People

A lot of people exercise in the evening. During the day, they go to work or school. So the evening is the ideal time to put on those sports shoes.

Despite the fact that exercising is recommended to sleep well, many people complain about not falling asleep after exercising.

Cause of poor sleep after exercise?

Adrenaline and cortisol
During and after exercise, certain substances are triggered in the body, such as the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. These make us feel on edge and ready for action, but also make it harder to fall asleep.
Sleep experts recommend keeping at least 1.5 to 2 hours between the end of your workout and sleeping. For very ‘intense’ workouts, it's best to leave 3 hours between before bed.

Overtraining
This is a pitfall for many athletes. Heavy training causes an even greater production of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. So you can chronically have too many stress hormones in your body.

Body temperature
As soon as you go to sleep, your body temperature drops. This is because a substance is produced: melatonin. However, exercise causes your body temperature to rise a few degrees, preventing your ‘sleep attack’. Using a fan or cold compress can lower your body temperature a little again.

Caffeine
Everyone knows by now the stimulating effects of caffeine. Athletes therefore sometimes drink coffee to boost their training. Research shows that consuming caffeine (besides coffee, also found in tea, chocolate, energy drinks, etc.) up to 6 hours before bedtime can disrupt your sleep. So do the math in advance.

(SR for Tagtik/Illustration picture by Unsplash)