentax K-x

How important is sleep?

Really f**king important.

That is why the next two articles that I write will be about sleep.

The funny thing about sleep and Americans is that we all know that we need more sleep, yet we refuse to actually do it. Insisting on watching the newest episode of Family Guy or finishing a project for work or school rather than getting some ZZZZs.

What are the benefits of sleep?

1)Well obviously rest. Simply living and moving throughout the day is exhausting. Building muscle, using food for energy, healing wounds, growing our bones and replacing cells are all processes that are happening all the time in our bodies. And that does not even account for the movement (or lack of) that we accumulate throughout our day or the energy that is needed if we choose to exercise.

Giving our bodies a break is a good thing. Rest is often viewed as some sort of weakness, and that if we rest, we are therefore not being productive. Productivity is vastly overrated. Often times we create things to do or projects to work on all for the sake of productivity. Don't be afraid to give your body and your mind a break.

2) We often associate resting when we sleep in physical terms, but our minds need to rest too! All day we bombard our brains with information, decisions and stress. From the news to what do we eat for lunch. If we are awake, our brains are revved up and running.

Sleeping is the deepest form of meditation that we can experience. When we sleep, our brains slip into a zone where the outside world is almost non existent.

This includes the information that our senses pump into our head while we are awake. Think about it, when we see, smell, touch, hear and taste anything our brains are firing and telling us what the thing we are encountering is and then linking that sense to an object or feeling. This is very exhausting, even though we do not consciously think feel the fatigue.

3) We do not eat or drink anything when we sleep. When we are awake we are always thinking and deciding if we should eat that or drink this. The pressures of eating candy, drinking soda and fighting back hunger disappear when we drift off into blissful nothingness.

4) Sleep improves our immune systems. I know that this is something that we always hear when we are told that sleep is important, I am going to tell you why.

It is because we do not eat or drink (#3). Every night we have a "mini-fast" when we consume no food or drink, except for maybe water. When we fast we give our bodies the opportunity to heal themselves. By not eating and digesting food we divert all of the energy that would have been needed to digest food to healing all the bodily wear and tear that we inflicted on ourselves during waking hours.

5) Improves our mood. People who are tired suck. And honestly, life in general is just blah when we are tired. Sure we can drink a Red Bull and grow wings for an hour, but eventually we return to our shitty, tired state of mind. Lack of sleep is the root of that problem and the solution!

6) Makes us look pretty. Especially around the eyeball region. Dark bags are quite possibly the most unattractive physical feature on planet earth (other than uni-brows). Get some sleep and lift that saggy skin.

And lastly, even though this is not a benefit of sleeping, sleeping does not cost anything! No hidden fees, no shipping and handling or any physical labor are involved. The only things that are needed are...... nothing!

You can sleep in your car, on a park bench, in a parking garage, on the floor, in a chair, on a rock, next to the fireplace, on a table, in a bed, in the hallway, in a closet, in the clothes hamper (you know who you are), with another person, with 3 other people,  the list is endless

For the love of your health and your mood, get some sleep. I know many people who sacrifice sleep time in order to get their exercise in for the day. Exercise, sleep and nutrition are on level playing fields when trying to obtain optimal health. Sacrifice in one, will not lead to gains in another.

Stay tuned for the next article, where I will attempt to explain why we are not sleeping and what you can do to increase and improve your quality of sleep.

Your well rested friend,

Ryan