Study Says This Exercise Is the Best Way To Improve Sleep

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Any kind of exercise is good for your health, from simple things such walking—which is also great for your mental health—to more specialized activities such as powerlifting. But if you usually suffer from poor sleep, scientists seem to have found a great antidote for it in one particular type of workout. And while they all are likely to help as they tire you out, one excels at helping you rest, according to researchers at the Harbin Sport University in China.

The scientists looked at 30 randomized controlled trials from a dozen countries. The data featured 2,500 participants of all ages, all of them with some kind of sleep issue. The test subjects reported their experience with different activities, such as resistance training, aerobics, or traditional Chinese exercises, like qi gong and tai chi. However, one offered the best results overall—high-intensity yoga. The best part? All it required was practicing it for less than 30 minutes twice a week, with results becoming noticeable after about eight to 10 weeks.

While an interesting find, the team knows there are a lot of fine details to this discovery. “Reasonable exercise intervention can effectively improve sleep disorders, but the best combination of exercise prescription variables is not yet clear,” write the researchers. “Further, high-quality research is needed to confirm these findings due to the limited studies included.”

If yoga is not your thing, a study by Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand, points to resistance and strength training as the most effective to help you sleep, as they found it can improve participants’ sleep by 35% more than aerobic exercise. However, keeping healthy sleep habits seemed to be better at ensuring a good rest rather than the exercise itself.

Scientists also recommend paying attention at the timing of your exercise. For example, aerobic exercise causes the body to release endorphins, which can put your brain in an active mode that may keep you awake. That’s why you should exercise at least one to two hours before going to bed, to give your body time to wind down.

“We have solid evidence that exercise does, in fact, help you fall asleep more quickly and improves sleep quality,” Dr. Charlene Gamaldo told Johns Hopkins Medicine. “But there’s still some debate as to what time of day you should exercise. I encourage people to listen to their bodies to see how well they sleep in response to when they work out.”