21st Century Sleep Tactics

When we think of bettering performance, the topic of recovery is paramount. Serious athletes know that recovery is as important as their training. It isn’t easy diving into a tub of ice, but they do it anyway. However, of all the recovery methods, one that is often overlooked is a tactic inherent in our biology—sleep.

Everyone has trouble falling asleep at times, and most resources will recommend sitting in your bedroom with the lights off until you drift into slumber. This is because lights trick your body into thinking its daytime, which inhibits the release of melatonin—a hormone that controls sleeping and waking cycles. Be it through room lighting, television, computers, and now phones, this artificial light interferes with our internal biological clock, making it more difficult to relax, sleep, and recover.

But I don’t survive long in a pitch black room. Five minutes after my head hits the pillow, insane thoughts creep through my head. I’ll either attempt to identify the exact moment my body falls asleep or contemplate death by wondering if I will wake up the next morning. It’s more of a mind-fuck cycle than it is a sleep cycle. Weird, I know.

But I’ve tested some impractical ways to deal with my inability to sleep. So if you’re like me and have a little trouble finding your happy place, give these suggestions a shot.

1. Handle your business immediately after your last meal

You’re lounging in your living room, watching television. You feel a wave of fatigue hit you and your eyes start to feel heavy fade. You may even doze off for a bit. It’s the perfect time to get up, walk into bed, and pass out. But on your way, you realize that you forgot to brush your teeth, plan your day for tomorrow, set your alarm, and take care of some last minute things. By the time you go back and do these things, you aren’t tired any longer.

To prevent this, do all of those things immediately after your last meal. Handle any pertinent task as soon as you can. If you like to have a game plan for the following day, write it up as soon as you know what needs to be done. If you’re a blogger or writer, don’t wait to proofread something you’re publishing the following day. Get it done and out of your mind.

2. Read a book

This is more of a classical suggestion, but read a book instead of watching television. Make sure it’s a nonfiction book that isn’t going to get your heart racing. It’s difficult to find a happy place when Michael Ellsberg is getting you fired up about the modern education system.

3. F%$# books – watch television

I don’t know what it is about Ancient Aliens, but that always puts me to sleep. The killer is that I love the show, and it isn’t boring to me at all. But I bite the dust nearly every time I watch it. In contrast, when watching Sports Center, I have a more difficult time sleeping. The lights are brighter, the colors are enhanced, and the commentators are livelier. So if you have a television show you enjoy watching that calms you, why avoid it?

4. Plan on watching television

You read about living a caveman lifestyle, and you’re pumped to lay in complete darkness to help you sleep better. Ten minutes roll by and you aren’t feeling so tired. Another five and you’re starting to second guess the whole process. Another five and you have the television on.

Look, you aren’t a caveman and you don’t have crickets serenading you to sleep. You were brought up with artificial lighting at odd hours of the night, so you’re more apt to be able to deal with it.

It’s better to plan on watching some television if you know you’re going to need it instead of watching it out of frustration when attempting new sleep tactics. So instead of avoiding it all together, plan to fall asleep by watching television. But how do you do it?

A good start is to wear sunglasses before you get into bed in order to trick your body into releasing melatonin. You don’t need your Oakley’s for this. A cheap pair of sunglasses that are comfortable on your face and nose will do. Turn on whatever show you enjoy, but avoid movies or sporting events that will entice you to keep watching. Turn the volume way down (mute it if you can).

After about ten minutes, take the sunglasses off and hide behind a pillow so you aren’t being burdened by the light from the television. Close your eyes and tell yourself that you’re just relaxing. Don’t put pressure on yourself to fall asleep.

The television will still be on, but the pillow will be blocking the light. At some point, you’ll likely hit a point of relaxation (if not sleep) to where you can honestly turn the television off and fall asleep within a few minutes.

This strategy works because many times, we put pressure on ourselves to fall asleep. How many times have you gotten upset after you realized that you would only be getting five hours of sleep? Then you say, “Well, if I fall sleep in the next 15 minutes, it won’t be too bad.” Fifteen minutes later, you’re still worried about it and now you’re hoping to snag only four hours of sleep.

When that happens, it’s more difficult to relax. The trick is to not think about falling asleep until you’re ready to fall asleep. So convince yourself that you’re “just resting” until the time is right.

5. Be a nomad sleeper

Remember my example of watching television in the living room and nearly falling asleep? Well, here’s a suggestion—really fall asleep. Of course, make sure you have all your business taken care of and an alarm set nearby (the wonder of cellphones) in case you need to wake up the next morning at a certain time.

6. Dump your brain out on paper

If you’re one of those people who constantly thinks about what tomorrow brings, grab a notebook and write all that down before you try to sleep. Likewise, if you’re worrying about things around the house (garage door closed, front door locked, oven off, and other small things), make a checklist and quickly run through it every night. When you hit your pillow, you want to be a vegetable.

7. Reduce your pillow size and go primitive

Pillows haven’t been with us throughout evolution. In fact, we can assume some comfortable positions without pillows—as some primitive people still do to this day.

But even though you don’t need a pillow, I still prefer using one without much fluff to it. Dismiss all notions that a pillow has to lay perpendicular to your body. Freestyle with it and try out the positions in the pictures.

According to research, they may be safer on the neck and body overall. The downward angle not only keeps the mouth closed, but it may also provide some traction on the spine and vertebrae.

8. Conquer the hour before you plan on sleeping

Most people have a certain time they would like to either be asleep by or be in bed by. One hour before this time, make sure you have everything done. Brain dump if you have to or handle your business using the ideas mentioned.

Use this hour to relax in the best way you know how. If it means watching television, put the television on, relax, and shut yourself down. If you’re a reader, lie down and read a book. You want to allot yourself one hour of this mellow time.

However, the key is to not unwind in the same place that you plan on sleeping. Many people read and watch television right in their bed and can’t get comfortable because the sheets are warm and it isn’t the same new, fresh, and comfortable feeling. It’s much easier to fall asleep if you enter your bed already tired. The more restless time you spend under the sheets, the more difficult it will be to sleep.

Whether you’re an athlete looking to optimize performance or a meathead looking to get jacked, sleep is an important recovery mechanism. If you’re one of those people who has trouble finding the back of their eyelids, it doesn’t have to come down to contemplating the meaning of life in a pitch black room. Try out these new age sleep tactics and see if you can find refuge in a more enjoyable way.

Sources

Tetley M (2000) Instinctive sleeping and resting postures: An anthropological and zoological approach to treatment of low back and joint pain. British Medical Journal 321(7276):1616–18.