4 Steps for a Good Night's Sleep

There are so many options that can fall under physical wellness. It’s not just all exercise! – you can breathe a sigh of relief – There are 5 steps to physical wellness: sleep, eating well, physical activity, hygiene and relaxation. Today I am going to try & incorporate all of these for a day of physical wellbeing. Of course, things like sleep, will start from the night before to try & get the best rest to ensure I start the day off in the best way.

Physical wellness definition: The state of physical well-being is not just about the absence of disease, it includes lifestyle behaviour choices to ensure that we are avoiding preventable diseases & conditions and to live in a balanced state of mind, body and spirit.

Getting a good night’s sleep is one of the most important parts of our wellness more than we may notice. Our sleep affects us positively or negatively as our sleep restores us, it's necessary for our mental & physical health. Fatigue can affect every aspect of a well individual - both personally and professional, we need adequate rest for our daily activities. Let's see how doing some physical wellness activities help me.

DAILY AFFIRMATION
My body is healthy and my mind is peaceful.
Our overall health is linked to our body, mind and emotions. When our mind is peaceful and our bodies are healthy, we can live our best lives.

A MUST READ

Here's how focusing on these 5 Pillars of Wellbeing could improve your life

get a good night's sleep naturally

- Give yourself 7-9 hours of sleep opportunity
[This is the amount of time you’re allowing yourself to sleep, not necessarily time spent sleeping]
My body needs at least 8hour sleep, tried and tested by my life. Anything less, forget it. Headaches will occur if I don’t get an undisturbed, calm night’s sleep. Tiring myself out is the best way for me to make sure my body is rested.

- Go to bed & wake up at the same time, 7 days a week.
[This’ll help regulate your circadian rhythm - a natural, internal process that regulates the sleep–wake cycle and repeats roughly every 24 hours.]
My natural body clock wakes up quite early but it'll be in-between hours. I'd like to see if I get back into a routine of at least 11pm-7am - start winding down about 8-9pm. This is where routine plays a huge part but routine doesn't need to seem military.

- Avoid electronic devices at least 1hr before bed
[The blue light from devices block melatonin release.]
Research has shown that when we expose ourselves to room light it does suppress our melatonin levels and then shortens our body's internal representation of night duration. It makes it harder for us to rest as blue light represents - daylight. Some phones now have a blue light filter where it'll turn the phone screen an, 'orange tint'.

- Have a warm bath or shower
[Studies have shown those who do, 1-2 hrs before bed, fall asleep faster and experience significantly better quality of sleep]
Aroma Active Laboratories have a range for those who struggle to sleep. I purchased their Sleep Mist & Sleep Salt Soak.

The soak has active ingredients such as Epsom salts which help to relieve tension & relax the body. Hops relieves stress, anxiety to help us wind down. Valerian Root Extract used to induce sleep and improve sleep quality and Magnesium promotes muscle relaxation. It has a beautiful aroma when added to the bath, very calming. While the sleep mist, is a combination of Lavandin (a hybrid between two lavender species – it produces 10x more essential oil than English lavender) Valerian for calming, Ylang Ylang & Buddhawood combined have a calming & centring effect. This needs to be sprayed onto your pillows and bed linen approx. 15mins before bed. I’ve had a lot of mists over the years and do find that they can help with calming your senses.

Grab the bundle Aroma Active Sleep Bundle

Morning Yoga

Yoga is an amazing and gentle way to stretch and work out our mind & muscles. I was first introduced to yoga at 13, due to a knee injury and was told that it was a good way to recover. I do go back to yoga from time to time but I do wish I was more consistent with it. It helps with improving strength, balance and flexibility just slow movements and deep breathing increases blood flow and warms the muscles up and while holding a pose you’re building strength. I’ve been suffering with lower back pain for a while probably due to my previous job and not watching my posture but the stretches can help improve mobility. Yoga is also said to help manage stress, as it supports stress management, mental health, mindfulness, weight loss and quality sleep. Alongside morning meditation, I’ve decided to get some AM yoga in beforehand. I’m following this Wake Up Yoga Routine it’s 11 minutes and my guided meditation is another 11 minutes – less than 30 minutes to get the blood flowing and have the body feel relaxed & energised.

Do you have any tips on getting a good night's sleep?