5 tips for better sleep
I think the best way to start this blog post is with a simple question:
How often do you sleep well?
For many people, the usual response is a deep sigh. All of us could use some more quality shut eye. Health statistics point to an alarming epidemic of sleep related issues. Just as with many healthy habits, quality and consistency are what matter most, not duration. Here are some statistics I’ve learned from studying sleep experts, who understand how fundamental sleep is for our overall health and well-being. Some of these are shocking…
50-70 million US adults have a sleep disorder (thats almost 1 in every 6 people!)
48.0% of Americans report snoring
37.9% reported unintentionally falling asleep during the day at least once in the preceding month
4.7% reported nodding off or falling asleep while driving at least once in the preceding month
Statistics from the American Sleep Association
Sleep is the most healing activity (lack of activity) that your body can engage in. You literally slow down the aging process with quality sleep, and SPEED UP the aging process when you miss quality sleep on a consistent basis. During sleep your blood and organs detoxify. Your heart rate slows down. Your muscles relax. Your blood pressure drops. Stress is non-existent. Every system FINALLY gets a rest. Sleep is essentially charging the battery of your body.
If you’ve been following me for any length of time you understand that my approach is geared towards addressing root causes, never hiding or masking symptoms.
Here are some other alarming statistics regarding lifestyle choices that often overlap and coincide with each other:
“They discovered that a person who sits too much (more than seven hours a day), exercises too little (less than 150 minutes a week), and sleeps more than nine hours a night is four times more likely to die early.”
More than half of teenagers 15 and older, sleep less than seven hours per night, and about 85% of teens get less than the recommended 8-10 hours of sleep per night. Age 14-15 seems to be a big turning point for sleep deprivation, a year when teens experience the greatest drop in hours of sleep per night.
Adults need 7 hours of sleep per night for optimal health. 59% of Americans sleep for 7 hours or more at night while 40% sleep for less than 7 hours. 38% of adults aged 25-34 years and 32% of adults between 18-24 years sleep less than 7 hours.
Guys, this problem effects EVERYONE. Imagine never feeling groggy, tired, irritable. Most of these issues are for no other reason than sleep deprivation.
Okay, thanks for scaring the shit out of me Gene. Just remember, there’s hope! If all I did was point out your problem and offer no solution, then you’d have every right to be angry with me. Down below are THE VERY BEST techniques I’ve come across in all my years of learning about optimizing health and physical performance through proper sleep habits.
Blackout curtains. The fact of the matter is that melatonin is the single most important chemical your body produces for restful, healing sleep. Your body simply will not produce adequate melatonin if you don’t eliminate as much light in your room as you possibly can. The more pitch black the room, the more melatonin, the more quality sleep.
Turn off your devices. Bluelight cranks up cortisol and cortisol negatively impacts melatonin production. Less quality sleep, less quality life. Simple. Swap your phone for an old fashioned book with ink and paper to wind your mind down before bed. And if you must be on a device throw on some bluelight blocking glasses.
Stop consuming liquids 4 hours before going to bed. I am the BIGGEST proponent of hydration my people have ever met (Like a weird water wizard) but if you don’t cut the liquids 4-5 hours before bed, your sleep will be disturbed by night-time bathroom visits. Make sure you consume half your weight in ounces of water EVERYDAY but try to do it before 6 pm.
Get yourself some ear plugs. Go on Amazon and order yourself Macks Earplugs. These earplugs are NO NONSENSE! Swimmers use them to keep water out of their ears. You can use each set multiple times, they are very comfortable and EXTREMELY noise cancelling. Noises during the night can pull us out of deep sleep at crucial moments during our sleep cycles. Definitely get these earplugs.
Last but certainly not least is room temperature. Studies have shown that humans who sleep in a room between 68-70 degrees F, have much better quality of sleep. Why do we keep food in the fridge? Cold temperatures PRESERVE things. Use a warm blanket, pajamas or whatever you need to stay warm. One night of restful, revitalizing sleep, will have you turning down the temperature dial before snooze time.
So to wrap things up. Sleep is king when it comes to health. If you don’t charge your phone, it dies. If you don’t charge your body… you know the rest.
Heres one Bonus tip: Take ZMA before bed. Zinc and magnesium are INCREDIBLE natural sleep aids.
Until next time… GET TO BED ON TIME!
