English only, sorry guys.
During this forced rest time (due to my knee injury), I thought a lot about the importance of a good rest, and of course sleep.
Obvious fact: getting enough sleep is essential! Not having enough of it can lead to stress, weight gain and an overall decline in good health.
I usually sleep around 7-7.5 hours per night and stress is the only factor that can deprive me of a good sleep.
However, I noticed some factors which can easily disturb my night.
- Drink tea or coffee – especially after 3pm. For some people it can take 8 hours for caffeine to leave the body. An herbal tea will help you relax, simple chamomile or a Yogi tea are my favourite choices. I drink a cup every night at least one hour before bedtime.
- Meditate – by meditate I mean try to focus on something which can relax you, like your last sea holiday, your baby’s smile or the last time you had a great shopping session (always works for me ;-)). The goal is to avoid thinking about something that gives you stress, work is one of the main culprits. If you start thinking about your problems, you will never fall asleep.
- Exercise – arriving home after a good training helps me a lot, however try to avoid an intense late cardio session, yoga is much much better. 🙂
- Hide the lights – not only the outside lights, but also electronics, TV and iPhone LEDs. You might not notice them, but your brain does.
- Don’t eat/drink too much/too late – ok, this is pretty obvious. 🙂
If you want more sleep tips, here are some great advice from Lauren Kita, yoga therapist who is focused on sleep and well-being.
Hero image and my dream bedroom by Pikcells-Visualisation-Studio.
