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It’s so easy to say sleep is crucial in the restorative process. But how much sleep do athletes really need?

As the levels of physical and mental stress increase so does the amount of sleep we need. I was working with an athlete who competed at the last 4 Olympics and is now more or less retired - he reckons he can easily sleep some 2 hours less each night now he’s not training as hard.

However, sleep seems to be the first thing to suffer with athletes needing to combine training with study and/or work. Late nights followed by poor quality sleep and early starts will clearly hurt training quality.

Sleep can impact performance in three main ways:

1. Lost sleep reduces the performance of the cerebral cortex in the frontal lobe of the brain which is responsible for the most important mental functions in sport- focus, concentration, flexibility, decision making and information processing.

2. The very deep or Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep helps consolidate activities, tasks and skills undertaken that day. It is indispensable for helping motor learning and skill acquisition.

3. Sleep is a significant stimulator of growth hormone release - the body’s natural agent for cell growth and reproduction. In addition to acting to increase muscle mass, growth hormone also stimulates the immune system. Sleep deprivation raises levels of the stress hormone Cortisol which may interfere with tissue repair and growth.

7 Tips to Improve the Quality of Your Sleep:

1. Have a regular wake up time and go to bed time each day. The body loves consistency and your internal body clock will be set around this regular patterning. It’s best to follow this pattern through weekends too, so as to reduce disruption to your body clock.

2. Avoid coffee, alcohol and other stimulants prior to heading to bed. Aim to reduce stimulant intake after 4-6 pm.

3. Try to avoid high intensity exercise and large meals after 7:30pm (assuming bed time of 10pm).

4. Create quiet time before bed. The aim is to reduce stressors and stimulators to allow the mind time to wind down. Just as we do with small children, you might like to create a bed time ritual to allow sleep fullness to grow. Also, limit exposure to loud music, bright lights, computers and work related stress just before bed.

5. Your sleep environment is important so aim for a quiet dark bedroom with a cool temperature. Get the best quality linen, mattress and pillow possible. Consider taking your own linen and pillow when traveling

6. Some say that if you are not asleep in 30 minutes then get out of bed, read or undertake another quiet activity and return to bed when drowsy. Try it and see if it works; otherwise, just lay there quietly and rest - you can’t force sleep but if you’re relaxed and peaceful you’ll rest nicely and likely go to sleep. (My friends at Sports Mind Skills may be able to help if you’re having consistent trouble getting to sleep with their Sleeping Better for Sport MP3 download).

7. Do not nap within 1-3 hours of bed time. If you do nap in the day then aim for 20-40 minutes around lunch time.

How Much Sleep for Athletes?

Many would say as much as possible! However, we don’t all have that luxury.

It’s worthwhile taking note of an ongoing study which suggests that athletes who get an extra amount of sleep are more likely to have better performance, mood, and alertness.

These findings spring from an albeit small investigation involving five students on the Stanford University men’s and women’s swimming teams.

The participants maintained their usual sleep-wake pattern for the first two weeks of the study, and then extended their sleep to 10 hours per day for six to seven weeks.

With extra sleep the athletes swam a 15-meter meter sprint 0.51s faster, reacted 0.15s quicker off the blocks, improved turn time by 0.10s, and increased kick strokes by 5.0 kicks.

Researcher Cheri Mah of the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory said “Typically, many athletes accumulate a large sleep debt by not obtaining their individual sleep requirement each night, which can have detrimental effects on cognitive function, mood, and reaction time. These negative effects can be minimized or eliminated by prioritizing sleep in general and, more specifically, obtaining extra sleep to reduce one’s sleep debt.”

“It is interesting to note that many of the athletes in the various sports I have worked with, including the swimmers in this study, have set multiple new personal records and season best times, as well as broken long-standing Stanford and American records while participating in this study,” Mah said.

The findings led Mah to recommend that athletes make sleep a part of the training program, aiming for 8+ hours most of the time. Also, athletes should extend nightly sleep for several weeks before competition to reduce sleep debt.

Maybe it’s time for coaches to consider slumber parties rather than 6 a.m. practices!

Some classes have events that you have to weigh in for. As the risk of doing things out of order, this post is about how to recover well when you have to take steps to dip your body weight in the last few days before a regatta.

A future post will cover how to easily execute a short-term weight loss for the weigh in.

So for now, I would like to give you some tips for what to do following the weigh in with regards to nutrition and hydration so you’re in the greatest possible condition for racing.

