Hey what's up guys, Sean Nalewanyj here,BodyTransformationTruth.com, and in today’s video I’m going to giving
you 7 simple tips that you can start following right away to both reduce the amount of time
that it takes you to fall asleep as well as to help you sleep more deeply and for longer
periods of time each night.
Now getting a sufficient amount of restful sleep every night is actually very important
when it comes to maximizing muscle growth, fat loss and overall health, it will keep
your energy levels, your concentration and your motivation at its peak which will obviously
benefit both in and out of the gym, it will optimize your levels of testosterone and IGF-1,
reduce cortisol levels as well as improve your body’s overall fat burning efficiency
as well.
Now keep in mind that there are many, many different methods that you could use when
it comes to improving sleep quality and I couldn’t possibly mention all of them, but
I’m just going to condense this video down into 7 of the more well documented tips, and
the ones that work best for me and for the people that I’ve discussed this topic with.
And if you personally use a particular method that I don’t mention in the video, then
you can go ahead and post it in the comment section below.
So, here are the 7 tips.
Bodybuilding sleep tip #1 is to maintain a consistent sleeping and waking schedule from
day to day.
Waking up and going to bed at the same time every day helps to basically regulate your
body’s internal clock so that it “expects” sleep at a certain time each night, and this
will decrease the amount of time that it takes you to fall asleep as well as improve your
overall sleep quality.
So, I know that this won’t be possible for some people because of varying hours for things
like work and school, but just do the best you can to set a schedule and stick to it
as closely as you can, and that includes the weekends as well.
Bodybuilding Sleep Tip #2 is to associate your bed with sleep and sex only.
So if you have some late-night work to finish or if you need to complete some other type
of “mind stimulating” activity, then work on it at a desk or on the couch or anywhere
else that you can.
What you don’t want to do though is merge your sleeping space and your working space
into the same area, because when you go to bed you want your body to associate that specific
place with relaxation and pleasure rather than stress and problem-solving.
Bodybuilding Sleep Tip #3 is to cut off all electronics 30-60 minutes before bed.
So that includes television, smartphones, laptops etc., the reason being that bright
light supresses melatonin production, which as you probably already know is a key hormone
that regulates sleep.
So instead of watching TV, or texting or watching youtube videos like this one, spend that 30-60
minute block doing some light reading, listening to an audiobook or using a relaxation technique
such as meditation, which is actually a topic that I plan to cover in a future video, because,
meditation is something that I do highly recommend to most people.
Bodybuilding Sleep Tip #4 is to avoid going to bed too full or too hungry.
This one will vary from person to person, but as a general rule, you’ll be best off
to avoid going to sleep on too full or too empty a stomach.
A small to medium sized meal within a few hours of going to bed will allow you to sleep
more comfortably, and the insulin release will also improve melatonin production as
well.
Bodybuilding Sleep Tip #5 is to keep your room cool, dark and quiet.
So, keep your room at a cool temperature of between 60-67 degrees.
Use blackout curtains or a sleeping mask to eliminate as much light as possible.
And get rid of sudden background noises by either sleeping in a completely quiet room,
using ear plugs, or using white noise from a fan, a humidifier, or some other type of
white noise machine.
Bodybuilding Sleep Tip #6 is to avoid caffeine and other stimulants within 6-8 hours of sleep.
So even if you do happen to fall asleep just fine after an evening cup of coffee or a pre-workout
drink, the caffeine and the other stimulants they contain can still decrease your overall
quality of sleep.
So if you want to fall asleep as easily as possible and stay asleep, then cut off all
stimulants by the late afternoon.
And bodybuilding Sleep Tip #7 is to include some basic sleep supplements in your overall
plan.
Now I did an entire video dedicated to this topic a few months ago and I’ll link it
in the description box below if you want to check it out, but just very briefly, if you
do have all of the points that I just talked about covered and you still want some extra
help to improve your sleep, then my recommendation would be, first off, magnesium, which is heavily
involved in regulating sleep, but gets depleted through sweat.
The dosage for that is 200-400mg per day with a meal, either in the form of magnesium gluconate,
diglycinate or citrate.
The second supplement is lavender oil which helps to reduce anxiety and put the body into
a more relaxed state.
The dosage there is 80mg half an hour before bed, and I’d recommend taking it in pill
form to make sure that you get the right dosage.
And a good product for that is called “Calm Aid” and I’ll link that in the description
box below as well.
And finally is, melatonin, and the standard dosage for that is 1-3mg half an hour before
bed, and you’ll be best off to start off on the low end and just gradually increase
until you find the right dosage for yourself.
So, those are the 7 tips, regular weight training and cardio is obviously a very important one,
so, just maintaining a regular exercise schedule in general, but unless you don’t even lift,
then you’re already following this tip anyway so I didn’t think it was really necessary
to go into detail there.
So thanks for watching this video lesson, I hope you found these sleeping tips useful.
For more science-based, no B.S tips to help optimize your muscle building and fat burning
progress along with concrete step by step training, nutrition and supplement plans that
you can follow, make sure to head over to BodyTransformationTruth.com and grab my complete
“Body Transformation Blueprint” System by clicking the icon at the top of the video
or using the link in the description box below.
If you did enjoy the video, as always, please make sure to hit the LIKE button, leave a
comment and subscribe to stay up-to-date on future videos.
And make sure to check out my official blog over at SeanNal.com for all of my latest articles,
tips and other updates.
Talk to you again soon.