Try This – 6 Ways I Improved My Sleep

I’ve been working on my sleep routine for years, partially because I have struggled with getting good sleep in the past and partially because I know how critical sleep is for our health. 

Virtually every single practitioner I’ve had the privilege of interviewing has said that getting quality sleep is the most underrated health habit out there. 

I don’t need to preach to the choir. Try This readers know by now how important sleep is, but you might not know how to get it. 

Today, I want to share five of the most impactful tools I’ve used to transform my sleep—stuff that’s really worked for me—in hopes that maybe some of these tips will work for you, too. If you know anyone who struggles with sleep, send them this email! 

Let’s get into it.

1. Eating my last meal at least 2–3 hours before bed. This one has been so important for me personally. Any time I eat too heavily too close to bed, I struggle with restless sleep. I’ve found that the sweet spot for decent sleep is to eat about three or four hours before my bedtime. That gives my digestion a chance to work its magic and not work overtime while I’m trying to sleep.
   
   Another thing I’ve been trying to implement after talking with Mark Sisson is making sure I don’t eat too much protein right before bed. I’ve personally noticed that if I eat a very protein-heavy meal at night, my sleep is a lot more inconsistent. Now, I’ll try to eat the bulk of my protein for breakfast, snacks, and lunch, and later in the day, I’ll keep my meals lighter with around 20 grams of protein. I’m still shooting for 160 grams of protein daily, but now I’m just getting that protein earlier instead of playing catch-up at dinner and sacrificing my sleep. It’s a little annoying to try to get in the majority of my protein before dinner, but I’ve been sleeping better for sure. Again, this is something that works for me because of my n of 1 experiment, if you don’t have this issue, it’s not something that you have to worry about.

*A note for folks waking up from lower blood sugar: If you’re someone who gets low blood sugar at night, you might want to try having a healthy snack before bed. Something like yogurt and berries or apples and nut butter are good choices.

2. Honoring my natural sleep cycle. Have you heard of sleep chronotypes before? Your chronotype is the time your body naturally wants to sleep; it’s the difference between early birds and night owls. I know I’m an early bird, aka a Lion. I always have been! Staying up past my body’s natural sleep time leaves me feeling exhausted and unproductive. And new research shows that picking a bedtime and sticking to it can reduce our risk of chronic diseases like heart disease. My bedtime is between 9:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., and my wake time is around 5:30 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. When I stick to this schedule, I always get better sleep. Find a schedule that works for you, and do your best to stick to the window. And most importantly, don’t feel bad about staying true to your natural chronotype, and don’t beat yourself up for having a late night here or there.
   
   

3. Keeping my room cool. Sleep expert Matthew Walker says that temperature is one of the biggest contributors to how well we sleep. I know this all too well. If I’m hot, I can’t sleep. I think pretty much everyone can benefit from a cooler room, but how cool is up to you and your partner. I like it a lot colder than my wife does, so we’ve invested in an Eight Sleep (not a sponsor), which allows you to change the temperature on different sides of the bed. You can also use different blankets if one person prefers a thicker comforter and the other prefers a thinner one. We like to keep the room at around 69–70 degrees Fahrenheit. Play around with what feels good for you! You can also open a window at night to let in cool air or use a fan. 

4. Using the right pillow. This one might feel a bit random, but it’s been so pivotal for my sleep. I used to wake up with severe neck pain throughout the night, and it wasn’t until I started using this TEMPUR-cloud pillow that my neck pain significantly improved and led to less waking up in the middle of the night. I have no affiliation with this company, and it’s not necessarily a “clean” or nontoxic company, but it’s the best pillow I’ve ever used, and I will continue to use it. I love this pillow so much that I even take it with me when I travel. My wife is hooked on this pillow too. If you have any other recommendations for a great pillow let me know at [email protected]

5. Significantly reducing blue light in my home. My sleep is SO much worse when I use screens before bed or sit in a brightly lit room. At least one hour before bed, I put on my blue blockers, turn on red light bulbs, and dim all the lighting in the house. I notice that I naturally start to yawn earlier and get tired earlier when I’m in red light as opposed to blue light. In fact, my wife would always go into the bathroom to do her nighttime skincare routine and come out with a surge of energy, unable to sleep. I finally found the reason. Our bathroom lights were super bright, giving her a cortisol bump just before bed. Since dimming the lights and turning on the red lights, we fall asleep way quicker! 

There are two products I use that have really helped with limiting my blue light exposure:

• Blue Light Blocking Glasses: I put these on about 1–2 hours before bed, especially if I’m using my phone or laptop.
  

• Blue Light Blocking Light Bulb: We also have these right light bulbs on our nightstand in our bedroom.

BON Charge does sponsor my podcast, but I’ve been recommending and using their products well before they were a sponsor.

6. Targeted supplements. I’m a huge fan of sleep-supporting supplements, especially when I’m traveling. My whole family knows that I have a few tried-and-true supplements that I always carry with me to support sleep quality. I’ve experimented with a few different ones over the years, and these are the two that have made the biggest difference so far:

• Magnesium Breakthrough: BiOptimizers magnesium remains my favorite to this day because it contains all seven forms of magnesium, and it’s the only magnesium I’ve taken that has had a significant impact on my sleep and digestion. Shout-out to my brother-in-law Dr. Neel Patel who told me about BiOptimizers magnesium. After using them for a few months I reached out and asked them to be a sponsor of my podcast.
  

• Insomnitol: This is a newer supplement I’m taking since I’ve needed a little extra support with my sleep, but it works wonders. I was really struggling with sleep last month because of a foot injury, and a friend recommended this mix of inositol, melatonin, 5-HTP, L-theanine, and vitamin B6. I know some folks are really sensitive to melatonin, so if that’s you, definitely take caution before using this supplement—something like magnesium might be a better choice! I don’t use Insomnitol every night, but when I needed the big guns because my sleep was off, it worked perfectly!

I hope these tips help you as much as they’ve helped me. Because without quality sleep, true health is hard to achieve. 

Here’s to sweet dreams and good sleep, 
Dhru Purohit