By Lisa Tamati, Running Hot Coaching
I have suffered on and off for years with this horrible problem that can really drain your life energy so I wanted to share some things that will help you beat this. 1. The first tip is to go to bed and wake up at the same time each day to develop a routine. Use nature cues like darkness and light to signal your body to prepare to relax 2. Don't do anything in bed except sleep, have sex or maybe read. But definite don't use your bedroom to study, take phone calls or work on your computer or watch tv. 3. Don't eat or drink too much late at night as this gets your digestive system going and stops you having restful sleep. Too much water right before bed can make you have to wake up frequently to urinate. One exception to this would be a small glass of milk that has calcium to help relax your body or a few almonds which can also help you relax. A couple of hours before bed perhaps a cup of fennel or chamomile tea also helps you relax 4. Take a warm bath before bed or get your partner to give you a massage (good luck with that). Use Epsom salts to help detoxify your body. 5. Pay guided sleep meditations or listen to soothing music or natures sounds like the sea lapping against the shore. It helps calm the left brain and stop you thinking too much. 6. Get more exercise during the day to exhaust your body into a relaxed and peaceful state. Office workers have more trouble sleeping than manual labour. However don't do stimulating exercise just before bed as this can be too stimulating. Doing some yoga or Pilates just before is ok as it relaxes the body 7. Deep breathing exercises. Deep breathing helps you tap into your parasympathetic nervous system which is your rest and digest system and helps you shut down and relax 8. Visualise s happy peaceful place. Whether it's a tropical island or swimming with whales something that makes you feel happy, safe and relaxed. 9. Avoid caffeine drinks and alcohol. Caffeine can stay in your system for hours and can be the cause of you waking off through the night. Alcohol can help you fall asleep but it's not restful sleep and can make you awake often as well. 10. Avoid naps ( I hate this as I love little nana naps but it's true if you nap during the day it can make you less able to sleep at night). Once again it's about routine that's important. Don't use naps to catch up on sleep also don't use sleepins to catch up on sleep as once again it breaks the routine. 11. Get up earlier also helps you got to sleep better at night. 12. Imagine it's time to get up. Picture that beautiful time when you wake in the morning so relaxed and warm and you just don't want to get up but have to. Imagine you have to get up and it's cold and uninviting. Imagine having heavy eyes and you just want to stay in bed. This makes you just want to drift off. 13. Wiggle your toes. If you believe in reflexology which says that your feet are the ends of your meridians and the mind and body are very connected. By wiggling your toes it helps relax your entire body . 14. Lie on your back with your legs up a wall and then breath deeply for ten minutes to activate your parasympathetic nervous system and this helps you a have deep relaxing sleep. 15. If you worry a lot about jobs for tomorrow or problems. Set aside a time during the day to worry and write things down. This relieves that feeling of "have I forgotten something important and ooh I have to do this and that tomorrow". By writing it down you relieve your brain and you rest assured knowing it's all written down and ready to go tomorrow. 16. earplugs can help if you have a noisy bedroom or bedroom occupant so that you don't get unnecessarily disturbed. 17. A hot water bottle on your tummy (if it's not too jot$ can make you feel safe and secure. We hold lots of tension in our stomachs and heat can relieve this So there you have it. I hope this helps you get relaxing wonderful sleep and that you have a lot more energy for your day.
To discover more about Lisa's training and running philosophies, or to sign up for a seven-day free trial with Running Hot Coaching, visit https://www.runqld.com.au/coaching
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