Fitness Friday| Sleeping Beauty

*Pictures from We Heart It*

Just a quick Fitness Friday for you lovelies. I am an avid reader of Zest magazine; a health and fitness magazine, and treated myself to the magazine app for my phone. I was amazed that I could get an annual subscription for on £20… such a bargain. The magazine is always filled with really interesting articles on health, fitness and beauty. One of their recent article’s was about getting a goods night sleep, and I thought it would be good to share it with you.

Considering many of you will be returning to university, sleep sometimes is hard to come by, especially in your final year when that dreaded dissertation comes around, so I thought sharing some tips would be helpful. I myself often have difficulty sleeping when I am stressed or anxious so any extra tips are always helpful.

Anyways onto what the professionals have to say. Here are the tops tips from Zest magazine that ensure you sleep like a baby;

1. Breakfast like a queen- Digesting a big meal takes a lots of energy, so eating your heaviest meal close to bedtime will disturb your sleep. A big breakfast (around 500-600 calories) followed by a smaller lunch and dinner stabilises energy levels and improves sleep. I think this is a little unrealistic and I prefer to actually eat 5 smaller meals throughout the day so I’m not eating a big dinner.
2. Meet your mates- A study published in the journal Sleep found the lonelier you are, the more likely you’ll wake at night, so have lunch with some friends. But if you’re off to Starbucks, remember an afternoon caffeine hit can take hours to leave your system, so opt for a herbal tea
3. Use the landline- Research shows being exposed to low-level radiation from a mobile phone close to bedtime makes it both harder to drop off and means you’ll spend less time in the deeper, more restorative phases of sleep, so you'll wake up feeling like you haven’t properly rested. Try to place your phone further away from you, at least not on the bedside table and not underneath your pillow.
4. Get intimate- A recent survey revealed one in six doctors recommended sex for insomnia, with good reason: getting frisky reduces stress and lowers your blood pressure, plus the hormone oxytocin released when you orgasm promotes healthy slumber, too.
5. Stop snoozing- Your body anticipates your regular alarm an hour before it goes off, so your sleep lightens and hormones release to give you a boost. hHtting the snooze button might mean a few more zzzs, but your body wont prep you to wake up a second time so you'll feel groggy.

What are your top tips to get a good nights sleep? Do you follow any of the tips above?