Episode 1: How to Optimize Your Sleep State with Dr. Chuck Samuels
11/17/22 • 67 min
There are countless theories about how best to optimize your sleep state, and today, we get to the truth of the matter. We are joined by sleep expert, Dr. Chuck Samuels to investigate the purpose of sleep, the factors affecting it, and how much sleep we need according to our individual constitutions. Dr. Samuels describes the sleep studies carried out at the Centre for Sleep & Human Performance and explains how to determine your optimal sleep hours. We learn about the best eating habits to optimize recovery during sleep, how to calculate your circadian low, as well as which stimulants and/or sedatives to avoid. Dr. Samuels also breaks down what sleep apnea is and what triggers sleepwalking, plus he shares some tips for promoting an optimal sleep state. Tune in to find out where you might unsuspectingly be going wrong and what you can do to ensure optimal recovery time!
Key Points From This Episode:
- The evolution of research around the importance of sleep and the purpose it serves.
- Recovery processes that occur during the sleep state.
- The impact of sleep deprivation on performance.
- Factors that affect our ability to compensate for sleep deprivation.
- How you can determine your optimal sleep hours.
- Why it’s important to have a consistent morning wake time.
- The optimal dinner-to-bedtime window.
- How best to distribute caloric intake over the course of the day, as an athlete.
- How you can benefit from following your circadian rhythms!
- Negative impacts of stimulants like caffeine and pre-workout energy drinks.
- The science behind feeling tired.
- How to calculate your circadian low.
- The peak of human alertness in the 24-hour cycle.
- Temperature and the important role it plays in sleep.
- Indications that you’re not getting enough sleep.
- Studies and treatments carried out at The Centre for Sleep.
- What “proper” sleep looks like and what happens to the brain in each stage of sleep.
- The effect of alcohol and sedatives on sleep patterns.
- Triggers for sleepwalking.
- The significance of dreaming.
- Some of the damaging effects of technology on the brain.
- How to promote an optimal sleep state.
- What sleep apnea is and how brain arousals affect your sleep.
- Four things that cause the airway to collapse.
- Indicators of sleep apnea.
- The accuracy of fitness trackers.
- The true function of melatonin.
- Dr. Samuels shares some startling sleep impairment stories.
- What causes dark rings under the eyes.
Links Mentioned:
There are countless theories about how best to optimize your sleep state, and today, we get to the truth of the matter. We are joined by sleep expert, Dr. Chuck Samuels to investigate the purpose of sleep, the factors affecting it, and how much sleep we need according to our individual constitutions. Dr. Samuels describes the sleep studies carried out at the Centre for Sleep & Human Performance and explains how to determine your optimal sleep hours. We learn about the best eating habits to optimize recovery during sleep, how to calculate your circadian low, as well as which stimulants and/or sedatives to avoid. Dr. Samuels also breaks down what sleep apnea is and what triggers sleepwalking, plus he shares some tips for promoting an optimal sleep state. Tune in to find out where you might unsuspectingly be going wrong and what you can do to ensure optimal recovery time!
Key Points From This Episode:
- The evolution of research around the importance of sleep and the purpose it serves.
- Recovery processes that occur during the sleep state.
- The impact of sleep deprivation on performance.
- Factors that affect our ability to compensate for sleep deprivation.
- How you can determine your optimal sleep hours.
- Why it’s important to have a consistent morning wake time.
- The optimal dinner-to-bedtime window.
- How best to distribute caloric intake over the course of the day, as an athlete.
- How you can benefit from following your circadian rhythms!
- Negative impacts of stimulants like caffeine and pre-workout energy drinks.
- The science behind feeling tired.
- How to calculate your circadian low.
- The peak of human alertness in the 24-hour cycle.
- Temperature and the important role it plays in sleep.
- Indications that you’re not getting enough sleep.
- Studies and treatments carried out at The Centre for Sleep.
- What “proper” sleep looks like and what happens to the brain in each stage of sleep.
- The effect of alcohol and sedatives on sleep patterns.
- Triggers for sleepwalking.
- The significance of dreaming.
- Some of the damaging effects of technology on the brain.
- How to promote an optimal sleep state.
- What sleep apnea is and how brain arousals affect your sleep.
- Four things that cause the airway to collapse.
- Indicators of sleep apnea.
- The accuracy of fitness trackers.
- The true function of melatonin.
- Dr. Samuels shares some startling sleep impairment stories.
- What causes dark rings under the eyes.
Links Mentioned:
Next Episode
Episode 3: It’s All Mental with Charles Miron
Does the Great Canadian Death Race sound like a fun experience? What about running 250 kilometers through a piping-hot desert? Endurance sport is definitely not for the faint-hearted, and Charles Miron has a stronger heart (and mind) than most. From a young age, Charles was inspired by the endurance athletes he saw on television, and after smashing his first marathon with hardly any training, he realized he likely had an innate ability to push himself beyond the barriers that most people cannot overcome. His secret? It’s all mental. In this episode, Charles talks about some of the most memorable moments from the ultra-marathons and triathlons he has done over the years, and the valuable lessons he has learned through these experiences. No matter what you think your pain threshold is, you’ll finish this episode feeling motivated to take on a whole new level of challenge!
Key Points From This Episode:
- Where Charles’s passion for endurance sports began.
- Charles’s first marathon experience.
- What Charles learned about himself during his first multiday endurance event.
- The number of 100-mile races that Charles did between 2006 and 2016.
- Examples of the goals that Charles sets for himself prior to each race he does.
- How Charles’s body shape compares to that of a typical endurance athlete.
- Charles shares some stories from the time he won The Fire and Ice Ultra in Iceland.
- Why the cost of doing the Marathon de Sables is so high.
- Some of the biggest challenges that Marathon de Sables runners face.
- Why Charles decided to trade in ultra running for triathlons.
- What a typical triathlon training week looks like for Charles.
- Why your mental state is everything in endurance sport.
Links Mentioned:
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