Restorative Sleep Explained: Benefits & Tips

Achieving the recommended amount of sleep per night is vital for promoting health and staying at the top of your game. Regularly getting between 7-9 hours of sleep per night is associated with several health benefits, including supporting the immune system and reducing the risk of heart disease and diabetes. It also improves mood, decision-making, mental clarity, and helps maintain a healthy weight.

Getting enough sleep is often easier said than done. Many factors contribute to disrupted sleep, including stress, caffeine, certain medications, and uncontrolled health conditions. The CDC reports that around 1 in 3 US adults don't get enough sleep daily.

While getting more hours in bed is not always realistic given the demands of life, focusing on getting quality restorative sleep can provide countless benefits to your body, and make you feel more rested. This article explores what restorative sleep is, the signs you may not be getting enough of it, what causes poor sleep quality, and how to maximize your chances to achieve restorative sleep regularly.

What is restorative sleep?

Many of the positive benefits of sleep are due to what experts call "restorative sleep," which WHOOP defines as the combination of deep sleep (SWS) and REM sleep.

Research indicates that growth hormone release, tissue growth, protein production, and muscle repair all take place during sleep. During sleep, the body is able to replenish stores of these components and undergo repair and healing that is necessary for optimal function.

What makes sleep restorative?

Restorative sleep refers to how much time you spend in deep (slow wave sleep) and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep each night. Deep sleep is the physically restorative stage when many of the body's regenerative processes happen. REM sleep is the mentally restorative stage, where dreams occur and short-term memories convert into long-term memories.

Together, maximizing restorative sleep improves your recovery, cognitive function, ability to focus, and supports vital body processes.

While maximizing time in the restorative stages of deep and REM sleep is important for recovery, the ideal percentage of total sleep can vary based on individual needs.

Not all sleep qualifies as restorative. This is why it's possible to sleep for 7 or 8 hours a night and still wake up not feeling well-rested. Sleep can be divided into the following two categories:

Restorative sleep

Restorative sleep allows you to wake up feeling like your sleep was both restful and refreshing. WHOOP tracks four stages of sleep, beginning with what WHOOP refers to as "Awake" as you fall asleep.

The next stage you enter is "Light Sleep". Deep Sleep (SWS) and REM are the periods of sleep where restorative sleep occurs.

Deep Sleep (SWS) is the deepest period of sleep, when physiological repair, growth, and immune health occur. REM, or rapid eye movement sleep, is when memory processing and cellular regeneration take place. Together, these stages support learning, cognitive function, and are essential for mental and physical restoration.

Non-restorative sleep

Non-restorative sleep is characterized by feeling unrefreshed and unrested in the morning, even after getting the recommended amount of sleep. The effects of non-restorative sleep include trouble remembering information, difficulty concentrating, extreme fatigue, and falling asleep during the day. It has also been linked to mental health conditions including depression and diminished quality of life.

That said, light sleep still serves a vital function, especially as we age, and deep sleep occurs less often. Even in light sleep, your heart rate and respiratory rate slow. As we age, we tend to get more light sleep and less deep sleep, losing about 10-12 minutes per decade of age as our bodies produce lower levels of growth hormone and melatonin.

Every stage of sleep is important for physical and mental health. During light sleep, short bursts of brain activity help resist external disruptions while suppressing senses and movement. Light sleep supports memory, learning, and motor skills, making it essential to meeting your overall sleep needs.

Signs you're not getting restorative sleep

It's possible to spend eight hours in bed and still wake up feeling unrested. This gap between time asleep and feeling refreshed is often due to a lack of restorative sleep. Common signs include:

• Daytime fatigue or grogginess, even after a full night's sleep.
• Difficulty with concentration, memory, or decision-making.
• Noticeably slower recovery from physical strain or illness.
• Increased irritability or mood swings.

What causes non-restorative sleep?

When the body spends too much time in the first two stages of light sleep and not enough in the deeper sleep periods, the key processes underlying healing and restoration are unable to take place.

Certain factors can increase the likelihood of experiencing non-restorative sleep. Health issues like lung disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety, and chronic pain can disrupt sleep quality. Sleep conditions including insomnia, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea, as well as certain medications, excess stress, and inconsistent sleep routines, are also contributing factors.

Why restorative sleep is important to recovery, health, and performance

Restorative sleep gives you a leg up both mentally and physically. WHOOP research has found that for every extra 30 minutes spent in deep, slow wave sleep, an individual is able to see a 5-10% increase in mental control the following day.

The same study found that for every 45 minutes of sleep debt a person experiences, they will also go through a 5-10% decrease in mental control the next day. To give your cognition the boost it needs to keep you sharp and alert throughout the day, restorative sleep is a must.

