What's More Important: Sleep or Exercise?

If you had to have one or another, which would you choose: more sleep or more exercise? The New York Times addressed this question today. The article is short, but I believe is dead-on. Give the article a read.

“Exercise, sleep and nutrition form the triangle of health, and all are related,” - Dr. Phyllis Zee, professor of neurology and director of the Sleep Disorders Center at Northwestern University in Chicago.

I share the opinion of Dr. Zee. I think people overcomplicate being healthy. If you want to be healthy, you only need to focus on three things:

1. Eating right.
2. Sleeping enough.
3. Exercising daily.

By doing the above, you are going to be healthy. End of story.

When it comes to exercising vs. sleep, some treat the situation as an individual can only have one or another. This isn't true. Like the article says, you may have to make adjustments to your schedule, but getting enough exercise or sleep is entirely possible if you are willing to sacrifice. 

If you are someone who finds that getting up in the morning is tough, you have to start going to bed earlier if possible. Unless something critical keeps you from going to bed sooner, move your bedtime earlier by 30 minutes for a few weeks. If you find you need more sleep, go to bed another 30 minutes earlier.

I recently started doing this. I set a hard deadline of 10 PM as my bedtime except on Wednesdays, when I watch It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. I have found that having a concrete deadline forces me to get the things I need to accomplish during the day done. I am less likely to put tasks off. Plus, I get a solid 8-9 hours of sleep a night.

Between sleep or exercise, I think it's more important to get the right amount of sleep. Without sleep, your whole body system can suffer. Obviously, I support getting both sleep and exercise, but sleep might be slightly more important for the normal functioning of your body.

Road to Redemption

Last October, I was training for a half marathon in January. During the training run, I felt my left knee start to burn. I thought nothing of the ache and pushed on. When I got back home and cooled down, I couldn't bend my leg at certain angles without a burning sensation encompassing my left knee and the surrounding area. I would find out later, I had "runner's knee," a death sentence for many runners.

Running the Half

I was stupid. I hadn't trained since injuring my knee. But here I was, up at 4 AM and preparing to run 13.1 miles. I'd never run a half before, but that day, I prepared to go the distance or get swept from the course. I would finish the race or go down trying.

 The first mile was easy. No complaints from my knee. This would be easy.

Into the second mile, my knee started to flare up. Only a mild ache, something I could push through.

Step by step, the miles passed. My lungs were fine, and so were my legs. Except my knee. It was burning again. I couldn't push the discomfort from my mind.

Somewhere between mile 6 or 7, my knee drew a line in the sand. Either I would quit running now or it would make the last half of the race the longest 6 miles of my life. I kept going.

I couldn't sustain running. I settled for a mix of jogging and fast walking. The jogging became less and the walking more. The tops of my feet hurt now. In my mind, I welcomed being swept. Still, I pushed on.

As the race neared its end, I resigned to walking entire miles.

Finally, I reached the sign saying only 0.1 miles left. The crowds cheered and urged us on. With the finish line in sight, I picked up speed again and used everything left in my legs. I didn't want to finish with a whimper. A few yards from the finish, my knee began to buckle. I grimmaced and kept driving my legs to the finish.

After the Race

I went the distance, but that would be the last time I would run for over 6 months. The days folllowing the race, I hobbled everywhere. My knee stopped buring shortly after the race, but my feet felt like I dropped kettlebells on them.

Today

I'm finally training again. I've signed up for a 5k in November. I'll keep you guys updated.