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| Small Steps
A journey of a thousand miles begins with
a single step.
Lao-tzu
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| I
had planned to write about 'getting your sleep' for some time, but it
seems most appropriate today since I woke up at 4 this morning and
couldn't get back to sleep.
Getting your sleep is as important as
anything else you can do to improve your health. If you aren't
getting enough sleep, you probably don't have enough energy to exercise,
you're probably making your food choices for an immediate energy fix
(sugar & caffeine) and you're probably more at risk for negative
thinking.
Here are some tips from the National Sleep Foundation for sleeping well:
- Maintain a regular relaxing sleep and wake schedule;
- Establish a relaxing bedtime routine;
- Create a healthy sleep environment -- dark, cool & comfortable;
- Avoid disturbing noises -- get a fan or white-noise machine (the TV and radio don't count);
- Use the bed for sleep and sex only;
- Do not eat or drink too much close to bedtime; and
- Exercise daily.
As we age, our sleep changes so here are some tips for promoting sleep as you age
- Exercise in the afternoon;
- Avoid alcohol in the later evening; and
- Avoid stimulants such as caffeine for at least 3 or 4 hours before bed.
One
small step you can take to getting more sleep -- go to bed 5 minutes
earlier and get up 5 minutes later. 5 minutes isn't too much to ask
for, is it?
And don't give up your sleep to build another good
habit. I read an article about ways to get your exercise if you're
busy. One of the suggestions was to get up earlier, but since we are
already a sleep deprived nation, that would just be stealing from one
healthy habit to build another, and in the end you probably would end up
with neither. Get your sleep so that you have the energy and ability
to make the other healthier decisions in your life.
How will you get more sleep this week?
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Did you find some balance last week?
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You can't beat the feeling of getting into bed after a long,
hard day.
Rob Stacey
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