Are you finding it difficult to achieve your fitness goals?

Whether you are getting ready to run your first marathon or hoping to build some muscle in your body, preparation is key. The way in which you prepare to do these things will determine if and when you will achieve these goals. Two of the most important aspects of getting fit are sleep and rest, yet some of us (including myself) sometimes forget this. For most of us these days, watching Love Island in the evenings is more important than getting an extra hour in bed. But if we made more of an effort to put down our phones and try to get some extra sleep at night, maybe it wouldn’t be so difficult for us to get ourselves moving every day. According to a study carried out by the International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health, the less REM (rapid eye movement) sleep we get, the more we feel the pain when it comes to working out or sustaining injuries. If we are not sleeping great, our levels of cortisol which are also known as our stress hormones, also increase. Therefore, our bodies are more prone to sustaining an injury when we exercise. So, if you find working out really difficult or even going for a brisk walk a chore, then maybe do yourself a favour and get to bed an hour earlier than usual some nights. Another thing you could do is track the amount of sleep you get each night for a while and make sure that you give your body enough time to rest, and hopefully you’ll reach your fitness goals sooner than you thought you would.