Have Trouble Sleeping? Here Are The Reasons Why…

These days, not getting enough sleep is all too common. With today’s fast-paced schedules, getting enough quality sleep can be a challenge. Here are some reasons why you might not be getting the best sleep you can get.

1. Not Enough Physical Activity During The Day – When you don’t get enough physical activity during the day, your body might have a tendency to keep you up at night. Since the muscles in the body are not working hard enough throughout the day, the body likes to make up for this right before we go to sleep, and it does this by keeping us awake. To ensure that you sleep as soundly as possible, and fall asleep quickly, make sure you get at least 30-60 minutes of physical activity each and every day. You don’t have to engage in strenuous exercise, but make sure you are moving your body at least a little bit during the day. For instance, an afternoon or evening walk is a great way to get some physical activity in before you go to bed.
2. Eating Right Before Bed – When you eat right before bed, you are giving a signal to your body to increase it’s energy levels. And, this is why it is detrimental to your sleep cycle if you eat right before bed. It is advised that you eat no sooner than 3 hours before you lie down to go to sleep. If you eat at least 3 hours before you go to bed, your body has a chance to wind down from the caloric intake that it experienced during the day. And, this will help your sleep cycle immensely.
3. Too Much On Your Mind – As many of you already know, when you have a lot on your mind, or are very stressed out as a whole, falling asleep and staying asleep can become a big problem. And, this is the exact reason why it is important to get things off of your mind, in as healthy way as possible, before you lie down to go to bed. One great way to destress before bed is to write down everything that is on your mind in a journal, or type it in a word document on your computer. Focus on writing down the things that are weighing heavily on your mind, such as what you need to get down or your schedule for the following day or week. Writing out everything that is on your mind can do wonders for your sleep cycle and will free your mind up greatly.
4. Sleeping Too Much Already – For some people, sleeping too much can actually make it harder for them to sleep at night. For many of us, our normal sleep cycle falls between 7-9 hours per night. Some of us need more sleep, while some of us need less. But, if you happen to be sleeping more than 12 hours per night, you might want to cut back a little bit. The best thing to do is monitor how much sleep you are getting each night, and if you notice that you are sleeping more than 12 hours, it’s best if you reassess your sleeping schedule in  order to get back on track.
5. Caffeine and Other Stimulants – Caffeine and other stimulants can really do a number on our sleep cycles. Caffeinated coffee and tea can increase our energy levels and have us feeling wired all day and night. While a positive attribute if we need to get things done during the day, this high dose of energy can become quite a problem when we try to go to sleep at night. To avoid this happening to you, make sure to drink all your caffeinated drinks (including soda) at least 6 hours before you go to sleep, and if you still find it hard to fall asleep, don’t drink any caffeinated drinks after 2pm. Once you make this very important change, you will start to notice your sleep cycle improving greatly.