Sleep Management in Paralympic Sports: Knowledge, Monitoring Practices, and Perceived Barriers among Coaches and Healthcare Staff
Isadora Grade, Andrea Maculano Esteves, Eduardo Stieler, Thiago Fernando Lourenço, André Fernandes Chaves, Paulo Losinskas, Marco Túlio de Mello, Andressa SilvaAbstract
Coaches and healthcare staff play a crucial role in disseminating knowledge about the importance of sleep to develop a precise balance between recovery and the demands imposed by sports training.
To assess the knowledge on sleep, jet lag, and sleep hygiene (SH) among coaches and healthcare staff in Paralympic sports; 2) to identify whether the sleep of Paralympic athletes is monitored, and which instruments are commonly used; and 3) to identify the main barriers faced in sleep management.
The present cross-sectional study was conducted with 60 coaches and healthcare staff who work in the preparation of elite Paralympic athletes. The participants filled out the Sleep Beliefs Scale and a structured questionnaire before traveling to the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.
Coaches and healthcare staff understand the importance of sleep for sports performance and recovery, but only 56% monitored their sleep. The most commonly used methods were subjective. Lack of adherence and commitment among Paralympic athletes (27%) and lack of training (19%) were the main barriers to sleep management.
Coaches and healthcare staff are aware of the importance of sleep; however, educational programs are needed to improve the training of coaching and healthcare staff for efficient sleep management and to raise awareness among Paralympic athletes about the importance of sleep.