Sleep Smarter: 21 Proven Tips to Sleep Your Way To a Better Body, Better Health and Bigger Success

Melatonin is produced by the pineal gland in your brain and it sends signals to create the best environment in your body for sleep.

Evening Ritual Checklist:

[ ] Electronic screens off 90 minutes (minimum) before bed

[ ] Stretch and/or bath or shower

[ ] Read some fiction

[ ] Brush your teeth

[ ] Use the bathroom

[ ] Journal

[ ] Meditation, prayers, or give gratitude

[ ] Lay down in bed to sleep

[ ]Time to say goodnight

Sleep is the secret sauce.

create a clear association between your bed and sleep. It’s recommended that you read anywhere in your home other than your bed itself if you don’t have this strong association built. You can read in your bedroom, just not in your bed if you can’t handle the reading rainbow juice.

Take a bath: A warm bath or shower shortly before bed can help you unwind and relax. Water by itself can have a very calming effect, but adding aromatherapy or magnesium bath salts to the equation can make it even better.

Be sure that the water isn’t too hot or you run the risk of raising your core body temperature too much. Also, be sure that you don’t hop right out and go straight to bed. Allow several minutes for your core temperature to come back down, or some experts recommend finishing up with a cold bath or shower for this purpose.

Here are some specific strategies to help relax, de-stress, and get into the right state for sleep:

Read some fiction

There are few things more capable of disconnecting you from your stress, worries, and tension than escaping to another world within the pages of a book.

Non-fiction can be okay if it’s a biography or something along those lines.

Let’s look at some common and effective activities you can add to your evening ritual to help you get a great night’s sleep.

Get in the Mood

Relaxation before bed is essential.

But the best bet is too avoid the analytical, methodical, teaching, or training types of books.