5 Reasons You’re not sleeping
Sleep is critical if you want to be functioning at your full capacity. If you’re struggling to fall or stay asleep, one of these five things might be the culprit!
Getting at least 7 hours of sleep each night is crucial for optimal functioning throughout the day.
Quality sleep helps us:
Manage stress effectively
Improves immune function
Enhances training recovery
Regulates appetite
Contributes to discipline
Can increase motivation leading to higher activity levels
Most adults need at least 6-8 hours of quality sleep to reap these benefits. Good sleep sets you up to have a good day! If you’re struggling to fall asleep or stay asleep, one of these five things might be the culprit!
You’re not sleeping well because of…
1. Anxiety
When you find yourself laying in bed worrying about not being able to sleep, anxiety often creeps in. This can release brain chemicals that will keep you alert, awake, and ruminating. Instead of beating yourself up for not being able to sleep, try to gently remind yourself that:
You’ll fall asleep eventually; we’re biologically wired to
You’re probably getting more sleep than you realize (you’re not aware of your lightest sleep phases)
Occasional sleep loss is normal (especially during times of excitement, anticipation, change, or stress)
2. Too much Caffeine
Caffeine blocks the function of adenosine which is a neuro-chemical that makes us tired. It takes hours for our body to fully metabolize caffeine so even if you’re not drinking right before bed, the effects can stay with you until bed time. You don’t have to remove caffeine from your diet, but here are a few tips that can make sure it doesn’t interrupt your zzz’s
Limit caffeine intake to morning hours
Reduce intake slightly (even by 1 cup/day can help)
3. Sleeping in
Waking up later means that you won’t be sleepy until later because it takes about 16 hours of wakefulness to accumulate enough adenosine for you to feel tired. Unfortunately, waking up later on the weekends can throw off your Monday and therefore the rest of your week
Try getting out of bed at a similar time on weekends as you do on weekdays. It may not feel the most fun at first, but it will help you start your week with more rest and as a bonus, you’ll have more waking hours to enjoy your weekend!
4. Lack Of Sunlight
Sunlight helps regulate your circadian rhythm; it helps you feel awake in the morning when it’s bright and tired in the evening when it’s dark. Failure to get enough sunlight during the day can delay our natural clock and push back the onset of sleep.
Try to get at least 10-20 minutes of sunlight within 2 hours of waking up each morning
5. Artificial Light
We’re exposed to a ton of artificial light from TV’s, computers, phones, and even lamps which can disrupt melatonin and make sleeping a struggle
Try to limit screen time in the hour or so before bed. At the very least, dim the lights and use things like dark mode and blue light blocking lenses
If you’re struggling to sleep, try playing around with 1 of these things at a time to see if you can collect some data about what might be causing your wakefulness so you can start making changes!
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