I recently wrote an article titled, How to Sleep Better at Night Naturally. It contains the 4 most valuable sleep improvement tips that’ve helped me. It specifically talks about better sleep habits like using blackout curtains, a grounding sheet, mouth tape, and a temperature controlled mattress cover. That article about improving sleep naturally can be found here.
While writing that article, I realized I have many more than those 4 habits for sleep optimization. As I often say, my sleep quality is directly related to how good (or bad) my computer posture is the next day. The earlier in the day I get tired, the quicker I have poor computer posture. Today, I’m writing this article to share 4 more healthy sleep habits that I practice.
Guide for Better Sleep
Practice an early, consistent sleep time
I used to be a chronic procrastinator. I would even get in bed late. Improving sleep patterns has become more important for me as I get older. I just don’t recover as well as I used to, so I’ve become dedicated to finding more strategies for better sleep. Realizing this has helped me stick to a consistent, early bed time. Most days I plan to wake up at 5:30am. I make sure to get in bed by 9:30pm at the latest. Getting in bed any later than that will mean I’m definitely not getting 8 hours of sleep that night. Especially after including any time it takes to fall asleep, or lay awake after trips to the restroom.
Maintaining an early, consistent sleep time is easy for me now. However, it was very difficult when I committed to it in the beginning. I would lay in bed for an hour to 90 minutes before I fell asleep. But I would continue to get in bed by 9:30pm every night regardless if I was tired or not. Every week, I would fall asleep just a few minutes earlier than the week before. It took a few months of this, but now I fall asleep every night within 5 minutes after getting in bed. To help expedite this process, continue reading this article for some better sleep strategies that’ve helped me get there.
Turn off all electronics at least 1 hour before bed
Looking at bright, blue, or white lights, even for a few seconds, can cause a massive drop in melatonin. I learned this from Andrew Huberman of Huberman Lab. Melatonin is a natural chemical in the brain that plays an important role in falling asleep. Turning off all electronics is not a perfect practice for me. Sometimes I just need to look at my phone quickly. Read on to the next section for a sleep optimization solution for that.
Use red lights during night hours
To maintain good sleep wellness, I try to avoid looking into any lights in my home after dark, especially bright, blue, or white lights. This applies to my phone, laptop, television, and home lights. Looking into these types of lights keeps my brain active, which makes it take longer to fall asleep. I want to slowly start relaxing way before 9:30pm when I get in the bed. This way, I will fall asleep quicker. Using red lights to improve my sleep hygiene has been very helpful.
Use a red filter on your phone at night
I have a shortcut on my iPhone which allows me to easily switch to a red filter, instead of the normal blue light. I try to avoid looking at my phone at all once the sun goes down. But if I have to glance at it quickly to check messages or set an alarm, this red light filter is a lot gentler and doesn’t wake me up as much mentally.
Use red night lights for restroom trips
I never turn on house lights for middle of the night restroom trips. I also replaced all my white night lights with red night lights. This keeps my brain relaxed, helping shorten my times of falling back asleep even better.
Use red light bulbs once the sun goes down
As soon as the sun goes, I turn off all the overhead white lights in my home. Instead, I use red light bulbs in the one light that I keep on (so I can navigate my way around before bedtime). Again, all these tips for a good night sleep will lead to better computer posture for me the next day. The better sleep I get, the better posture, energy, mental clarity, and productivity I have the next day.
Sleep Stack from Dr. James DiNicolantonio
I’d like to preface this section of my guide for better sleep with a quick disclaimer. None of my articles contain professional medical advice. They are for informational purposes only. I simply talk about good sleep advice habits that have worked for me. Do your research. Make good decisions. Speak with a doctor, but also be the best advocate possible for your own healthcare.
With that said, I’d like to share one of the better sleep solutions that’s helped me a lot. I learned this from Dr. James DiNicolantonio (Doctor of Pharmacy). He’s one of my favorite sleep quality experts to follow. His Instagram is full of better sleep strategies and other good wellness advice.
I used to have a problem falling back asleep after a trip to the restroom. But since I’ve been using his sleep stack (pictured above), that problem has improved 90% for me. I’m not even using his full sleep stack. My partial sleep stack is just the inositol, magnesium, and glycine. I mix those 3 into 8 ounces of spring water and sip it an hour before I get in bed. I haven’t implemented the theanine yet. Mainly because the other ingredients have improved my sleep quality to where it needs to be. I fall back asleep quickly now 9 times out of 10 after a restroom trip.
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Thanks for your interest in computer posture.
If this article was helpful, check out my book titled “45 Ways to Improve Computer Posture.” It’s available in both digital and paperback versions.
>>> Click here to pick up your copy
This book explains how to improve your posture through different variables of health and wellness. These variables include sitting posture, standing posture, sleep quality, hydration, and breathing. Poor posture is not just how we sit at a computer. The health habits we practice, 24 hours a day, are directly related to how good (or bad) our computer posture is.
Go to SittingPosture.com/book to learn more.
Take care,
Todd Bowen
P.S. You can sign up for my free computer posture newsletter here.