Sleep Deprivation and its Effects

on Exercise Performance in
College Athletes
Brett Morris
Background

● Why this topic?

○ Desire to learn about mental and physical health
■ Optimize our performance
● We all need our own hours to operate at 100%
○ What is the common theme?
● Sleep recommendations from Sleep Foundation website:

● “...One third of student-athletes get fewer than 7 hours of sleep per night..” (NCAA)
Background Cont.

● It was found in a survey that out of 189 students-athletes, 68% reported poor sleep quality (Fortuity)
● Why is this deprivation happening?
○ Overload of schoolwork
○ Lack of time
○ Stress
○ Our sport
○ Poor sleep schedule
● Some studies have suggested that sleep does in fact segway to better performance.
Background Cont. ● Both mental and physical effects
● Sleep deprivation:
○ Increases onset of fatigue
○ Decreases energy
○ Decreases focus
○ Slows recovery post-game
○ increases stress hormone release
■ Cortisol

● Sleep deprivation decreases production of

glycogen and carbohydrates that are stored
for energy use during PA.
○ Reinforces the effects as stated above.
Purpose

● How much sleep deprivation plays a factor in exercise performance

● To find the optimal amount of sleep for exercise performance, focus, recovery, energy,
and fatigue
Hypotheses

NULL HYPOTHESIS RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

● Sleep deprivation will have no effect on ● Sleep is beneficial to exercise

exercise performance performance

● Sleep has no benefits to exercise ● More sleep will yield better exercise
performance or recovery. performance both mentally and physically
by allowing the body enough time to
recover and heal.
Methods
● Pre-Experiment Questionnaire/ Survey
○ Inquiries:
■ Amount of sleep per night
■ Amount of exercise in a week
■ Type of exercise
■ Amount of fatigue, focus, energy, and recovery
● Experiment
○ We will have three groups of 10 participants selected randomly
○ The groups are divided randomly by gender and college athletes within the age range of
18-23
○ Group 1: 3-5 hours of sleep per night
○ Group 2: 5-8 hours of sleep per night
○ Group 3: 8+ hours of sleep per night
○ Before the strength training, the participants will rate the amount of fatigue, energy and
recovery they feel
○ After they have completed their strength training, the participants will rate their fatigue
and energy again along with their focus during their strength training
Methods

● Each group will undergo the same resistance training session each day.

● They will get tested on their one repetition maximum for the three main exercises before they
undergo the strength training sessions.

● The three main exercises: Bench Press, Back Squat, and Deadlift

● They will perform three workouts twice a week with one off day
○ Resistance Training 1: Bench Press, Chin ups, Dumbbell Curls, Tricep Pushdowns, Push Ups
○ Resistance Training 2: Back Squat, Reverse Lunge, Side Lunges, Med-Ball Slams, Planks
○ Resistance Training 3: Deadlift, Box Jumps, Hip Thrusts, Hamstring Curls, One Leg Leg Press

● These workouts will go on for a three week period

● After three weeks, we will test their one RM for the three main exercises again
 Central Tendency Statistics
Statistics
● Utilizing
○ Mean
○ Median
○ Mode
● Best way to acknowledge common trends
within this study.
● Analyzing energy levels, focus, recovery,
fatigue and overall performance rating
○ Range of data: easy to put into
categories.
Results
Results
Results
Results
Results
Limitation

● Sleep is hard to control, if participants struggle to get to sleep it could skew the results

● Napping is also a factor, hard to get participants to not nap, especially if they normally take naps

● Participants were in their own environment to sleep instead of a controlled environment

● Not monitoring participants strength training

● Exercise outside of the study

● Supplementation before exercise

Conclusion

● Our results lined up nicely with our hypothesis but we could conduct another test with these
same subjects but switch up how much sleep they get
● Redoing this would help prove how consistent the hypothesis is
● It is clear to say that the less sleep that you get you will not perform, recover, you will be
more fatigued and you will not be as focused as compared to another athlete who gets
more sleep
● Everyone’s body is different and the sleep differs from everybody
References

Sleep & Athletic Performance. (2020, September 03). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/articles/sleep-athletic-performance-and-recovery

MW;, V. (n.d.). Sleep deprivation and the effect on exercise performance. Retrieved November 17,
2020, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2657963/

National Sleep Foundation Recommends New Sleep Times. (2020, July 28). Retrieved November 17,
2020, from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/press-release/national-sleep-foundation-recommends-
new-sleep-times

College athletes aren't getting enough sleep. (2017, January 23). Retrieved November 17, 2020, from
https://www.futurity.org/college-athletes-sleep-1341252-2/