I always try to encourage crews to weigh in the day before the first race day if possible as this gives more time to refuel and rehydrate and prepare to race

Here are some key strategies to ensure recovery between weigh in and the first race (expected the next day):

1. Replace fluids: If you have restricted your fluid intake for the final dip to weigh in then 150% of the fluid loss should be replaced within 2 hours of weigh in. For example, if you have dipped 1kg in body weight then 1.5 liters of fluid should be consumed to rehydrate.

2. Sports drinks: Rehydration can be rapid if electrolytes are consumed in this fluid. A sports drink is ideal - the sodium facilitates water absorption and maintains the drive for thirst. Plain water can reduce the drive to drink. Most sports drinks contain some sodium and other electrolytes and minerals.

3. Carbohydrate meal: Energy restriction from reduced food intake can cause a drop in muscle and liver glycogen levels. Glycogen is how carbohydrate is stored in the body. Thus a high carbohydrate meal should be consumed post weigh in.

4. Hi GI! Glycogen storage can be maximized if this carbohydrate meal has a high glycaemic index (GI). A high GI food is something that is absorbed rapidly into the blood stream. A banana smoothie would satisfy all these requirements.

If you weigh in the morning of the first race then the ideas above need to be compressed into the time between the weigh in and the first race - even on the way out to the start line.

Oh, and Merry Christmas!

Here’s a question I get asked a lot around one design keel boat regattas where the crew hikes from behind life lines (as opposed to hiking out from foot straps dinghy style). I find it quite common in Sydney 38s and Farr 40’s where the crews hike very hard with the upper body extended from the lower life lines.

The pressure from the lifelines cause impingement of a sensory nerve, most likely the Lateral Femoral Cutaneous nerve of the thigh. This nerve is a sensory nerve, which means it supplies sensations back to the brain via the central nervous system. It runs from the spine around the abdomen and down the outside of the thigh. This condition is known as Meralgia Parasthetica. Big scary words but what does this mean?

It’s cause by pressure over the nerve, particularly where it passes under the inguinal ligament, just below the ASIS (anterior superior iliac spine) the bony prominence on the front of your hip bone.

If there’s a lot of pressure being put through that area it compresses the nerve and results in pain or loss of feeling on the outer side of the thigh, occasionally extending to the outer side of the knee, with people often describing a burning sensation, tingling, or numbness in the same area. Other people often note pins and needle like feelings extending down towards the feet. It is usually only on one side of the body and is more sensitive to light touch than to firm pressure. These symptoms are due to partial damage to the nerve and often gets worse as the day progresses. Not very pleasant!

How do we avoid this? The best treatment is to remove the cause of the compression by modifying your actions and position. The following may be helpful:
• Rest periods to interrupt long periods of aggravating activity- move around as much as you can during tacks and between races
• Weight loss in overweight individuals
• Core and trunk exercises to strengthen abdominal muscles
• Padding it up might be a good idea to relieve the pressure around the front of the hip

Basically you want to take off as much load as possible from just under the ASIS. Changing position slightly whilst hiking should also ease the feeling of numbness but this might be difficult to do at times!
It may take time for the pain to stop and, in some cases, numbness will persist. In severe cases a combination of local anaesthetic and non steroidal anti-inflammatory medications can be administered.
In persistent and severe cases, surgery may be needed to decompress the nerve but be aware this treatment could result in permanent numbness in the area.

I heard reports from crew members after the windy 2005 Farr 40 Worlds in Sydney that they had no feeling in their outer thighs for up to 4+ weeks following the event. This is not a good sign as it means the nerve ( a pretty major one) has stopped working for this period. Get it checked out by a good quality sports physiotherapist or doctor if symptoms persist.

Let’s look at how you could follow an ideal day at a regatta - this is the same for a local 2 day event or 7 day National Championship and remains pretty standard across classes from dinghies to keel boats. Obviously, the more physical the class, then the more preparation and recovery you would do. Like wise, a windy day will be more physically demanding than a light wind day.

There are three main areas to focus on each day:
1. Prepare
2. Compete
3. Recover

Prepare
1. Wake up at a similar time each day. Even on lay days. This helps regulate the body’s internal clock. Have a glass of water soon after rising.
2. Have a substantial breakfast that includes some carbohydrates and protein. Examples could include eggs, toast, cereal, fruit, yogurt and juice.
3. Do some light activity before leaving home. Aim for about 15-20 minutes to get the body moving - walk, swim, cycle or a just light stretch.

Compete
1. Ensure you have some fluid during or as soon as possible after each race on a multiple race day.
2. After the final race aim to have something carbohydrate-based as a snack and more fluid within 45 minutes after finishing.
3. Have a light stretch at the venue if it has been a demanding race day. Do this before any social activities.

