Counting sheep and not asleep?
We’re meant to spend a third of our life asleep – roughly 8 hours a night. But often this can feel like an elusive goal.
Here are 5 tips for a good night’s sleep that work for me. You probably know them already, but it’s nice to have a reminder!
1. A regular sleep schedule
This one starts hours before bedtime. First thing in the morning in fact! I aim to get up at the same time each morning so I’m sticking to one sleep schedule. This has the effect of making me feel tired at about the same time each night. I put my alarm on the other side of the room to make sure I get out of bed and don’t roll over for a lie-in! I set my alarm for a little earlier than I need, so I have some peaceful time to myself before chasing up the kids, making packed lunches etc. Then I get outside into the fresh air, even if it’s just for 10 minutes. Exposing my body to natural light helps its internal body clock to run like, well, clockwork.
2. Enough exercise
The more exercise/movement I add to my day, the more soundly I tend to sleep, and the less likely I am to stay up late – my tired body tells me to get to bed!
3. Less caffeine
You’ll know this one for sure – no caffeine from the afternoon on. I have phases where I think I should quit caffeine altogether, but my morning coffee is a habit I’m not ready to give up yet! Caffeine is a stimulant that can have an effect on your body up to about 8 hours later. So my afternoon drink tends to be a non-caffeinated brew like rooibos tea.
4. More magnesium
Relax in a warm magnesium (you can use Epsom salt or Magnesium Chloride Flakes) bath about an hour before bedtime. The combination of warm water and magnesium is a natural soother.
5. Bedtime routine
As I wrote about here, it’s great to have a pre-bed routine, just like we did when we were young. At the very least I massage some Magnesium Oil into my feet. My trusty mag oil comes with me no matter where I am, as it really helps my quality of sleep.
If you’d like to try our magnesium products to help your sleep, our sampler sizes are a good place to start. Read more on our FAQs page about the difference between Gold Label and Natural Epsom salt.
Good night, sleep tight!
PS – If you’re in New Zealand and reading this during March Sleep Month 2021, you’re getting 20% off all sizes of Magnesium Flakes for your bath and foot soaks. Sale on until midnight 31 March 2021.
