What made me want to improve my sleep?

In the past I have had a great sleep routine in place and I remember just how great I was feeling. However, as is the case for many of us, life got in the way and my hours each night reduced which meant I was waking up really tired and then rushing in the morning to get everything done (because I was snoozing my alarm).

I wanted to improve my sleep so that I would stop pressing the snooze button and have the energy to get up early. I cherish my mornings and know that I will always have a far more productive day when I make the most out of them, by either organising my day or prioritising time for myself (like making a coffee or practicing some meditation!)

What does my morning routine look like?
My morning routine includes having time to KIC it, taking the dogs to the park, having a coffee and ensuring enough time to shower, get ready and prioritise my tasks for the day!

Basically, I wanted to reset my sleep so that I could get back into the routine that makes me feel so good.

What were the biggest things impacting my sleep?

With so much of both my personal and professional life needing technology, screen time was and will continue to be an issue. In today’s world it’s so hard to switch off, but I knew how much this was impacting my sleep.

The other thing impacting my sleep was my actual bed time. Ideally, I want to be in bed by 9.00pm but this was being pushed out to 11.00pm and this was impacting how I felt and level of productivity the next day.

What changes helped me improve my sleep?

When it comes to making any changes, it’s always important to start small and do what is actually realistic for you. For me and my routine, there were 4 things that I knew realistically I had time for and could do to help me improve my sleep.

This included:

1. Going to bed 15 minutes early every night and waking up 15 minutes earlier.

   Although only a small amount of time, when I built on the time from the day before, it adds up, and before I knew it, my bed time and wake up times had significantly improved – I was sleeping earlier and up earlier allowing me to comfortably get through my morning routine.

2. Stopped scrolling as soon as I got into bed and didn’t let myself scroll as soon as I woke up!

   Minimising the blue light before falling asleep definitely helped me fall asleep faster and the no screen time in the morning reduced the likelihood of falling back asleep and gave time back into my morning.

3. Instead of phone time before bed, I starting reading.

   This was great to help me relax before bed and get my eyes feeling heavy (plus no blue light).

4. Completing a sleep meditation to help me relax.

   Mediating using KIC’s newest sleep mediations and soundscapes really helped to ease my journey into and improved the quality of my sleep.

How do I feel after 2 weeks of my 'sleep reset'?

I honestly forgot how good it feels to get consistently good sleep! I feel so much more productive, more focused, my mind is clearer and physically I have more energy for my KIC workouts and my running.

I’m aiming to keep this up and hope that I can continue to clock those extra ZZZ’s. Of course life might get in the way at times, but making good sleep a habit minimises the changes of those one off days throwing you off course.

Finally, remember that this is just a snapshot of my experience. What worked for me might not necessarily work for you. My advice would be to trial and error and see what works best for you and your routine.

But I hope that this inspires you to want to take control of your sleep, because when we get good sleep, we can be at our best.