Getting her beauty sleep

Hello Everyone!!

I thought I would share something interesting some of my teammates and I are doing this quarter. Ash, Jill, Kayla and I are all participating in a sleep study for athletes. The goal is to see if increased sleep leads to increased athletic performance as well as overall alertness.

One of the requirements is that we get ten hours of sleep a night, which definitely gets tricky with our busy schedules! We also keep track of our daily alertness and take PVT reaction time tests twice a day. The times are supposed to decrease as we get more sleep. (Ash and I definitely have room for improvement!)

Another part of the study is that we are required to wear watches, called Actiwatch, which serve as motion sensors to track our sleep. They are quite stylish, all of our teammates are jealous. (Not really, they are actually quite unstylish, but we manage.)

All of us have weekly meetings with Cheri, the leader of the study, at the Sleep Center. She has us fill out questionnaires about how we are feeling and collects our sleep journals. Ash and I bike over together every Tuesday. I definitely enjoy our lovely bonding time as well as the scenery.

So far, I have noticed a difference in my alertness throughout the day with ten hours of sleep. I feel like I have more energy, especially at practice. I highly recommend sleeping as much as you can.

According to Dr. Dement, the Sleep and Dreams professor, "Drowsiness is red alert," which means people are in danger when they don't get enough sleep. So, get all the beauty sleep you need!

Hannah

P.S. I should also mention that the sleep study counts as a class. I've decided that sleeping is definitely the best way to get units!!

P.P.S. Save a tree! RECYCLE!!!!!