Having to work odd hours, especially night shifts, could offset many things in a person’s routine and habits with long and short-term implications on health. Working night shifts affects not just the daily routine or sleep cycle but impacts almost all physiological processes too. It leads to changes in dietary habits and patterns, sleep patterns or circadian rhythm, and daily routines including exercise.
One way to minimize the impact of night shifts on your health is to lead a healthy lifestyle, making the right choices – be it food or diet, rest, and workouts.
The key is to eat balanced meals through the work hours, meeting the body’s energy requirements.
“To start with night shift workers should maintain good eating habits, and consume nutritious food,” says Sudam Shelar, a fitness coach from Mumbai. “They must avoid junk, fast food, and prepare good healthy meals in advance to ensure they are eating three main meals during the hours they are awake and working.”
Workout routine for night shift workers
Workout routines for night shift workers are not easy as changing or flipping the time of exercise. It requires attention to detail, experts say.
Ideally, they should work out before their shift because after shift they might feel tired or low on energy and will not be motivated enough to exercise.
The window available to exercise is a significant parameter for night shift workers when planning their workouts. If, for instance, the work shift is from 10 pm to 6 am, it might be a good idea to do the workout at 6 pm, or if the shift is from 6 pm to 2 am, it might be a good idea to do the workout at 12 noon.
“In general, light to moderate workouts is best for night shift working professionals,” says Ganesh Kuduva, health and wellness coach from Bengaluru. “They can include cardiovascular activities such as walking, slow Jogging and indoor cycling. Yoga also can be done, along with meditation and circadian rhythm”
Gym or strength workouts can be done, but it is better to avoid high-intensity workouts, advise experts. A strenuous workout adds strain to the body and could prove counterproductive.
While setting fitness goals, night shift workers should target basic fitness, and focus on maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Avoid setting goals that include bulking to build muscle mass or running long distances.
“When a person works on night shift the body doesn’t actually get good quality sleep and rest because the circadian rhythm is disturbed,” says Kuduva. “Sleeping in the night for eight hours versus sleeping in the day is very different. Taking this into account, their fitness goals cannot be as aspiring as day shift workers. However, It does not mean that their ability should be underestimated or undermined. But they have to be mindful about their health and body.”
They can skip workouts if their body feels not rested enough. Instead, they can focus on working out during the weekends or off days and take it easy during weekdays or the working days.
Importance of sleep for night shift workers
Sleep is important for body repairing processes. The biggest challenge for night shift workers is that when it is time for them to sleep, their family, friends and the likes would be active. Social commitments which cannot be avoided come up also. All this would end up hampering their sleep time. And, since their circadian rhythm is already offset, it could lead to disturbed sleep as well.
Poor sleep quality leads to less energy and is one of the main reasons for long term health complications.
“When it comes to sleep, night shift workers should ensure they get around seven to eight hours of sleep, if not in one session they can divide their sleep in two sessions,” says Kuduva.
Eating pattern for night shift workers
Night shift workers should ensure they eat all three meals in moderation and healthy snacks in between their shift to sustain their energy.
“When it comes to eating while working in the night shift the calorie intake should not be high. Eating three meals should be moderate,” says Kuduva. “They can also eat light healthy snacks while working the night shift for energy requirements.”
Let’s say the shift starts at 10 pm and ends at 2am. From 3am to 8am the body gets sufficient sleep. After which they can eat their first meal and sleep again or can stay awake. After the second meal they can take an afternoon nap, which has its benefits. It is one of the ways to ensure a good quality of sleep. Do not break your eating habits just because you are a night shift worker.
“Night-shift workers should ensure they spend a few minutes under sunlight after their work to enable Vitamin D synthesis which helps to keep the bone strong. Or they should take Vitamin D supplements,” says Shelar.
Takeaways
- Night shift workers can maintain their fitness routine incorporating light to moderate cardio and strength training exercises. They should ensure they eat all the three meals in moderation and eat healthy snacks in between their shift.
- They should ensure they get sufficient sleep of 7-8 hours. They can divide their sleep session if are not able to sleep at stretch.
One Response
Good to know