{"id":76903,"date":"2025-07-20T02:29:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T02:29:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/76903\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T02:29:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T02:29:12","slug":"3-types-of-exercise-could-help-people-sleep-better-longer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/76903\/","title":{"rendered":"3 types of exercise could help people sleep better, longer"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/exercise-insomnia-Stocksy_txp89acc016YR9400_Medium_1142461-Header-1024x575.jpg\" alt=\"A man doing a yoga pose reminiscent of a warrior pose with an arm extension towards the back, his elbows bent\" class=\"css-1jytyml\"\/><a class=\"icon-hl-pinterest css-11oz8gb\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-event=\"Any Page|Image Pinterest Click|Icon Clicked\" data-element-event=\"OPEN|CONTENTBLOCK|Any Page|Article Body|BUTTON|Image Widget Pinterest Click|\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.medicalnewstoday.com%2Farticles%2F3-types-exercise-yoga-tai-chi-walking-may-be-best-managing-insomnia&amp;media=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.post.rvohealth.io%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F3%2F2025%2F07%2Fexercise-insomnia-Stocksy_txp89acc016YR9400_Medium_1142461-Header-1024x575.jpg&amp;description=Insomnia%3A%203%20types%20of%20exercise%20could%20help%20people%20sleep%20better%2C%20longer\" title=\"Share on Pinterest\" data-pin-custom=\"true\" data-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/exercise-insomnia-Stocksy_txp89acc016YR9400_Medium_1142461-Header-1024x575.jpg\">Share on Pinterest<\/a>Scientists investigated the effects of exercise, such as yoga and tai chi, on insomnia. Maresa Esmee\/Stocksy<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Practicing yoga, Tai Chi, walking, and jogging are effective therapies for treating poor sleep and insomnia, according to a new meta-study.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The meta-study looked at the outcomes of 22 randomized controlled trials investigating the effects of exercise and other therapies for insomnia.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The positive effects of yoga were the strongest of the exercises studied, and the beneficial effects of Tai Chi were the longest-lasting.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Four types of exercise may be the best ways to improve sleep quality and avoid insomnia: yoga, Tai Chi, walking, and jogging.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A new meta-study \u2014 a study of other studies \u2014 found that for people seeking better sleep, yoga, tai chi, walking, and jogging rivaled cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-i) in effectiveness.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While authoritative statistics on insomnia worldwide are elusive, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S1087079225000747\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"content-link css-90fpmc\">latest research<\/a> suggests that 16.2% of the global population suffers from the condition, and 7.9% have severe insomnia. In the U.S., according to a survey study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/nchs\/products\/databriefs\/db436.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"content-link css-90fpmc\">14.5% of adults<\/a> had trouble falling or staying asleep within a 30-day period.<\/p>\n<p>Getting sufficient sleep is important for good health. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhlbi.nih.gov\/health\/sleep\/how-much-sleep\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"content-link css-90fpmc\">Seven to nine hours<\/a> is the recommended amount of sleep each night for adults.<\/p>\n<p>While CBT-i is the current \u201cgold standard\u201d for treating sleeplessness. It typically involves a series of one-on-one sessions with a sleep therapist.<\/p>\n<p>However, exercise may be more readily accessible to some, can be easily integrated into one\u2019s life on a long-term basis, and can serve as a complement to CBT-i. <\/p>\n<p>As such, the meta-study\u2019s findings will be of interest to many:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Practicing yoga may increase sleep time by just under two hours a night and boost sleep efficiency by 15%. It may also shorten the amount of time it takes to fall asleep and wake up after having been asleep.<\/li>\n<li>Tai Chi may improve sleep quality scores by over four points, increase total sleep time by nearly an hour, reduce wake after sleep onset, and shorten sleep onset latency. The analysis also found the beneficial effects of Tai Chi were especially long-lasting: as long as two years.<\/li>\n<li>Walking or jogging may result in an almost 10-point reduction in insomnia severity scores.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The 22 trials encompassed in the meta-study involved 1,348 participants and explored 13 different therapies intended to relieve insomnia. The studies ran from 6 to 26 weeks in length.<\/p>\n<p>Seven of the studies investigated exercise-based activities. These were yoga, Tai Chi, walking or jogging, aerobic plus strength exercise, strength training alone, aerobic exercise combined with therapy, and mixed aerobic exercises.<\/p>\n<p>An issue with any meta-study is that the quality of the trials it includes varies. Conclusions that can be drawn are often tempered with questions regarding certainty. Among those concerns is an inevitable lack of detail that can cloud conclusions somewhat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor example, what is the age group, gender, ethnicity, and overall clinical profile of the participants from the 22 studies included in this meta-analysis? What type of co-morbidities do they have, if any?