4 Tips To Optimize Sleep

SUMMARY

Sleep is absolutely crucial and you must not underestimate it. Something else you must do is these 4 tips:

• Have a proper sleeping schedule. Go to sleep and wake up every day at the same time (roughly). 
• Avoid screens as you get closer to your bed time 81 hour before).
• Keep your bedroom cool. Sleep is not as optimal when it is too warm. 
• Increase light bright exposure during the day. Good for your circadian rhythm. 

Let’s talk about these a bit more in depth: 

Rest and recovery are one of the 3 elements in the equation.

For some reason, a lot of people underestimate this aspect and yet, it is just as important as training properly and eating right.

Fitness is a tripod, and rest and recovery are one of the legs. What happens to a tripod if one leg is broken? Exactly, the tripod falls down.

Just like with food and training, whit sleep and recovery is all about quality and not quantity. So today I want to give you 4 tips to optimize sleep for a better recovery and progress.

1). Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day.
Even on weekends whenever possible. This is the biggest tip I can give you, and the reason why is very simple.
This helps your circadian rhythm and adenosine buildup stay in line with each other. Things get awful when these two systems are out of whack.
It also decreases your sleep latency (the amount of time it takes you to fall asleep).

2). Avoid screens as you get closer to bedtime.
There is some evidence that the light emitted from electronic devices interferes with our circadian rhythm. Specifically blue artificial light, is thought to confuse our body’s internal clock.On the other hand, our devices are designed to catch our attention, which means we spend more time on our phones instead of sleeping. We’ve all been there.

3). Keep your bedroom cool (but not cold)
Our bodies use temperature as a signal to go to bed. It gets colder at night, so this shift in temperature tells our body it’s time to go to sleep. That’s why most people tend to sleep better in winter than in summer. What’s the sweet spot? Experiment a little here, but shoot for somewhere around 18ºC. Just don’t go too cold.

4). Increase bright light exposure during the day
Your body has a natural time-keeping clock known as your circadian rhythm. It affects your brain, body, and hormones, helping you stay awake and telling your body when it’s time to sleep.
Natural sunlight or bright light during the day helps keep your circadian rhythm healthy. This improves daytime energy, as well as nighttime sleep quality and duration.