The Importance of Sleep
As I’ve shared before, three and a half years ago, I worked a (more than) full-time job in public accounting, and I ran a martial arts and yoga studio with my husband. I worked all day and most of the night hours, too. I operated on little to no sleep. All-nighters were a regular occurrence.
People used to marvel at how I managed to “do it all” on four hours (or less) of sleep a night. The truth is, I wasn’t doing it all successfully. My body was paying the price.
I’ve made a number of health and wellness changes the last few years, but I believe that consistently getting eight hours of sleep a night has made the biggest difference in my well-being.
So, when the good folks at Frugal Dad contacted me to see if I’d be willing to share this wonderful infographic with you, I was happy to comply!
Source: http://frugaldad.com
Convinced? Before you shut down your computer and head to bed, practice the Yoga Nightcap series I have outlined here to help ensure a good night’s sleep!
Sweet dreams!
How much sleep do you get a night? What tips can you share with us about how to get the best night’s sleep possible? I’d love to hear!
P.S. I’m planning to read this post to my toddler as her bedtime story tonight, hoping to convince her that we will all benefit from dropping her middle of the night waking habits!
This one really resonates with me! I’ve learned the hard way what the ill effects of too little sleep are. I have all but given up TV at night. Even the good (funny) shows tend to wind me up instead of relax me. About 4 oz of milk (hot or cold) seem to also help me switch gears, too. And a gentle 20-mjnute yoga routine really helps my muscles shed the day’s tension. Seven hours of sleep is my magic number for optimal functioning but occasionally my body requires 8+ (usually after a marathon week at work). But the drag I experience after foregoing my 7 hrs of sleep is harder & harder to recover from as I age – so I’m trying to be good to myself on a consistent basis.
I notice the same thing! It takes me days to recover from a night of too little sleep. Here’s to a good night’s sleep for all of us!
This may sound crazy, but when I was in college and was studying for finals, I’d take a nap every day. After the naps, it seemed like I’d processed most of the information I’d studied before and could move on to something else. Those 20 – 30 minute naps did more for me than an extra day of studying without a nap ever would have!
Not crazy at all, Stephanie! Naps are highly underrated in our culture! Great tip!