\u201d asked <a href=\"https:\/\/aeroflowsleep.com\/promo\/content-creator-carleara-weiss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"content-link css-90fpmc\">Carleara Weiss, MD, Ph.D., MSH, RN<\/a>, of Aeroflow Sleep, who was not involved in the study.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/katalog.uu.se\/profile\/?id=N7-789\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"content-link css-90fpmc\">Jonathan Cedernaes, PhD<\/a>, a sleep researcher at Uppsala University in Sweden, who was also not involved in the study, acknowledged that the study was \u201cquite a comprehensive analysis which seems to be robustly done.\u201d However, he cautioned:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhile the authors\u2019 findings suggest that different exercise modalities may benefit different aspects of sleep, I think we need more evidence to draw those types of conclusions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.drleahkaylor.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"content-link css-90fpmc\">Leah Kaylor, PhD<\/a>, clinical psychologist specializing in trauma and sleep, who was not involved in the study, told Medical News Today:<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cInsomnia is one of the most common sleep disturbances. It\u2019s rarely caused by a single factor. Instead, insomnia typically arises from an interplay of biological, psychological, and environmental contributors.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Cedernaes cites \u201cthe high demands of our 24\/7 society, with high stress from trying to manage both a successful career and family life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe saw that rates [of insomnia] increased during the COVID-19 pandemic,\u201d recalled Cedernaes, \u201cwhich may have to do with further increases in stress. Periods of uncertainty, which can include financial ones, have been tied to increased risk of insomnia.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is also evidence that the increased use of artificial light can contribute, as well as increased (especially evening or nighttime) use of social media,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>An increasing awareness of sleep issues may also be aggravating the problem, pointed out Kaylor. <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow css-34gtoi\">\n<p>\u201cPeople with insomnia often develop dysfunctional beliefs about sleep, such as catastrophizing the effects of poor sleep or believing they must \u2018force\u2019 sleep. These thoughts can lead to pre-sleep rumination, sleep performance anxiety, and paradoxical wakefulness \u2014 making it even harder to fall asleep.\u201d<br \/>\u2014 Leah Kaylor, PhD<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In addition, Kaylor said, \u201cMental health conditions like anxiety and depression further intensify these cognitive loops. Chronic pain, gastrointestinal disorders, PTSD, depression, anxiety, and neurodegenerative diseases (e.g., Alzheimer\u2019s) are all strongly associated with insomnia.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kaylor proposed a likely mechanism at work:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChronic activation of the sympathetic nervous system \u2014 our fight-or-flight response \u2014 can lead to hyperarousal, a key feature of insomnia.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow css-34gtoi\">\n<p>\u201cPractices like yoga and Tai Chi have been shown to decrease sympathetic tone and increase parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) activity, supporting the down-regulation of arousal prior to sleep onset.\u201d<br \/>\u2014 Leah Kaylor, PhD<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>On a brain-chemistry level, Cedernaes said these activities may \u201cactivate the parasympathetic nervous system, and relatedly, may also reduce cortisol levels by lowering activity in the HPA axis that regulates cortisol.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cSlow, rhythmic movements combined with breath control enhance vagal tone, which is associated with a calmer physiological state conducive to sleep,\u201d added Kaylor.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Recent research, say the authors, supports the idea that exercise in general helps people fall asleep more easily. Laboratory studies suggest that it enhances neuroplasticity and strengthens connectivity in key brain regions involved in sleep.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor walking,\u201d noted Weiss, \u201cscientific evidence suggests [as factors] reduced stress, improved circadian rhythms (when keeping consistent timing and exposure to light), and increased BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), which is critical for sleep regulation.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Share on PinterestScientists investigated the effects of exercise, such as yoga and tai chi, on insomnia. Maresa Esmee\/Stocksy&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":76904,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[1198,210,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-76903","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-fitness","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114883209969913906","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76903"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76903\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}