Bearaby’s 10 Favorite Podcasts About Sleep

Grey skies, chilly weather, slow winter living. That’s just the way we like it.

You may be wishing for spring to creep in and warm things up, but at Bearaby we’re still perfectly happy in cozy hibernation mode. To pass the time, we’ve been dreaming up new ideas, practicing self-care, and learning more about sleep.

Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

One of our favorite ways to kick back and relax is by lounging around (under a weighted blanket of course!) and tuning in to interesting podcasts. We’ve learned so much about sleep science from the doctors, scientists, thought leaders, fitness gurus, and mindfulness experts who share their ideas and experience on these episodes.

Ready to boost your sleep smarts, too? Check out a few of our favorites:

10. Best Podcast For Health And Weight

Sigma Nutrition Radio
“Effect of Sleep on Appetite Regulation, Food Choices & Glucose Metabolism”

If you’re a health nut or are looking to understand more about how sleep can affect your weight and digestion, tune into Danny Lennon’s episode on sleep. He digs into why poor sleep causes major issues with metabolism and some tips on how to improve your sleep patterns to improve your health. Can a lack of sleep cause insulin resistance? How much power does your sleep have on your appetite? Will your sleep affect your exercise routine? Danny explains how you can use sleep to your advantage, rather than let it sabotage your fitness efforts.

9. Best Podcast About Technology

humanOS Radio
“Research on Smartphones and Sleep”

Is your smartphone preventing you from getting the sleep you deserve? If you’re like most people, you may struggle to put your phone, laptop, or tablet away in the evening. These tiny devices keep us connected and entertained, but also “on” while we use them. Professor Jeanne Duffy discusses her research on just how harmful using your smartphone at night can be to your sleep quality as well as your physical and mental health.

8. Best Podcast For Athletes

Brute Strength Training
“10x Your Recovery with the Science of Perfect Sleep with Dr. Allison Brager”

Hey athletes! This one's for you. If you’re looking for a competitive edge or even just a simple strategy to keep your body at its best, it’s time to focus on sleep. In this episode, Dr. Allison Brager teaches us the ins and outs of genetics, genotyping, and DNA specificity to show us how sleep is the secret weapon for speedy and healthy recovery (and even better training). Dr. Brager is not only a neuroscientist but a sleep researcher and CrossFit athlete who has used sleep to encourage her own body’s ability to rest and repair at a high level.

7. Best Podcast For Performance

Barbell Shrugged Podcast
“The Importance of Sleep for performance with Dr. Kirk Parsley”

Looking for some sleep motivation? This podcast episode dives in deeper to the performance enhancing effects of sleep. Whether you’re looking for the laser focus of a Navy SEAL, the sharp decision making of a CEO, or the body-mind strength of an elite athlete, Dr. Parsley explains how all these are possible, but only when you prioritize sleep. Learn how sleep helps us achieve our best and why we simply can’t be great without it.

6. Best Podcast For Sleep Motivation

NPR Radio Fresh Air
“Sleep Scientist Warns Against Walking Through Life 'In an Underslept State”

Listen to this NPR episode with sleep expert Matthew Walker when you’re questioning whether you really need to sleep those 8 hours per night. When we get busy or have projects or big to-do lists we want to tackle, it can be tempting to think we can skip out on a little sleep to get ahead. Stop your thought process and listen to this episode to remember why we need (and should prioritize) our precious sleep. Dr. Walker offers insight on why we need rest and how to have a better relationship with slumber.

5. Best Podcast For Sleep Economy

Freakonomics Radio
“The Economics of Sleep”

Freakonomics Radio is known for finding intriguing takes on the economics of sometimes common aspects of modern life. In this two-part episode, we get a closer look at the financial implications of sleep…or lack thereof. How does our sleep quality reflect in our health, weight gain, and even wages? Can sleep disparities cause an income gap? Are certain social classes, races, or genders more likely to have poorer sleep, and therefore a poorer economic status? You’ll hear from economists, sleep researchers, and psychologists about the potential ties between sleep and the economy (hint: better sleep might be the key to better financial health).

4. Best Podcast For Sleep Chronology

The Guardian Science Weekly Podcast
“Up early or lying in: why we need different amounts of sleep”

In this Guardian Science Weekly episode, we hear from two leading experts in sleep science on the reason why we need differing amounts of sleep. Why do some people function perfectly well with five hours of sleep per night, but less than nine hours leaves others sleep deprived? Is our need for sleep predetermined or can we modify our needs? After speaking with neurologists Dr. Guy Leschziner and Dr. Ying-Hui Fu, we find some of the answers deep within our genetic makeup.

3. Best Podcast For Sleep Psychology

The Naked Scientists
“Getting serious on sleep”

The Naked Scientists take on all things sleep in this podcast episode. We hear about the impact of stress on the body and mind, how changing our beliefs about sleep might make major shifts in our health, and we even bust some sleep myths. A key takeaway from this episode is the beautiful point that Malcolm von Schantz, body clock expert from the University of Surrey, makes in describing our conditioning towards sleep: “ I think we need a cultural change in that we need to recognize sleep as time well spent…I think we need to schedule sleep and plan for sleep just like we plan for waking activities.”

2. Best Podcast For Brain Science

NPR Radio
“The Science of Slumber: How Sleep Affects your Memory”

This Science Friday episode is dedicated to learning more about the power of sleep for memory. Studies are consistently finding that sleep is crucial for high performance, cognitive ability, and learning. Here, you’ll learn why sleep is crucial for improving and keeping your memory, too. Even more interesting, can we use the time we spend asleep to enhance our memory for better learning or skill mastery? What might the future of sleep science have in store for us and our memories? You’ll also hear more from sleep medicine experts on the varying effects of caffeine, sleep timing, and the possibility of finding a replacement for sleep.

1. Best Overall Sleep Podcast

Radiolab
“Sleep”

If you’ve ever wondered if all animals sleep (they do…every single one!), how they sleep, and why we all need to sleep, tune into this podcast. You’ll learn how some animals sleep half-awake and why us humans are so unique in our own sleeping habits compared to the rest of the world’s mammals. Dive into the disturbing world of “parasomnia” and understand sleep disorders like night terrors and sleep talking. What happens to the brain chemistry in parents of newborns? And the bigger picture - without sleep, would we even know ourselves as conscious beings?

This podcast episode is a must-listen for anyone who wants to think a little more deeply about the science, wonder, and gift of sleep.

Learning Never Felt So Comfy

At Bearaby, we highly value science and research. We love learning even more when you can do it snuggled up under a weighted blanket. Podcasts are a great way to brush up on your sleep knowledge while enjoying some quality relaxation. Get cozy under your Napper and listen in to one of these information-packed episodes!