in today's video i'm going to be giving you my number one tip for improving sleep
that is extremely effective now i've been using this strategy for three or four years now
and let me tell you it has improved my sleep quality dramatically and when i say my sleep
quality has improved this doesn't necessarily mean that i sleep longer but it means that i
get more good quality deep sleep more rem sleep i fall asleep easier i wake up less frequently
and my hrv trends higher and when i say this tip is super easy to implement i mean it
so if you want to find out how you can get a better night's sleep keep watching
hey guys welcome back to my channel if you're new here my name is kait i'm a health coach and i post
videos on a high fat nutrient dense way of eating if you like this video please give it a thumbs up
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facebook and now tick tock where's your new posts every single day okay so i'm not gonna have
any really long intro here we're gonna get right into it my number one tip for
improving your sleep is to manage your light exposure and you might be thinking to yourself
okay what on earth does that mean what are you talking about hear me out hear me out i promise
it will be worth it there are two components to this getting enough natural light during the day
and limiting light exposure after sunset and this is because light is the most important signal
for a circadian clock its presence or absence triggers the release of hormones which either
keep us energized or help us wind down and prepare for sleep so we're going to start off
talking about why getting natural light in during the day is so beneficial and how you can achieve
this and then we will get into why limiting light exposure after sunset is so beneficial
and how to achieve this as well and trust me guys i promise you that if you implement the tips
i'm going to talk about in this video today your sleep quality is going to improve daytime exposure
as i said before sunlight is one of the main signals for a 24-hour circadian clock our bodies
are wired to be alert and energized during the day and calm and relaxed at night when we get
sunlight exposure in the morning this signals our bodies to release hormones that will energize us
and getting it first thing in the morning also helps our bodies to be able to better tell
when it's time to wind down and sleep going for a walk first thing in the morning right when
the sun rises or even just sitting outside in your backyard for a couple of minutes
can not only help you to sleep better at night but help you to be more energized throughout the
day and this might sound simple and it is and yet so many people are getting next to
no natural light in through the day and when we are spending long periods of time outside
a lot of us wear sunglasses and this cancels out the beneficial effects in terms of sinking
our circadian rhythm because the sunglasses are blocking out the natural daylight so just get
out in the sunlight sometime in the morning the closer to sunrise the better 15 minutes
10 minutes even five minutes this can make a big difference and of course if you can get some more
during the day even just going for a couple of walks or moving your desk closer to a window these
little things can have a big impact on your sleep as well evening exposure okay so daylight exposure
it's pretty straightforward easy to apply get some sunlight but limiting light exposure in the
evenings this is where things get tricky because our modern environments and our homes have light
and specifically blue light everywhere and this light exposure causes a reaction in our body
the same way that natural daylight does our bodies think it is daylight and continue to
release hormones to keep us awake when we are exposed to blue light specifically the hormone
melatonin is blocked melatonin is what makes us sleepy and is usually released in the evenings
so if you're staring at your devices after sunset melatonin released is going to be stopped
you're going to have difficulty falling asleep staying asleep and getting good quality sleep
and of course it's going to impact your circadian rhythm now when we have no light
exposure for a couple of hours then melatonin is released and we become sleepy a few hours later
and this also happens when you don't get natural light during the day melatonin can be released
and i think that anyone who has worked long shifts indoors with no exposure to daylight
has experienced this you start to feel drained and your energy will crash so what can you do
to limit light exposure and blue light exposure specifically after sunset well of course the
obvious answer is just to not use your devices and to just avoid harsh overhead lights but
this is easier said than done so there are a couple other strategies that you can implement
that are super super easy the first one is to wear a pair of high quality blue light blocking glasses
after sunset and i'm not talking about buying a cheap pair off amazon because spoiler alert
these glasses don't actually block enough blue light to be effective so you're really just
wasting your time wearing them instead opt for a brand that has their lenses lab tested such as
blue blocks i have been wearing this specific pair of blue light blocking glasses for the last three
or four years at least i put them on after sunset and the lenses block 100 of blue light so you can
use your phone you can watch tv you can keep the lights on in your house without the negative side
effects that are going to impact your sleep okay i'm gonna take them off for now though because
don't want to mess up my circadian rhythm i will link this exact pair in the description box down
below they have a whole bunch of different styles they ship worldwide and i do have a code for 15
off which i will put down there as well another thing you can do is try to turn off as many harsh
overhead lights as possible using lamps and softer light sources are a better alternative
i really like using salt lamps specifically i have this little salt lamp nightlight that i
keep in my bathroom and in the evenings when i'm washing my face and whatnot and don't want
to have all the lights on i use this instead fantastic blublox also has red light bulbs so
you can swap out the light bulbs in your lamp for example and then you don't have to worry about
any blue light at all because honestly as was the whole point of this video light exposure
and limiting at the right times and getting it at the right times
is key for our sleep limit it at night get enough during the day you're gonna fall asleep peacefully
you're going to sleep like a log and you're gonna wake up energized any time anyone asks me
why they're having trouble sleeping the first thing i ask about is their light exposure
and nine times out of ten they're not optimizing it but anyways guys this is just a quick video
today i didn't feel like i needed to ramble on too much i think this tip is pretty straightforward
let me know in the comment section down below how you manage your light exposure
if you do or if this is entirely new to you but like i promise if you start prioritizing getting
more light during the day and limiting it at night your sleep it's going to be so so much better
so yeah leave me a comment down below let me know what you thought about the video
don't forget to subscribe to my channel if you're not already i post two videos every week
and give this video a thumbs up if you did enjoy it kind of mumble that if you did enjoy it
there we go and if you did enjoy this video you might also enjoy my video on how a lack of sleep
can mess with your hormones and cause weight gain i'm going to link that here if you want to catch
up on my most recent upload you can find that here and if you want to check out my keto diet
and carnivorous diet country programs you can find them here thanks guys i'll see you next time bye