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S2E26: Athlete Chronotypes: Performance & Coaching Implications w/ Dr. Michele Lastella PhD

SEASON 2, EPISODE #26

Dr. Bubbs interviews Dr. Michele Lastella, PhD to talk chronotypes and athletes. In this episode, Dr. Michele discusses the three main chronotypes and how athlete chronotype can impact performance. He also shares how athletes participating in a sport which suits their chronotype (e.g. morning type participating in a morning sport) are more likely to train and perform optimally, digs into whether athletes are unconsciously self-selecting morning or evening sports and why coaches should consider athlete chronotype when scheduling training and competition. Dr. Michele also shares sleep hygiene tips, how to adjust your chronotype and suggestions for winding down and upgrading sleep. 

About Dr. Michele Lastella PhD

Dr. Lastella is sleep researcher at the Appleton Institute for Behavioural Science at CQUniversity Adelaide, South Australia. Dr. Lastella has several research interests including sleep, recovery, sport psychology, psychological well-being and performance. Coming from an elite sporting background Dr. Lastella brings experience from both an athlete perspective as well as a researcher perspective. He has worked with several elite sporting organisations examining sleep, recovery, and performance. In the three years since completing his PhD in Psychology Michele has published twenty-eight international research papers (a majority as first-author), with two of these being amongst the most cited papers for 2014 and 2015 in the host publication, European Journal of Sports Science.  Follow Michele on Twitter.

Link to Research Papers

Sleeping to a Schedule: Does Chronotype Play a Part?

The Athlete Chronotype