A New Way of Being cover image

A New Way of Being

How to rest and recover like a premier league footballer: with elite sport sleep coach Nick Littlehales

Jan 17, 2025
In this enlightening discussion, elite sports sleep coach Nick Littlehales shares his innovative techniques for optimizing rest, honed while working with top teams like Manchester United and Team Sky. He introduces the concept of 90-minute sleep cycles, advocating for strategic naps, or controlled recovery periods, to enhance athletic performance. Nick emphasizes the importance of consistent wake times and adapting sleep patterns to align with natural circadian rhythms, challenging conventional views on rest for improved recovery.
10:48

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Nick Littlehales recommends structuring your day into 90-minute cycles to optimize recovery and enhance overall performance.
  • Emphasizing flexibility, the podcast highlights the importance of adapting sleep patterns to align with personal and natural rhythms for better rest.

Deep dives

Rethinking Sleep Duration

The notion of needing a solid eight hours of sleep in one block is challenged, as it's suggested instead to focus on shorter sleep cycles. This approach, based on polyphasic sleep patterns, advocates for dividing the day into 90-minute cycles that consider the body’s natural circadian rhythms. For example, structuring sleep into four cycles at night combined with shorter rest periods during the day can yield the same overall recovery time. This method allows individuals to customize their sleep according to personal schedules and commitments, emphasizing quality and flexibility over traditional lengthy sleep durations.

Get the Snipd
podcast app

Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.
App store bannerPlay store banner

AI-powered
podcast player

Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features

Discover
highlights

Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode

Save any
moment

Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways

Share
& Export

Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more

AI-powered
podcast player

Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features

Discover
highlights

Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode