"I Had a Bad Night's Sleep!"

   "I had a bad night's sleep!" I can't count how many times I've said that, or heard clients at the gym say the same thing! Short of buying Tom Brady-endorsed TB12 Performance Sleepwear, what do you do?
   Going through my files, I found a 2015 article from Drs. Oz and Roizen on the subject. Here are some tips they had, interspersed with my own thoughts.
  * No coffee within three hours of bedtime, no exercise within two. When I worked evenings managing a New York Sports Club, I would often work out pretty intensely between 9:30 and 10:30, right before the club closed for the evening. I'd eat dinner after we closed, around mid-night, and predictably, I wouldn't be able to get to sleep until at least two in the morning. The bad combination of late exercise, a meal before bed-time, and did I mention the stress of that job?
  *Skip the nightcap: I find one beer or glass of wine helps put me to sleep, and does not affect me staying in that state. More than one drink will put you out, but you tend to wake up in the middle of the night as the alcohol wears off. Not good!
   *No pets on the bed. We had a temperamental Yorkshire Terrier early in our marriage. He liked to sleep horizontally across the middle of the bed, and was very protective of his spot. You had to get used to sleeping like a pretzel. Ironically, when Carli was born, he stationed himself outside her room, instinctively protecting the newborn. It's amazing how smart (and sometimes, stubborn) animals are!
  *Eat healthy fats: Foods that promote brain health like cold water fish are also sleep aids, according to the Doctor's article. If your diet does not include enough of this type of food, they recommend omega-3 supplements, totaling 900 mg a day.
  *Shut the mind off!: The trickiest aspect of all. Whenever I have a half-marathon or any other type of big event the next day, I invariably sleep badly. You think of stupid things like sleeping through the alarm, all the time aware that is much more likely to happen if you don't get a good night's sleep! Articles always recommend getting a good night's sleep two nights before a major life event, knowing the night before will be rough. It's also often tricky getting to sleep the night after a big event, as your mind replays the day, good or bad!
 *Sleep Therapy: Drs. Oz and Roizen mention CBT-1, short for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. It's short-term therapy designed to train your mind and body for great sleep, and studies have shown it works better than a sleeping pill! I haven't tried it, but have been doing something else, that I picked up from a listener quiz on a sports radio station. Pick a professional sports team and pick the five best players you can think of in their history, just off the top of your head! Than go onto the next, until you get to sleep. You can't use a player twice, if they played for multiple teams (think Randy Johnson or Rickey Henderson). Someone please send me the best five Mets!