{"id":19657,"date":"2022-05-23T16:12:38","date_gmt":"2022-05-23T21:12:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thepapergown.zocdoc.com\/?p=19657"},"modified":"2026-08-14T12:05:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T17:05:19","slug":"the-surprising-risks-of-sleeping-in-on-the-weekend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zocdoc.com\/blog\/guides\/the-surprising-risks-of-sleeping-in-on-the-weekend\/","title":{"rendered":"The Surprising Risks of Sleeping In on the Weekend"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a reason they call it \u201cbeauty sleep.\u201d Your energy levels, immune system and mental health, just to name a few important bodily functions, rely on ample shut-eye. The problem? For many of us, logging time in bed feels like a luxury.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>National Sleep Foundation<\/span><\/a> recommends healthy adults get between seven and nine hours of sleep each night, but that\u2019s not always easy or even possible \u2014\u00a0especially if you have a busy daytime schedule and an insatiable need to unwind with Netflix and TikTok until midnight. Social and cultural factors, like being a single parent or working extra shifts,\u00a0can make it that much harder to keep up with doctor\u2019s orders.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re sleep-deprived during the week, logging a few extra hours on the weekend might seem like the perfect solution. But before you mute your alarm this Saturday, understand that not all sleep is created equal. Yes, plenty of science shows sleep deprivation can take a major toll on your daily functioning and well-being \u2014\u00a0but too much sleep, especially at the wrong time, can mess with your overall sleep routine and actually worsen many of the problems that come from a bad night\u2019s sleep.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Sleep science<\/h3>\n

Your circadian rhythm \u2014\u00a0the internal clock that determines when you fall asleep and wake up \u2014 relies on consistency. \u201cWhen you\u2019re consistent, your body knows what time you\u2019ll go to bed, so it will release melatonin a few hours before your intended bedtime to make you sleepy,\u201d says <\/span>Dr. Stephanie Stahl<\/span><\/a>, a sleep medicine physician at Indiana University Health in Indianapolis.<\/span><\/p>\n

When your sleep schedule is all over the place, your body won\u2019t know when to produce this sleep-inducing hormone; as a result, your sleep (and overall health) could suffer. Stahl says adults should aim to get seven hours of sleep each weeknight, around 35 hours of sleep per work week.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Say you miss a few hours during the week and sleep in on Saturday morning. Although you\u2019ve made up some of those lost hours, sleeping past your normal time could do your body a big disservice by affecting your sleep schedule for the following week.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This can damage your health short and long term. <\/span>A <\/span>2019 study<\/span><\/a> found that people who caught up from sleep deprivation on the weekend, shifting from five hours to as many hours as they wanted, developed worse insulin sensitivity, suggesting a link between weekend recovery sleep and metabolic diseases like diabetes, heart disease and stroke. (You guessed it: Melatonin plays a role in your metabolism too).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Another <\/span>study<\/span><\/a> from 2017 found that college students with erratic sleep schedules had lower GPAs than their well-rested peers, even if they got the same overall amount of sleep during the week. This suggests messing with your circadian rhythm can hamper your cognitive abilities. On top of these risks, <\/span>some research<\/span><\/a> finds a link between erratic sleep schedules and low mood and depression.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Prescribed naptime<\/h3>\n

You can actually address sleep debt without hurting your health by taking a nap. <\/span>Research suggests sneaking in a bit of extra shut-eye during the day can help people <\/span>learn more effectively<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>perform better on cognitive tasks<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But napping isn\u2019t without risk, especially if you do it the wrong way. Sleeping too long or snoozing late in the day can also make it difficult to doze off at night, says Stahl \u2014\u00a0or it can cause you to wake up more in the middle of the night.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Rafael Pelayo<\/span><\/a>, a sleep specialist at Stanford Health Care in Redwood City, California, suggests waking up at your normal time, then <\/span>taking a short nap during the day whenever you notice yourself feeling tired. For most people, that\u2019s right after lunch, when the circadian rhythm dips; humans <\/span>evolved<\/span><\/a> to take a rest period around this time. <\/span>\u201cInstead of messing up your body\u2019s wakeup time predictions, you can take advantage of the physiological dip in alertness and body temperature and take a nap then,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Stahl suggests limiting your nap to 30 minutes in the first half of the day to avoid causing issues with your circadian rhythm. \u201cI usually tell people to be done napping by 3 p.m., or seven hours before bedtime, because that\u2019s less likely to impact your ability to sleep at night,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, the best way to address sleep deprivation is head on. Stahl recommends avoiding sleep debt in the first place by prioritizing resting at least seven hours at night. <\/span>That may mean rethinking what self-care really means and making some tough decisions about your routines.<\/span><\/p>\n

Either way, with more consistency going forward, your circadian rhythm \u2014\u00a0and all the important biological functions it helps regulate \u2014\u00a0will thank you.<\/span><\/p>\n