Sleep, Performance and Rejuvenation in Sport

Students in the lecture will gain an understanding of the interdisciplinary development of sleep science, its role in sports, physical activity and promotion of the human health by addressing sleep as a factor in health promotion, education as a resource for improving society sleep culture.

Students in the lecture will gain an understanding of sleep physiology, its circadian rhythm and the importance of sleep duration on the performance of athletes and physically active people.

Students will gain an understanding of the nature, characteristics and influencing factors of sleep quality of athletes and physically active people.

Students will gain an in-depth understanding of sleep as a physiological underlying process that provides homeostasis of the human body, metabolic, neurocognitive and hormonal regulation, and that for athletes and physically active people, sleep is the most important provider of natural recovery.

Students will gain an understanding of both objective and subjective methods for measuring sleep quality, including their advantages and limitations.

Students will gain an understanding of the impact of sleep environments, training and living environments, technology and pollution factors, habits and the choice of recovery strategies.

Students will gain an understanding of recreational physical activity, stretching, breathing exercises, massage, manual therapy, hydrotherapy, cryotherapy, and nutritional strategies in optimizing body recovery.

Students will gain an understanding of the role of stress management, the social environment and support systems, and the balance between work, study, and sport in optimising recovery.

Students will gain an understanding of the balance between load and rest as one of the most fundamental prerequisites for sustainable performance in athletes and physically active individuals.

Students will develop an understanding of the factors influencing sleep and recovery needs, the personalization of sleep requirements, and the varying recovery demands of athletes compared to physically active individuals.

Students will gain an understanding of the possibilities of integrating digital technology and AI in monitoring the sleep of athletes and physically active individuals.

Students will gain skills in assessing sleep quality and recovery processes.

Students will gain an understanding of why sleep and recovery are not just physiological issues, how sports science, medicine, psychology, technology, and leadership interact, and the importance of an integrative perspective in optimizing human performance in sports and public health.

Students will gain an understanding of the nature of a personalised recovery optimisation planning methodology.

Students will gain an understanding of ethical and safety aspects in the planning of personalised recovery optimisation.

Students will develop and deliver a personalized recovery optimization plan by critically evaluating the application of the latest technologies and methods to address specific sleep and recovery problems in physically active individuals.