Health Matters: New Link Between Exercise, Quality of Sleep

LITTLE ROCK, AR -- Wrapping up National Sleep Awareness Week, the Medical Director for Baptist Hospital's Sleep Center just returned from the national convention in Washington D.C.

The big news there: a new link between sleep and exercise.

If you're feeling groggy in the mornings, a doctor might recommend exercise to get you going.

The link between alertness and exercise is not a new discovery, but now doctors say there's new evidence linking exercise with the quality of sleep you get.

"People who describe themselves as exercisers slept better," says Dr. David Davila, who practices sleep medicine at Baptist Hospital.

There he has a full facility for sleep studies, and can monitor his patients while they sleep.

"Evidence it might be affecting the brain waves in a positive way," he says.

Doctors used waves like these to find the link between exercising and a more restful sleep, meaning those who exercised had better sleep than the people who didn't.

"There's lots of theories, but we honestly don't know why," Dr. Davila says.

While doctors are still studying why this is the case,  one thing is certain: the benefits to your sleep from exercising are widespread.

"Had less problems with insomnia, getting to sleep, staying asleep, less sleepiness during the day. Fewer symptoms of sleep apnea," he says.

So while you may struggle to make that last rep, your body will pay you back later.

The study also found it didn't matter what time of day you exercised, as even those who ran or swam at night got better sleep.