We’ve all heard the buzz surrounding the importance of implementing a morning routine into your life. Yet, we don’t all seem to give that same level of reverence to the paralleled night routine.
A well-executed morning routine will set your day up for success, but a great morning routine starts before your head even hits the pillow the night prior. Administering a quick and simple nighttime routine will assist you in more easily falling asleep, staying asleep, and having a deeper sleep.
Most adults require between 7-8 hours of sleep per night but a large portion are not hitting that mark. Worrying about the day ahead, scrolling through your phone, and consuming caffeine can all halt your ability to get a good night’s rest.
The last thing people want to do after a long day of doing stuff is add to their daily to-do list. Don’t worry, a night routine doesn’t have to be long and tedious. Just a few simple steps that will help you wind down for the day.
Although this post includes 17 ideas, you don’t need to include all of them. You don’t want your routine to become hours long. Pick and choose what works for you or sample them all and see what sticks. After a while, you’ll start to look forward to the relaxation it brings as you get excited to head off into dreamland.
Listed below we’ll go over some ideas you can use to assemble a night routine that works for you. Get copious amounts of good quality sleep with these 17-night routine ideas.
Avoid Caffeine-
Avoid consuming anything caffeinated after around 4 pm assuming that you have a 9-5 type schedule. Caffeine can stay in your system for around 6 hours, so it’s best to stop consumption about 6 hours before your bedtime. If you enjoy coffee or tea in the evening, grab a decaffeinated version.
Consistency is Key-
Aim to keep a consistent sleep schedule. Understandably this can be tricky with certain shift work jobs or parenting but do the best you can. As much as possible, strive to wake up and go to sleep at the same time daily, even on weekends. Your body loves consistency and will fall asleep and wake up easier when it is on a routine schedule.
Avert your Eyes-
Screens from your cellphone, tablet, and laptop all emit blue light. This light deters your body from producing melatonin (the hormone that makes you sleepy). When we look at light, our body receives signals that it’s time to be awake. When it’s dark our body does the opposite.
Before modern times, humans would wake up at sunrise and sleep with the sunset. Our bodies are still made to function this way. When our eyes are fixed, scrolling through our devices, our body is tricked into thinking it’s not time for sleep yet. Shutting off your screens 30-90 minutes before you plan to fall asleep will assist you in falling asleep much faster.
Snack Light-
It’s not advised to eat close to bedtime but if you’re feeling hungry reach for lighter, healthy snacks. We’ve all been there when we’ve gouged ourselves on rich, fatty foods only to toss and turn from feeling too full.
Keep late-night eats light and healthy so you’re satisfied but not overly full and bloated. Nuts and seeds, hummus and veggies, fruits and popcorn are all good ideas.
Warm Beverages-
A warm comforting beverage can put anyone in the mood to drift off. Things like soothing camomile tea will calm you, valerian root tea will settle your stress or a nourishing turmeric latte are what you should be reaching for pre-bedtime.
Set the Mood-
Set up your space to incorporate calming elements. Shut off bright lights and replace them with dim lights or candles, play soft-soothing music instead of over-stimulating beats, plug in a diffuser if you have and pop in scented oils perfect for sleep like lavender, warm vanilla, sandalwood, or ylang-ylang.
Stretch-
It can be hard to relax when your body is tense. Spend 5, 10, 15, or 20 minutes doing some light stretching. From your neck, back, arms, and legs, focus on stretching all of the major muscle groups. You can also follow along to a hatha yoga YouTube video or attend a late-night yoga class.
Facial/Self-Massage-
Facial massage is a perfect ritual before bed to relax tense facial muscles, prevent wrinkles, de-puff, and promote lymphatic drainage. Aside from all the benefits it feels amazing and helps you to decompress and become sleepy.
“The Moments” on YouTube has fantastic videos taking you step by step. If facial massage isn’t your thing, you can give yourself a head, neck, or shoulder massage, or anywhere else on your body you hold a lot of tension. Rolling out on a foam roller is another way to relax tight muscles before bed.
Meditate-
The perfect way to wind down your nervous system is with evening meditation. Concentrate on taking deep, full breaths while meditating in silence, listening to soft music, or following along to a guided meditation.
YouTube has a ton of soft sounds and guided meditations to lull you to sleep. You’ll clear your mind and fall asleep without as much noise in your head.
Journal-
Sometimes you need to get the thoughts in your brain out and onto paper. Jot down your ideas, your assessment of the day, or anything else you need to get off your chest. When you do a brain dump, you’ll calm the noise in your head and enjoy a quiet and peaceful slumber.
To-Do List-
Do you keep yourself awake by repeatedly rummaging through tomorrow’s to-do list? Writing down the things that are tomorrow’s problem will keep them just that, tomorrow’s problem.
You won’t toss and turn as much worrying about whether or not you’re forgetting something. Once you write out your list, you can rest assured that all your tasks and priorities are already laid out for you.
Prepare Ahead-
Starting your morning in a rushed and frantic state is never the way to begin your day. By doing some light prep ahead of time you’ll give yourself the extra time you need in the morning to do your morning routine, get a workout in, or eat a healthy breakfast.
Prepare by planning your outfit and/or packing your gym bag and laying it out neatly, prep your breakfast and lunch for the next day, and set out your keys, wallet, and any other things you’ll need. Keep it simple, doing this easy step will save you so much time and stress in the morning.
Tidy-
Do some light tidying for even 5, 10, or 15 minutes before you lay down your head. Now isn’t the time to power clean your kitchen necessarily, but do some general tidying, and make sure things are put away and in order. It’ll be one thing less to do the next day and you’ll sleep better knowing things are clean and in their place.
Set your Alarm-
The horror of waking up, checking the clock, and realizing you slept through your alarm, only to reach the conclusion you never set it properly.
Set your alarm for the correct time, double-check it’s set to the correct am/pm button and make sure your phone is well charged so it doesn’t die while you’re sleeping.
The same goes if you use a traditional alarm. Double-check that everything is on the correct setting and make sure it’s plugged in. If you tend to snooze a couple of times, set some backup alarms so that eventually you’ll get annoyed enough to wake up.
Read-
One of the best ways to make yourself sleepy is by doing some reading. Choose books or magazines that aren’t too overstimulating like thriller, horror, or heartbreak novels. Aim to keep it light so that you’re going to sleep in a positive headspace.
Assistance-
If you’re still struggling to fall asleep get some assistance from melatonin pills, magnesium, CBD, THC, or nighttime sleepy teas. If your partner’s snoring keeps you awake, get them snore strips to hush the noise or yourself some earplugs.
You might prefer pitch black while your partner prefers some dim lighting, so invest in an eye mask to shut out the light. Everyone has a different recipe for the way they need to fall asleep. Figure out yours and accommodate.
Get Help-
If you think you suffer from a sleep disorder, consult with your doctor to come up with the best course of action. Sleep is important and lack of it can lead to other health issues, so don’t hesitate to get it checked out.
If you’re suffering from anxiety or another mental health condition that is keeping you awake, consult with your doctor, or therapist or call or text a helpline if you need someone to talk to.
Conclusion-
Here are the 17-night routine ideas to help you get more and better sleep. Try these methods out to figure out the correct routine that best suits your needs.
Your mind and body will thank you for getting more and higher quality Z’s every night. You’ll look forward to winding down in the evening while you prep your brain and body for some prime R.E.M. You’ll wake up feeling more refreshed, energized, and ready to tackle the day ahead.
