Do You Get Enough of This Daily?

Your alarm goes off: it’s 6:30am. You have work starting at 8:00am. You hit your 5 minute snooze once…twice…three…four…five times. Before you know it, its 7:00am and you still haven’t gotten out of bed. The thought arises “If I just fake sick and cough into the phone, they won’t know”, but they do. You decide to get up, rush around like a mad man to complete your 1-hour routine in 30 minutes before hitting the road to get to work on time. You get home, eat dinner, clean up, and flop in front of the TV for hours, or you decide to hit the gym before flopping in front of the TV. An episode of Lost comes up on Netflix and it sucks you in, you can’t keep your eyes off the TV no matter what happens, you’re glued to it. Before you know it, it’s midnight, then 1am, then 2am and you realize its not Friday, its not a weekend. You curse up a storm and regret this decision as you’ll only get 4 hours of sleep before the cycle continues again.

Does this sound similar to any of you? Do you fit this hypothetical character? Do any of your friends or family do this?

I don’t know about you, but I used to. However, it wasn’t always in front of a TV (video games), but even the computer. I just couldn’t pull myself away from these things. Frankly, there are some days even today that I can’t pull myself away. Sometimes I just want to be exhausted and become brain dead for a night. Why? I’m not sure…However, every time this happens, I regret it and dislike myself for it. I criticize and get on myself about it. “That was useless. Was it worth it? You’re going to be even more exhausted tomorrow. You didn’t accomplish anything all night.” These are just a few things I’ve said to myself before. It added to my drained mental state and made it worse; sometimes causing a bad downhill spiral.

Although everyone requires different amounts of sleep to feel at their best and be fully rested, many people don’t get the proper amount of sleep. As we age, we tend to require less sleep, which is good because we get busier and busier. However, we can never get so busy that we neglect ourselves and put off sleep. If its necessary, schedule sleep into your schedule, promise to keep to that schedule and under no circumstances will you stray from it. This will ensure proper amounts of sleep and potentially a more productive day (if you plan and act accordingly).

Personally, I’m one of the people who needs a solid 9 hours of sleep and wake up naturally-not to an alarm. This is when I feel at my best and well rested in the morning. Otherwise, I get up and am mildly groggy for the first 30-90 minutes after waking.

How many of you feel the same?

If you need more sleep than you’re currently getting, here are a few reasons to consider getting the right amount of sleep that is right for YOUR body:

Better mood – We all use the phrase “they must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed” when someone we come across is just grumpy or rude. Plain and simple, those who get adequate sleep for their body have better moods.
Look better – Adequate sleep combined with proper face and skin care aid in healthier skin (See our previous article for some tips and recommendations). Not only that, but proper sleep may also remedy those dreaded under eye bags.
Improved memory – After ‘sleeping on something’ or performing a skill or activity throughout the day, or even better just before bed, you’ll wake up better than you were the day before. Is sleep just not enough? Try this for improved memory AND energy.
Decrease inflammation – Its been studied that people who get 6 or less hours of sleep have higher levels of inflammation, marked by something called C-Reactive Protein (CRP). Inflammation is linked to heart disease, arthritis, premature aging, to name a few. Here’s a studied way to decrease CRP AND lose fat
Improved attention – Its been shown that instead of getting tired, sleepy, and groggy like adults, kids get ADHD like symptoms. This was after getting less than 8 hours of sleep a night for adolescents. Here is another way to improve attention, energy, mood beyond just sleep.
Helps avoid depression – Sleeping longer has a huge effect on the brain and remedying a downward spiral. Once someone gets moody, anxious, and irritable, it’s hard to stop even with good sleep. If they continue down this mental path combined with sleep deprivation, they’ll likely become depressed.
It’s all about those gains – Sleep and recovery is a huge component to building muscle and performance. Many hormones are released during sleep to repair damaged cells from the previous day, specifically growth hormone (See this article)

Increased productivity – It’ll be easier to chip away at that never-ending to-do list we spoke of a few weeks back (See this article). The better rested you are, the easier it is to focus.
Spend less time ill – Those who get proper sleep are less likely to get a cold, make dangerous mistakes, and spend less time at the doctor. A weakened body means a weakened immune system. Once exposed, it’ll be harder for your body to fight off the virus.
Less action under the covers – If we haven’t gotten you to get an appropriate amount of sleep for your body, this one will do it. If you don’t get enough sleep, you will lower your own libido. Who would want that… Mic Drop

These are only 10 of many reasons to get proper sleep. If none of them have spoken directly to you or have convinced you to get better sleep, read this article The Secret Ingredient to a Healthier Life. Regardless, I hope we have illustrated here the importance of getting the right amount of uninterrupted sleep for your body. I encourage altering your current lifestyle to accommodate this important, although commonly overlooked aspect of your life.