According to a recent study, 1/3 of adults are in some way sleep deprived. 

While this is something we’ve grown to accept as part of life, sleep deprivation can have a profoundly negative impact on your health, happiness and overall well-being. It can also slow down your fitness journey, as you aren’t giving your body time to recover. As such, it’s important that you do something about it.

Photo by Greg Pappas on Unsplash

With that in mind, here are four simple yet effective ways you can set about improving your sleeping habits.

1. Try something other than counting sheep. Counting sheep is an age-old ‘trick’ to help you fall asleep when your mind is racing, but it often isn’t the most effective method out there. As such, you should try a wide range of products, such as those on offer from CBDistillery, until you find something that works for you. 

2. Exercise regularly. Regular exercise is a great way to improve your sleeping habits for many reasons. For example, it can help to increase your body’s production of the hormone melatonin, which regulates your body’s sleep-wake cycle. It’s also a great form of stress relief, which means it can settle anxious thoughts that would otherwise keep you up late into the night.

While any kind of movement is a step in the right direction, the best exercises to improve sleep include yoga, strength training, and aerobic exercises such as swimming, running and hiking. However, as a general rule, the more you move, the better you’ll sleep!

 3. Make sure your bedroom is a relaxing space. Turning your bedroom into a peaceful sanctuary often means that you’re guaranteed a restful night’s sleep. Fortunately, there are many ways in which you can go about this, from choosing the perfect bedding to investing in blackout curtains that keep your room dark and cool. 

If you’re working from home, you should also avoid working from your bedroom as much as possible – even if the idea of starting to reply to emails from the comfort of your bed seems tempting. This is because your mind will automatically associate this space with work-related stressors and anxiety, as opposed to peace and relaxation. This means that over time, you’ll find it harder and harder to fall asleep in that environment, no matter how tired you may be. 

4. Seek medical help. If you’ve been dealing with sleep deprivation for some time, it’s worthwhile reaching out to your healthcare provider for further help and assistance. This can rule out any underlying health conditions while also allowing you to decide the next course of action for dealing with insomnia and other forms of sleep deprivation. 

Final thoughts. If sleep feels like a dream within itself right now, you’ll be pleased to hear that there are plenty of steps that you can take to improve your sleeping habits, allowing you to get the shut-eye you deserve after a busy day or building up a sweat at the gym!