Optimize sleep!
Are you always tired and lacking the energy to pursue your goals?
The reason might be your sleep quality.
Sleep is the master regulator of your entire physiology.
You better optimize it.
This article will briefly explain why sleep is so important and give you the only 5 tips you need to transform your sleep quality for the rest of your life!
WHY YOU SHOULD OPTIMIZE SLEEP
Sleep affects gene expression, neurotransmitter synthesis, hormone levels, homeostatic functions, metabolism, hunger, and more. Disturb sleep, and you dysregulated everything.
That’s not what you want!
5 TOOLS TO OPTIMIZE SLEEP
CONSISTENT AND SUFFICIENT SLEEP SCHEDULE
Consistent means sleeping and waking up at the same time every day. The more consistent you are, the better your body gets at fine-tuning your sleep and entire physiology.
Sufficient sleep means you get sleep long enough for your body to heal and recharge.
How long? You might ask.
Your sleep needs vary based on lifestyle, physiology, and activity levels.
But most adults need 7 to 9 hours.
MATCH YOUR SLEEP SCHEDULE TO THE CIRCADIAN RHYTHM OF THE EARTH.
Light is the strongest signal for regulating your internal biological clock.
Aligning your sleep and wake-up time to match the day/night cycle of the area where you live is tremendously effective for enhancing sleep quality:
- Sleep as close as possible to sunset.
- Wake up as close as possible to sunrise.
CONTROL LIGHT EXPOSURE TO OPTIMIZE SLEEP
Nowadays we’re bombarded with artificial lights coming from all kinds of technologies.
This has become problematic. Artificial blue light after sunset interferes with the body’s ability to produce melatonin, the key hormone that induces sleepiness.
Realize that melatonin also regulates thousands of biological functions occurring during sleep. So, if you want quality sleep, avoid direct blue light exposure in the evening especially as you get close to bedtime.
On the flip side, your body uses daylight in the morning to upregulate wakefulness and set your entire machinery ready for the day. Exposing yourself to sunlight as soon as you wake up goes a long way to facilitate that process.
CONTROL TEMPERATURE TO OPTIMIZE SLEEP
Temperature is, after light, the second signal for regulating the sleep-wake cycle.
During the deep stages of sleep, core body temperature drops, and your entire body enters a state of deep healing and regeneration. Your bedroom temperature can facilitate this natural drop and extend your time in these deep stages.
Set your bedroom temperature to around 19-23 degrees Celsius, according to your preference, and sleep tight!
EAT NUTRIENT-DENSE FOODS 3 HOURS BEFORE SLEEP
Nutrient-dense foods ensure a flow of essential vitamins and minerals in your system during sleep. Your cells can then uptake them to replenish stores, recycle key components, and rebuild their machinery. I bet you’ve already experienced trouble sleeping after a huge dinner! To avoid that, finish dinner at least 3 hours before your bedtime. This prevents digestion from interfering with your sleep. A rule of thumb: eat your dinner as early as you can!
CONCLUSION
Realize that sleep is your most powerful and cost-free tool for tuning your body’s systems.
If you apply these 5 tips you’ll be rewarded with high energy and motivation to tackle your days!
What else do you need? Optimizing sleep is a no-brainer!
Enjoy it!
