High Performance Training for men with Less or No Sleep

Marc Megna, a fitness model and strength coach to NFL athletes has a lot in his hands and obviously is always on a tight schedule. There are times when he wakes up as early as 3:45 AM and works straight until 7 PM with very little break in between. Because of this, he gets less sleep than what is required for hard-training athletes. However, over the years he learned to adapt his tight schedule.

Less sleep with high performance training

This is the technique that Marc Megna uses for his crammed schedule which will help you continue with your strength training even while you get less sleep:

1. Build up your nutrition – Eat more. This will give your body the nutrients it needs to repair the cell damages when you don’t get enough sleep. Drinking lots of water is also a must as staying hydrated will keep you energized during the day.

2. Avoid the heavy workouts – Don’t push yourself to do heavy workouts when you get little sleep. This will only require more than the energy you already have. Basic lifts at lower speed is highly recommended for those who get less sleep than is required.

3. Try to be consistent – Even as you sleep little, you need to try to be consistent with your sleeping patterns. Say if you get up at 3:45 AM, then you must be consistent with that. Make sure to go to bed and wake up at the same time so that your body can easily adapt to it. Once your body adapts this, you wouldn’t feel as if you are getting less sleep.

4. Train early – If you could, do your training as early in the morning as possible. If there is no way you can do this in the morning, then you can try it early at night. This way, you won’t be wired when you go to sleep. Also, Marc Megna suggests avoiding intense music, annoying phone calls and messaging before you sleep. Turn off the lights and relax.

5. The shorter, the better – It’s better to make your workouts shorter so that you don’t get to use up all your remaining energy. Having less sleep affects the muscles. If you want to work out for longer periods, then you first need to go back to your healthy sleeping habits plus avoid any kind of stress.

Take this advice from an athlete coach himself if you want to continue working out while having less or no sleep. It works for him; of course it will also work for you!