How exercise could improve our sleep

Have you been looking for natural ways to improve your sleep or boost the overall quality of sleep that you currently manage to have? Or do you suffer from bad sleep or just a sheer lack of it like a large part of the current population? Running straight to caffeine is the first line of defense for a lot of people when they want a quick fix, believing caffeine will help them survive another day, but all they really get is an addiction and other unwanted health degradation.

Managing your lifestyle

Managing good sleep not only comes down to personal lifestyle choices, but we must assess how many hours you need personally. Are you a light sleeper? Do you wake up a lot through the night or do you toss and turn for hours? When we understand the root causes, we can then begin to work on solutions to the problems.

Exercise means relaxation

Many people have sedentary jobs that are taxing mentally but don’t allow enough physical stimulation – this is not good because we are creatures who thrive on exercise and movement. Regular exercise improves immune function so you are less likely to feel fatigued and your rate of recovery will not be compromised. Stress keeps people up at night, so you should look at daily exercise as your mental stress relief, if nothing else. Exercise primes your metabolic functions and allows your brain to process information correctly by releasing the correct neurotransmitters such as dopamine and endorphins.

When is the best time of day to exercise?

There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to finding what works for you as the possibilities can be endless. Doing exercise that you enjoy is essential for it to be a sustainable value that you can stick to in the long term. However, when it comes to what time of day you exercise at, there are a lot more variables. For most of us, the best time of day to exercise is in the first few hours of the day.

Have you heard of Circadian Rhythm?

Circadian rhythm is our body’s natural clock, a rhythm that repeats in cycles that dictates when we need to eat, sleep and perform other bodily/mental functions. Our body is affected by so many environmental issues; such as the climate we live in, how many hours of sunlight we are exposed to and the seasons.
Disrupting one’s Circadian rhythm can send our whole body into disarray – meaning your body cannot signal efficiently when you need to eat, sleep and perform. We are creatures who naturally thrive on habit, order and repetitive scheduling and disrupting these things is a sure-fire way to disrupt healthy sleeping patterns.

So it’s time to begin

Instead of reaching for those sleeping tablets on an evening and a coffee to stimulate you during that afternoon slump, try exercising in the first four hours of your day and prime your metabolic function. This means that when it comes to resting, your body is ready to regenerate and process all of the information that your grey matter has received throughout the day.
This will allow you to recover efficiently in your sleep, your nutrients will be burned more efficiently, and you will have a deeper sleep.
If you were to try sleep aids, we recommend something natural like a Zinc and magnesium supplement, there are many studies to show how effective and safe they are. These two powerful minerals play many specific roles in the body and are not something you should be deficient in. Remember that none of this is medical advice and you should always run new exercise plans/dietary supplementation past your doctor.