Do you make it a point to get a few extra hours of shut-eye during the weekend when you don’t have to get up early for school or work? Have you ever wondered about whether or not that is really a good thing or if you should still be getting yourself out of bed early and at your usual wakeup time? Then continue reading to learn a bit about how sleeping in on weekends could affect your health.
Here’s What Sleeping in on Weekends Can’t Do
If you walk around exhausted all week from a lack of sleep, you might think that sleeping in during the weekend will help make up for all of those hours of sleep that you missed out on. But that’s not the case, unfortunately.
Chronic sleep debt can’t be resolved by getting extra sleep on the weekends; instead, it might just help you feel less drowsy. It won’t actually eliminate the cumulative negative effects of sleep loss on your mental and physical health.
The Effects on Your Internal Clock
Your body has an internal clock, and when you don’t get much sleep during the week and sleep in on weekends, you could do some harm to it by throwing it off track. For example, you may find yourself having difficulty getting to sleep and/or staying asleep the following night, which will set you up for even more trouble when you need to get up early on Monday. And, over time, that could have adverse effects on your health that include an increased risk of diabetes, depression, heart troubles, and weight gain.
What You Should Do Instead
It really is best to ensure you get enough hours of sleep every night, regardless of what your schedule is like or what day of the week it is. Experts recommend getting around eight hours of sleep every night, but if you need more or less, go with what makes you feel rested and rejuvenated in the morning. Avoid staying out late on a Friday night and then sleeping in on Saturday, as that will throw your body out of balance.
If you have to change the time that you wake up, avoid sleeping in for more than an hour. You could also take a 30-minute nap during the afternoon during the weekend if you’re feeling tired and you want to help your body recover from not getting enough sleep over the course of the previous week. The key is to nap for a short period of time, preferably in the early afternoon.
Now that you know that sleeping in isn’t all that good for you, you can take an extra step towards maintaining your health with adequate rest.
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