Sleep is vital to our health and well-being both mentally and physically. It’s essential to get enough good quality sleep every night and the benefits are critical to living a positive, happy, and healthy lifestyle. Continue reading in order to get the best sleep tips to help you wake up feeling energised and refreshed.
The amount of sleep we need depends on many different factors including our age, genetics, and the quality of sleep we’re getting…
But here are the average hours of sleep most people need depending on their age to get the best sleep possible…
Older adults (65+): 7–8 hours
Adults (18–64 years): 7–9 hours
Teenagers (14–17 years): 8–10 hours
School children (6–13 years): 9–11 hours
Preschoolers (3–5 years): 10–13 hours (including naps)
Toddlers (1–2 years): 11–14 hours (including naps)
Infants (4–12 months): 12–15 hours (including naps)
Newborns (0–3 months): 14–17 hours
Most adults need between 7-9 hours of sleep per night. But this can vary with individuals due to other factors. Some people only need 6 hours of sleep, whilst others need up to 10 hours to function to the best of their ability. You can judge how much sleep you need depending on how you feel after certain amounts of sleep. Everyone is different, so experiment to find your optimal sleeping time.
Here are just a few essential reasons why we need enough good quality sleep every night:
- Sleep is the time when your body clears waste from your brain, which helps to reduce the risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, etc
- We need sleep for brain power and to help regulate our emotions and memories
- It gives you energy and motivation to take on your day
- It helps us to cope with stress, depression and anxiety
- Lack of sleep can make you irritable, unproductive, and unable to focus throughout your day
- It helps with your immune system, metabolism, and appetite control which can help you to lose weight
- Lack of sleep can make you less creative. Increase your risk of accidents because your cognitive performance is lowered. And can lead to poor decision-making because your brain isn’t functioning properly
Ensuring that you get enough sleep that is good quality can be difficult. Good quality sleep is when you fall asleep quickly and don’t wake up throughout the night. You wake up feeling well-rested and energised in the morning. If you struggle to get good quality sleep there are some easy and effective ways you can boost your sleep quality tonight…
Create a Sleep Schedule
Unwinding in the evening before bedtime is an amazing way to increase your sleep quality. It will also help to ensure that you get the right amount of sleep. Going to bed around the same time each night will help your body’s natural internal clock to know when it’s time to switch off and fall asleep. This will make falling asleep a lot faster and easier in time.
It’s just as important to wake up around the same time as well every morning. You want to regulate your body clock so you’re not oversleeping and lying in.
Start a Sleep Routine to Get the Best Sleep
Creating a sleeping routine is great for helping you to relax and unwind before going to sleep, and creating the best sleep possible. You could have a relaxing bath with candles, read a book or listen to some calming music. Similarly, you could journal, meditate, listen to a sleep app, etc. Whatever helps you to switch off from the world and relax, will help you to fall asleep quicker and drift into a deep sleep.
Check out my post Crafting a Nighttime Routine for the Best Sleep for more advice on how to create a nighttime routine!
Check Your Environment
It’s important to have the most comfortable and calming environment to get the best sleep possible. Ensure that your bedroom is dark, quiet, and a comfortable temperature. You don’t want to be too cold or too hot throughout the night as this will disrupt your sleep quality.
Treating yourself to nice comfortable bedding, pillows, and pyjamas will make you look forward to curling up into bed. Similarly, changing your sheets regularly will make you more comfortable and your bed and sleep more inviting.
Remove Electronics from Your Bedroom
I’m sure you’ve heard this before but it is true, you shouldn’t have a television or your mobile phone in your bedroom. Your bedroom is the place to sleep and connect with your partner. It’s not for scrolling on your phone or lazing around watching TV.
When you remove electronics from your bedroom you will associate that space with sleeping and intimacy with your partner. Having bright and artificial light glaring into your eyes before bed will make it harder and take longer for you to switch off and fall asleep. Put your phone on airplane mode and you’ll be free from distractions when you’re switching off from the world and will fall asleep faster.
Check out my post Have a Tech-Free Morning for a Better Day for more advice on how avoiding technology in the morning can transform your day!
Be More Active Throughout Your Day
Exercise is an amazing way to help boost your sleep quality. When we’re more active our bodies will shut off faster and easier in the evening and it’s easier for us to unwind. However, avoid intense exercise later on in your day because you want your body to start unwinding and get ready for bedtime. Stretching and yoga are good options to help you to relax before bed.
Things to Avoid Before Bedtime to Get the Best Sleep Possible
It’s important to reduce your intake of certain substances in the evening and to avoid these things a few hours before bed. Avoid alcohol, sugar, and caffeine in the evening because these can affect your ability to fall asleep, stay asleep, and your sleep quality.
Your sleep quality will be dramatically reduced when you have any of these things before bed. Moreover, you’re likely to wake up feeling groggy and feeling as though you haven’t had enough sleep even if you got enough hours. This is because you’ll take longer to fall asleep and will be tossing and turning throughout the night.
“Getting enough sleep can be just as important as working out.”– Ali Vincent
Summary
Ensuring you get enough sleep and high-quality sleep, is vital for your everyday functionality. It’s also crucial for your mental and physical health. We all feel amazing when we wake up after a good night’s sleep. It helps us to feel well-rested and ready to take on our days.
Making sure you prioritise sleep and understand how essential it is for us to live a healthy and happy lifestyle is vital. Experiment with different sleep routines and times to see what works best for you. Ensure you get enough sleep every night if you want to live your best life and perform to the best of your ability.
“Sleep is the golden chain that binds health and our bodies together.”– Thomas Dekker
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