Tips for Better Sleep

The elusive 8 hour, uninterrupted sleep. Something most of us have been chasing since way before lock down!

If there is one thing that I have come across in my time as a coach that most people struggle with- it is sleep. With the rise of smart phone technology and the incredible way that we are all now connected as well as some epic subscription services on our TV’s, it’s become even harder to switch off for a good night of Zzz’s

My advice is always to treat myself like a baby and set up a good morning and evening routine. Both of which have contributed hugely to better quality sleep for myself and my clients who have used it.

Day Time Routine:

get up at the same time every day - having a usual wake up time, even on your days off sets up a good circadian rhythm and means your body knows what to expect.

Spend Time Outdoors every day- being outside in natural daylight helps us to then produce melatonin later in the evening, which is the hormone we need for good sleep.

Limit yourself to 1 coffee per day and have it before noon- Caffeine has a crazy half life and stays in your system for a really long time, the more you drink it the harder it is for your body to eliminate it and being full of caffeine isn’t helpful for a good nights sleep.

Move every day - Regular exercise helps with energy expenditure and reduces stress which helps halt excess production of cortisol, the stress hormone we want to have less of, especially in the evenings.

Night Time Routine

Switch of all phones and Blue screens by 9pm or at least an hour before bed- Blue light that is edited by our TV’s and smart phones makes our brains feel wired and confused and stops us from feeling sleepy, thus making it harder to wind down at night, the over stimulative nature of a constant stream of information also makes it incredibly hard to switch off. You can set limits of your apps on your phone and can also activate a down time function to switch on at the same time every evening and stop you from scrolling before bed.

Keep your phone in another room when you are asleep and invest in a daytime lamp/alarm- keeping your phone in another room will stop you from automatically checking things or scrolling before bed and allow your eyes some screen free time. Using a daytime lamp allows the light in your bedroom to turn gradually from natrual light to dark, the way nature intended for us to fall asleep, it will then wake you up with natural light and you’ll find you feel much more refreshed in the morning than being yanked out of sleep by a noisy alarm.

Take regular epsom salt baths or foot baths- Soaking your body or feet before bed helps raise your body temperature, reduce stress and aids the production of melatonin. Epsom salts are a great recovery tool for tired or sore muscles and are very effective in resetting the nervous system.

Journal- call it a Brian dump, gratitude practice or whatever you like. Get your thoughts out on paper before you get in to bed and you are much less likely to spend your precious sleep hours ruminating about your day.

Use a sleep meditation - I am a huge fan of meditation before bed, it’s an incredible way to relax the body and mind and really be present with exactly what you need right now (sleep). There are many apps you can use and I have included a little gift for you at the end of this blog. Normally you have to use your phone for guided meditations- when I do this I make sure the dark mode function is enabled and that my notifications are switched off until the morning.

I hope this is useful to you, please don’t feel overwhelmed and like you have to immediately overhaul your whole life, start small and build up to the routines that work well for you and keep an open mind, life happens and our routines should ebb and flow with the pace of our lifestyles and what we need at each particular point on our journey.

I’d love to know what you do to help with sleep and if you find our meditation useful,

Lyndsey.