The Matt Walker Podcast
Episodes
#63 - Yawning Explained
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this podcast, Matt explores the fascinating topic of yawning. He begins by pointing out that although we all yawn and assume it's a sign of sl...
#62 - The Snooze Button
04 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Matt's back, and this time he's tackling the perennial debate: Is the snooze button a friend or foe when it comes to your sleep and overall ...
#61 - Ask Me Anything Pt.2
20 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Eti Ben Simon joins Matt once again this week to continue their AMA session where they bring their vast amount of knowledge and expertise to bear ...
#60 - Ask Me Anything Pt.1
06 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s thoroughly engaging episode, Matt joins forces with Dr. Eti Ben Simon from his Center for Human Sleep Science to embark upon an enlighten...
#59 - Sleep & Motor Memory
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s memorable episode, Matt examines the intriguing connection between sleep and motor memory. Beginning with an explanation of the two main ...
#58 - Caffeine Nap
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Matt delves into the intriguing realm of the "caffeine nap." He explores the idea of combining a short nap with caffeine to...
#57 - Polyphasic Sleep
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this engaging podcast episode, Matt delves into the world of polyphasic sleep – the practice of dividing sleep into multiple short naps throughou...
#56 - Treating Your Insomnia with Michael Grandner pt 2
11 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Matt and special guest, Dr. Michael Grandner, continue their dialogue regarding the multifaceted world of sleep, insomnia, and their intersections wit...
#55 - Targeting Insomnia (With Dr. Michael Grandner)
28 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the podcast, sleep expert Dr. Michael Grandner engages in a conversation with Matt about insomnia. They delve into the subject by defining what ins...
#54 - The Art of Napping
14 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Matt shines a spotlight on the science behind napping and explores the optimal nap duration for various cognitive benefits. He s...
#53 - Sleep & Antioxidants
31 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this second part of his series on sleep, free radicals, and antioxidants, Matt delves into the fascinating connection between sleep and oxidative s...
#52 - Sleep & Free Radicals
17 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Matt takes us on a journey exploring the fascinating world of antioxidants and their link to sleep. The theory of free radical f...
#51 - Catch-up Sleep?
03 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On today’s episode, Matt discusses the concept of "catch-up sleep" and explores whether it effectively compensates for sleep deprivation d...
#50 - Restless Leg Syndrome
19 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
MW E50 Restless Leg SyndromeSummary:Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) is a neurological condition characterized by irresistible urges to move the muscles ...
#49 - Nightmares and Treatment
05 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Matt explores the fascinating realm of nightmares and the cutting-edge treatment known as Image Rehearsal Therapy (IRT). Nightmares, often asso...
#48 - What is Sleep Apnea?
22 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Matt discusses the sleep disorder known as sleep apnea, focusing on its definition, prevalence, and the dangers it poses if left...
#47 - Too Much Sleep
08 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Matt introduces a new segment called "Hot Off the Press," where he covers the latest and most exciting studies in sleep science. ...
#46 - Sleep and Teens
24 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Matt returns with Dr. Craig Kanapari to discuss sleep in teens and how biological and hormonal changes occur at a young age, usually around 11-13. T...
#45 - Sleep and Kids Pt.3
10 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today Matt’s discussion with Dr. Craig Canapari continues, delving into the major changes in sleep that a child will go through from the ages of o...
#44 - Sleep and Kids Pt.2
27 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today Matt’s discussion with Dr. Craig Canapari continues, as they delve into the science behind sleep training. Together they cover what it is an...
#43 - Sleep and Kids Pt. 1
13 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today Matt begins a new series all about sleep in infants, in kids, in teenagers, and in parents. He is joined by Dr. Craig Canapari one of the world ...
#42 - Sleep and Exercise Pt. 4
27 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On today’s episode, Matt goes beyond the if and the what type of exercise to discuss the when. Which is to say, does the timing of exercise matter w...
# 41 - Sleep and Exercise Pt. 3
13 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Matt focuses on how the type, intensity, and duration of exercise affect its impact on sleep. A study of middle-aged adults split its active gr...
# 40 - Sleep and Exercise Pt. 2
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Matt goes deeper into the relationship between sleep and exercise. More specifically, does daytime exercise change the stages and types of ...
# 39 - Sleep and Exercise Pt. 1
16 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Does exercise have an impact on the quantity and quality of your sleep? The National Sleep Foundation's annual poll found that individuals who ex...
#38: Sleep is Bloody Remarkable #3
02 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Almost every species will suffer catastrophic impairment in the brain and body due to total or chronic partial long-term sleep loss—save for a small...
#37: Sleep and Memory - Part 3
19 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The final installment of this series focuses on what happens inside your brain during deep, non-REM sleep that allows you to fixate new memories. Ther...
#36: Sleep and Memory - Part 2
05 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Previously, we learned sleep is necessary before learning to prepare the brain to learn effectively. But sleep is also needed after learning to cement...
# 35: Sleep and Memory - Part 1
21 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It is a fundamental truth that sleep is far more than the absence of wakefulness. It is an incredibly active state, demonstrated by the fact that nume...
# 34: Sleep and Sex – Part 2
07 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s been said that sleep is the new sex, and rightly so—a good night of sleep is going to do many things for the vibrancy, intimacy, and vitality...
#33: Sleep and Sex – Part 1
24 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A few years ago, a survey by the Sleep Council in England found that 1 in 4 people in a couple would get up during the night and go to another room to...
