Sleep Archives - Page 7 of 7

June 26, 2015 By SNEHA CHIKHALE 2 Comments

8 Yoga poses to do before going to bed

Have you had a hectic day at work? Or is it too much of travel? Or tension in studies? When in such situations we generally end up sleeping less. It takes a long time and then we start counting the sheep (childhood memories!) to fall asleep.

Now, forget counting the Sheep or numbers. Ease your way into dreamland with these 8 yoga asanas. These yoga poses will relax your body and mind, both!

1) Supported child pose:

Holding supported child’s pose with your head rested on some pillows will help your brain and body to rest after long day. One can repeat it as many times as he wish. It is a good option for resting and relaxing.

2) Supported downward facing dog:

It is a great yoga pose for people who are glued to their desk for all day. This position stretches out your back part of the body, particularly the hamstring group (muscles at the back of your thighs)

3) Triangle pose:

This posture creates smooth blood flow and space in the spine. This standing pose releases the hamstring and allows extension in the spine. Using a wall will help you to hold this position with better timings.

4) Wide legged forward fold:

This pose is absolutely useful to calm the body and nervous system after a tiring day at work. This pose will also help open and stretch the back of the body.

5) Low lunge:

This pose stretches out the hip flexor group, which tend to get tight due to long periods of sitting.

6) Supine bound angel pose:

This pose helps open the upper back, chest and shoulders though a mid backbend. Lying on the pillow will help with increasing the openness.

7) Legs up the wall:

This position tones and settles the nervous system while reducing the gravitational pressure on the heart and the legs. Hip: Use pillow under the lumbar curve to release the lower back.

8) Savasana:

To wrap up your yoga practice, finish your sequence with traditional savasana. It is a simple pose that brings total relaxation. This should be performed at the end of the yoga session, to relax your muscles.

July 16, 2014 By Satish Kurapaty Leave a Comment

Rest and Recovery is important

My friends often tell me how unfit they are. After I heard them out, I gave them a little pep talk on the positive aspects of fitness and undoubtedly they got all enthusiastic and decided they will also join me for a run from the next day. Couple of them said they would join me from next week and their discussion continued. Finally, they came to an agreement that everyone will join from the very next day.

The next day, I reached the decided point and I was surprised, my friends were all there on time. We began with some stretching then walked and jogged simultaneously as they were not used to it. We walked/jogged for an hour then ended the day’s session again with some stretching. Everyone felt energetic after the workout. Couple of my friends decided they would start gyming.

Next day we followed the same process and everyone was there. However, on the third day none of them turned up for jogging and neither had they gone to office? The reason being they had not rested enough and recovered well to be able to go about their daily routine after a workout.

It is very important to understand and bear in mind that ‘Rest and Recovery’ are two important aspects of any fitness regime. All the muscles and tissues utilised during a workout needs rest to recover.

We really need rest and what happens during rest?

Most people give importance to work out and diet but do not pay attention to rest and recovery. I am sure many out there reading this would have experienced something similar. Do you know that to get a good body rest is important as much as workout and diet? Growth occurs in the sleep phase as maximum hormones are released from the glands at rest.

The mail growth hormone testosterone and female growth hormone estrogen is released while in sleep mode. Throughout the day, the body undergoes lot of breakdown at a cellular and muscular level which gives rise to free radicals in the body. Free radical affects the immune system in the body. So sleep is very important for recovery.

Adult must get at least 6-8 hours of REM (Rapid eye Movement) sleep. But, the quality of sleep is equally important. One must feel fresh after a good sleep. Good sleep also helps to reduce stress which is main cause of all psychosomatic disorders.

May 5, 2014 By Vrushali Athavle 3 Comments

Ways to improve sleep

How many of us sleep well at night or rather get a good undisturbed sleep. I was kind of horrified when I realized that my younger sister was readying herself to go to a doctor, thinking she is facing some dreadful sleep disorders. I asked in astonishment what made her think so. She told me that she is experiencing disturbed sleep with frequent awakening and sometimes she stays awake in bed at night for a long time, frequently checking the clock. This affects her whole next day as she feels tired and exhausted.

In today’s hectic and busy life, disturbed sleep is a common issue. I told there was no need to panic, instead make certain lifestyle changes. 90% of the time, the issue gets resolved without actually requiring doctor’s advice.

In this blog I have tried to list down as many possibilities, I could see which when modified in to our routine can give you a good night’s sleep. Based on your lifestyle and routine you can start working on it and see the difference.

For better understanding, I have categorized “Ways to improve sleep” into 3 major categories

1) Foods to eat and avoid

2) Relaxation techniques

3) Sleep environment

Foods to eat and foods to avoid

Avoid having stimulants like tea & coffee, smoking, drinking alcohol too close to bedtime. While alcohol is known to speed up the onset of sleep, it disrupts the sleep in the later part causing frequent waking up.
Pay attention to what you eat. Avoid spicy foods, especially at night. Don’t go to bed hungry or stuffed as it may cause discomfort and might keep you awake.
Also limit drinking too much water before bed, to prevent disruptive middle-of-the-nights trips to toilet.
Include carbohydrate and calcium rich foods like wheat, rice, pasta, milk and cheese, as they promote the release of serotonin, which is a sleep inducing hormone.
Green leafy vegetables especially lettuce have opium related substances which acts as a natural sleep aid.
Twitches and cramps can keep you awake during the night. You can have magnesium rich food sources like sunflower seeds, almonds and cashews to relax your muscles and hence get a good sleep.

Relaxation techniques

A relaxing exercise like yoga can be done before bed to help initiate a restful sleep. If you are planning a vigorous workout then it has to be complete 2 to 3 hours before going to sleep. A heavy workout will make it difficult for you to go to sleep, causing muscle soreness.
5 to 10 minutes of meditation with deep breathing can help you decrease your stress, relax your mind & body and help you get a sound sleep.
Getting indulged in some activities which make you happy like listening to music, reading a book, planning for the next day’s work, spending quality time with family or any of your hobbies puts off your whole days stress, relaxing your mind and hence getting a good night’s sleep.
Taking a warm bath just before going to sleep, also induces a good sleep because the sudden rise and then fall of body temperature makes you feel drowsy.
Try to avoid emotionally upsetting conversations or thoughts which may give you stress and affect your sleep. Instead you should try this one which works for me. I just write down all my stress causing thoughts on a paper and tear off the paper.
Do not turn on any electronic devices televisions, mobiles or tablets because the blue spectrum light emitted from such objects is known to impede sleep.

Sleep environment

Noise: Abrupt, loud noises from inside or outside the home like someone talking in the other room, noise of television or barking of a dog, traffic can upset sleep. Steady and low sounds such as the whir of a fan or air conditioner, can be soothing because they help block the distracting noises. One can also put up heavier curtains on your windows, replace windows with double or triple paned glass or invest in some ear plugs to listen these disturbing noises.
Mattress and Pillows: Make sure your mattress and pillow meets your needs for both comfort and support.
Light: Light is one of the body’s most powerful time cues. The rising sun can wake up the brain long before the alarm goes off. A dark room is the most conducive for sleep – day or night.
Temperature: The ideal bedroom temperature is 60 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit (16 to 18 degrees Celsius). A room that’s too warm or too cool can disrupt comfortable sleep.

To conclude, I asked my sister does she really need a doctor. She can be her own doctor. What she needs to do is to maintain a diary and keep a track of her lifestyle activities and use this blog as a checklist. This way she can find solution for her own sleep problem and so can all. But if the sleeping issues continue then it calls for doctor’s intervention.

Photo Credit: healgrowtransform.com.au