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Recent research published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine suggests that incorporating brief resistance exercise breaks in the evening can extend sleep duration without affecting sleep quality. The study indicates that such activity breaks—lasting just three minutes every 30 minutes over a four-hour period—can lead to an average increase of 27 minutes of sleep.
The research challenges current guidelines that advise against intense physical activity before bedtime due to concerns about rising body temperature and heart rate impacting sleep quality. This small-scale study involved 30 participants who were observed for their sleep and activity patterns in both controlled and real-life settings.
Study Design and Findings
Participants, aged 18 to 40, engaged in two separate four-hour sessions in a laboratory setting. During one session, they remained sedentary, while in the other, they performed three-minute resistance exercises every 30 minutes. The exercises included chair squats, calf raises, and standing knee raises with hip extensions. Data from activity trackers revealed that those who engaged in the evening resistance exercises slept an average of 7 hours 12 minutes, compared to 6 hours 45 minutes after prolonged sitting.
Interestingly, while the average bedtime was consistent across both interventions, participants woke later after the activity breaks, at 8:06 AM versus 7:35 AM following prolonged sitting. Despite these differences in sleep duration, there were no significant changes in sleep efficiency or the number of awakenings during the night.
Implications and Future Directions
The findings suggest that evening resistance exercises could offer a simple and practical method to improve sleep duration, potentially benefiting those who struggle to meet the recommended seven hours of nightly sleep. This could have long-term health benefits, as extended sleep is associated with reduced risks of cardiometabolic disorders like coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
However, the study acknowledges limitations, including the small sample size and laboratory-based setting, which may not fully represent real-life conditions. The researchers call for further investigation involving larger, more diverse groups and longer-term studies conducted in naturalistic environments.
Conclusion
This research adds to the growing evidence that evening exercise may not impair sleep quality as previously thought. It highlights a potential avenue for improving sleep duration through simple, accessible activities that do not require specialized equipment.
For more information on this study, refer to the article “Evening regular activity breaks extend subsequent free-living sleep time in healthy adults: a randomised crossover trial” by Jennifer T Gale et al., published on June 1, 2024, in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine. DOI: 10.1136/bmjsem-2023-001774.
