Insufficient sleep is a serious public health problem in college students. Exercise is a widely prescribed behavioral treatment for sleep and mood issues; however, more focused and gender-specific prescriptions are needed. The present study examined relationships between exercise, sleep, and mood in undergraduate men and women. Students ( N = 866, 19.6 ± 1.4 years, 38.7% women) were recruited from campus recreation facilities and completed demographic, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, mood (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System), and exercise questionnaires. The Department of Health and Human Services Physical Activity Guidelines were used to dichotomize those who did and did not meet weekly aerobic and strength training exercise recommendations. In men, greater exercise frequency associated with less daytime dysfunction (β = 0.147) and less depressive mood (β = −0.64, ps < .05). In women, greater exercise frequency associated with earlier bedtime (β = −12.6), improved sleep quality (β = 0.17), increased positive affect (β = 0.91), less depressive mood (β = −0.71), and less anger (β = −1.24, ps < .05). Compared to men, women reported earlier bedtime, poorer sleep efficiency, and more anxiety and depressive mood ( ps < .05, [Formula: see text] range: 0.01–0.04 ). Compared to individuals who met physical activity guidelines, those who did not meet the guidelines reported later bedtimes, less positive affect, more anxiety, and more anger ( ps < .05 [Formula: see text]s = 0.01). Among men, those who met physical activity guidelines reported falling asleep more quickly than those who did not meet guidelines ([Formula: see text] = 0.01, p = .007); however, no relationship between guideline adherence and sleep latency was observed in women. Adhering to physical activity guidelines may be important for optimal sleep and emotional health. Clinicians should consider gender when creating exercise prescriptions for sleep issues.

To examine the relationships between exercise timing, chronotype, sleep, and mood, college students ( N = 909, 19.6 ± 1.4 years, 38% female) completed questionnaires immediately after exercising. Evening exercisers had later bedtimes, poorer sleep quality, and lower sleep efficiency compared to morning exercisers. Evening chronotypes reported poorer sleep quality, greater daytime dysfunction, and less positive affect compared to morning/neither chronotypes. Chronotype moderated the relationship between exercise timing and bedtime; with each minute delay in exercise timing, bedtime was delayed by 6.1 minutes in morning-types and only 3.6 minutes in evening-types. University health initiatives should target evening exercisers to mitigate the consequences of prolonged insufficient sleep.

Introduction Exercise is widely prescribed as a behavioral treatment for sleep health, but generalizations about the benefits of exercise for sleep do not typically consider gender differences. The present study examined relationships between exercise frequency and self-reported sleep outcomes in undergraduate men and women. Methods Students were recruited from campus fitness facilities immediately after they finished a workout (N=829, 19.5±1.4 y, 38.5% Female) and completed demographic, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and exercise questionnaires. Department of Health and Human Services Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans were used to dichotomize students into those who met recommendations for weekly aerobic and strength training exercise and those who did not. Multiple regression was used to examine the relationships between exercise frequency and PSQI outcomes and analysis of variance was used to compare PSQI outcomes by gender and exercise guideline groups. Results Compared to women, men reported more days of exercise, fewer days of aerobic exercise, more days of strength training, better sleep efficiency and later bedtimes (ps&lt;0.05). Among all participants, exercise frequency associated with an earlier bedtime, higher sleep efficiency, less daytime dysfunction and better sleep quality (ps&lt;0.05). When divided by gender, exercise frequency associated with an earlier bedtime and better sleep quality in women (ps&lt;0.05) but not men and associated with less daytime dysfunction in men (p=0.012) but not women. Approximately 47% of participants met exercise guidelines for both aerobic and strength training. Participants who met the guidelines exhibited an earlier bedtime (p=0.01) and higher sleep efficiency (p=0.08) than those who did not. There was also a significant interaction effect for sleep latency (p=0.042) such that meeting the guidelines associated with a shorter sleep latency in men (p=0.006) but not women. Conclusion These findings highlight the importance of taking an individual’s gender and specific sleep issue into account when implementing an exercise prescription to improve sleep. Support Rutgers University Aresty Foundation

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