It is time to consider sleep in female athletes: assessment and tailored sleep intervention

Purpose: Optimal sleep is essential for supporting athletes' health, performance and facilitating recovery. However, athletes' sleep is impaired in both quality and quantity. Previous research has shown athletes' sleep quality and quantity to be improved using sleep interventions, however very few studies have evaluated sleep and investigated it among female athletes. Therefore, this exploratory study aimed to evaluate the sleep of adult female team-sport athletes over a match week in an ecological context and to assess the effects of a one-to-one sleep intervention (comprising both educational and practical components). Methods: Nine female rugby players completed a two-week protocol including a sleep evaluation (PRE week) and an intervention (POST week). The first week was dedicated to sleep assessment via both actigraphy and self-report questionnaires, and during the second week, players received educational and practical sleep interventions. Results: During the PRE week, 88.9% of the participants were classified as poor sleepers, compared to only 44% during the POST week. A significant positive effect of sleep interventions was particularly found on subjective sleep (from 10.3 +/- 1.1 to 8.8 +/- 1.8, p = 0.03, n2 = 0.38) and psychological state (from 3.7 +/- 0.6 to 2.9 +/- 0.9, p = 0.002, n2 = 0.55). Conclusion: These positive effects highlight the need for sleep among female athletes and the potential benefits of targeted sleep interventions, though confirmation in larger samples of athletic women is needed. This feasible and tailored approach could be effectively implemented among female team-sport athletes over the competitive season.