Sleep Hygiene

• Stick to a schedule
• Keep the bed at a cool temp.
• Monitor eating and drinking before bed.
  • Stop eating at least 2-3 hours before bed.
• Notice unhelpful thoughts about sleep and challenge them.
  • "I'll be a wreck if I don't sleep well" = "I might be drowsy, but I can push through"
• Stimulus Control - Only associate the bed with sleep
  • In bed stressing about not sleeping = the bed is associated with your stressing.
  • If not asleep in 30 minutes, get up and relax elsewhere for a while.
• Relaxation Techniques
  • Meditation
  • Deep breathing
• Light Exposure
  • Get early morning sunlight and limit artificial blue light at night to promote a healthy sleep/wake cycle.

Spending 5 minutes writing tomorrow’s to-do list before bed can help you fall asleep ~15 minutes faster.¹

Researchers randomly assigned healthy young adults to one of two bedtime writing tasks: jot down everything they needed to do in the coming days, or list what they had already accomplished. Using sleep lab monitoring, they found that those who wrote to-do lists fell asleep 9 minutes faster on average. And the more detailed their lists, the quicker they drifted off, by up to 15 minutes.

The scientists believe this works through a process called cognitive offloading — getting unfinished tasks out of your head and onto paper tells your brain it no longer needs to continually rehearse or worry about them. In contrast, writing about completed activities may stimulate reflection and mental arousal, making it harder to unwind.

If your mind races at bedtime, try this: about 10 minutes before sleep, grab a pen and paper (no phones), set a 5-minute timer, and write a specific list of what you’ll do tomorrow. Instead of vague goals like “finish work stuff,” write “send email to boss, finish slide deck, order groceries.” Then close the notebook and rest easy knowing your plans are captured.

Make sure you don't write about past accomplishments or ruminate on problems. Instead, focus only on concrete future actions. And then keep the list visible to reduce anxiety about forgetting tasks in the morning.

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You’re a bedtime procrastinator

What it is:
Bedtime procrastination means staying up later than you planned—for no real reason.¹ You’re not working late, taking care of someone, or doing anything you have to do. You’re just delaying sleep because you don’t want the day to be over.

Maybe it’s because you finally have time to yourself. Maybe it’s because you’re enjoying a show, scrolling, or just sitting in the quiet.

Whatever the reason, it feels good in the moment—but it comes at a cost. People who procrastinate on bedtime spend about four times more time on their phones before bed than those who don’t, and they sleep worse and feel more tired the next day.²

Why it happens:
Bedtime procrastination is usually about control. All day long, your time belongs to other people—work, family, errands, obligations.

Late at night, it finally feels like your time is yours. So you hang onto it, even if it means stealing from tomorrow.

What helps:
One simple way to start changing this is to notice and name what’s really happening in the moment.

When you catch yourself saying, “Just one more episode” or “I’ll scroll for a minute,” try quietly naming it: This is me putting off sleep because I don’t want the day to end.

That small step matters because it interrupts autopilot. You’re no longer just reacting—you’re recognizing what you’re doing and why. And once you see it clearly, you can decide whether it’s worth it.

You’re not trying to “fix” yourself or force yourself to bed; you’re just getting honest about the trade-off.

Some nights, you might still stay up. But over time, the act of noticing changes the pattern. The moment you name what’s happening, you stop being pulled along by it. You start choosing.

Dr. Mark Hyman

TIER 1: THE FOUNDATION

Exercise: The Sleep Supercharger

Exercise is the closest thing we have to a universal sleep prescription. It helps regulate your circadian rhythm, reduces anxiety, and increases time spent in deep sleep, the most restorative stage. In large-scale reviews, people who exercised at least four times per week slept longer, woke up less often, and felt more rested.

The formula is simple: three short sessions of resistance training, and then finding time to move at a low intensity outside of the gym (walking does the trick). That’s it. Intensity and consistency. It doesn’t require long workouts, fancy machines, or complicated movements.


If you’re tired all the time, don’t wait for more energy to move. Movement is what brings the energy back.

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Protect the 7-Hour Sweet Spot

Sleep is personal, but it’s not a mystery. Among 1.5 million people, the average sleep duration associated with the lowest risk of disease, the best cognitive performance, and the longest lifespan is 7 hours.

It’s tempting to believe you’re the exception. To shave an hour here or there, or tell yourself six is fine. And sometimes it is — for a while. But over time, chronic short sleep can affect your hormones, immune system, and recovery.

