Do you regularly sleep through the night?
Barring any big disruptions - kids, your barking dog, loud noises from the street - ideally you’re sleeping through the night with no issues!
But I know this is NOT the case for a lot of people.
If you’re struggling with sleep regularly, here are some factors I want you to consider.
Are you…
1. Eating enough during the day (close to ~2000 calories, if not more, for most people I work with)
2. Drinking alcohol regularly, even if only a few times a week
3. Getting 20 minutes of sunlight in your eyeballs in the early morning, midday and afternoon/evening
4. Moving your body for at least an hour (in total, can be broken up into walks, or other gentle movement) per day and exercising more vigorously a few times per week
5. Pairing protein + veggies with your starchy carbs
6. Addressing immune triggers in your gut
7. Avoiding starches and sweets on an empty stomach
8. Breathing clean air in your bedroom and limiting environmental toxins (mold, perfumes/cleaning product fragrance, pesticides, etc.)
9. Keeping a cool, dark bedroom
10. Using a bedtime routine to transition off of screens 1 hour before sleep, and calm the nervous system
That’s a few different things to be thinking about! And the truth is, you don’t have to do every single one perfectly.
For some people, ambient light at night is not as big of an issue, but being well fed, and getting sunlight throughout the day makes a HUGE difference. And others notice that alcohol really affects their sleep cycle, which we see in the research as well.
Personally, I’m always working on different parts of this too. Getting off screens is SO hard for me because there are a few word games I like to play before bed. (Have you played NYT Connections? I’m obsessed!)
Do you struggle with sleep? Try incorporating one of the steps above to improve your sleep.
I’d love to know in the comments if any of these considerations for sleep are new to you!