If it’s a struggle for me to be productive in the morning, it’s a real struggle for me to be productive in the late hours of the night. It can be often be really, really difficult to wind down in a way that helps me sleep and have a better tomorrow.
So many nights I do the following two uninspiring things…
- Watch a lot of TV, including the eleven o’clock local news
- Scroll mindlessly through my phone until it runs out of battery
Here are 3 things you should think about trying in the nights to come…
Turn Screens Off at Least One Hour Before Bed
Doing this will work wonders for your sleep. I know of so many people who watch TV and scroll on their phones all the way until the second they decide to plunk their heads down against the pillow and go to bed. This is not good. Even worse are those people who let their TVs stay blaring for hours on end while they’re sleeping. This act will actually interrupt your sleep often and wake you up feeling groggy.
And you don’t either. It doesn’t seem like a lot, but I’m telling you just one hour of time at the end of your day without screens will work wonders for your sleep and for your mental health in general. We spend too much time in front of screens as it is. Forcing yourself to go without them late at night will help you in the long run.
Read for at Least Ten Minutes
What have I started doing late at night instead of watching the local news? I’ve started reading more. I had a tiny nightlight installed next to my bed a few weeks ago, and now I keep at least two or three books in the dresser drawer within arms reach.
I love to read in the morning but I especially love to read at night because doing so completely relaxes my mind. I feel calm and centered, and better yet, the more reading I do, the more tired I end up feeling. Sometimes I’m able to read for thirty minutes or more, and some nights I only make it ten to fifteen minutes before it’s time to say goodnight.
Avoid Food and Drinks at Least Two Hours Before Bedtime
A physical trainer taught me this rule about fifteen years ago, and I’ve done my best to follow it ever since. I’m not sure if he was one-hundred-percent right. Maybe there are some foods and drinks you can have right before bed that won’t upset you or affect your sleep much. (Alcohol, however, is definitely not one of those things.)
But something I’ve always found made a whole lot of sense was to avoid eating or drinking anything (except for water, of course) in the last two hours of the day before going to bed. It makes sense because if you’re being sedentary at night, any calories and fat you consume will just sit there in your body while you’re asleep. And I’ve absolutely felt it on those rare days when I ate dinner too late and had to go to bed at an earlier hour. It’s harder to fall asleep, and you often feel gross all over. It’s something you want to endure as little as possible.
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