Optimise Your Sleep

Sleep plays a vital role in your physical, emotional and mental health. Several studies suggest that losing just one hour a sleep a night can drastically increase your risk of health issues like of heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and stroke. Sleeping gives our bodies time to heal, repair & rest to be ready for another full day of activity & productivity.

To improve your sleep:

• Create a sleep routine - going to bed at the same time and waking up at the same time helps to regulate your sleep rhythm. Irregular sleep patterns are more difficult to navigate and tend to result in poor quality and a lesser total time slept 

• Create a sleepy environment - its recommended to keep your room as dark as you can (pitch black is ideal), ensure a comfortable temperature, use an eye mask, limit noise and distractions

• Minimise Caffeine late in the day - avoid caffeine or pre-workouts after 3pm-ish

• Reduce light exposure (TV's, laptops, phones, etc) - the absence of light sends a critical signal to the brain that it’s time to rest. Light exposure at the wrong times alters the body's internal "sleep clock"—the biological mechanism that regulates sleep-wake cycles—in ways that interfere with both the quantity and quality of sleep.

• Use blue light glasses - if screentime is unavoidable, having those glasses can help reduce the effect of the light on your sleep

• Maintain consistency in activity - research suggests this can improve sleep, helps reduce stress & anxiety and promotes deeper sleep

• Front load your nutrition - Avoid late night eating as that can cause lower quality sleep. Giving your body enough time to digest the food (at-least 2-3 hours between your last meal and bed time) can make the world of a difference

Some actionable things you can do now:

• Switch phone & laptop to night-shift at around maghrib/sundown time. You can do this in your display and brightness – this blocks the light that signals to your brain to stay awake

• Set a bed time and have a wind down time notification on your phone

  • E.g. Bed time at 10pm, start winding down at 9pm

• Set up a routine which allows you to relax

  • E.g. mindful shower, doing skin care, praying, reading a book, journaling, getting into warm & comfortable clothes and spending time with family

•  Set a wake time & routine and be consistent with it

  • E.g. Wake up at 6am, make wudu, pray fajr and make your bed

• Make your last caffeinated drink at 2pm

• Take a magnesium supplement before bed - magnesium is responsible for over 600 physiological processes within your body, improving relaxation and enhance sleep quality