You don’t have to hit seven hours every single night. You just have to protect it like it matters. Because it does.

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Keep a Consistent Schedule

It’s not just how much you sleep. It’s when.

Your brain is a rhythm machine. Melatonin, cortisol, body temperature, and hunger all follow 24-hour patterns. Shift those patterns too often, and you start to feel like you’re in a different time zone, even if you never left your house. Scientists call it “social jetlag.” You just call it Monday.

The fix is unglamorous but powerful: go to bed and wake up at roughly the same time each day, even on weekends. A 30-60 minute window is enough. This is how you build momentum without effort. It’s also why sleep routines work best when they begin in the morning.

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Cool Your Cave

Your body has a built-in thermostat, and sleep depends on it dropping.

Roughly two hours before bed, your core temperature starts to fall. That cooling is one of the strongest biological signals your brain uses to initiate sleep. But if your environment is too warm, the signal gets blocked. You toss. You wake up. You wonder why you’re so tired.

In a review of over 200,000 sleep records, researchers found that even small increases in overnight temperature were associated with more wake-ups and less total sleep. The optimal bedroom range? Between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you can’t change your thermostat, adjust what you can: lighter blankets, breathable fabrics, a fan, or a cracked window. Small changes. Big difference.

Or, upgrade to an Eight Sleep. We’ve been sleeping on it for years, long before we started writing APC. It does the heavy lifting of ensuring you reach the right temperature to maximize your REM and deep sleep every night. (And all APC readers get a special discount)

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Silence (or Smart) Sound

Silence is golden, until it’s impossible. And even then, sleep can still happen. It just needs a soundtrack your brain can ignore.

The World Health Organization recommends keeping bedroom noise under 30 decibels. That’s softer than a whisper. Most homes can’t get there. So instead of chasing silence, protect your sleep from sudden spikes. Planes, cars, sirens: these are the culprits that pull you from deep sleep, even if you don’t remember waking up.

The fix: mask sharp sounds with soft, steady ones. Pink or white noise, rainfall, ocean waves, a humming fan. Earplugs work too. The goal isn’t silence. It’s predictability. Because your brain can adapt to patterns, but it wakes when the pattern breaks.

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TIER 2: OPTIMIZATION

Caffeine Cutoff

Caffeine is the world’s most popular stimulant, and one of the sneakiest saboteurs of sleep. It works by blocking adenosine, the chemical that builds sleep pressure throughout the day. The problem? Its effects can linger for 8–9 hours, even when you no longer feel “wired.”

In sleep studies, caffeine consumed in the afternoon reduced total sleep time, delayed deep sleep, and made people feel groggier the next morning, even when they didn’t notice the difference at night.

If you typically sleep around 10-11 p.m., aim to make 2 p.m. your last cup. And remember: decaf isn’t zero, and many pre-workouts or energy drinks contain more than you think.

Cutting off early isn’t punishment. It’s a head start on tomorrow’s energy.

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Alcohol Timing

It’s called a nightcap for a reason. A drink helps people fall asleep faster, but almost always at the cost of staying asleep well.

Alcohol fragments REM sleep, increases early-morning wakeups, and reduces overall sleep quality. And the effects are not limited to heavy drinking. Even 1-2 drinks in the evening can shorten your deep sleep window.

The good news? You don’t have to quit entirely. Just shift the timing. If you’re going to drink, finish your last one 3–4 hours before bed. Hydrate between drinks. And try to avoid turning the wind-down drink into a nightly crutch.

Because sleep isn’t about sedation; it’s about restoration.

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Dim the Evening

Light is not neutral. It’s a signal. And at night, it’s often the wrong one.

Your brain interprets bright light as daylight. That delays melatonin release, pushes your internal clock later, and makes it harder to fall asleep. But it’s not just the light, it’s the content. Doomscrolling or high-stimulation videos light up your nervous system, even in night mode.

The solution: dim the house two hours before bed. Use lamps instead of overhead lights. Turn on “night shift” on your devices, or better yet, turn them off. If you still need to use screens, blue-light-blocking glasses offer a buffer.

Your brain needs darkness to know it’s safe to rest.

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Close the Kitchen

Food is fuel. But at the wrong time, it can become friction.

Eating late — especially heavy meals — raises core body temperature and triggers metabolic activity when your body should be winding down. In multiple studies, meals within 2-3 hours of bedtime were associated with more nighttime wakeups and reduced sleep efficiency.

If your schedule forces late dinners, keep the meal lighter and simpler. And if you genuinely need something before bed? Go small and protein-forward, like Greek yogurt or a scoop of cottage cheese.

