Sleep and Rest for CrossFit Athletes

As a CrossFit athlete or high level Special Forces trainee you absolutely pound your body and mind.

At the end of a day you are many times borderline exhausted.

Throw in the fact that many of your work day jobs and your wondering how your not a walking Zombie.

The key is how is in how you sleep and rest.

It has been reported that we are a sleep deprived caffeine fueled nation as we get on average only 6 hours of sleep and drink 3.5 cups of coffee a day. Together, 350 million cups of coffee are consumed by 100 million Americans. That may not be a good combination for the long term to rest your mind and body.

Top 3 CrossFit Sleep tips

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Check out these tips on how to get a good nights rest and get you recovered in order to hit up tomorrow’s killer WOD. Train Hard!

1. Stretch before going to sleep and drink some filtered water. This will help your muscles to release toxins and lactic acid and not have you waking up in the morning so sore you cant get out of bed.

2. Sleep in a cool room or one with a fan or with the window open in the warm months. You may want to have a screen on the window if you live in an area where mosquitoes or flying pest are prevalent. A cool room is helpful because body temperature drops during sleep. Sleeping too warmly increases the pulse rate which then makes it more difficult for the body to relax enough to sleep soundly.

3. Take breaks during the day if you can. I know we all live hectic lives but laying down on the couch for 30 minutes can rest your mind and help rejuvenate you.

4. They say that vigorous exercise for at least an hour a day insures the body will be tired at night. I dont think many of your CrossFitter’s or BUD/S trainees have to worry much about that one.

5. Take a yoga class and stretch the body and rest the mind. It is said that twenty minutes of yoga can equal a 2 hour nap.

6. Drink a glass of milk. This helps the body relax and its carbohydrates fuel the brain and provides brain nutrition.

7. Treat yourself to a deep tissue massage along with a therapeutic recovery. This can help increase blood flow and heal injuries that may keep you up at night. This will also allow your body and mind to relax allowing you to sleep easier that night.

8. Sleep in darkness. Sleeping in complete darkness is important to getting a good night’s sleep because darkness increases the production of Melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in the brain and controls the body’s sleeping cycle. Melatonin is believed to cause us to fall asleep faster and sleep better.

9. Eat healthy foods. Avoid excessive grains and processed foods. A paleo diet is a great way to go. Check out www.robbwolf.com for more info.

10. In Coach Mark Divine’s lectures at SEALFit Kokoro he speaks about resting your mind and avoiding the excess daily chaos that comes with smartphones, a continual digital media presence of TV and traffic and congestion. Unclutter your life and disconnect from some of the excess tension to help rest your mind and body.

11. Eat very little within two hours of bedtime. Dont stuff your face with a pound of steak 30 minutes before you lay down. Your body does not process food at the same rate while sleeping so avoid heavy meals before sleeping.

12. Long and deep breathing sets the stage for the body to wind down to enable falling asleep quickly. See Breathing Technique for Optimum Health and Good Sleep

If you have any questions on any exercises please email brad@sealgrinderpt.com.

SEALgrinderPT can provide you with custom workouts and programs to increase your strength, flexibility, lower your running times and increase speed. For more info check out www.sealgrinderpt.com/coaching and contact SEALgrinderPT at brad@sealgrinderpt.com to get started today.

I look forward to hearing from you and starting you on your path to your goals today.