Recover
1. Once home have a shower and finish with cold water only to help recovery .
2. With dinner, aim for a balanced meal that includes some protein - chicken, fish or meat. A bowl of pasta and sauce is not the best option. Keep drinking non-alcoholic fluids to stay hydrated.
3. After dinner is a good time to stretch or to do some self massage or get some release work done on tight muscles.
4. To switch off mentally you could read, listen to some music, watch a DVD, play games or anything that helps you to wind down. Try to put the days’ racing to bed and get the brain ready to sleep and recuperate.
5. If you are hungry then a light snack is fine before bed. A yogurt or small smoothie would be ideal here.
6. Aim to get to bed at a consistent time each night that allows for 8+ hours of quality sleep.

Be sure to try this routine on club race days or at small events before your major event for the year. Like new sails or mast, a major event is not the time to introduce anything new. Be comfortable with how your body reacts to racing and what you need to do to prepare it for racing the next day. If you arrive at a venue early then slot into this routine in the days leading into event. The body loves consistency and you will feel remarkably fresh by the final race of the final day - when it all counts!

I feel the pangs of excitement whenever I sense a juicy competition, be it in sport or otherwise. And it should be that way because that’s a great reason to love sport - a chance to test yourself against others.

Anxiety is a normal human emotion in the face of a threat. It is a state of high arousal and a feeling of discomfort. Anxiety has its benefits. In sport it can help you to succeed by motivating you to beat your opponent - if you’re are afraid of failure you might push yourself harder. But too much anxiety can get in the way of your success. If you are too anxious you might get distracted, make mistakes or even give up.

One way to keep track of how anxiety may be affecting your performance is to monitor your self-talk. Self talk is the thoughts and beliefs that you have about yourself. It can bring you up or drag you down. It can be a distraction or it can help you focus on an aspect of your game plan or technique.

Consider the difference between feeling anxious and thinking “oh no, I’m nervous, I’m not sure if I can do this” and “I feel anxious, but that’s normal, it means my body and mind are ready”.

Let’s do a practical exercise - take a moment to try to recall in your mind a time when you felt really nervous and anxious.

Perhaps it was just before a big competition. Perhaps it was during a competition when the attention and pressure was on.

Recall how your body felt. Perhaps you noticed things like rapid heart rate, sweating, shaking, shallow fast breathing, racing thoughts, butterflies, nausea, or needing to go to the toilet. Some people become quiet, others talk a lot, some yawn and some get very restless. These are all normal signs of nerves or anxiety.

Now try to recall any thoughts or beliefs you had at the time. Often when we are anxious we think worried thoughts, negative or unhelpful thoughts or extreme thoughts. Perhaps you are thinking “Don’t stuff this up”, or “My competitors look so strong, how can I possibly beat them?”

Maybe you were thinking about an injury and worried you wouldn’t hold up. Maybe you were worried you wouldn’t be able to stand the pain. Maybe deep down you believed that you were not really good enough or that everything was riding on that one event, or that if you failed it’d prove you really are a loser.

These are all common beliefs held by athletes.

On that occasion how did you perform?

Did the anxiety affect your performance in some way?

Now try to absorb yourself in a different way of thinking and a new set of beliefs. Start by challenging some of those old thoughts.

Ask yourself:

Does my anxiety sometimes drag me down?
Do I worry that I’m not good enough?
Do I focus on the negative or blow things out of proportion sometimes?
Would a different way of thinking help me perform better?
What happened last time I worried about this?
Was it better than I thought it would be?
What is the evidence for and against my worried thoughts?
What is the likelihood that my fears will come true?

Focus in specifically on whatever you need to feel less anxious about and what specifically you need to say to yourself to achieve a positive frame of mind.

Here are some examples of helpful self-talk. Chose the ones that relate to you and spend some time repeating them in your mind:

I have trained hard.
I am strong.
All I can expect of myself is to do my best at this point in time.
I can only expect what is reasonable.
I am improving all the time.
There’s lots of evidence that I’m a highly skilled athlete.
My body is recovering well.
I can find the way to beat my competitors.
I have strengths they lack.
I can push through the pain.

Now, take a moment to bring to mind the memory of a time you performed well.

Picture how you looked. Recall how it felt in your body.

When things were going right for you what could you see, hear, smell, taste and feel? What went through your mind? As you imagine these things and think these thoughts, you might start to feel more confident and strong.

Now ask yourself: What are my technical goals right now? What do I need to focus on in my training and competition? Focusing on winning or success can make you more anxious and distract you from how you are going to get there.

Reduce your anxiety by thinking about a specific goal. Talk to yourself calmly and positively about what you need to do each moment with respect to your own performance.

This reinterpretation of feelings of anxiety and deliberate focus on the process of playing your sport can raise feelings of readiness, resolve and determination.