Your body works hard enough while you sleep. Let it rest from digestion, too.

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TIER 3: FINE-TUNING

CBT-I: The First-Line Fix for Insomnia

If your struggle with sleep feels deeper than a few bad nights — if it happens at least three times a week, for more than three months — it might be time for a different approach.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is the most effective non-drug treatment for chronic sleep issues. Dozens of randomized controlled trials show that it outperforms sleeping pills in both the short- and long-term.

It works by retraining your brain’s relationship with sleep. Techniques include sleep restriction (to rebuild drive), stimulus control (to associate bed only with rest), and cognitive restructuring (to reduce anxiety around sleep itself).

CBT-I is available through trained therapists or digital programs. If you’ve tried everything and still can’t sleep, this is where to go next.

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Strategic Napping

Naps aren’t bad. But they can be mistimed. Short naps (20 to 30 minutes) can improve alertness, memory, and performance. But long naps, especially late in the day, can disrupt your ability to fall asleep at night.

If you’re dragging after a poor night, a short nap before 1 p.m. can help.


Just don’t make it a daily crutch. Naps supplement sleep; they don’t replace it.

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Mindfulness to Quiet the Spin

Sometimes it’s not your body that’s restless, it’s your mind.

If you lie in bed cycling through to-do lists, anxieties, or future conversations, you’re not alone. But you don’t have to “clear your mind” to sleep. You just need to interrupt the spiral.

Enter mindfulness: breathwork, body scans, or progressive muscle relaxation. Just 10 to 20 minutes of mindfulness a night has been shown to reduce anxiety, improve sleep quality, and shorten the time it takes to fall asleep.

You can use a guided app or simply lie in bed and scan from head to toe, noticing tension and releasing it.

The goal isn’t to fall asleep. It’s to stop fighting wakefulness.

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Hydration Timing

You need water to sleep well. But you don’t need a full bladder at 2 a.m.

Dehydration can reduce REM sleep and leave you feeling more fatigued the next day. But drinking too much late in the evening leads to fragmented sleep from bathroom trips.

The fix is timing. Aim to get most of your fluids earlier in the day. Taper off in the final 1–2 hours before bed. If you wake up thirsty, try a small glass of water in the early evening, not right before lights-out.

This isn’t about cutting water. It’s about placing it where it helps, not hurts.

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Pink Noise and Nature Sounds

Your brain responds to sound patterns, even while you sleep.

While silence is best for some, others do better with a gentle hum. That’s where pink noise and nature sounds come in. Unlike white noise (which is higher-pitched), pink noise mimics natural soundscapes like rainfall, wind, or ocean waves. Studies show it can improve deep sleep and reduce the impact of sudden environmental noise.

Apps can do the trick. Just keep the volume steady and low. The goal isn’t to distract you. It’s to support a deeper, more stable sleep rhythm.

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Circadian Rhythm

Resetting the Circadian Rhythm

Get Outside Early in the Day

Exposing your eyes to bright light at specific times² can help you strategically adjust your circadian rhythms, including your sleep schedule. If you want to wake up earlier in the day, get light exposure in the morning, shortly after you wake up. If you want to stay up later at night, get light exposure in the evening or night, once you’re feeling tired.

Morning sunlight³ works well to help reset circadian rhythms, since human circadian rhythms evolved in response to living on a planet with daylight and dark nights. If you don’t live in a sunny area or can’t easily access the outdoors, you can also use a bright light therapy lamp for light exposure.

Sleep Foundation

Change Your Meal Times

Just like tiredness and sleep schedules, hunger and metabolism are closely linked to circadian rhythms. Research has found that eating meals at later times can shift circadian rhythms later.⁴

Similarly, eating breakfast immediately upon waking and avoiding late dinners has been found to help shift circadian rhythms earlier.

If you want to wake up earlier, begin eating earlier. If you want to stay up later, eat later. And as with all circadian rhythm changes, once you’re on the schedule you desire, try to keep it consistent and eat meals at the same time each day.

Sleep Foundation

Supplements

• Sustained-Release Melatonin
• Magnesium Glycinate⁵
  • Magnesium helps ?
  • Glycine is an inhibitory neurotransmitter and helps calm things down.

Equipment

Contoured Sleep Mask DMI (HealthSmart)

Strong VOC smell upon opening.

Eye contours don't have enough height to them.

• They don't stay centered on the eyes.

Sleep Mask Albatross

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