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How Much Sleep Do You Need?

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Catching some z’s is essential to your physical health and emotional wellbeing.

While many people are mindful of eating habits and activity levels, sleep is oftentimes forgotten about.

National Sleep Awareness Week ends with the clock change to Daylight Savings Time, where we’ll lose one hour of sleep. It’s a great time to become educated on what your body needs and get a consistent routine going. The National Sleep Foundation reevaluated sleep needs based on your age.

Here’s what was found…

    ·  School-Age Children (6-13): 9-11 hours (range widened from 10-11)

    ·  Teenagers (14-17): 8-10 hours (range widened from 8.5-9.5)

    ·   Young Adults (18-25): 7-9 hours (new age category)

    ·   Adults (26-64): 7-9 hours (no change)

    ·   Older Adults (65+): 7-8 hours (new age category)

Full results of the study can be found in this recommended sleep times chart.

Catching up on sleep isn’t as easy as sleeping in one morning. Most people actually need two to three nights of sound sleep to get back into a normal routine after sleep deprivation. If you’re struggling to get to sleep, it could be your environment or lifestyle. There are a few things you can do to promote a peaceful and blissful sleep every night.

01.  Avoid caffeine after noon (this includes chocolate!) A banana is a great evening snack because it contains tryptophan, an amino acid needed by the body to produce serotonin, which helps control sleep cycles.

02.  Turn off computers, cellphones, and television one hour before bedtime. The blue light that radiates from these devices is disturbing because it shuts down your body’s production of melatonin, a major sleep hormone that we naturally produce at night.

03.  Write down your worries a few hours before bed and put them in a desk drawer to let them go for the night. It’s important not to take these into bed with you.

04.  Check the thermostat. Studies show that room temperatures between 62 and 70 degrees work best for sleeping.

05.  Get moving. Studies continually show that those who exercise regularly sleep easier and sounder. Consider even 10 minutes of chair exercises using the Motivo Tour.

Last but not least, position yourself for some sleeping success. Here are some pros and cons on certain sleeping positions.

How much sleep do you aim for each evening?

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