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How much sleep should a rugby player get?

To sufficiently recuperate, it is recommended that athletes get between seven and nine hours sleep per night. A good night's sleep can have a positive impact on a rugby player's physical and cognitive performance and, just as importantly, essential immune and metabolic processes occur during specific sleep stages.

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The importance of rest for rugby players:

The importance of rest in any sport is monumental, and this is certainly no different in rugby. Whether it’s pre-season, pre-match or post-match, rest can greatly affect your preparation, recovery and, ultimately, your performance; so who wouldn’t want to get it right? To get the best out of your ability and game, continue reading as we share some invaluable insights on how to perfect the art of rest.

Fatigue and how to combat it

There are various types of fatigue associated with rugby players; physiological, neural, psychological and tissue damage. Each type is brought on by different, demanding aspects of the rugby training and lifestyle, but through balanced sleep, nutrition and relaxation, they can all be successfully combated.

Sleep

To sufficiently recuperate, it is recommended that athletes get between seven and nine hours sleep per night. A good night’s sleep can have a positive impact on a rugby player’s physical and cognitive performance and, just as importantly, essential immune and metabolic processes occur during specific sleep stages. The quality of sleep rugby players attain is equally momentous. Ever woken up after an eight-hour sleep and just not felt as refreshed and revitalised as you’d expect? This is most likely down to sleep fragmentation – or sleep disturbances – which directly correlate with the quality of your doze. To overcome this sort of barrier, try to develop a consistent sleeping pattern, rehearse relaxation techniques before you go to sleep, block out any worrying or stressful situations prior to drifting off, make your bedroom as dim as possible, and ensure you are in a quiet environment. There is also evidence to suggest that rugby players can directly benefit from taking power naps throughout the day. Power naps, traditionally, last no longer than one hour, and can improve a rugby player’s alertness, mood and productivity, as well as enhancing the link between learning and remembering.

Nutrition

Consuming the right food groups before training and matches is vital to ensure you get the most out of your body for that period of time. Under-eating, or ingesting the wrong type of foods, can result in early fatigue, reduced alertness and injury or illness, which will all equate to an inhibited performance. Similarly, eating protein-rich meals straight after a session or match is equally important to kick-start the recovery process and help your body mend itself after the physical exertion it’s been put through.

Relaxation

Relaxation methods and techniques, generally, will vary from player-to-player. What works for one individual won’t necessarily work for another, so it’s important you find a system that works for you and stick to it. Relaxing pre-match is essential to conserve energy, mentally prepare yourself, get yourself in the zone and construct any eventuality that could arise during your time on the pitch. Methods often used for pre-match relaxation include visualisation, breathing and Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) techniques. Likewise, winding down forms an important part of a rugby player’s every day life during pre-season and in-between training sessions. Putting your body through physical and mental strain, day in and day out, inevitably, requires some sort of balance. Relaxing for a short time every day allows players to recuperate, conserve energy, take a mental break from the game, and avoid mental and physical overload.

Summary

In short, balancing sleep, nutrition and relaxation are pivotal to getting the most out of yourself. The three elements work in a continuous cycle and as soon as one is neglected, you risk exposing yourself to injury, illness, fatigue and psychological strain.

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What does TB mean in rugby table?

Therefore, this ensures that a Grand Slam winning team would top the table with at least 23 points. So this is how points are awarded in the Six Nations: Four points are awarded for a win. Two points are awarded for a draw. A try bonus point is awarded for scoring four or more tries in a match.

Six Nations bonus points – we explain how the bonus-point system works in the championship

Six Nations Bonus Points Explained

It was big news when the Six Nations introduced bonus points for the first time in the tournament’s history in 2017, awarding teams an additional point for scoring four tries in a match or losing by seven points or fewer. While bonus points have been widely used in domestic club competitions as well as the World Cup and Rugby Championship for many years, they had been avoided in the Six Nations because a team could win all five games – a Grand Slam – but lose out on the title if another team won four games with a bonus point, and lost the other match by seven points or fewer, or achieved the four try bonus point. To break that down, a team could lose a match but still win two bonus points, win the four other matches with four try bonus points to secure a maximum of 22 points from four wins and a loss. For example, if a team lost 30-28 but scored four tries, they would still get 2 bonus points. However, a team could secure only 20 points for a Grand Slam if they failed to score four tries in any of those matches, despite winning all five games.

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