The Science & Practice of Perfecting Your Sleep | Dr. Matt Walker

(music) Welcome to the Huberman Lab Podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life. I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. Today, I have the pleasure of introducing Dr. Matthew Walker as our guest on the Huberman Lab Podcast. Dr. Walker is a professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. There, his laboratory studies sleep. They study why we sleep, what occurs during sleep, such as dreams and why we dream, learning during sleep, as well as the consequences of getting insufficient or poor quality sleep on waking states. Dr. Walker is also the author of the international best-selling book, Why We Sleep. Our discussion today is an absolutely fascinating one for anyone that's interested in sleep, learning, or human performance of any kind. Dr. Walker teaches us how to get better at sleeping. He also discusses naps, whether or not we should or should not nap, whether or not we can compensate for lost sleep, and if so, how to best do that. We discuss behavioral protocols and interactions with light, temperature, supplementation, food, exercise, sex, all the variables that can impact this incredible state of mind and body that we call sleep. During my scientific career, I've read many papers about sleep and attended many seminars about sleep. Yet, my discussion with Dr. Walker today revealed to me more about sleep, sleep science, and how to get better at sleeping than all of those papers and seminars combined. I'm also delighted to share that Dr. Walker has started a podcast. That podcast, entitled The Matt Walker Podcast, releases its first episode this month and is going to teach all about sleep and how to get better at sleeping. So be sure to check out The Matt Walker Podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Before we begin, I'd like to mention that this podcast is separate from my teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is, however, part of my desire and effort to bring zero cost to consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public. In keeping with that theme, I'd like to thank the sponsors of today's podcast. Our first sponsor is ROKA. ROKA makes sunglasses and eyeglasses that are of the absolutely highest quality. The company was founded by two all-American swimmers from Stanford, and everything about the design of their glasses is with performance in mind. I've spent my career studying the visual system and how it works, and I can tell you that ROKA glasses take into account the science of the visual system, such that whether or not you're wearing them on a very bright day or you walk into a shadowed area, or there's cloud cover, you can still see everything with perfect clarity. That also reflects the fact that the lenses that they use are of the absolute highest optical quality. The other terrific thing about ROKA sunglasses and eyeglasses is that they're designed to be worn in all conditions. You can use them while running, while cycling. Even if you get sweaty, they won't slip off. And they look great. One problem I have with a lot of so-called performance eyeglasses and sunglasses out there is that they look crazy. They make people look like cyborgs. ROKA glasses have a terrific aesthetic. You can wear them to dinner, you can wear them at work, and you can wear them in all sorts of sports activities. If you'd like to try ROKA glasses, you can go to ROKA, that's R-O-K-A, .com and enter the code Huberman to save 20% off your first order. That's ROKA, R-O-K-A, .com and enter the code Huberman at checkout. Today's podcast is also brought to us by InsideTracker. InsideTracker is a personalized nutrition platform that analyzes data from your blood and DNA to help you better understand your body and reach your health goals. I've long been a believer in getting regular blood work done for the simple reason that many of the factors that impact your immediate and long-term health can only be analyzed from a quality blood test. And nowadays, with the advent of DNA tests, you can also get insight into your immediate and long-term health by way of understanding your DNA. One issue with many DNA and blood tests, however, is that you get the numbers back about metabolic factors, hormones, genes, et cetera, but there's no directive as to what to do with that information. With InsideTracker, they have a very easy to use dashboard, and that dashboard not only gives you your numbers, but it gives you simple directives related to nutrition, supplementation, exercise, and other lifestyle factors that allow you to move those numbers into the ranges that are right for you and your health goals. If you'd like to try InsideTracker, you can go to insidetracker.com/huberman, and if you do that, you'll get 25% off any of InsideTracker's plans. Just use the code Huberman at checkout. Today's episode is also brought to us by Belcampo. Belcampo is a regenerative farm in Northern California that raises organic, grass-fed, and finished certified humane meats. I don't eat a lot of meat. I eat meat about once a day. But when I do, I make sure that it's high quality and both humanely and sustainably raised. Conventionally raised animals are confined to feedlots and eat a diet of inflammatory grains, but Belcampo's animals graze on open pastures and seasonal grasses, resulting in meat that's higher in nutrients and healthy fats. And I've talked many times before on this podcast about how getting sufficient levels of omega-3s is very important for metabolic health, hormone health, mood, essentially all aspects of one's health. Belcampo meats have high levels of omega-3s because of the grasses they feed on. The way Belcampo raises its animals isn't just better for our health, it also has a positive impact on the environment. They practice regenerative agriculture, which means that their meat is climate positive and carbon negative, meaning it's good for you and it's good for the environment. You can order Belcampo's sustainably raised meats to be delivered to you using my code Huberman by going to belcampo.com/huberman, and if you do that, you'll get 20% off your first order. I'm a big fan of their keto meatballs. I also really like their boneless rib eyes. I eat those pretty much once a day. Again, that's Huberman for the code, and it's belcampo.com/huberman for 20% off.... your order. And now my discussion with Dr. Matt Walker. Great to finally meet you in person.