Sleep deprivation

Does one bad night’s sleep affect performance?

If you are worried about poor performance after having a bad night’s sleep, that is normal behaviour. The good news is that losing one night’s sleep is unlikely to affect you physically.

Instead it affects your mood and your motivation to train.

Sleep appears to be most important for restoration of cognitive functions. Normal rest is adequate for somatic recovery. That is why an afternoon nap is helpful in providing recuperation for both work and training later in the day.

A recent study on sleep loss and weightlifting performance looked at the effects of 24 hours without sleep.

It appears that being motivated to train is the most important factor to deal with sleep loss in the short term.

Further reading

• How much sleep do I need after training?
• Chronic sleep deprivation and diabetes.