Koala Bears sleep about 20 hours per day. Wood frogs hibernate during cold winter months where they stop breathing, their heart stops, and ice crystals form in their blood. When the weather warms these frogs defrost, and their lungs and heart go back into action.
While I love my kids and being a mom, it sure would be nice to be a koala bear or even maybe a wood frog for a week or two (except the heart stopping bit).
Sleep is a precious commodity, and it creates THE foundation for our ability to feel good, think clearly, move with motivation, and eat with fewer cravings. We can go longer without water and food than we can without sleep. Seriously.
Now there are obviously plenty of things to stimulate us like NCIS, late night Facebook prowling, or even getting some extra work done. Shoot, sometimes I love staying up late because it feels like the only time I have to myself with no expectations or distractions or other people needing me.
The problem is, for every minute I get at night to myself, I am ultimately robbing myself of more energy, focus, and sense of peace for my next day.
Running on reduced sleep creates a state of frenzy in our nervous system whether we consciously feel it or not.
When we sleep our body restores energy, heals tissues, grows muscles, categorizes our memories, resets our hormones, and so much more.
There's a ton of ways to get more sleep, but here's my solution.
- Get out of the way. Most of the time we aren't getting to sleep because there are too many things we are making more important than our own health needs. Sleep is not a luxury, it is a necessity!! I know things seem important at 10pm. Do what you can do finish them earlier or take them off your list until tomorrow.
- Put away stimulants. No TV, no iPad, no Smart Phone, no Computer screen of any kind after 9pm. Read a book or do the next pose instead.
- Stretch or meditate. Stretching and specific postures put your body into more of a rested state. When you focus on your connection to your breath and your body, you can tap into learning to relax. Breathe into your stretches, and then finish with this Yoga pose.
Aaaaawaaaaawh (my attempt at a yawn noise)....I am headed off to take a nap. (one more way to get the self-care I need).
If you are someone who has a hard time turning off the ON button of life long enough to take care of yourself, join me this January for our 90 day Body Reboot program!!