optimising your sleep quality

Everyone needs their sleep, but what if you could ensure that you get a good night's sleep, every night? We're looking at some of the ways you can improve the quality of your sleep, to help you get a good night's rest, especially during these stressful times.

Some people are lucky enough to be able to fall asleep the minute their heads hit the pillow and get an amazing, undisturbed night of sleep no matter where they are, while the rest of us find ourselves tossing and turning throughout the course of the night only to wake up wishing we could sleep for a few more hours. Getting a good night's sleep is not just about waking up feeling refreshed, it has a huge effect on your metabolic system, your mood and your performance throughout the day - whether it's concentration, productivity, the quality of your decision making or just staying awake through a particularly boring Zoom meeting.

So, whether you're at home or away, here are some of the steps you can take to optimise your sleep and ensure that you wake up feeling refreshed and ready to face the day ahead:

Get into a routine

One of the most important steps to optimising your sleep is to get into a regular sleeping routine, which caters for your specific lifestyle and schedule. Have a regular rising or wake up time every morning based on your schedule, whether you're waking up for a gym class, work or taking your kids to school. Also, keeping a regular bedtime, based on when you usually start to feel tired, will ensure that you get the same amount of sleep every night. This will enable you to train your body's circadian rhythm (or sleep/wake cycle) , which, according to SleepFoundation.org, is a 24-hour internal clock that is running in the background of your brain and cycles between sleepiness and alertness at regular intervals.

Get your hours in

When it comes to waking up feeling refreshed, you need to ensure that you get the correct number of hours of sleep for your body. Your ideal sleep duration will depend on a number of different factors including age and general health. While most adults need between 7-9 hours of sleep a night, this is not true for everyone, and you will need to take your body into consideration when calculating how many hours of sleep you need at night to feel rested.

Reduce your screen time before bedtime

We're all guilty of sitting at home and watching TV or lying in bed staring at our phones before bed. However, light exposure - especially the blue lights of screens - can affect your melatonin levels by making your body think it is daytime, which will negatively impact your ability to fall asleep. This means that cutting down your light exposure at night before you go to bed is imperative if you want to have a better night's sleep. Ideally you shouldn't look at a screen for at least an hour before your bedtime, in order to give your body ample time to wind down.

Get the correct pillows and mattresses

Comfort is key when it comes to getting a good night's sleep and choosing the correct type of mattress and pillows play a huge role in how you sleep. The right mattress will make a massive difference to the quality of your sleep, whether you prefer the modern memory foam mattress or a good old inner spring one, make sure to pick a mattress that really works for you. The same goes with pillows, whether you prefer firmer memory foam pillows or the soft, luxurious down ones, will make all the difference to your sleep experience. The ideal pillow is not only about what feels the most comfortable, but you also need to look at choosing a pillow which keeps your spine in a neutral position.

Temperature matters

Having a bedroom that is too hot or too cold will affect the quality of your sleep, causing discomfort that could cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. Ensuring that your room has a moderate, if not slightly cooler, temperature can do wonders to help your body cool down as you sleep, which is part of your circadian rhythm, and improve the overall quality of your sleep. After all, think about the restlessness you experience at night in the height of summer or how long it takes for you to warm up your bed in winter.

Keep away from the caffeine:

Coffee is packed full of caffeine - something which is great for a morning pick-me-up, but not so great when it comes to trying to fall asleep. Caffeine can take hours to move out of your system and it is therefore recommended that you don't drink any drinks with caffeine in the evening and especially not before you go to bed, as it will affect your body's ability to wind down.

Give yourself time to wind down:

Meditating, reading a book, or listening to a podcast can be an excellent way to relax and start the winding down process, which will make it easier for you to fall asleep come bedtime. Winding down can also help alleviate any stress or anxiety that you may have worked up during the course of the day which would cause restlessness and affect the quality of your sleep.

When it comes to optimising your sleep, it is crucial that you listen to your body because, at the end of the day, what works for you may not work for someone else. In fact, your ideal sleep cycle and the quality of your sleep will completely depend on your body's individual needs and your own personal sleep preferences. So, good luck, get into bed and happy dreams!

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