What happens when we sleep?

collaborative guest post

For us, sleep is a time of mystery that we know relatively little about. For 8-10 hours a day we totally switch off and our bodies rest and recover from the previous day. So what actually happens when we sleep? And why is it so important that we do?

Why do we need sleep?

Not only does it contribute to good health both mentally and physically, it’s essentially the foundation of everything we do. It benefits our state of mind, improves our physical health and can even help us to avoid illness. Our muscles, tissues and organs all profit from sleep, so why on earth would you not want to head to your bed now and sleep?

What happens if we don’t sleep enough?

You might be surprised to hear that not sleeping is actually incredibly dangerous. Lack of sleep makes you naturally fatigued and blissfully unaware of what’s going on around you. It also promotes forgetfulness and makes you lethargic, but these aren’t the worst impacts of sleep deprivation.

You can become victim to far more serious illnesses that are all brought on by sleep deficiency. An average adult needs around 7-8 hours’ sleep and children need more depending on their age. This means you should function to your full capacity the following day and gives your body plenty of recovery time.

What happens to our body?

If you’re a regular gym-goer then sleep will be your new best friend. Depriving your body of sleep leads to weight loss and 70% of this loss comes from your muscles because your body is more reluctant to use the energy resources to build muscle.

You’ll also find you burn less calories, so not only will you lose muscle mass, you’ll gain fat and unhealthy weight. Sleep also gives you more stamina which helps you to complete exercises, burning fat and bad weight in the process.

You’ll also find it difficult to store those wonderful memories that you create during the day. During sleep, your brain stores all these memories and moments do you can remember and recreate them for years to come.

How can you ensure this doesn’t happen?

You may already know this answer to this question, as it really is quite simple, you need to sleep more! And whilst there is good research into things like CBD for sleep, exercise is probably the best thing for a good night’s sleep. And a good night’s rest is one of those not so secret secrets of living a healthy lifestyle. It enhances your memory, your mental health, your physical health and much more. So grab that pillow and grab those all-important 7-8 hours sleep!