053: Fixing Your Sleep
The Better Man Podcast
The Importance of Sleep
"I personally benefit from naps. I'm benefiting from them now even more than I usually do because I have a newborn and I am sleeping way fewer hours," he says. "Sleep does get more difficult as we get older, sort of because it's harder to get away with activities that when you're younger would not have affected your sleep"
Sleep is one of the most important activities you do. In fact, getting high-quality, deep, and REM sleep may be the most important thing you do for your overall health and wellbeing.
Yet many of us struggle falling asleep and get poor sleep, which leads to feeling groggy and exhausted the next day. Not only that, but lack of sleep can cause weight gain, poor nutrition and exercise habits, dwindling motivation, and can even make our emotions wreak havoc on us and our relationships.
So, why do so many people struggle with sleep?Well, our modern way of life doesn’t help: Blue screens, stress from work, and alcohol consumption—to name a few—devastate our sleep quality. But we also don’t focus on winding down before bed, causing us to toss and turn for hours before finally drifting into sleep.
In today’s show, we cover:
- How to assess your sleep quality
- What’s causing poor sleep and how can we fix it?
- And the worst (and best) activities you can do for your sleep quality
And more!
Listen now.
Show highlights include:
- The scientific reason why sleeping 7.5 hours instead of 6 hours unlocks the most cognitive, physical, emotional, and restorative benefits (5:53)
- Why cutting off your caffeine by 2 pm will improve your sleep quality (even if you’re not sensitive to it) (11:09)
- How screens from your phone and TV suppresses melatonin production and makes it harder to fall asleep (12:48)
- Does taking naps in the day make it easier or harder to fall asleep at night? The answer might surprise you… (14:09)
- The 5 worst things you can do before falling asleep which ensures you wake up groggy and exhausted (17:14)
- How to “get away” with drinking alcohol without it sabotaging your sleep quality (20:22)
- Why taking a magnesium supplement actually helps you wind down and get better sleep compared to taking melatonin (23:54)
- Cal Newport’s “Work Shut Down” process for compartmentalizing your work so you can relax before bed (25:16)
- How to increase your sleep quality with a single piece of tape (33:55)
- The 6 best ways to fall asleep easier and wake up refreshed and ready to conquer your day (34:24)
Resources mentioned in this episode:
1. Rhone: Save 20% on all high-quality, long-lasting, and comfy workout gear from Rhone by using this link: https://manflowyoga.com/rhone
2. Paleovalley Grass-Fed Beef Sticks: Looking for a quick, yet high-quality source of protein for building muscle? Try Paleovalley’s Grass-Fed Beef Sticks using our link to save 50%: http://manflowyoga.com/beefstick
3. Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker available on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Sleep-Unlocking-Dreams/dp/1501144324/
Related Episodes:
Other important links:
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