Sunday Story…What (cont’d)

The second part of our physical puzzle is rest. Rest as in sleep. Rest as in no activity. Rest as in, well, rest. Unfortunately, we live in a time and place where we value activity over rest. How many times have we bragged about only sleeping 4 hours a night, or pulled an all-nighter to get a project done, or study for a test?

When we sleep we rejuvenate. When we sleep deeply our blood pressure drops, breathing slows, muscles relax, blood supply to muscles increases, tissue growth and repair takes place, energy is restored, and hormones are released, especially growth hormone which is essential for growth and development. A cat nap is not going to do all that. All of those things will happen when you sleep 7-9 hours a night. Sleeping also helps the quality of our lives by contributing to a healthy immune system, controlling our appetites through the proper levels of the hormones ghrelin and leptin. When we don’t sleep enough we may feel the need to eat more, which can lead to weight gain.

So let’s see…sleep more and get stronger, get sick less, control my appetite, achieve the proper hormonal response. Or we can sleep less and get sick, get fat, and die sooner. That’s correct studies show that people sleeping less than 6 hours a night have a death rate as much as 30% higher than people who sleep between 6 – 9 hours.

Sleeping well takes planning and sticking to that plan. You need to have an established routine that you perform every night before retiring to bed. Here are my top 5 tips for a great night’s sleep:
1. Go to bed at the same time every night (and get up at the same time every morning)
2. Sleep in a cool room (68 degrees)
3. Sleep in complete darkness
4. Turn off all electronic devices or keep them in a different room. The bedroom is for sleep and well, you know, not watching TV, doing computer work or anything else.
5. Keep it as quiet as possible.

It really is that simple but you must decide you are going to sleep well every night. Learn to quiet your mind, use deep breathing techniques, keep it quiet, dark, and cool, and wake up in the morning rested, stronger and healthier. You can do this.

Sleep…it’s what you need as much as food!

Next week…exercise!

Namaste

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.martialartsnevada.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com