A restful and blissful mind is the key to sleep.
Whilst some people claim that stroking their Cats while sipping on Warm Milk knocks them right out, there are a few strategies that are proven to work more consistently (and don’t involve spilling milk on Cats):
1. Exercise for at least 30 minutes a day – I recommend a power walk or a fitness program like P90X3 (which is what I’m doing right now).
FYI: Brushing your teeth and operating the TV remote don’t count as exercise.
2. Meditate for 30 minutes a day – Another great way to De-Stress yourself from the outside world and those rampantly fluttery thoughts is to Meditate. I do the “Mindfulness of Breathing” meditation shortly after my morning shower and a session of Lifeflow just before going to bed. Refraining from snoring, swearing, leaning and swaying during sessions makes it that much more effective.
I also sometimes plug into the “Delta Sleep System program by Dr. J Thompson” while doing my nightly house chores.
3. Stop Smoking – Smokers are more likely to suffer from sleep related issues due to nicotine withdrawals that kick in hours into their sleep.
But quitting is easier than you think. Sure. The withdrawal pains are painful and a bit jittery, but as adults, we as can all handle a little bit of pain right? So, the only real way to quit is to just..quit and then storm the weathers, until all the nicotine is flushed out the system for good. But I would recommend that you read “The Easy way to Quit Smoking” by Alan Carr before getting started.
This book will give you all the willpower and reasons you would want to quit because smoking is the one thing that can potentially take away every little you have starting with your hair down to your toes and even the people closest to you (even if you smoked from a different room).
Oh, and get yourself a good stash of “quit tea” bags as well to indulge in whenever the cravings kick in.
Alcohol has a similar effect on sleep as nicotine. And the book that will help you to come off that habit is another book by Alan Carr titled “Stop Drinking Now”
4. Take a warm bath 3 hours prior to sleeping – A warm bath helps bring down your body temperature over a period of about 2 hours. I also recommend adding a few drops of Lavender in there as well for the extra “Zzzz effect”.
5. Make your bed super cozy – I would recommend replacing all your bed linen with Egyptian Cotton (or Satin) and replacing your mattress and pillow with 100% Memory Foam alternatives
6. Use an electric under blanket and turn down the heating for the room – This ensures that your body temperature is regulated in a sleep-friendly manner
7. Keep a book handy to read should you wake up at night – If you wake up at night, get out of the bed straightaway, sit somewhere nearby and read at least 10 pages of the book you have set aside for yourself. Then let out a BIG yawn and get back to sleep.
8. Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day – This programs the body to fit into a repeatable and reliable sleep cycle.
9. Sleep Less – Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need more than 4 hours of sleep to get by. So getting just that much of shuteye per night, guarantees that your engines will run as they should (with the help of some vigorous exercise and a few cups of strong Coffee).
So, if your current sleep cycle isn’t paying off too well for you, try cutting it down to 7 hours and then 6 hours to see what you respond to the best.
And once you have regained control of your sleep cycle, feel free to increase it gradually over time.
10. Start the day with a Strong Cup of Coffee – A Strong Coffee or two (made with Milk and Honey)in the morning gets your engines back up and running from a bad night of sleep. But refrain from having any Coffee after 4pm.
11. Drink plenty of water – A glass of water every hour does Wonders to many aspects of your health and even weight related issues. But don’t drink as much closer to bedtime, unless you particularly enjoy sleepwalking to the Bathroom and back every hour
12. Get plenty of sunshine – Go for a walk when it’s bright and sunny. And open the curtains first thing in the morning to let in a good deal of sunshine in. And if the Sun isn’t bright enough or you work in an enclosed Office Space, then use Daylight bulbs to brighten your interior
13. Make your bedroom your “sleep/sex sanctuary” – Get rid of anything that isn’t sleep or sex related from the bedroom. That includes anything that is work related, money related or skydiving related
14. Lose some weight – Many sleep issues are weight related. So it helps to deflate anything that you don’t consider absolutely necessary.
Now, the only “real”way to lose weight and keep it off for good is to switch everything you eat to Fresh Produces as opposed to processed foods and anything containing chemicals, additives, preservatives etc.
So for at least 6 full days a week commit to eating only fresh fruits, veggies, greens, nuts, eggs, and milk. You can have these in the form of Smoothies and Egg Salads as I do.
As per the smoothies, feel free to grab a few recipes from the Vitamix, Nutrininja or Nutribullet websites. It might also not be such a bad idea to get one of these bad-ass Blenders to actually compliment the recipes.
Now if you wanna do more than just eat healthily and aim for the really jaw-dropping and waist-dropping real results, then incorporate a 20-30 minute daily power walk to this regiment and start drinking at least one glass of water every hour.
15. Never use sleeping pills – If you’re using sleeping pills or any other drug, consult your physician to help you come off them gradually. Sleeping pills do more harm than good and they can prove to be detrimental to your health in the long-run.
Make this 15 step game plan, a part of your everyday life and very soon you’ll be the envy of every 3 year old, who once reigned as the undisputed featherweight champions of Sleep.
