How important is sleep?
You probably can remember the last time you had to go to work after a poor nights sleep:
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Trouble with focus
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Mood was terrible
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Willpower was incredibly low
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Skipped the gym
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Couldn’t remember the drive in
Other things were happening too:
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Increased weight gain and obesity
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Excess caloric intake and poor diet quality
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Decreased cognitive function and memory
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Impaired glucose tolerance
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Decreased testosterone and growth hormone levels
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Increased cortisol (stress hormone) production
Sleep matters.
There are a heap of things that your body needs to do while you’re asleep, growing muscle is a big one, but more importantly, your body ‘flushes’ your brain during sleep, or deep sleep to be more accurate.
If this flushing of the brain is impaired, scientists think this may be an eventual cause for the development of conditions such as Alzheimers and if you’ve ever had a loved one go through that disease, this information will scare you, as it does me!
So how do we optimise our sleep?
Basically, you have to get the body to know exactly when it needs to wind down so that the internal processes that relax your body and get your into deep sleep happen naturally
Sometimes it can be as simple as making a conscious decision to do so
Here’s 10 ways of improving your sleep to get you firing on all cylinders!
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Get to bed before 10pm (give yourself an hour more in bed than you need)
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10-20 minutes of sunlight in the morning (any bright light will do though)
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No screen/blue light distractions an hour before bed (read or talk instead)
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Aim for your room to be as dark as possible (blackout blinds ideally)
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Keep your bedroom cool (cool enough to need a blanket is great)
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No eating within 3 hours of bedtime
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Keep coffee to the AM (none after 12), and manage your caffeine intake (no more than 2 a day)
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Same awake and sleep time everyday (at least within an 30-60 minutes)
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Minimise digestive distress by avoiding “trigger foods” or overeating
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Meditate/breathing drills (Headspace or Calm app are really good for these)
Follow these and say hello to a great nights sleep!
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If you’re ready to take the first step in your fitness and health journey then contact us at: http://blincobuilt.com.au/
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