Can you train yourself to become a night owl—or an early bird? Millions of people try. They force themselves to stay up later, wake up earlier, or work overnight because that's what life demands. But can your body really adapt? Or is there a biological clock inside you that simply refuses to cooperate?
Scientists now know that your circadian rhythm governs much more than when you feel sleepy. It helps regulate your energy, mood, memory, metabolism, immune system, hormones, and even your risk for a surprising number of chronic diseases. When that internal clock falls out of sync with the schedule you keep, the consequences can range from feeling groggy and unfocused to serious long-term health problems.
So how much control do you really have over your body clock? Why do some people naturally spring out of bed at dawn while others come alive after dark? What actually happens when you regularly ignore your body's signals? And what are the simple changes that can help you work with your circadian rhythm instead of constantly fighting it?
Russell Foster joins me to explain the remarkable science of the body's internal clock and why understanding it may be one of the most important—and overlooked—keys to better sleep, better health, and better performance.
Russell is Professor of Circadian Neuroscience and Director of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute at the University of Oxford. He is author of Life Time: Your Body Clock and Its Essential Roles in Good Health and Sleep (https://amzn.to/3QQGZ6v).
Whether you think of yourself as an early bird, a night owl, or somewhere in between, this conversation may completely change the way you think about sleep—and about time itself.
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