How to Unwind and Sleep Deep

‘Eat, Sleep, Be Happy, Repeat’

Sleep is huge. But don’t get me wrong, I’d way rather be awake and living than sleeping.

I’ve just realized that without a good night of rest, I can’t live fully the next day.

I’ve had trouble sleeping in the past, with anxious thoughts laying in bed, but also non-stop exciting ideas that keep me up.

It’s led me to dive into some sleep strategies and tools to improve my ability to fall asleep fast and wake up feeling rested.

I was being chased by a bear in a dream last night, but that didn’t keep me from waking up this morning feeling rested and rejuvenated.

Here are some strategies and tools you can start using tonight…

 

F.LUX

F.LUX is an app you download onto your computer or laptop that blocks the blue light at night. It’s timed with the sunset depending on your location and slowly adjusts so you don’t even notice it, but if you disable the feature at night, the screen gets so bright it hurts your eyes for a few seconds. Blue light inhibits melatonin release, which is the hormone that makes us sleepy. Oh, and the app is free!!

Note: I also use a blue-blocking screen protector on my phone.

 

Dim The Lights, Baby

This is so simple, but many aren’t aware that this makes a difference. At night time, light tells our brain it’s still day time, so again our melatonin isn’t released to make us sleepy. By turning off a few lights, dimming them if you have that feature or combining some dim lights with some candles, you send signals to your brain that it’s time for sleep.

 

Chill Tunes – Spotify

During the day, I’m often blasting some pretty upbeat beats to keep the energy high and to stay productive, but at night I try to switch to mellow tunes to again help unwind and signal to my brain that it’s time to chill. My go to app for music right now is Spotify as they’ve got tons of variety in all types of music. One of my favourite playlists for chillin’ is ‘Chill Out Music’ found here. Spotify is also free, but also has paid versions.

 

Super-Chill-Superfoods

Click here for 6 additional superfoods for high performance.

Three things I often use to relax and slow down my hyper-active, energized brain at night are:

Ashwagandha

I use ashwagandha powder to calm my chatter brain if it’s been an unusually intense day. I mix it along with some other superfoods with some water, coconut water and lemonade and just shake it up. It’s also an adaptogen which are foods that help optimize our hormone levels.

‘Ashwagandha is frequently referred to as “Indian ginseng” because of its rejuvenating properties, even though botanically, ginseng and Ashwagandha are unrelated.’ More info here.

Chamomile Tea

I’m not sure if people consider chamomile a superfood, but with how effective it is for sleep and calming you down, it could be. Chamomile tea is one of the most effective teas for creating a zen-like state before bed and I use it often. It also tastes pretty good. Another alternative if you don’t like chamomile is Valerian tea.

Kava Kava

Kava Kava is a superfood I’ve recently started using as I’m testing it out to use for an upcoming expedition because pills are a lot easier to carry/use on mountains than powders (ie. Ashwagandha podwer).

‘Kava Kava is a Polynesian superfood herb that has been used for centuries. It helps calm occasional anxiety, stress and restlessness and supports healthy restful sleep.’

My experience with it over the past couple of weeks has been a good one. 1-2 tablets of 250mg each and 30 mins later I’m pretty sleepy.

Click here for 6 additional superfoods for high performance.

 

Final Thoughts

Good sleep takes work, but man does it make a difference. Use this post as a reference when needed, but also know that there are probably 100 other awesome strategies and tools. Do some research outside of this post, try some of these strategies and keep what works and throwout what doesn’t.

Hope this has been helpful. Post your questions below and if you think this has been valuable, click ‘Like’ below and share this post with the people you care about.

 

Brent - Signature v2

 

 

 

 

How to Sleep Like a Baby - Mavrixx Blog - Sleep Quote

 

Click here for 6 additional superfoods for high performance.

 

Sources:

  1. Spotify Chill Out Music playlist, found here: https://play.spotify.com/user/spotify/playlist/67rsdtfs0BJIiQYQWKQU95?play=true&utm_source=open.spotify.com&utm_medium=open
  2. Ashwagandha facts via Chopra.com, found here: http://www.chopra.com/ccl/ashwagandha
  3. Kava Kava description via Natural Factors, found here: http://naturalfactors.com/product/kava-kava/
  4. Sleep quote image, found here: https://www.wattpad.com/85411616-quotes-about-sleeping