Sleep better: the dream coach

In this article, I am going to show you some best tips about how you can improve sleep quality.

Don't count hours of sleep: count cycles.

Maybe this is the strangest thing. We have been listening to sleep for eight hours. So, if they ask you how much you slept today, you will say 5,6,7 ... hours.

According to the R90 method followed in the book «Sleeping», what we should tell when sleeping is 90-minute sleep cycles. Why? Because it is the time it takes to make a complete cycle with all its phases. This way we make sure we don't cut any rest cycle in half.

There are people who need to sleep 4 cycles, 5 or 6, it will depend on each one. It is best to try a week to sleep 5 cycles (which is the most normal) and get to know each other.

Sleep better, always wake up at the same time.

And whatever happens. Weekends, holidays, after dinner ... Even if you go to bed at 4 in the morning, your waking time should not vary.

What a roll, right? But this is how your body gets used to and gets used to it. This is something that I have been doing for a long time, although it is true that I have delayed my waking time from 5 to 6:30 to be able to keep it's faint.

To calculate what time we should go to sleep, you will have to count backward in 90-minute cycles and always sleep with the coincidence of the beginning of a cycle. Therefore, it will not be necessary to lead a rigid life, but to sleepless cycles one day we have night plans.

The important thing: the weekly sleep calendar.

But we can't sleep two cycles every day. If your ideal dream is 5 cycles, at least four nights a week you must fulfill it. In this way, your weekly sleep calendar is respected and your rest is not affected.

Pre and post-sleep routines to sleep better.

Maybe it's what I liked the most and what I applied most. To sleep better, but above all to optimize rest, try to apply a series of routines to follow before sleeping and just when you wake up. Also, minimize your stress.

Each of these routines will also consist of one cycle (90 minutes). I tell you how I adapted them to be realistic.

Ideally, both routines do not use mobile devices or screens. In my case, I don't use my cell phone or computers 90 minutes before bedtime. Yes, I see a series for being the only moment we have, but 30 minutes before I cut everything and read a while to fall asleep.

In addition, the lights should be dim to help our body understand what is going to happen before sleep and even when we wake up, so as not to break the break with artificial cold lights. Nothing mobile in bed or at night, or midnight, or just wake up. Stay away from stress and technology for at least half an hour.

The nap: periods of controlled recovery.

This is the only point I have not been able to follow even if I wanted to. My children do not take a nap, so sleeping me (even half an hour) is impossible. But if you can, it is important to make at least a 30-minute rest period during the day.

The sport: yes, but watch out for the time.
It also affects, of course, the importance of sport when it comes to sleeping well, but many times we do not take into account the time at which we practice it and we do it when we can, often at the last minute of the day.

The sport activates our body and our rest will not be positive or restorative if we go to sleep activated. Try to leave one or two cycles at least between the end of the sports session and the time to go to sleep.

Of course, food is always responsible for our health, which includes night health. So as we know, light and healthy dinner will help us rest well, not have digestive problems and recover in less time. Always at least one or two cycles before bedtime. 

There are also some companies that provide sleep coach certifications out there. The best method to help your self and others about sleep quality is to enroll those certifications.