The more I sleep, the more tired I feel. What does that say about me?
I suppose I should clarify: “more” sleep for me is tacking on an extra hour or so to the roughly four to five hours of slumber I typically score on a nightly basis.
On nights that I don’t have to get up to work, I can easily saw logs for 11 to 12 hours straight. However, I feel best when I get a solid eight hours of sleep at night. Unfortunately, this does not happen very often… and it shows.
Just ask my daughter… and my car keys.
According to a recent study, adults need between seven and eight hours of sleep per night in order to function properly. Of course, “properly” is a relative term, but I digress.
So what of the parents who survive on three to five hours of sleep for weeks, months or decades on end?
Well, you can just call them superhuman.
Well, at least if you believe the Wall Street Journal.
The critically-acclaimed newspaper, recently defined short sleepers as superhuman.
At first, I thought the article was referring to babies who sleep in short spurts. However, it turns out that some people in the world have the ability to function, nay, thrive on a mere four to six hours of sleep per night.
According to the article, these “short sleepers” genuinely don’t need any more shut-eye. Granted, the select short snoozers only make up one to three percent of the population, but that doesn’t diminish their super power.
The paper says unlike the rest of us sleep-obsessed slugs; short sleepers can hit the hay after midnight and rise with the roosters a few hours later, fresh as daisies.
Oh, and by the way, they’re skinnier than us too.
Scientists tell the Wall Street Journal that short sleepers tend to be extremely energetic extroverts, who are high achievers with a high pain tolerance, and are thinner than average.
Well, duh, they’re probably rockin’ gorgeous bods because they’re sweating in the gym while the rest of us are in bed drooling on our pillows.
Sadly (if you enjoy being thin, happy and peppy), experts say short sleepers are born, not made. Apparently, genetics play a role in securing this superhuman power.
Darn.
Are you a short sleeper… by choice?