Are you someone who struggles with sleep at night and deals with low energy all day? Do you want to build the perfect routine to optimize your sleep and raise your energy level? This post might help you do exactly that.
First of all, we are not going to talk about a nighttime routine. There is no magical tip or trick that makes you fall asleep as soon as you hit the hay. It takes some amount of dedication to figure out what works for you, to build habits, and to be consistent.
If you want to read about the mechanism of sleep and how sleep deprivation affects our body check out my blog post about how to sleep better and live a long, healthy life.
Daytime routine
Yeah, you heard it right. To get a good relaxing, healing sleep, you have to start when you wake up. You might be thinking why is that? Let’s look at the reasons
Do a morning information detox
From the minute we wake up, we are bombarded with news, social media, work and many other things. Don’t check your email or phone for at least 30 minutes after you wake up. Do a morning ritual that works for you. Limit news right after you are up. Let the phone sleep for a little bit more.
Don’t worry too much first thing in the morning. Create a morning ritual that sets you in a good mood.
Get some sun in the morning
Light controls our circadian rhythm (control your daily schedule for sleep and wakefulness). We have light receptors in our eyes and our body. The retinas in our eyes have light-sensitive cells called photoreceptors that tell the brain whether it’s daytime or nighttime and thus affect our sleep cycle. Sunlight can send signals to the brain that say it’s time to be awake.
Getting sunlight in the morning will help you increase your vitamin D levels. Low vitamin D levels are linked to poor sleep quality. So what can we do to reap the full benefits of this mechanism?
Spend at least 15 minutes outside in the morning. Open the curtains and let the light in. Step outside the house or go to the balcony. At least open the windows. Go for a walk or run outside. 30 minutes of sunlight exposure twice a day is ideal.
Exercise consistently
What does exercise have to do with sleep? A lot actually. Exercise helps sleep in multiple ways.
- It releases the endorphins and helps you relax.
- Increases the amount of slow-wave sleep.
- Reduces the core body temperature and helps you fall asleep faster
Find out what kind of exercise works for your body and with your schedule. Consistency and moderation are the keys when it comes to exercise. Exercise late at night might adversely affect your sleep.
Move your body every day. Do it earlier in the morning if possible.
Limit caffeine
If you want a cup of coffee. Now is the time. If you are caffeine-sensitive, eliminating it would be ideal. caffeine has a half-life of 6 hours. It will stay in your system for a while. Even if you can fall asleep the quality of sleep would be reduced.
Drink the last cup of coffee before 2 PM.
Midday routine
During the day, take a break and go outside if time permits it. Get some sun or go out for lunch. If you are doing a desk job, take small breaks and stretch if possible.
Nighttime routine
Again like we did in the morning, we have to take care of some things when the sun is setting. Watching the sunset is amazing for the mind and the body. The red light will give our body the cue to relax. But what do we do? Blast our retinas with fluorescent lights that emit blue light and confuse our internal clock.
Limit blue light exposure
Have you ever scrolled on your when you are sleepy and killed your sleep? Now you know why. Luckily phones and laptops come with night lights nowadays. Set them on from sunset to sunrise and watch your sleep get better. Also, get dim yellow or warm lights at home. Personally, I find them very relaxing.
Put your gadgets to sleep 1 to 2 hours before you sleep. Spend that time with family. Talking and boding. Read a book. Hear a podcast.
The bedroom is just for sleep
Please don’t live in your bed. Now that most of us work from home, it’s hard to resist checking emails in bed. Our brains are association machines and we associate places and habits. So when you do everything in bed the mind will get confused. Keeping the bedroom cool will help you get a good sleep.
Your bed is the place for sleep and sex. Even if you live in a studio apartment keeping a designated corner for everything is ideal.
Keep a consistent bedtime
Consistency is the key to cultivating any habits. Our bodies love the rhythm. Going to bed and waking up at the same time will help immensely in getting a night of good quality sleep.
Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Netflix shows can wait.
Eat an early dinner
Eat the last meal at least 1 to 2 hours before bed. Keep it simple. Have the bigger meals earlier in the day. If you wake up in the middle of the night daily, you might have a blood glucose problem. Having some nut butter or sweet potato might help.
Eat an early dinner. Keep at least a 12 hour gap between dinner and next day’s breakfast.
Practice active relaxation
Do a relaxation routine or ritual as a habit. Ignoring yourself being so busy is overrated. Being busy doesn’t make you worthy. Breathing exercises can really help with sleep issues. It could be anything like,
- meditation
- aromatherapy
- journaling
- listening to music
- praying
- coloring
- cooking, etc.
Make active relaxation a part of your life.
There are many ways to wind down, choose something you really love. For example, Coloring is a very relaxing way to wind down.
The bottom line
A good night’s sleep is a result of things that we do during the day. In a nutshell, we have to find the balance and create a routine that works. the key areas to concentrate on are nutrition, relaxation, blue light exposure, sunlight, and exercise.
If you are someone who likes to dig deeper into these topics, check out this discussion between experts who about how to improve sleep. Check out my blog post on how to sleep better and build a long, healthy life.
If you are interested in video content, check out my YouTube channel.