This is my third little article on the subject of sleep. In my previous two: Tools To Sleep Well and My Take on Sleep, I wrote about nutrition and lifestyle changes to support sleep.
This time around, I would like to give you a chance to dive deeper into the science of sleep. Why? According to the author of the New York Times Bestseller, “Why We Sleep,” by Mathew Walker, PhD, sleep is the FOUNDATION of good health.
In fact, the most important part of our health routine is properly organized sleep. He uses the word “Architecture” when he talks about the sleep structure. The book is very informative and extremely useful for all of us who strive to live happy and die healthy, and for those who are eager to raise healthy and happy children and grandchildren. If you don’t have the time to read his book, there is also listen to his three part interview with Dr. Peter Attia on this Podcast: “The Drive” (episodes 47, 48, 49).
Also, as I have mentioned in my previous blog, I manage my sleep data by using a wearable device called the “Oura” ring, which you can read about here. “Oura” allows you to track the most important parameters of your sleep, and if you measure them, you can change them (please be advised that you need a cell phone or computer to use the Oura App).
The core of Oura is about tracking high precision sleep, recovery, and body response measurement. The Oura ring measures your heart rate continuously during the nights when you're sleeping or resting, but not 24/7 or during your workouts. During the daytime and during workouts, the ring uses an extremely sensitive 3D accelerometer for measuring your physical activity. The accelerometer can detect your hand movements so it's your hand that needs to move in order to detect any activity. The ring automatically captures activities such as walking and running, but it won’t capture non-step based activities (for those types of activities you can use manual entry to further improve the accuracy of your Activity Score and daily calorie count).
As always, I am glad to share with you what I have learned from my Oura ring, simple ask me during your next session.