The Woman Who Helps NBA Stars To Sleep: Stop Having Showers Just Before Bed! Dr Cheri Mah
Added: Aug 5, 2024
Dr. Cheri Mah is a renowned sleep doctor and performance expert whose research has enhanced the careers of CEOs, athletes in the NFL, MLB, and Formula 1, and provided expertise to companies like Under Armour and Google. As a sleep physician, she spends much of her time educating and advocating for people to prioritize sleep. Dr. Mah believes that if you don't sleep your best, you won't be your best, and conversely, if your sleep is at its best, you'll be at your best. She emphasizes that many individuals sacrifice or overlook sleep, often being reactive to their sleep at nighttime and considering it last at the end of the day.
The Importance of Sleep for Performance
Dr. Mah has worked with numerous professional sports teams and athletes to apply sleep science into practice. Her research has shown significant improvements in athletic performance with increased sleep. In one study with adult male basketball players, extending sleep over 5-7 weeks led to a 9% improvement in free throws and three-point shots, a 12% faster reaction time, and a 4% increase in sprint speed. These improvements can be game-changing for athletes and teams.
Dr. Mah has also worked on predicting when NBA teams are at risk of losing games based solely on their schedule and sleep opportunities. Over three seasons, she was 76-86% accurate in predicting when an NBA team would be at highest risk of losing, highlighting the importance of sleep and travel schedules in team performance.
Personal Sleep Experiences
Steven Bartlett shares personal experiences with sleep, including struggles with early morning wake-ups and the impact of poor food choices on sleep quality. He mentions a specific instance where eating a cookie before bed led to significantly disrupted sleep, as evidenced by elevated heart rate throughout the night.
Dr. Mah also shares her own experience as a new parent, acknowledging the challenges of maintaining good sleep habits while caring for an infant. She emphasizes the importance of being strategic about sleep even when faced with unavoidable disruptions.
Sleep Debt and Its Impact
Dr. Mah explains the concept of sleep debt, where not meeting your required sleep amount of 8 hours per night leads to an accumulation of debt over time. This debt can be partially paid back by extending sleep, but it often takes more than just one night or weekend to fully recover. Studies have shown that even small increases in sleep duration, such as 15-30 minutes more per night, can lead to significant improvements in academic performance and reaction times.
Practical Strategies for Better Sleep
Dr. Mah provides several practical strategies for improving sleep quality. These include optimizing the sleep environment by making it dark, quiet, cool, and comfortable. She recommends using blackout curtains, eye masks, earplugs, and white noise machines to create an ideal sleep environment. She also suggests keeping the bedroom temperature between 60-67 degrees Fahrenheit or 16-20 degrees Celsius for optimal sleep.
Regarding pre-sleep routines, Dr. Mah advises shifting shower or bath times to about 1.5 hours before bedtime, as this can help with the natural drop in core body temperature that occurs during sleep. She also recommends implementing a wind-down routine that includes activities like reading, stretching, or journaling to help prepare the mind and body for sleep.
For those who struggle with hunger before bed, Dr. Mah suggests a pre-sleep snack consisting of complex carbs and lean protein, such as cereal and milk, cottage cheese and fruit, or whole grain crackers with peanut butter. She advises against heavy, fried, or fatty meals close to bedtime.
Sleep and Travel
Dr. Mah provides strategies for managing sleep during travel, particularly when crossing time zones. She recommends having a pre-flight, in-flight, and post-flight strategy to minimize jet lag and travel fatigue. This includes getting sufficient sleep before travel, staying hydrated during the flight, and gradually adjusting to the new time zone before and during travel.
Dr. Mah also suggests building a travel sleep kit that includes items like an eye mask, earplugs, noise-cancelling headphones, and a travel pillow. She emphasizes the importance of strategic light exposure and avoidance to help shift the body clock when traveling across time zones.
Common Sleep Misconceptions and Questions
Dr. Mah addresses several common sleep misconceptions and questions. Regarding naps, she recommends keeping them short (20-30 minutes) to avoid entering deeper sleep stages, which can lead to grogginess upon waking. She also discusses the concept of chronotypes, acknowledging that some people naturally tend to be "night owls" while others are "morning larks."
On the topic of oversleeping, Dr. Mah clarifies that it's generally not possible to oversleep in a harmful way. If someone feels groggy after sleeping longer than usual, it's often due to a shift in sleep schedule or paying back accumulated sleep debt.
Dr. Mah also addresses questions about sleep and sex, noting that while there isn't extensive research on the topic, anecdotally, some people report better sleep quality after sex. She advises keeping bed activities limited to sleep and sex, avoiding other activities like work or screen time in bed.
Sleep Disorders and Health Implications
Dr. Mah discusses sleep apnea, a common sleep disorder affecting about 26% of people aged 30-70. She emphasizes the importance of getting tested if snoring or other symptoms are present, as sleep apnea can significantly impact sleep quality and overall health.
The relationship between sleep and injury risk in athletes is also addressed. Studies have shown that getting less than 8 hours of sleep can increase injury risk by up to 1.7 times. Dr. Mah's research has also explored how sleep deprivation can lead to biomechanical changes in athletes, potentially increasing injury risk.
The Impact of Alcohol and Diet on Sleep
Dr. Mah explains that alcohol can significantly impair sleep quality, leading to more fragmented sleep and nighttime awakenings. She advises minimizing or eliminating alcohol consumption close to bedtime for better sleep quality.
Regarding diet, Dr. Mah notes that what we eat can affect our sleep, though the field of sleep and nutrition research is still developing. She mentions that sleep deprivation can lead to poor food choices, creating a vicious cycle of poor sleep and unhealthy eating habits.
Sleep and Children
Dr. Mah discusses the importance of instilling good sleep habits in children from an early age. She mentions recent changes in school start times, particularly in California, based on research showing that later start times lead to better academic performance, improved mental health, and fewer car accidents among students.
Closing Thoughts and Recommendations
In closing, Dr. Mah encourages listeners to view sleep not as the end of today, but as the beginning of tomorrow. She emphasizes that prioritizing sleep can be life-changing and challenges everyone to make small adjustments to their sleep habits starting immediately.
The podcast host reflects on his own journey from viewing lack of sleep as a badge of honor to recognizing it as a crucial enabler of productivity. He expresses hope that listeners will prioritize their sleep after hearing Dr. Mah's insights on the profound impact of sleep on our lives.
Conclusion
The podcast concludes with Dr. Cheri Mah emphasizing the transformative potential of prioritizing sleep. She encourages listeners to make small, consistent changes to their sleep habits, noting that these adjustments can lead to significant improvements in performance, health, and overall quality of life. The host expresses gratitude for Dr. Mah's work and its potential impact on athletes, professionals, and anyone seeking to improve their sleep and, by extension, their daily performance and well-being.
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