Can Exercising help me sleep better?

How many times have we all been told that exercising will assist in promoting better sleeping patterns? or that Yoga will calm me enough to feel well rested. I have personally tried and tested this and researched to find evidence to debunk this as truth or myth! 

Charlene Gamaldo, M.D. , medical director of Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep at Howard County General Hospital has said " We have solid evidence that exercise does, in fact, help you fall asleep more quickly and improves sleep quality. But there’s still some debate as to what time of day you should exercise. I encourage people to listen to their bodies to see how well they sleep in response to when they work out."

With that being said, how often should we exercise or what types of exercise should we be doing to help promote 'deep sleep.' Try out some different exercises and see what works for you. I have personally undertaken this test and have tried playing around with different exercises as well as times. Exercising in the morning made me more energetic and gave me this 'pump' for the day. Where as exercising in the afternoon/evening has me more tired and drains me of energy. 

Something that always helps me with sleep is swimming or playing around in the ocean water. The magnesium from the water just relaxes my muscles and makes me tired. A beautiful night of sleep, indeed!

As per an article by Big blue Swim, "Open water swimming is known for stimulating something called your “parasympathetic nervous system”. Your parasympathetic nervous system’s job is to stop the body from overworking itself and to restore the body to a calm and composed state. Being in the open ocean triggers this automatic response as the body prepares for more physical exertion than normal. This results in feelings of deep relaxation that last long after you get out of the water, helping you get a better night’s sleep."

Want more Tips on promoting better sleep?

Changing your bedding can help more than we think. Swop out that old lumpy pillow for a more firm and fitting one. If you suffer with your neck, then getting a memory foam or contour pillow will relieve the pressure on your neck and promote a restful nights sleep.

Seasonal bedding changes is a must! Summer and cooler nights call for cotton and light weight bedding. We suggest using a light quilt, cotton sheeting and lighter duvet inners. Whilst, Winter or colder nights call for warmer bedding, throws and blankets. We suggest flannel fleece, sherpa and heavier duvet inners for these nights.

Lighting plays such an important role in the quality of sleep we have. So choose the right curtains. We suggest a blockout or blackout curtain with a voile for a lovely dark room.

Thanks for reading our very first blog post. Feel Free to suggest what you would love us to cover in these post. 

Here's to more restful SLEEP!

Much Love,

CQ Linen Team