Even at 40 You Can Still Sleep Like A Knockout
Harness the power of sleep-improving hormones to feel younger, recover faster and feel ready to take on everything life throws at you.
Sleep is the unsung hero of recovery and weight loss after 40.
THE BRIEF
Time to read: 5 minutes
Time to action: 60 minutes
Mantra: There is strength to be found in sleep
Main message: An optimised 8 hours beats belly fat storage and add energy to your awake hours
Stat: 52.7% of survey respondents said they watch TV to help them fall asleep. Here’s what you should do instead…
If you’ve ever looked at an MMA fighter in a chokehold and thought “lucky guy”, the chances are you’re super into the sport, mildly fetishistic, or suffering from sleep issues.
And if you’ve never been KO'd trust us when we say it’s not exactly an intoxicating experience. We’re going to assume your desire to hit blackout is more about a desire to sleep than fetish! The good news is it can be achieved in just a few steps. Training your body to sleep better means training it out of fat storage around your waist. Double wins – what more could you want from less than 5 minutes reading?
Stress and sleep: the cortisol connection
Cortisol, the stress hormone that gives you a short burst of energy to overcome survival threats is highly useful in mobilising energy to get away from danger. One of the side effects of producing so much cortisol without the need to fight or flight (FOF), is an increase in fat storage around the abdominal area. This tactic is so it can be broken down and used to fuel the next threat to survival. Belly fat also contains higher levels of an HSD enzyme, which activates inactive cortisol. This means these fat cells around your midsection can become their own little cortisol-making factory.
Cortisol follows a rhythm
Comes up with the sun.
Peaks around 11am.
Declines steadily during the day.
A 4pm slump that tells us the day is almost over.
Levels are their lowest just before 2am.
They rise from 2am to prepare us for a new day.
The body’s natural circadian rhythm wants us to eat dinner around 5pm and be in bed by 8pm. This can sound tempting. We all know the call of Netflix, and anxiety avoidance means lots of images in short, sharp shocks to keep our system from engaging in anything outside of the immediately obvious.
Here’s our step-by-step guide to a better bedtime routine…
8pm: Watch wisely on weekdays
Our brains are so well developed that our bodies have learned to respond to psychological stress with the same hormonal cascade that happens with a physical stressor. This means that our endocrine system goes into uproar just by thinking about a stressful event – even if that event is unlikely. And yes, TV is top of the hit list for eliciting the sort of FOF response that keeps your body pumping like Arnie in ‘74 (Google it or, paradoxically, watch it on Netflix). It’s a better idea to watch comedy shows, as it’s been found that laughter can lower cortisol and increase the growth hormone. So you’ll wake up less stressed and feeling younger to boot.
10pm: Cool body, calmer mind
Helping the body cool down will help signify your intent to slow down. A body will fall asleep faster and with a higher quality of sleep following actions that cool the body.
So now is the time for a cool (not freezing) shower. Do it before putting on the PJs (again, routine) to remind your rhythm that nothing stressful can enter your world for the foreseeable.
10:30pm: 80s analogue relax
You may not have to get up at 6:30am, but going to bed is a “ceremony.” It involves telling your body to start the shutdown process by preparing the mind for sleep and relaxation. In your 40’s, you probably have more worries than ever before, so there are some simple yes and nos for the next hour:
Yes: sex, reading, music, audiobooks, and comfort
No phone calls, work chat, social media, or TV.
There are 2 key times to focus on you during the day: this sleep process and when you wake. So think of this 9-10 hour block as all about you to be ready for everyone else for the other 14-15.
11pm: Mind and media blackout
Light signals to the body and mind that it is time to get up. You know all about blue light by now, and they are present in every electronic device. Yes, dark mode helps, but it’s not enough if you’re struggling to find unconsciousness outside of a chokehold. Even an old-school alarm clock can help, so long as the ticking doesn’t wind you up more than the blue light disturbs.
11:10pm: Stop, it’s strawberry time
A brilliant chap, Phil Richards, wrote in The Science of Fat Loss: “When you are faced with a stressful situation, your vitamin C is rapidly used up in the production of cortisol. In studies about vitamin C supplementation (1,000-1,500mg per day for one week), ultra-marathon runners showed a 30% lower cortisol level in their blood when compared to marathon runners receiving a placebo.”
The conclusion was clear and proven: pre-sleep vitamin C intake, such as from strawberries or kiwifruit, will lower your cortisol levels and make you feel more relaxed, so you can fall asleep faster. You can, of course, get the hit from orange juice. Just don’t forget to brush your teeth after enjoying the exciting mouth chemistry as it mixes with toothpaste. If nothing else it’s a KO for your tastebuds… sadist.
ENERGY RABBIT
Not simply a life coach, but an award-winner in the wellness sector with over a decade of experience. Rabbit specialises in the accessibility of information – if there is a theory worth exploring, Rabbit will work out how easily it can be integrated into your everyday life.
