According to a study from YouGov, over 40% of Brits have trouble falling asleep every week.
Sufficient sleep is also essential in having the energy to exercise.
It affects everything, from mental health to digestion, mood and nutrition.
Sleep allows muscle tissue time to recover between workouts.
Not getting enough sleep can lead to being less physically active during the day and reduced muscle strength during workouts.
Here are our top 5 tips for getting the best possible sleep.
1. No phone before bed
At least one hour before going to bed, try to avoid using your phone. The blue light and scrolling through content can stimulate your mind, keeping you awake and affecting your sleep quality.
2. Circadian Rhythm
If you can get your body into a routine of waking up and falling asleep simultaneously, expect to have more energy.
Creating a natural circadian rhythm, or circadian cycle, is an internal process that regulates the sleep-wake cycle and repeats roughly every 24 hours.
Circadian rhythms have an essential purpose: they prepare your body for the time for activity, sleep, and times to eat.
The strongest external cue for this is the sun’s light/dark cycle.
3. Exercise
It will come as no surprise that we have included exercise.
Exercising in the daytime increases your chances of quality sleep.
During exercise, serotonin is released, which decreases cortisol levels, the stress hormone.
Serotonin is a chemical that carries messages between nerve cells in the brain and throughout your body.
It plays a crucial role in such body functions as mood, sleep, digestion, nausea, healing, bone health, blood clotting and sexual desire.
However, don’t overdo the exercise, as that can have a detrimental effect on sleep.
4. No napping!
Everyone loves a holiday siesta.
But in day-to-day life, napping can be disruptive to your sleep routine.
So even when you are crashing, try to avoid the naps and stick to the sleep schedule.
The more you practice that, the less chance you will be a napper.
5. Bedroom
Where you sleep should be a sanctuary – a place you can go to at the end of a day and drift off into a long and peaceful sleep.
The optimum temperature for sleep is around 18 degrees Celsius.
Research has also shown that darkness encourages melatonin production – the hormone that aids sleep.
Try investing in black-out curtains or eye masks to keep the light out.
We hope that these tips will lead you to sleep better.
For more advice, please get in touch with our team
