My Routine: Getting Enough Sleep

Happy Wednesday! Today is the second edition of the “My Routine” series I started two weeks back. You can read the first one about my skin and beauty routine here.

Guys, I’ve been getting some great sleep lately. I don’t mean to brag! It’s just a few months back I went through a period of horrible sleep that felt never ending. My body would only stay asleep for 6 hours max despite how tired I was- it was awful. So when I started exploring why it was that my sleep patterns had changed, a few changes in my routine became clear as day that I  now consider elements of my sleep routine. Here’s what they are:

• Booty Bustin’ Workouts At the beginning of last summer I started seeing a trainer ( a decision I also want to talk about at some point). The 24 sessions I did totally revamped the way in which I workout and has fueled my love of strength training. It was right around that time that my sleep patterns really started to change. My workouts were energizing but also knocked me out and helped me sleep much more soundly. I had worked out consistently during the whole poor sleep period, but not in the same way, and I’m confident this change had a lot to do with lowering my stress levels and subsequently allowing me to sleep better.
• Setting My Alarm Clock Later I have a crazy internal body clock. If I’m supposed to wake up at 8 am, I’ll wake up around 7:30. In fact it’s a treat when I actually wake up to my alarm! A few weeks back, I started pushing back my alarm to later than when I actually wanted to wake up on the weekdays. I know it’s sounds backwards, but the alarm is totally a psychological thing for me. If I have to travel somewhere or get up super early for something, I’ll set it for the exact time- but if it’s just my general workday, I’ll set it back to later than I actually want to wake up so I don’t wake up unnecessarily early. Does that make sense for anyone else?
• No Screens After 10:30 pm I know this one isn’t that novel. Everyone says you need to turn off electronics at least an hour before you go to bed, but recently Brandon and I set a joint policy. Neither of us can look at our phones or be on the computer after 10:30 pm. It’s helpful to do it simultaneously as we really hold each other accountable!
• Forcing Myself to Sleep In On Weekends I know this one sounds kind of silly as well but here’s what I mean. Post college days, it’s hard to get myself to sleep in on weekend mornings. I always wake up around 7:30 am no matter what time I went to bed. I used to get so frustrated with myself, tossing and turning, angry I couldn’t fall back to sleep and stressed over the fact I would feel tired later. Then one weekend I just decided I would stop stressing and try to relax.I curl up, focus on my breathing, and try to relax my entire body and not think about all the things I need to do that day. I usually need to do this for about 30-45 minutes, at which point my body drifts back to sleep for another solid hour. That one hour makes such a difference! And now that I’ve come to accept my body waking up early, and have a way to work through it, weekend mornings no longer cause me stress.

That’s how it works for me. Any of you have similar techniques or other ones you’d recommend? Poor sleep is the worst and I’m always eager for fresh tips on ways to feel more rested!

Image Credit