February - Sleep It Off!!

One Marvelous Me challenge complete, eleven to go!!

How did you find January’s Drink Up challenge, drinking between 2-3 L/day? Many of you probably started this month thinking you were already consuming enough. It is only when you start to keep track that you realize often we are way under our optimum goals. Hopefully January’s challenge has at least made you aware and into the habit of carrying a water bottle with you.  Have any of you noticed any changes since you started consuming the correct amount of water? I would love to hear about them!

So it is onto February’s Marvelous Me challenge – Sleep It Off! This months’ challenge is a doozy, I won’t lie. The object is to sleep a minimum of 8 hours/night. I can feel it, many of you are already stressed just thinking about how you are going to fit an 8 hour sleep with all you have to do in a day. Remember, this is a number to aim for. You probably wont be able to achieve this every night, but if we are setting this as our goal, we will for sure achieve this some of the time. It is those nights that you do get a full 8 hrs that I want you to experience. I want you to see how great you feel on a full night’s sleep and how productive you can be. You may have less waking hours to fit everything in, but what matters is how you are spending these hours. You will hoping find that having more energy to get more done in your day is more effective than burning the midnight oil.

Another thing to consider this month is not only the quantity but the quality of sleep you are getting.  Especially on those crazy days that you just cannot get to bed on time, are you at least making the hours that you do sleep count?

Here is an article I wrote a little while back on the quality of sleep you get and what you can you to improve it.

Good ol' eye mask helping me catch up on some zzz's in the car!

Sleep: Not only How Much, but When?

I was chatting with my client the other day about his sleep patterns. He claimed he gets enough, between 7-8 hours per night, but couldn’t understand why he often felt unrested.  So I asked him at what time did he sleep. He is a real night hawk, and often likes to work at night. He claimed it was quite common for him to be up until 4am and sleep until about 11. 

Aha!! That is why he felt unrested!!

Much of the focus is on the amount of sleep one gets and not on the time of day/night that they are sleeping. The time of day is actually a very important factor when it comes to the quality of sleep one gets.  As soon as we open ours eyes in the morning, light stimulates our serotonin production by suppressing the production of melatonin, the neurotransmitter needed for sleep. The best thing one can do when one wakes is go to a sunny window and get a full face of natural sunlight. No need for your cup of Joe after that!! However, this can be counterproductive when you are trying to sleep.

The best hours for sleep are from 8pm-7am, because those are the darkest hours. Even if asleep, exposure to light can inhibit your melatonin production, affecting your sleep. If one sleeps much while the sun is up and has thin window coverings, light is seeping in inhibiting one to experience that deep sleep that is ideal. It is said that even the light from an alarm clock can affect one’s melatonin production by stimulating serotonin. This is what was happening with my client. Although he was sleeping enough, half the hours he slept (7am-11am) the sunlight was coming through his thin drapes preventing his from experiencing a deep, healthy sleep.

Many of you following ‘The Marvelous Me Project’ have claimed that getting 8 hours of sleep has been a real challenge this month. Although, it may be a work in progress as we move into our next month’s challenge, focus on getting to bed at a decent time. Investing in some thick, dark drapes or one of those eye masks is also well worth it.  Even if you’re up at the crack of dawn and only able to achieve 6 hours of zzz’s, just make sure they’re good ones!

Now get to bed!