The Sleep Fix – Circadian Rhythm Optimization Program – Theenergyblueprint

It’s not just sleep that suffers when your circadian rhythm is chronically disrupted — your ENERGY during the day also takes a massive hit.

This is because the circadian rhythm controls BOTH the hormones and neurotransmitters that control sleep at night AND the hormones and neurotransmitters that control wakefulness and ENERGY during the day.

That’s the other side of the circadian rhythm. It controls what happens in your body during both the darkness period and the daytime (light) period of the 24-hour day.

Basically, think of it like this…

Sleep and energy are two sides of the same coin – and they are connected via the circadian rhythm.

The circadian rhythm in your brain is designed to regulate neurotransmitters and hormones that impact BOTH how ENERGIZED you are during the day, AND how easily and deeply you sleep at night.

Our bodies respond to visual cues in our environment, chiefly light and darkness, to release hormones and neurotransmitters that either power us up and awake for daytime or prepare us for sleep and repair.

“Circadian rhythm is being tied to so many important functions. We’re just beginning to discover all the molecular pathways that this gene network regulates. It’s not just the sleep-wake cycle. There are system-wide, drastic changes.”

~ Joseph Takahashi (Neurobiologist)

As explained in this study titled “Life between Clocks: Daily Temporal Patterns of Human Chronotypes”:

“Our results predict that the timing of sleep has changed during industrialization and that a majority of humans are sleep deprived during the workweek. The implications are far-ranging concerning learning, memory, vigilance, performance, and quality of life.”[1]

But it’s not just hormones and neurotransmitters…

Your circadian rhythm also directly influences your actual cellular energy generators (your MITOCHONDRIA) that provide that energy to virtually all the trillions of cells in your body.

Melatonin is the most potent protector of your mitochondria. Most people know melatonin as a sleep-inducing hormone. And it is certainly that.

But most people have absolutely no idea that melatonin is absolutely vital for mitochondrial function, protects mitochondria from damage, and is vital for mitochondrial regeneration while we sleep.

There are a number of impressive – and little known – studies showing how vital it is for mitochondrial health that you produce LOTS of melatonin each night while you sleep. The melatonin we release that prepares us for sleep nourishes the mitochondria in numerous ways including:

• Acts to prevent free radical damage directly in the actual mitochondria (which is very unique to melatonin since virtually all other “antioxidants” cannot do this)[2][3][4][5]
• Regulates of mitochondrial bioenergetic function and maintains respiratory complex activities, electron transport chain, and ATP production in mitochondria [6] [7] [8]
• Acts as a neuroprotectant in the brain, preventing the kind of oxidative stress/nitrosative stress-induced mitochondrial dysfunction seen in experimental models of Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and Huntington’s disease [9]
• Slows aging [10][11]

And here’s the big problem:

When you have poor circadian rhythm habits, you have less melatonin in your body that can get to the mitochondria.

Too much blue light at night (and blunted circadian rhythm in general, from poor circadian rhythm habits) greatly inhibits melatonin release, which directly leads to grossly negative impacts upon mitochondrial dysfunction, causing mitochondrial fragility and die-off.[12][13][14]

Over time, what that means is that mitochondria will accumulate more damage, will not function as well, and you will not rebuild new healthy mitochondria nearly as well. You’ll be slowly accumulating more and more damaged and defective mitochondria, and inevitably, you will end up fatigued.

If we lose our mitochondria – or accumulate lots of weak and damaged mitochondria — we lose our health, energy, immunity, strength, and vitality as well. We age faster, we are far more susceptible to disease, and we end up chronically fatigued

In short, think of it like this: Optimal circadian rhythm means deep, restful sleep, good mood, peak mental and physical performance, good body composition, leanness and high energy levels.

Disrupted circadian rhythm is the exact opposite. Sleep problems, insomnia, anxiety and depression. Poor brain performance, poor physical performance, tendency towards fat gain and chronic fatigue and energy problems.