Diurnal repeated exercise promotes slow-wave activity and fast-sigma power during sleep with increase in body temperature: a human crossover trial

Abstract

The effects of exercise on sleep have been explored from various perspectives, but little is known about how the effects of acute exercise on sleep are produced through physiological functions. We used a protocol of multiple daytime sessions of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise and examined the subsequent effects on sleep structure, core body temperature (CBT), distal-proximal skin temperature gradient (DPG), and subjective parameters. Fourteen healthy men who did not exercise regularly were evaluated under the baseline (no exercise) and exercise conditions on a within-subject crossover basis. Under the exercise condition, each participant performed a 40-min aerobic workout at 40% of maximal oxygen intake, four times between morning and early evening. We observed a 33% increase in slow-wave sleep (SWS; P = 0.005), as well as increases in slow-wave activity (SWA; P = 0.026), the fast-sigma power/SWA ratio ( P = 0.005), and subjective sleep depth and restorativeness the following morning. Moreover, both CBT and the DPG increased during sleep after exercise ( P = 0.021 and P = 0.047, respectively). Regression analysis identified an increased nocturnal DPG during sleep after exercise as a factor in the increase in SWA. The fast-sigma/SWA ratio correlated with CBT. The performance of acute exercise promotes SWS with nocturnal elevation in the DPG. Both CBT and fast-sigma power may play a role in the specific physiological status of the body after exercise. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We used multiple daytime sessions of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise to examine the effects on the sleep structure, core body temperature (CBT), distal-proximal skin temperature gradient (DPG), and subjective parameters. Significant increases in slow-wave activity (SWA), CBT, DPG, fast-sigma power, and subjective parameters were observed during the night and the following morning. Nocturnal DPG is a factor in the increased SWA.

Exercise improves the quality of slow-wave sleep by increasing slow-wave stability

“…Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption can be interpreted as restoring an oxygen deficit incurred during exercise and more complex mechanisms, including factors that directly (e.g., availability of metabolites such as ADP, ATP, inorganic phosphate, and creatine phosphate) or indirectly (e.g., release of catecholamines, thyroxine, glucocorticoids, fatty acids, calcium ions, and temperature [Q 10 effect]) affect mitochondrial O 2 consumption 29 . Interestingly, the increase in energy expenditure in sleep after exercise was not accompanied by an increase in the core body temperature, suggesting an important difference in heat dissipation, which was also observed in previous studies 24 .…”

“…Young, fit participants also exhibited increased δ power (0–3.9 Hz) after a 30- or 42-km cross-country running race 23 . In addition, a recent study showed that δ power (0.5–4 Hz) was increased by a moderate (40% of max) bicycle ergometer workout in healthy male participants 24 . In another study, trained athletes who exercised daily at moderate to high intensity were requested to remain sedentary in the laboratory for an entire day, and investigators found no significant differences in the δ power (0.33–3 Hz) between the exercise and sedentary days 25 .…”

“…Studies assessing the effects of exercise on EEG δ power have produced mixed results. A number of studies demonstrated that exercise is associated with an increase in δ power during subsequent sleep 23 , 24 . Young, fit participants also exhibited increased δ power (0–3.9 Hz) after a 30- or 42-km cross-country running race 23 .…”

Les effets de confinement SARS-CoV-2 sur le sommeil : enquête en ligne au cours de la quatrième semaine de confinement

“…La pression du sommeil est augmentée par la durée de l'éveil et par la durée et l'intensité de l'activité physique. Les effets d'une modification des habitudes sont rapides : par exemple une augmentation de l'activité physique est suivie d'une augmentation de l'activité du sommeil lent profond la nuit suivante [3]. Pendant le confinement, deux éléments peuvent diminuer la pression du sommeil : une diminution de l'activité physique et une augmentation de l'anxiété qui agissent directement sur les systèmes de l'éveil [4].…”

The role of exercise-induced peripheral factors in sleep regulation

“…Observational and interventional studies have found that regular moderate to intensive exercise is associated with better subjective and objective sleep among young, middle-aged, and older healthy subjects [ [17] , [18] , [19] ], as well as patients with sleep disorders [ 20 ]. In healthy subjects, aerobic and resistance exercise programs increase the time spent in light and deep sleep stages, enhance sleep depth, and improve sleep efficiency (i.e., the time spent asleep while in bed) [ [21] , [22] , [23] , [24] , [25] , [26] ]. Results from a meta-analysis including 305 participants (80% female) aged over 40 years with different sleep problems suggest that regular aerobic or resistance exercise training between 10 and 16 weeks may affect sleep quality.…”