# 32: Insomnia - Part 7
10 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBTI) can be split into at least five core components: 1) sleep restriction therapy, 2) sleep hygiene, 3) s...
# 31: Insomnia - Part 6
26 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Very understandably, many insomnia patients try to self-medicate their condition with varied “sleep aids”. The tragedy us that most of them not on...
# 30: Insomnia - Part 5
12 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Some of the first neurological-related discoveries about insomnia were made by placing healthy sleepers or patients with insomnia inside brain scanner...
#29: Insomnia - Part 4
29 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode focuses on changes within the bodies of people suffering from insomnia. Almost all forms of chronic insomnia come with a significant...
#28: Insomnia - Part 3
15 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode takes two questions as its subject: first, why does someone develop insomnia, and second, what adds gasoline to the sleep-disorder f...
#27: Insomnia - Part 2
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There is no quick test that can determine insomnia. Instead, the diagnosis of clinical insomnia disorder is based on a set of clinical assessment and ...
#26: Insomnia - Part 1
18 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode is the first in a 7-part series on insomnia. Matt starts with a calming reality—insomnia isn’t a single bad night or a string of...
#25: Optimising Your Sleep
04 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode focuses on optimising your sleep. It’s designed for people who don’t have clinical insomnia but would like to fine-tune their sl...
#24: Sleep is Bloody Remarkable #2
20 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Matt is back this week with his recurring series, ‘Sleep is Bloody Remarkable’. Today’s episode is all about why we are unique when it comes to ...
#23: Dreams – Part 6
06 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Matt goes deeper into his exploration of lucid dreaming. He tells us all about studies demonstrating that lucid dreamers can wake f...
#22: Dreams - Part 5
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In part five of his series on dreams, Matt discusses what lucid dreaming is and how it was scientifically proven to be real.We define lucid dreaming a...
#21: Dreams - Part 4
09 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode focuses on a second but very different function of dreaming: the ingenious processing and interconnection of memories that inspires ...
#20: Dreams - Part 3
25 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Matt’s back with part three of his series on the science of dreaming! In this episode, he discusses how he and other scientists have discovered that...
#19: Dreams - Part 2
11 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the second episode of this series about REM sleep dreaming, Matt explores what the science has to say not only about how we dream at the brain leve...
#18: Dreams - Part 1
28 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week’s episode is the first in a new multi-part series all about dreams! Today, Matt focuses on the question of how your brain generates these ...
#17: Sleep is Bloody Remarkable #1
14 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Matt has a special announcement this week: a new recurring type of episode called, ‘Sleep is Bloody Remarkable’. This series of episodes will shar...
#16: Sleep & Weight Gain – Part 2
28 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Matt returns with Part 2 of his series on sleep and weight gain. This time around, he teaches us how a lack of sleep not only makes you eat more food,...
#15: Sleep & Weight Gain – Part 1
14 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Matt kicks off a two-part series all about sleep, eating, and weight gain. He starts by introducing two appetite-regulating hormones: leptin and ghre...
#14: Temperature – Part 2
31 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the previous episode, Matt described the role of temperature in helping us fall asleep. In this episode, Matt teaches us all about the role of temp...
#13: Temperature - Part 1
17 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, Matt reveals how 1) your own temperature and, even more precisely, 2) the temperature of different parts of you, as well as 3...
#12: Melatonin
03 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, Matt takes us on a deep dive into melatonin. He covers four main topics: 1) what is melatonin? 2) how does melatonin work? 3)...
#11: Sleep & Caffeine – Part 2
20 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this week’s episode, Matt continues his discussion of sleep and caffeine. Here, we learn about the paradox of coffee, one in which coffee provide...
#10: Sleep & Caffeine – Part 1
06 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, Matt unpacks the world of coffee, and caffeine in the first of a two-part series on caffeine. Matt describes the numerous hea...
#09: Sleep & Alcohol - Part 2
22 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
On last week’s episode, we learned about the three main ways alcohol can harm our sleep: 1) alcohol results in sedation rather than naturalistic sle...
#08: Sleep & Alcohol - Part 1
08 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Although some people may believe that a drink or two in the evening will help them sleep better, today’s episode shows us that alcohol harms our sle...
#07: Naps
25 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
As the great Roman poet, Ovid, once said, “There is more refreshment and stimulation in a nap, even of the briefest, than all the alcohol ever disti...
#06: Chronotype: Part 3
11 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the final episode of our three-part series about chronotypes, Matt examines the question of whether your chronotype is truly fixed, or if you can...
#05: Chronotype: Part 2
27 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the second episode of our three-part series on chronotypes, Matt speaks about what happens when you do not sleep in harmony with your natural chr...
#04: Chronotype: Part 1
13 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 04: Chronotype: Part 1SummaryAre you a morning type? Or are you an evening type? Perhaps you are neither of the two? Today’s episode is the ...
#03: Circadian Rhythms
26 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
#03 Circadian RhythmsContinuing on from last week’s episode about sleep pressure, today, Matt Walker dives into the second half of the sleep-wake st...
#02: Sleep Pressure
16 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 02: Sleep PressureWelcome back to the Matt Walker podcast. Today’s episode looks at the story of sleep pressure - how it works, how you ca...
#01: What is Sleep?
02 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 01: HighlightsHuman sleep has been separated into two main types: Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleepNREM...
Trailer & Welcome!
26 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Matt Walker Podcast is all about sleep, the brain, and the body · Matt is Professor of Neuroscience at the University of California, Berkeley...