How To Sleep Like A Baby: Activity

Do you ever wish your kids had a giant hamster wheel to burn off some of that energy. If they did you know they’d sleep so good when they got back home. Of course, timing is everything. If your uncle or sibling come over and really wind them up before bed, it’ll be just that much longer before they can get to sleep.

The same basic rules apply to us as well as our kids. Regular exercise is like taking a sleeping pill that is also a cholesterol lowering medicine, which is also a blood pressure medication, which also raises your energy level, and increases your lifespan.

There are a billion reasons to move more, but if you tend to sleep poorly, that’s one of the best. The impact that consistently sleeping better has on your life and lifestyle can be profound.

There are no good data showing whether one kind of activity is better than another — resistance activity vs aerobic exercise. Honestly the most important aspect is simply being consistent.

By the way, like your kids, timing matters. Exercise creates a short term elevation in heart rate, metabolism, and sympathetic nervous system activation (the part that stimulates the fight or flight reflex). This is great when you are being active, but if you expect to plop right into bed, that’s another matter. It’s a great idea to avoid exercise within 3 hours of bed time. In fact, a nice calm time leading up to bedtime is ideal to prepare your body and mind for a good night’s sleep.