MMA, or somewhat Mixed Martial Arts, is a contact form of sport that allows an adverse range of fighting tactics like kicking, grappling, and striking. MMA incorporates techniques from various combat sports like wrestling, boxing, karate, judo, and jujitsu.
All these sports involve a lot of body impact and may sometimes bring about injuries. These games also expose you as the player to mental instability and other physiological problems which may cause a lack of sleep. Your body will need time to heal the damaged body tissues and regenerate new cells-all these processes take place as you sleep.
To allow you to rest enough and recover, we have come up with strategies to help you sleep better even after that intense fight.
1. De-Stress.
It’s normal to have bodily and mental tension after any MMA fight. There are activities you can do to ease up your body and brain. Consider doing something fun-something you enjoy doing. Below are some practical ways you can de-stress:
· Meditate.
· Watch TV.
· Call your best friend.
· Breathe deeply.
· Visualize.
· Listen to some relaxing music.
· Take a shower.
All the ways mentioned above of de-stressing will increase serotonin production, which will stabilize your moods and emotions, helping your body and brain relax. When the body relaxes, you can easily have a sweet deep night’s sleep.
2. Try Cannabis Seeds.
For centuries now, the cannabis plant extracts have been used as a sleep aid. Cannabis has sedative effects, which slow down your brain’s activity, eventually making you feel stress-free. Physicians regularly prescribe sedatives to treat medical problems like insomnia and anxiety.
A recent study showed that cannabis reduces the time before you fall asleep to thirty minutes. Cannabis also lengthens your time in deep, slow-wave sleep.
After a long day in the ring fighting your opponents, you may find it hard to sleep. Not only will cannabis seeds help you relax, but they also induce you into a deep sleep. To get the best products, check out cannabis seeds at Zamnesia.
3. Self-Massage.
Self-massage is done by instilling pressure on the painful and sore parts of your body. During an MMA match, your tissues tend to get injured due to the punches you receive and stretching you do as you fight back. Below are steps you can follow to massage your sore parts of the body:
I. Straighten your back and neck with shoulders lowered away from the ears.
II. Locate the sore parts of your body.
III. Tenderly move your fingers in a circular motion.
IV. Change and move your fingers in the opposite direction.
V. Continue for two to four minutes.
You can consider investing in massage equipment. To add a zing while massaging, implement some massage oils like sunflower oil, olive oil, sweet almond oil, or coconut oil.
After a self-massage, you feel rejuvenated. Massage reduces stress and tension by slackening the stress hormone cortisol. Once cortisol is reduced, the body gets a clear pathway to relax, and eventually, you fall asleep.
4. Avoid Caffeine.
Caffeine obstructs brain chemicals that induce sleep. Caffeine, being a stimulant, should only be taken in the early hours of the day to improve alertness. The effects of caffeine can carry on for six to seven hours. Avoid drinking caffeine after midday.
A study suggests that consuming a drink rich in caffeine two to three hours before your scheduled bedtime delays melatonin production by forty minutes. Drinks you can consider drinking before bedtime include hot chocolate, warm milk, sleepy tea, or a nightcap.
5. More Proteins Than Carbs Before Bedtime.
As an MMA player, you may be tempted to eat foods rich in carbohydrates to restore most of your lost energy. It’s okay to have high-carb meals but not before bedtime. Eating carbs before sleep increases the production of insulin. When insulin levels rise, muscle repair processes tend to hamper; hence you barely get enough time to rest.
Alternatively, you can consider eating a meal rich in proteins. Protein foods are rich in tryptophan. The body cannot process tryptophan for itself. So, it gets it from proteins.
Tryptophan is made into serotonin which is eventually made into the melatonin hormone. Melatonin is the hormone in charge of regulating your sleep and wake cycle.
With good production of melatonin, you quickly fall asleep.
6. Stay Cool.
Body temperatures are known to change as you fall asleep. When you lie down to sleep, your body starts cooling down. The vice versa happens when you get up.
To make sure you don’t have a hard time sleeping, try setting your thermostat to cooler temperatures between 15.6-19.4 degrees Celsius. Set a room temperature according to your preference.
Another way to stay cool is taking a warm shower or bath. You’d think that taking a cold shower will keep you cool, but a warm shower is the best option here. When you take a warm bath, the body tries to return the body to average temperatures. As the body cools down, a signal is sent to your brain, allowing you to sleep.
7. Practice Yoga.
After a challenging game, you’ll probably find a hard time sleeping. Practicing yoga with a bit of meditation and mindfulness will relax the body and calm the mind. Meditation enhances melatonin levels, while mindfulness helps you focus on the present. Both of these practices help you relax and eventually lead to sleep.
Yoga mainly promotes body movements and breathing patterns that release tension and stress accumulated in the body during the match. Research has shown yoga improves sleep efficiency, sleep duration, and sleep quality.
Conclusion.
Even after an intense fight, you may be scheduled for another match for the following day. You will need to invest in a good night’s sleep to regenerate all the lost energy. Make a point of researching and knowing ways in which you can sleep better.
The above tips have proven effective and will help you a long way. If worse comes to worst where you find sleeping hard, make a point of running by your healthcare provider.
