Listen to Portgas D. Ace: Sleep Is The KING For A Happy Healthy Life!

Get your sleep folks, it's one of the most important things you can do to improve your health.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Ace sleeps a lot & is jacked to the max. Often neglected, sleep is just as important to health as exercise & nutrition as a triforce which cannot exist independently.

Most people need 7-9 hours of sleep, the average is around six. This is appallingly bad for us. By neglecting sleep you're more likely to gain body fat, age prematurely, have a lower IQ, suffer from heart disease, diabetes, and a low sex drive. A lack of sleep impairs skill acquisition and destroys your focus. If you could sell the benefits of sleep it would be the most effective supplement on the market. 

Falling asleep at a convention: More Gainz. Taken by Jamie Flack at Viencon

Some tips to get longer & higher quality sleep:⠀

-Stress less. Learn to put your problems away before you head to bed. Stress leads to spikes in cortisol and intrusive thoughts which in turn keep you up at night.

-Create a sleep routine. Most people have a morning routine so they can get going in the morning & you should have a one before bedtime too so your body knows it's time for bed. My evening routine is writing tomorrows to-do list, brushing my teeth, & then doing some light stretching.
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-Keep a sleep schedule. Most people (likely including you!) need 7-9 hours of sleep per night. I give myself 9 hours of sleep opportunity at night & it's always the same times unless I've got somewhere to be (like a convention). Work out for yourself what time you need to get up in the morning & count backwards. For me those times are 9pm & 6am. Set an alarm for insurance, but if you can wake up naturally before it goes off you've got it nailed.
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-Don't drink caffeine 6 hours before bed. No cola, coffee, tea, or anything else with caffeine in 6 hours before bed. Even if you can sleep on caffeine it disrupts quality sleep. Create a cut-off point by counting backwards 6 hours from your bedtime. In a similar vein you probably shouldn't go to sleep immediately after drinking alcohol either.

-Use a screen filter when it goes dark. Blue light disrupts our circadian rhythm. Use apps that reduce blue light on your mobile devices or use blue light blocking glasses. Fyi the glasses make you look crazy, ask my old housemate.

-Minimise noise. Noise reduces sleep quality and can make it harder to nod off. Turn on a fan or get ear plugs.

-Relax an hour before bed. Turn off electronics 30-60 minutes before you plan on sleeping & make your room as dark as possible. The blue light from electronics disrupts our natural circadian rhythm so badly that in one study when they took away blue light everyone became a morning person even if they identified as a night owl.

Usually once these things are taken care of it's enough to give you a full night of uninterrupted rest. However sometimes even that fails and supplementation may be necessary.

Supplements that may help with sleep:

Magnesium: It's the second most common deficiency in humans and can result in abnormal neuronal excitations leading to impaired sleep. 200-350mg an hour before bed (use citrate/gluconate/glycinate variants). I use it with a ZMA supplement so I can get my Zinc in as well.

Melatonin: The sleep hormone involved in the circadian rhythm, supplementing before bed reduces the time it takes to fall asleep. 0.5mg should do the trick.

Lavender: Oral supplementation of 80mg Silexan (a specific Lavender oil preparation) 30-45 minutes before bed can help with anxiety and sedation, making it easier to nod off

This might seem excessive, after all so many successful people boast about how little sleep they have like a badge of honour. Well here's my take on it: If they've built a life which requires so much work that they can't afford to sleep for 9 hours why would you want to be like them? We need a full nights sleep to be healthy. I don't make the rules. I just follow them!

Level up your life the pirate way by making sleep a priority 💪

Be More Shonen

Cosplay: Portgas D Ace (One Piece) Taken at Viencon 2018 by Jamie Flack