Sleep Resources

wake up at sunrise

Wake up at dawn, even if you had a bad night of sleep, don’t sleep in - get sunlight on you first thing! You want that natural rise in cortisol in the morning as it will better regulate your circadian rhythm for the day. So don’t be tempted to lay in bed for too long. Getting up right away will help you get a better sleep the following night.

stop eating 2-3 hours before bed

Don’t eat late at night. Your body and circadian rhythm get confused by this night time intake of energy when your digestion is supposed to be shutting down. I see so many busy people skipping meals during the day and then eating a late dinner and snacks right up until bedtime. Your body shouldn’t be focusing energy on digesting food in your stomach late at night. Be sure you are getting enough carbohydrates during the day (especially dinner - carbs cut cortisol) 

Eat dinner by 6-7pm and let your blood sugar and cortisol production drop before bed (blood glucose should be between 75-95 by bedtime). Cortisol and melatonin are antagonists - so get in bed at 9:30 when cortisol is lowest and you will have the optimal amount of melatonin to ease into sleep. Just like we try to have a predictable sleep schedule, we need a predictable eating schedule. This helps our body know what to expect (when to digest, when to rest, etc) and we can function more naturally on our diurnal rhythm. 

move your body early in the morning

Some folks have time to do 30-60 minutes of movement before breakfast, but some don’t! Even if you have 5 minutes, find some movement that feels good - whether it’s a few sets of squats, lunges, pushups or something more gentle like walking, stretching or 5-10 sun salutations (these are great for a vata body type).

Movement first thing sends your body a strong signal that it is daytime and you will feel much more energized throughout the day. If you’re feeling half awake/dragging through the day, you’re likely to feel only half asleep at night too. 

Try to avoid making intense nighttime exercise a habit - it confuses your body’s circadian rhythm with an increase in cortisol (and decrease in melatonin) later in the day. An after dinner walk or calming movement is always a good idea though.

stay hydrated

Sleep and hydration are very much intertwined. Dehydration can cause poor sleep quality and in turn, sleep is a dehydrating event in itself. Even if you feel like you’re not excessively drooling or sweating at night, the average person loses between 1/2-1 liter of water overnight. So if you’re starting out dehydrated, you will likely be depleted by morning.

Dehydration can contribute to snoring (in conjunction with nighttime eating) as your nasal passage gets dried out especially in winter and will affect the quality of your sleep. In fact, waking up with fatigue can be a sign of chronic dehydration.

Sometimes we get to end of the day and realize “shoot  I didn’t drink any water today” and then try to drink a lot at night and have to pee during the night (hello - also sleep disruptive!) instead, make a habit of drinking a glass first thing in the morning - it will set you up for making good hydration habits all day. 

Take your weight in pounds and cut it in half. Then drink that number in ounces for your daily water intake (you’ll need more if exercising/sweating). Bonus if you add a squeeze or lemon or lime and a pinch of sea salt to help absorb that hydration into your cells. 

Bonus Sleep Tips:

~ Keep your room cool 65-70 degrees

~ No screens 2 hours before bed

~ Magnesium supplement in the evening

~ No napping