The amount of sleep we get the night before is one of the factors influencing how we behave during the day. Everyone requires sleep, and if we skip a day, everything else appears to fall out of whack. While some people think they function best with 7-9 hours of sleep each night, others disagree. How can we determine our actual sleep patterns, the quality of our sleep, and how our body will respond to those sleep levels? The level of data that sleep tracking equipment can offer you will amaze you!
Wearable sleep monitoring equipment often relies on motion sensors. You can precisely calculate how much time you spent sleeping thanks to these sensors, which track your movement as you sleep. Monitoring your heart rate is another way to keep tabs on the quality of your sleep (or sleep cycle).
Therefore, whether sleep is a problem for you or you are generally curious about how much sleep you actually receive, this article contains a wealth of information that can help.
Why is sleep so crucial?
We all understand the value of sleep, right? I’ll still give you a rundown, though.
We are aware of the critical role that sleep plays in both our physical and mental health. We regularly put our bodies under physical and mental stress since we spend more time awake than asleep each day. Therefore, as you sleep, your body is rejuvenating and replenishing itself, performing a “factory reset,” if you will.
You need to be receiving enough sleep for your body to function well, both cognitively and behaviorally. Finally, the end. Simply put, it is crucial.
A increased risk for some diseases and medical disorders has also been associated with sleep deprivation. Obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, stroke, poor mental health, memory issues, and early mortality are a few of them. The difference between life and death may actually depend on how much sleep you get. Therefore, you must place sleep in the same ‘priority’ category as a balanced diet and regular exercise if you want to have a happy and healthy life.
The Cycle of Sleep
It’s crucial to comprehend how humans sleep when tracking sleep. There are actually five different parts to our sleep cycle.
Sleep is not constant. Instead, your overall amount of sleep is divided up into multiple cycles of the sleep cycle, which consists of four distinct states, throughout the course of the night. An average person experiences four to six sleep cycles every night. Although not all sleep cycles have the same length, they typically last 90 minutes each.
The very first stage of falling asleep is
1. When your eyes are closed, you are just beginning to relax and are getting ready to nod off. Although NREM1 is a very light sleep stage, it doesn’t endure for very long. It’s likely that you will move on to the next stage of the sleep cycle rather fast if you are left alone while you sleep. Your brain begins to gradually relax at this point, preparing your body for the remaining sleep cycles. Usually, this part of the cycle lasts one to five minutes.
2. When you first go through the sleep cycle, this stage usually lasts between 10 and 20 minutes, but it gets longer as you move further along. During their sleep, the average person spends about half of their time in the stage. Your body temperature will start to drop at this point, and your brain activity will shift. Additionally, at this point, your eye movement stops.
3. You are in the deepest state of sleep at this point. Your heart rate, breathing rate, and muscle tone are all decreasing. One of the most crucial phases of sleep, it functions as a sort of “restorative process”—recalling the earlier “factory reset”—and is thus one of the most significant.
Rapid Eye Movement is the abbreviation for REM. It is so named because your eyes can be seen moving behind your eyelids during this phase of sleep. One of the most significant sleep phases is REM because it stimulates the parts of your brain that are involved in learning and remembering. You will notice an increase in your brain activity during this cycle.
The significance of REM sleep is due to the fact that your brain exercises certain neuronal connections during this stage of sleep, which are essential for your general and mental health.
As you can see, every phase of the sleep cycle has a distinct function throughout the course of the night. Every one of them is equally significant to the next. So, how can you ensure that you are getting enough sleep at each stage and that you are keeping up with your sleep? Technique for monitoring sleep!
The technologies we recommend for tracking your sleep are listed below. Some of them are quite reasonable, while others will cost a little more but will provide you better results and more insight into your sleeping patterns.
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Sleep tracking mat from Withings
The Withings Sleep Tracking Mat functions as a mat that is slipped below your current mattress to track your sleep. The fact that they differ from the majority of sleep tracking technologies is one of their main attractions. Most sleep trackers require you to wear something while you sleep, usually a watch, which might be inconvenient. All you need to collect data with the Sleep Tracking Mat is the mat itself and an app. It’s also less pricey than you may anticipate.
Your nightly sleep is tracked for you using the Withings Sleep Tracking Mat, which delivers an easy-to-read report. This mat has the capacity to track your heart rate, keep track of your sleep patterns, and even identify snoring!
It enables you to determine how long you were truly dozing off, how deep your sleep was, and whether any unwelcome interruptions happened. You will find it simpler to track your sleep and create a sleep regimen that works for you with the Withings Sleep Tracking Mat.
The Ring of Oura
The Oura Ring is another excellent option for sleep tracking equipment. A thin ring with sleep tracking capabilities is called the Oura Ring. Some users of the Oura Ring have even asserted that you never notice it while wearing it and that it does not in any way interfere with sleep.
A brand-new, cutting-edge sleep algorithm is included into the Oura Ring. Your heart rate, body temperature, and sleep patterns are all monitored. It enables you to monitor how much time was spent during your sleep in each sleep cycle.
The Oura Ring retains data for years, unlike other sleep tracking devices. They want their users to be able to view their sleep statistics and alter their sleeping habits in response to what they observe.
There are some fascinating features coming up for The Oura Ring, if that piques your curiosity. By 2022, the ring will be able to monitor your blood oxygen levels while you sleep, providing a more accurate reading of your sleep duration and cycle quality.
