Sleeping In: The Effects and Drawbacks of Oversleeping
Sleeping in on weekends is a guilty pleasure for most people. Commuting to work or doing the school run dictates getting out of bed before the first bird song of the weekday. While some people relish a Saturday morning lie in, others stick to their regular wake up time even on their days off.
If you’re a lie in lover and wondering what the drawbacks of oversleeping are, we delve further into this fascinating topic here. Let’s learn about the effects of oversleeping and how you can reset your sleep schedule for restorative sleep and active days.
Importance of Sleep Schedules
A consistent sleep schedule is vital to your physical health and mental wellbeing because sleep and health go hand-in-hand. Quality sleep restores your body of energy, memories are cataloged and stored, hormones are regulated, and health restored.
Maintaining a Regular Sleep Schedule
Your circadian rhythm can get a little out of tune sometimes. If you’re overworking and have a ton of other responsibilities. Falling into bed in the early hours of the morning and waking up at 6am is going to make you ill, have you craving caffeine and sugar all day, and make you miserable and unhealthy. Maintaining a regular sleep schedule is vital to maintaining physical health.
Tips and tricks for better quality sleep every night:
- Control your exposure to light, avoid using electronic devices or watching television 1 hour before bed to help you wind down
- Exercise every day
- Enjoy walking in the fresh air every day, being in nature is a natural de-stresser
- Eat as healthy as you can, avoid eating too much sugar and drink fresh water every day
- Try meditation or yoga to help you keep stress under control, stress is a major cause of insomnia, learning how to let go of issues that are not serving you could help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep all night
- Curate a sleep setup that promotes healthy sleep, including a supportive mattress and temperature-regulating bedding
Learn how to reset your sleep schedule, here.
Sleep Guidelines
Age Group
Hours
Teenages
8-10
Adults
7-9
Seniors
7-8
Source: CDC
Sleeping in on Weekends
“I love sleeping in on Saturdays” is what most people say! A Saturday sleep in feels like a mini holiday, getting up later than usual, going for brunch, reading the papers is a dream Saturday for a lot of people. Sleeping all weekend or even having a lie in is impossible if small children are demanding attention. But, not having to set your morning alarm to its usual time is enough of a thrill to start your weekend on a high note.
If you find yourself feeling tired on weekends, you may be suffering from weeknight insomnia. You may think that sleeping until noon on Saturday will refill your energy tank but, unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. Banking sleep at the weekend might make you feel good for one day but analyzing and adapting your weeknight sleep schedule will have a greater impact.
Learn how to wake up early and energized here.
Best Time to Wake Up on Weekends
The best time to wake up at weekends depends on your work/study schedule and lifestyle. There is no magic hour that suits everybody. As long as you’re getting a solid 7-9 hours of sleep every night, the best time to wake up on weekends is whatever suits your weekday schedule.
Regularly Sleeping In
If you’re sleeping in regularly it could be a sign of an underlying health issue. Oversleeping or not sleeping enough leads to some serious health problems, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and anxiety disorders. Making some lifestyle changes can be enough to get your sleep schedule back on track. But, schedule a checkup with your doctor if you’re sleeping in more than usual.
How Do I Stop Myself From Oversleeping?
- Resist hitting the snooze button
- Avoid sleeping in on weekends and on your days off
- Dodge the urge to take a nap or keep the nap to maximum 20 minutes
- Create a relaxing night time routine to help you unwind
How to Wake Yourself Up in the Morning
- Throw your curtains open as soon as you wake up, sunlight streaming through your window will ignite your circadian rhythm and get you wide awake for the day
- Get into morning meditation to start your day the right way, running around stressed in the morning sets you up for a hard day, take a deep breath and tackle one task at a tim
- Change your alarm habits, pressing snooze 15 times every morning could mean you’re going to bed too late, disable the snooze button, be brave and get out of bed when the alarm goes off
FAQs
Is Sleeping in Bad?
Sleeping in every now and then is not necessarily bad for you. But, if you’re sleeping in every day, pressing the snooze button 15 times, and rushing around in a stressed state every morning, you could suffer some physical effects such as heart problems, anxiety, blood pressure issues, or weight gain.
Is it OK to Sleep in on the Weekends?
Sleeping in on the occasional weekend won’t have any ill effects on your physical health. Banking sleep on the weekend will only make you feel good for one day. If you’re sleeping in every weekend, have a look at adjusting your sleep schedule. If you’re getting enough quality sleep every night, you won’t feel like sleeping in on weekends.
Do People Sleep More on Workdays?
If you work a physically, emotionally, or mentally demanding job you may need more sleep at night. If you’re eating well, exercising, and enjoying fresh air every day, your sleep schedule should naturally fall into place. Take regular rest breaks throughout the day and sip water to beat day time fatigue.
Why Is Sleeping Good for You?
Good quality sleep every night is an essential component of a healthy lifestyle. As you sleep and dream, your body restores energy, catalogues and stores memories, replenishes and restores hormone levels, helps you heal from illness, and recharges your batteries. Sleep is essential in maintaining good physical health and a strong mental capacity.
How Much Should I Sleep In a Week?
Do you find yourself completely depleted on your days off? Are you sleeping in more than 3 times a week? If so it may be time to have a good look at your sleep schedule and night time routine. A healthy adult needs 7-9 hours of sleep every night. Adapt your routine to accommodate 7-9 hours of sleep every night.
Is Sleeping Late a Bad Habit?
If you’re an adult with many important responsibilities and you’re sleeping in most days, you may see you’re not achieving your personal goals and running around frazzled most of the time. Sleeping late is a bad habit because it can harm your physical health and mental wellbeing. Good quality sleep keeps you healthy, strong, and able to reach your goals.
Is Sleeping for 12 Hours Bad?
Sleeping for 12 hours is good if you’re recovering from illness or surgery. Otherwise, as a healthy adult, sleeping for 12 hours every night could be a sign of an underlying health issue. Consider seeing your doctor for a check up and adjusting your sleep schedule. You may need to start going to bed earlier than normal.
Is it Unhealthy to Have a Bad Sleep Schedule?
An unhealthy sleep schedule is when you are going to bed and waking up at inconsistent times. Your circadian rhythm gets disturbed, causing health problems such as heart disease, obesity, and blood pressure issues. Admitting to colleagues “I slept in”, on occasion is not going to hurt you, but change your sleep schedule if this is a regular occurrence.
Conclusion
Oversleeping every now and then should not cause you any ill-effects. If you find that you’re sleeping in on a regular basis, it might be time to make some changes to your sleep schedule. If you’ve ever slept in on the morning of an important event, you’re only too aware of that awful morning panic mode.
Being stressed every day is bad for your health, leading to blood pressure issues, heart disease, anxiety disorders, depression, and obesity. Enjoy the occasional lie in if you need it, but, you owe it to your physical health to enjoy quality sleep every night so you can wake refreshed every morning.
Disclaimer: Nolah does not provide medical advice. All resources on the Nolah blog, including this article, are informational only and do not replace professional medical counsel. Talk to your doctor about any health, mental health, or sleep-related issues.
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