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Exercise timing and sleep

Evening training is fine — unless it's vigorous and ends within an hour of bed.

Regular exercise modestly improves total sleep, efficiency and deep sleep, and cardio lowers resting heart rate — Galpin's canary. The meta-analysis of evening exercise found no harm to sleep on average; the exception is vigorous exercise finishing within ~1 h of bedtime, which lengthens onset. So 'exercising too late' is a variable to test, not a rule to fear.

Log minutes, intensity and end time; nights after late hard sessions are compared with the rest.

Sources · 4

The effects of physical activity on sleepKredlow MA, Capozzoli MC, Hearon BA, Calkins AW, Otto MW · 2015Regular exercise modestly improves total sleep, efficiency and deep sleep.Effects of evening exercise on sleep in healthy participantsStutz J, Eiholzer R, Spengler CM · 2019Evening exercise does not harm sleep — unless vigorous exercise ends within ~1 h of bedtime.Effects of exercise on the resting heart rateReimers AK, Knapp G, Reimers CD · 2018Endurance training lowers resting heart rate by ~5 bpm on average; yoga also lowers it.The bidirectional relationship between exercise and sleepKline CE · 2014Better sleep → more exercise → better sleep: a loop worth starting anywhere.

Related topics

Exercise, RHR & energy

Frequently asked questions

Exercise timing and sleep?

Evening training is fine — unless it's vigorous and ends within an hour of bed.

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Educational summary of published research, not medical advice. Screening scores are not diagnoses. If a score is elevated or you feel unwell, talk to a clinician.