Sleeping well improves your wellbeing

Written by Tarja, Nokia Wellness Diary team

In my earlier blog post on sleep I wrote about the connection between sleeping and eating. I promised in that blog post to increase my sleep average from 7 hours 36 minutes by half an hour to somewhere around 8 hours because I felt I was not getting enough sleep. Now when I look at my sleep average in Wellness Diary I can tell you that my sleep average during the last 7 days is 8 hours 6 minutes - 30 minutes more than in the beginning of December. Pretty well done, don’t you think?

Now you might be wondering whether I managed to sleep this well already during Christmas Holiday in order to avoid eating too many sweets and goodies. Well, to tell you the truth, I already did sleep longer then, but I did not eat fewer goodies. But that has nothing to do with my sleep average. I just happen to love goodies in case you did not already know that.

I wanted to check what other benefits sleeping well has. I searched Medicinet again and found an interesting article about a good night’s sleep. In this article they say that getting enough sleep and sleeping well help us stay healthy. They give good advice how to sleep better. I found out that I could do more of the positive things each night to tell my body that it's time to wind down. I sometimes work too late in the evening and when I go to sleep my brain continues to work and I do not fall asleep because of too many thoughts in my mind. Ever happened to you?

I also found out that I have already followed quite many of those advices when increasing my sleep average and improving the quality of it. I have managed to follow these advices:

1. Try to exercise at regular times each day: I have mostly managed to avoid exercising after 8 pm, since I have noticed that it has a negative effect on my sleep. I now exercise between 6 pm and 8 pm during the week and in the afternoon on weekends.
2. Don't drink beverages with caffeine late in the day: I have followed this rule most of my life, since I really have noticed a clear correlation between drinking coffee and sleep.
3. Try not to worry about your sleep: I do not have to wonder whether I get enough sleep, since now I know my sleep average and have learnt that after a short night sleep I seem to sleep longer during the next few nights. I just do it more consciously today. I have also found out that when my sleep average is around 8 I not only feel better, but also tolerate better the occasional shorter nights.

What do you do to sleep better? Share your secrets with us.

- Tarja

Comments

#1: 2011-01-21 @ 17:02

Exercise and proper diet will make it good. But to make it better then discipline yourself and maybe with the aid of Wellness Diary :)

#2: 2011-01-21 @ 20:21

Hi MeeGoJade! I agree with you, I have experienced that exercising early enough as well as eating something light before going to sleep improves the quality of sleep. What Wellnes Diary has taught me, is that I have to see that I sleep enough. That is actually nice. To sleep I mean :-) Sleep well MeeGoJade

#3: 2011-01-24 @ 00:39

Wellness diary has helped me work out what has been happening with my sleep and now I am on top of it :) It is great! I used to think I had slept heaps and would tell myself that I must be tired for other reasons and I wouldn't let myself catch up on sleep but the monitoring has really opened my eyes.

Nokia N8 FW 011.012.00.01

#4: 2011-01-24 @ 14:02

I noticed that when I follow a pattern in sleeping time, I can wake up more easily (and with less tiredness) than if I just let myself sleep without any alarm.
Surely monitoring sleeping time can help to improve wellness!

#5: 2011-01-25 @ 10:07

I have been sleeping less than 5 hours on weekdays for three years and it really wears me down. Looks like I need to increase my average sleep time via wellness diary.

Actually, it is your biological clock that helps you wake up on your own if you have a regular sleeping time. No alarm clock required!

#6: 2011-01-27 @ 10:45

Good app but heavy and also doesn't stand a chance compared to ShapeUpClub: http://store.ovi.com/content/58497

Life's Game, Play On !!!

#7: 2011-01-28 @ 15:17

@CLTSchwartz: I am glad to read that you have the same kind of positive learning experiences as me!

#8: 2011-01-28 @ 15:19

@steceso: Sleeping pattern is also good. I used to have a good pattern to go to sleep and wake at the same time, but I do not seem to be able to follow that at the moment. That is why I keep track of my average sleeping hours to keep in shape!

#9: 2011-01-28 @ 15:22

@BestGeeKOVI. Yes, if you want to count calories, there are ample options for that. I have done enough of that to learn that it does not help me for a longer period of time. I get tird after a while and go back to my old habits...