Restorative sleep isn't just important for mental performance — it also plays a major role in physical performance. Intense workouts take a toll on your body — breaking down muscle fibers that need to be built back stronger for you to experience gains in muscle mass and strength. This muscle repair occurs during restorative sleep, which also contributes to bone and tissue repair, a balanced metabolism, and increased blood flow to the muscles.

How to know if your sleep was restorative

Getting restorative sleep can make a big impact on your ability to perform day-to-day activities. That's why it's important to be able to recognize whether or not your sleep was restorative. Here are three aspects of your sleep to pay attention to when determining whether it was restorative or non-restorative:

• Sleep Efficiency — Sleeping through the night is a sign of good sleep continuity, suggesting that you are able to pass through each of the sleep cycles and experience restorative sleep. If you wake up multiple times during the night or feel like your sleep is interrupted, you have poor sleep continuity and are more likely to have non-restorative sleep.
• Sleep Latency — Sleep onset refers to how long it takes you to actually fall asleep. The average healthy individual has a sleep onset time in the range of 10-20 minutes. Sleep onset times that are shorter and longer than this average can indicate issues with sleep.
• Sleep Consistency — Paying attention to how consistent or similar your bedtime and wake times are over the course of several days can help you recognize ways to improve your sleep pattern and schedule, optimize your body's rest and health, and maximize your energy the following day. Use WHOOP to track your sleep consistency and enjoy the benefits of consistent quality sleep, longterm.

How to increase restorative sleep

If you feel that you are mostly getting non-restorative sleep, or would like to make sure you get more restorative sleep whenever possible, there are strategies you can take to improve sleep quality and increase time spent in deep sleep. Here are a few techniques to try out for yourself:

• Prioritize Sleep Consistency and Routine — Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day is a great way to support sleep consistency. Sticking to a regular sleep schedule helps maintain your body's circadian rhythm, allowing you to cycle through every stage of sleep and get the restful, restorative deep sleep you need.
• Engage in Relaxing Activities Before Bed — Boost restorative sleep by focusing on sleep hygiene — which aims to create a relaxing environment and routine around sleep each night. Examples of relaxing activities to try as part of a sleep routine include taking a nightly bath or warm shower, reading or listening to music, walking your dog, practicing deep breathing and meditation, and limiting screen time before bed. To ensure you have an environment conducive to restorative sleep, make sure your room is cool and dark, and that you have a comfortable place to sleep.
• Exercise Earlier in the Day — Scheduling your fitness sessions for specific times of day can also help improve sleep. Instead of exercising right before bed, consider morning or afternoon sessions. Certain workout types are more effective when performed earlier as well.

Improve your sleep with WHOOP

If one of your health goals is to improve your sleep and spend more time in deep, restorative sleep each night, WHOOP can offer valuable insights that you can use to enhance your sleep routine.

WHOOP tracks comprehensive sleep metrics, including time in bed, hours asleep, sleep performance, wake events, and sleep efficiency. It also measures sleep consistency, respiratory rate, sleep latency, sleep debt, and time spent in each stage of sleep, including restorative sleep (REM and Deep). You can view your restorative sleep trends over a week, month, six months, or a full year.

Based on these data points, WHOOP also offers personalized daily sleep recommendations based on your nightly sleep performance. These recommendations can help you improve your recovery, maintain higher daily energy levels, and get all of the benefits of restorative sleep.

Spend more time in restorative sleep and give both your mental and physical performance a boost by monitoring your sleep with WHOOP.

Frequently asked questions about restorative sleep

How many hours of restorative sleep do you need?

There is not a single magic number, as your needs vary based on daily strain, health, and sleep debt. For most adults, restorative sleep, which is the combination of Deep and REM Sleep, should make up a significant portion of your total sleep time. Focusing on a consistent sleep schedule is one of the most effective ways to improve the quality of your sleep and ensure you get the restorative stages your body needs.

Can you get too much restorative sleep?

It is generally not a concern to get 'too much' restorative sleep, as your body self-regulates its sleep cycles based on need. For example, after a day of high strain, your body will naturally prioritize more Deep Sleep for physical repair. An unusually high amount of sleep could be a sign that your body is fighting off illness or recovering from significant sleep debt, which WHOOP can help you monitor.

Does napping contribute to restorative sleep?

Yes, naps can include restorative sleep stages, particularly Deep Sleep. Naps can be an effective tool for paying down sleep debt and improving alertness. The WHOOP Sleep Planner may recommend a nap based on your sleep debt and recent strain to help optimize your recovery and performance for the day.