Sleep is absolutely essential in becoming as healthy as you can possibly be. Unfortunately most of us are chronically sleep deprived for a variety of different reasons.
Too much caffeine/stimulants during the day.
Too much blue light exposure before bed from TV’s and electronic devices.
Racing thoughts and anxiety.
Adverse reactions to pharmaceutical/recreational drugs
Poor diet.
The list goes on.
Without proper rest, we don’t heal correctly from our training sessions. Our nervous systems don’t get a chance to reset, and our mood and outlook on life is negatively effected. This is obviously not a state that we can thrive in. We NEED our rest to have a good head on our shoulders.
Some people turn to pharmaceutical drugs for relief of sleeplessness but that usually ends up making insomnia even worse in the long run. Sleep drugs simply knock you out…..Drug you. They don’t lend themselves to proper sleep architecture and don’t actually give you quality, restorative sleep. Not too mention they all carry addiction potential.
If you’re having trouble sleeping due to any of the things listed here, the first thing you need to do is to try and eliminate the ongoing reasons for your poor sleep.
Stop drinking caffeine after lunch or eliminate it altogether.
Stop using all electronics a few hours before sleep. Read a book or magazine instead.
Practice meditation or deep breathing to quiet your mind.
What ever you do, don’t regularly rely on pharmaceutical sleeping pills or tranquilizers to get some shut eye. Instead, there are other more natural things you can take that will not only aid you in relaxing and getting to bed, but with continued use, will eliminate your sleep issues altogether.
They are listed here in no particular order of importance.
Magnesium