Getting good quality sleep is one of the pillars of staying healthy. It’s just as important as a well-balanced diet and working out. In fact, even one night of poor sleep will affect cognitive function, hormonal balance and stamina. But we don’t need to tell you that, it’s why you’re reading this article. You probably also know about the long-term effects: changes in your metabolism and increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
But what you should keep in mind is that you’re not doomed to toss and turn every night, counting sheep and staring at the ceiling. Sleeping through the night and waking up feeling rested might seem impossible right now, but you have more control than you realize. Let’s see what habits you can adopt to encourage better sleep.
You Need a Sleep Schedule
If you’re sleeping at different hours every day, we may have just identified what’s causing your sleep problems. Maybe you like to say up on Friday night because you don’t have to wake up early the next day. By Sunday evening, your schedule is disrupted, and you can’t fall asleep early, so you start your week on 4 or 5 hours of rest. On Monday evening, you’re so tired that you manage to fall asleep a bit earlier, and things seem to stabilize, but on Friday, you repeat the cycle. You’re not doing yourself any favors.
Our bodies like routines and consistency. We’re all familiar with the terms “morning person” and “night owl.” They actually have a scientific basis and refer to your circadian rhythm – the biological process responsible for regulating your sleep. If you maintain a consistent sleep schedule, your body will produce the right hormones at the right time to help you fall asleep in a few minutes and wake up ready to face the day.
Your Bedroom Also Needs a Few Upgrades
Maintaining a stable sleep schedule is important, but if you try to sleep in a bright and noisy bedroom, you’re still going to wake up feeling tired. So let’s take a look at your bedroom. Is it full of clutter? Can you hear a lot of noise from outside? Do your curtains keep out the light? If not, you need to get some heavy curtains and soundproof your windows. Clutter may not seem like such a big issue. How will you see it if you close your eyes? But clutter subconsciously increases your stress levels. Your bedroom needs to be an oasis where you can forget about your troubles and relax.
You’ll also want to make sure your bed is comfortable. If you’re sleeping on a saggy or lumpy mattress, you’ll keep moving in your sleep because you’re trying to find a comfortable position. This will interfere with healthy sleep architecture. You should change your mattress every 7 to 10 years, so if yours is long past its prime, look up mattress comparisons and make an investment in your health.
Exercise
Scientifically speaking, exercising regularly is the most effective strategy for improving not only your sleep, but your overall health. If you commute to work and spend eight or nine hours mostly sitting at your desk, you’re not getting enough exercise. We know you’re tired, and this is not what you want to hear, but you’ll notice that after a few weeks of regular physical activity, you’ll start to fall asleep more easily, wake up feeling rested, and you’ll have more energy. Exercise even reduces the symptoms of common sleep disorders such as sleep apnea or insomnia.
It will be difficult in the beginning, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. You don’t have to do a full hour of bodybuilding right from the get-go. Start slowly so you can stay motivated. A half an hour walk three times per week can turn into speed walking, then jogging, then running, then lifting weights, and so on.
Avoid Drinking Coffee in the Afternoon
If you have trouble sleeping, it makes sense that you drink a lot of coffee during the day. As you may already know, coffee is a stimulant. Its effects are due to its ability to block adenosine receptors. Since adenosine acts as a central nervous system depressant and causes sleepiness, your several cups of coffee per day make you feel more awake for a while. Caffeine kicks in after 30 or 60 minutes. That’s when you feel most energized and if you’ve had too much perhaps even a bit anxious and irritable. After the peak effects wear off, you start to feel drowsy again, and you reach for another cup of Joe.
The problem is that even if the peak effects last only for a short while, caffeine has a half-life of around five hours. When you have that last cup of coffee in the afternoon to help you get your chores done at home, you’re making it less likely to get some good-quality sleep at night. You enter a vicious circle. Even though you’re feeling tired, as soon as you put your head on the pillow and close your eyes, you feel wide awake, and your mind is going in a million different directions.
To break out of the cycle, you’ll need to avoid drinking any coffee or other caffeinated beverages at least 6 hours before bedtime. It will be hard at first, but you’ll notice you’ll feel a lot more rested after a few weeks.
Cut Back on Alcohol
First coffee, now alcohol. A lot of people are in the habit of drinking a glass or two of wine before bedtime. They feel that it makes them fall asleep faster. In a way, they’re right. Unlike caffeine, alcohol is a central nervous system depressant and studies confirm that a moderate amount of alcohol shortens the time it takes for a healthy person to fall asleep.
However, alcohol is known for reducing the quality of your sleep. So even though you may fall asleep faster, over-all you’ll feel less rested. To be more precise, moderate alcohol intake reduces sleep quality by 24%, while high alcohol intake reduces sleep quality by almost 40%. Additionally, you have to think of all the health risks associated with drinking alcohol every day.
When consider everything, alcohol is not a good sleep aid. Because it seems to interfere with the REM sleep stage, you’ll wake up feeling drowsy the next day, and in the long term, depending on your overall health, it can weaken your immune system and increase the chance of developing heart and liver disease.
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