meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Huberman Lab

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

Huberman Lab

Scicomm Media

Science, Health & Fitness, Life Sciences

4.826.2K Ratings

🗓️ 2 August 2021

⏱️ 186 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Matt Walker, Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology and the Founder & Director of the Center for Human Sleep Science at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also the author of the international best-selling book Why We Sleep and the host of "The Matt Walker Podcast." We discuss the biology of sleep, including its various stages and what specifically happens to those stages when we don't get enough sleep. We also discuss the effects of sunlight, caffeine, alcohol, naps, hormones, exercise, marijuana, sexual activity, and various supplements on sleep. The episode consists of both basic science information and many science-supported actionable tools. For the full show notes, visit hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1 (Athletic Greens): https://athleticgreens.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman Supplements from Momentous https://www.livemomentous.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Introducing Dr. Matt Walker (00:02:16) Sponsors: AG1, LMNT (00:06:00) What Is Sleep? (00:10:20) REM (Rapid Eye Movement) aka 'Paradoxical Sleep' (00:16:15) Slow Wave Sleep aka 'Deep Sleep' (00:24:00) Compensating For Lost Sleep (00:32:20) Waking in the Middle Of The Night (00:39:48) Uberman (Not Huberman!) Sleep Schedule (00:42:48) Viewing Morning SUNLight (00:49:20) Caffeine (01:07:54) Alcohol (01:14:30) Growth Hormone & Testosterone (01:16:14) Emotions, Mental Health & Longevity (01:20:40) Books vs. Podcasts (01:21:20) Lunchtime Alcohol (01:25:00) Marijuana/CBD (01:36:00) Melatonin (01:54:14) Magnesium (01:58:10) Valerian, Kiwi, Tart Cherry, Apigenin (02:15:00) Tryptophan & Serotonin (02:19:24) Naps & Non-Sleep-Deep-Rest (NSDR) (02:28:23) Is It Possible To Get Too Much Sleep? (02:34:35) Sex, Orgasm, Masturbation, Oxytocin, Relationships (02:47:30) Unconventional Yet Powerful Sleep Tips (02:59:10) Connecting to & Learning More from Dr. Walker (03:04:42) The New Dr. Matt Walker Podcast, Reviews & Support Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac Disclaimer

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Welcome to the Huberman Lab Podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life.

0:06.0

I'm Andrew Huberman and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine.

0:15.1

Today I have the pleasure of introducing Dr Matthew Walker as our guest on the

0:19.2

Huberman Lab Podcast. Dr Walker is a professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of

0:25.0

California Berkeley. There his laboratory studies sleep. They study why we

0:30.6

sleep. What occurs during sleep such as dreams and why we dream, learning during

0:35.8

sleep, as well as the consequences of getting insufficient or poor quality sleep on

0:41.4

waking states. Dr. Walker is also the author of the international

0:45.6

best-selling book, Why We Sleep. Our discussion today is an absolutely

0:50.4

fascinating one for anyone that's interested in sleep, learning, or human performance of any kind.

0:56.0

Dr. Walker teaches us how to get better at sleeping.

1:00.0

He also discusses naps, whether or not we should or should not nap.

1:04.0

Whether or not we can compensate for lost sleep, and if so, how to best do that.

1:09.0

We discuss behavioral protocols and interactions with light, temperature, supplementation, food, exercise, sex,

1:17.0

all the variables that can impact this incredible state of mind and body that we call sleep.

1:22.0

During my scientific career career I've read many

1:24.9

papers about sleep and attended many seminars about sleep. Yet my

1:29.8

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.

1:39.0

I'm also delighted to share that Dr. Walker has started a podcast.

1:44.2

That podcast, entitled The Matt Walker Podcast,

1:47.7

releases its first episode this month

1:50.0

and is going to teach all about sleep

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Scicomm Media, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Scicomm Media and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.