Effective Sleeping Tips

 Sleep, and lack there-of! At Mountain Fitness, besides middle-aged aches and pains, it's one of the most common subjects discussed.
    I wake up at 4:15 a.m. every day (5:15 on weekends), so sleep needs to be somewhat of a science for me. When fatigue starts setting in, usually about 8 p.m. on week nights, it's time to head upstairs and not "fight the feeling." If you try to push through, or snooze for ten minutes on the couch, a "second wind" kicks in, and you may be up to midnight.
   Also, if there's a night I'm out later at a family gathering or sporting event, I know my "pitch count is up," and I need a good night's sleep the following night to get back on course.
    There's also times when I've really worked out hard, or exercised in the evening, and your body is just too physically charged to fall right asleep. You don't fight it then, just stay up a little later, reading, and let sleep take over naturally.
    The worst is stress, however. You either can't fall asleep at all (I try reading something light), or fall asleep, and wake up in the middle of the night, all mentally wired! Not wanting to wake up Laurie, I will often go downstairs on the couch. Sometimes, just a different venue will invoke drowsiness.
     Runner's World recently published an online article, "Why You can't Stop Waking In the Middle of the Night," by Christina D'Adamio. They interviewed Helix co-founder and sleep expert Adam Tishman on the reasons people get a bad night's sleep. The six mentioned were:
    SLEEP APNEA: When your breathing actually stops and starts through the night. A medically treatable and common condition. Often caused by enlarged tonsils or obesity.
     INDIGESTION: A heavy, creamy, or spicy meal right before bed, and/or too much alcohol, is a recipe for a bad night's sleep. Years ago, I worked evenings managing a large, corporate health club. It was stressful (with 50 staffers, and 2000 members), and I'd work to 11 p.m. and then come home and eat dinner. I'd usually stay up to at least 1:30-2 a.m., to digest and unwind. The only saving grace was, I'd run when I got up the next morning, fueled by my dinner the night before. That is, except for the frequent "alarm call nights"' when I'd drive back to the club after maybe an hour's sleep at 3 a.m. to check out a burglar or fire alarm. No, I was not in a great mood the next day!
   STRESS: See the paragraph above!
    LIGHT: You need to figure out whether you like total darkness (the best for achieving a deep sleep), or some indirect light. While the television is great to fall asleep to, it's best to turn it off during the night, because the disparities in light and sound can wake you.
    NOISE: Optimally, I like music on very low, but, again, the experts recommend total quiet. the exception may be a fan to supply "white noise" that hides outside sounds like car alarms, traffic, or early-morning garbage trucks.
     TEMPERATURE: Your body temperature drops at night, as your body goes through "recovery mode." I tend to get cold easily, and I keep a sweatshirt on when I sleep. Everyone has a different body thermometer, however, and you need that correct balance of clothing and coverings to have a restful night's sleep.
    YOUR PARTNER: You never snore, your husband/wife does! You like it warm, they like it cool. You prefer the radio on, they don't. Their restlessness wakes you up. It's really never your fault, just their's! Yes, the rules of sleeping together, literally, have to be established and respected.
    As you can see, sleep is tricky business, and the more important things you have going on, the trickier it is. Runner's World always recommends that marathoner's get a good night's sleep two nights before a race, because the night before, it's next to impossible. Just establish your routine as best as possible, have all your "ducks in a row" for the morning, and expect that you're going to have a restless night.
   Good luck getting a good night's rest, and don't over-think it. Then you'll never get to sleep!