By Hartford HealthCare Senior Services Staff
If your quality of sleep is sub-par, reach for some medicinal exercise.
That’s right. A study in the journal of Mental Health and Physical Activity found that the same general exercise guidelines for aerobic activity — at least 150 minutes of moderate-level activity each week — could improve sleep quality by 65 percent.
That amount of exercise translates into five days or more of at least 30 minutes of activity, such as a high-paced walk, running or other aerobic activities. The improvement was estimated as a 65 percent reduction during the day of feeling overly sleepy. The study included people ages 18 to 85 who did not have severe sleep disorders (exercise’s effects may be different for people with insomnia).
It takes much less than 150 minutes of exercise to start feeling the sleep benefits. Even after one exercise session where your heart rate stays elevated, you may sleep better the same night.
People with chronic insomnia can benefit, too. One study in the journal of Sleep Medicine found that patients (55 or older) who were currently sedentary improved their sleep quality and slept an average of 45 minutes to an hour longer each night after performing a consistent exercise routine. These results began after 16 weeks of exercising for three to four 30-minute aerobic exercise sessions each week.
For more information about the Good Life Fitness program, please contact the Hartford HealthCare Center for Healthy Aging. Call 1.877.424.4641.
For more information about sleep disorders, please visit Sleep Medicine at HartfordHealthCare.org.