My favourite reminder - You’re not asking yourself to do anything you can’t do.

(You might like to try a MP3 tool on Managing Arousal and Anxiety in Sport or Self-Talk in Sport ).

It’s been about 7 years since I wrote a book on Sailing Fitness and Training . While I think the book is excellent resource on the topic (why wouldn’t I!), on many occasions, I wish I had included a few more things, or at least placed more emphasis on some points that are keys to Sailing Fitness.

So let me take you through a few of the key areas that need updating or that I have learnt more about since the book was published, in my list of 10 Things You Must Do for Your Sailing Fitness!

1. Be Adaptable. Set a general training plan, then adapt it constantly. Books on training for sport say to set a periodized training plan a few months or even a whole year in advance, then follow it. However, more and more now in Sailing and other sports , that’s just not good enough to get the best out of yourself at each and every session. And it’s particularly true of Sailing where wind strength has such a big impact on the physical intensity of training.

Sometimes, you might want to do a hard session, but the wind isn’t there - to compensate, you can add on a little fitness work post-sailing or do another gym session the next morning. Sometimes, you turn up to training in not-so-good condition (eg, lingering fatigue), so then you might reduce the volume and/or intensity of the session.

Have a good idea of what you want to achieve today and this week, check the weather forecast and be prepared to modify your Sailing training plans as needed.

2. Recover Well. Use ice and cold water recovery practices. Remember that you don’t get fitter from training until you get a chance to rest and let the body rebound. You can recover faster for your next training session using recovery strategies like via cold water immersion.

Some people recommend making the bath really cold - 12-15 deg C (54-59 F), but I like it straight out of the tap (about 18 deg C/64 F). I sit in the half-full bath, cooling my back and legs, for 5-8 mins. That usually has me shivering so it feels like it’s enough. While getting in is hard, afterwards you really feel a difference by way of reduced soreness and faster recovery. Here’s how a runner does it.

3. Develop Your Back. Take particular care of your back. Sailors suffer injuries to their backs more than any other part of the body. Try to include exercises for your lower back and deep abdominal muscles everyday. There are specific exercises in my book and here is a video series of lower back exercises and here is a good series of abdominal exercises .

4. Have Stable Shoulders. Take particular care of your shoulders. After backs, shoulders are sailors’ next most injured body part. Sailing often requires sudden, strong movements of the arms over a large range of motion and these can trouble the shoulder joints. Serious sailors should include shoulder stabilization exercises as part of their strength training routine.

5. Hip Flexors. Alongside working on your abdominal muscles, work on your hip flexors. Most of the time when you’re Sailing, the hip flexors are in a shortened position so you need to correct that at the end of the day with some stretches . Hip flexor stretches can help improve your posture, help the muscles recover and participate in reducing lower back issues.

6. Equipment. Think of ways your equipment can help enhance your Sailing endurance. The obvious item are battened hiking pants which spread the load and improve blood flow. Also consider whether your grip on the boat is good enough (gloves, boots, wetsuit). I glue pieces of rubber on my hiking pants where they touch the gunwale to improve grip and make it more efficient when I try to throw the boat around.

Make sure your ankles and body are well supported (boots and trapeze harness) and lastly, try to keep your muscles cool rather than hot when racing as overly hot muscles are less efficient.

7. Whey Protein. If you need to gain weight, supplement your diet with commercial whey protein powders combined with a quality size-building weight training program (it won’t work by itself). Here’s some more info on whey protein by a good company that sells the stuff. There’s weight training information for Sailing in my book.

8. Be Scientific. Keep quality records of your fitness. The aim here is to find out what works through trial and error (hopefully not so much error). Body weight is the first thing you should keep track of over the long term. After that, think of tests you can apply to yourself to measure your fitness for Sailing. (You might start with the home fitness tests in my book (but don’t do the wall sit - it can hurt the knees).

I have a master spreadsheet with 10 years of my results from time trials in cycling, rowing machine, pool running, and even surf ski paddling. It’s great to be able to look back and see the improvements.

9. Hike. Use a Swiss ball as a hiking bench to train the legs when the wind is light. If you should have done some hiking but there wasn’t enough wind, Swiss ball leg extensions can be a great substitute. Try 15-20 reps, rest for 5 sec, then do 15-20 reps and continue through to 100 reps in total.

10. Better Technique. Hike at 90% effort, rather than trying to sustain a more intense position that compromises your ability to steer, trim and decide tactics and strategy. You may not get as much righting moment, but you will gain more by trimming the boat accurately and being in a better mental state to decide which way to go. However, do go flat-out off the start.

- Good sailing, Michael Blackburn