5 Tips for Better Sleep (Game Changer)
Here are 5 steps to ensure that you get the ZZZs you need to play your best basketball come gameday.
The information contained in this article should not be considered, or used as a substitute for, medical, or any other professional advice, diagnosis or treatment.
There are still 7 minutes to go in the first half and you are already absolutely drained. You feel sluggish, unfocused, and your shot is way off. Those 5 hours of sleep just didn’t cut it. Most of us know we should get more sleep, but sometimes life just gets in the way. With work, school, practice, and a social life it can be hard to consistently get the sleep we need. But sleep is crucial to performance. So, especially on nights before games, we should not leave sleep up to chance. In this short guide, we have put together 5 steps to ensure that you get the ZZZs you need to play your best basketball come game day.
1. Sleep 8 Hours (Or As Long As You Can)
Let’s cover the basics. On average, people need 6 – 8 hours of sleep. On nights before games, you should aim for as many hours as possible – going for 8 every time. Or better yet, let your body decide how much sleep it needs. Put aside your alarm clock and simply get up when your body naturally wants to get up. That’s the best way to ensure that you’re getting just the right amount of sleep. We obviously only recommend this approach if there is no chance of oversleeping the game (afternoon and evening games).
2. Prepare Your Body For Rest
You can’t force yourself to sleep. When it’s time for bed at night either you’re tired or you’re not.But you can act in advance. There are a number of things that you do throughout the day that will affect your level of fatigue when it’s time to hit the hay. Here are some things to keep in mind:Take it slow on the caffeine. Caffeine peaks in your blood after about an hour. But even after the peak, it can remain in your system for up to 10 hours. Because of that, you’ll want to make sure you haven’t had any caffeine for at least 8 hours before going to bed, to make sure it’s isn’t interfering with your sleep or your sleep quality. Another element that can interfere with your sleep quality is digestion. Make sure you eat your last meal at least 1-2 hours before going to bed. Digestion is an energy-intensive process. When going to bed, you don’t want your body to be active. Lastly, put aside all electronic devices at least an hour before going to bed. Bluelight waves that are emitted by the displays of your electronic devices are the same light waves emitted by the sun that let your body know it’s daytime. Instead, read a book, meditate and do everything you can to unwind that doesn’t require looking at a screen.
3. Set Up Your Environment
The next thing you’ll want to do is cut out all potential distractions and make your environment as conducive to sleep as it can be. Here are a few tips:Put your phone on airplane mode before going to bed, eliminating the most prevalent distraction for most people.Darken your room. Turn off the lights. If your windows have shutters or blinds, make use of them. And if any of your devices, like your TV or modem, have blinking standby lights turn them off completely.
Lower the temperature of your room to room temperature or lower if possible. Most people sleep best in temperatures at or below 21 degrees celsius.
4. Supplement with Magnesium
Supplements are exactly that – they supplement your diet and shouldn’t be relied on as a staple. But they are perfect for moments like these, where you want to give yourself that extra little edge to ensure you are performing to the best of your ability. Take 400mg of magnesium to help you catch those ZZZs and improve your sleep quality. Magnesium is a mineral that plays a key role in regulating your body’s production of melatonin – the sleep hormone. And there’s evidence that it can help with the onset of sleep as well as sleep quality.
5. Prepare the Night before and Get Your Mind Right
What time is the game? How will I get there, how will I warm up, and what will my pre-game routine look like? Being able to answer these questions for yourself, will decrease your levels of stress, making it easier to fall asleep and stay asleep, which will hopefully allow you to play your best basketball as a result.