BLOG

The secret of sleep

Good quality sleep is vital for a healthy happy life. It enhances our energy, makes us feel more alive and has an important impact on our experience of pain. But so many of us struggle to fall asleep or find ourselves waking up during the night.

When we sleep our bodies are able to restore and repair themselves. One of the great ways our body does this is by secreting collagen in the first few hours of sleep. Collagen repairs and protects cells thereby allowing our entire body to have a better chance at healing. Another important substance released during sleep is melatonin. This is released in the last few hours of sleep when rapid eye movement (REM) sleep kicks in. Melatonin is an antioxidant that enhances our sleep cycle to give our cells plenty of time to repair, rebuild and regenerate. These healthy, happy cells are then better able to combat injuries, inflammation and other causes of pain in our body. On top of that if we are well rested then our mood improves thereby improving our resilience to pain.

Busy lives can make it difficult to get this good quality sleep. We are often staying up longer as well as worrying about lots of things. This extra stress increases our levels of cortisol. Cortisol is a stimulant for the nervous system and makes it difficult for us to wind down. To help combat this we need to ensure adequate GABA is being released in the evening. GABA is a neurotransmitter that helps to slow the nervous system down. To help our body produce more GABA we can take the following supplements.

-Magnesium: a muscle relaxant that helps increase GABA levels

-B6: helps convert glutamate into GABA

-Zinc: a requirement to activate B6

-Prebiotics: to help increase good bacteria in the gut to allow better absorption of nutrients

On top of balancing the body’s hormones there are other important things we can be doing to help our sleep. Try some of these tips:

-Switch off your phone

-Avoid screens in the hour before you go to bed

-Keep to a bedtime routine

-Keep the hour before bed the same every night

-Avoid heavy foods and drinks

-Try not to drink caffeine after 4 pm, or alcohol at night

-Do not eat heavy meals in the 2 hours before bedtime

-Try not to nap more than 20 minutes in a day

-Use meditation apps

-Ensure you are getting enough exercise throughout the week as exercise enhances the time spent in deep sleep

-Practice relaxing breathing and yoga prior to bed

If you feel tension in your body or particular areas of tightness and discomfort then have a chat with your physiotherapist. They can assess for the problematic muscles and provide you with gentle exercises to help release this tension prior to bedtime. You may also find it useful to get guidance on good breathing habits. Your physiotherapist can teach you to activate the correct breathing muscles allowing you to access the benefits of breathing techniques.

Many people enjoy a regular coffee habit, but what is good and what is too much?

Here is the caffeine in some of our regular drinks:

Coffee shop coffee: 100-400mg

Instant coffee: 100mg

Black tea: 75mg

100g dark chocolate: 50mg

Can of coke: 50mg

Green tea: 35 mg

Consuming too much coffee can cause sleeping difficulties, increase your heart rate, cause stomach upset, restlessness, increase stress and anxiety and cause mood swings.  Another problem is that the more you consume the more your body gets used to it so the stimulating effects wear off unless you drink more.

Your goal:   Aim to keep your intake no more than 3mg/kg body weight per day.

If you are getting more than this here are some tips on cutting down your coffee:

1. Start by weaning off caffeine slowly!
2. Get enough sleep, if you are tired you are more likely to go looking for that energy hit. Be sure to avoid caffeine after 1 pm so it doesn’t effect your sleep.
3. Stay hydrated with water. Water should be your number one drink, even better if you add a squeeze of lemon juice.  Check you are drinking enough water by looking at the colour of your urine – it should be straw coloured.
4. Drink herbal teas as an alternative
5. If you are feeling tired try going for a brisk walk rather than grabbing a coffee.

Smiling is easy when you’re carefree and everything is going well.  But most of us don’t realise just how powerful a smile can be.  Not only the way you can lift someone else’s mood with your smile (a kind smile can feel like a hug) but also the cascade of biochemical changes that happen in your own body when you smile.

When you smile your body releases feel good neurotransmitters: dopamine, endorphins and serotonin AND helps to stop the stress hormone cortisol flooding the body.  Smiling will help you to feel not just happy but uplifted, confident, relaxed and positive.

The best bit is that your body will respond to your smile whether it is real or fake so the best way to lift your mood even though you really won’t want to is put a big smile on your face and even laugh out loud – fake it ‘til you make it!

Look at yourself in the mirror and give yourself the biggest grin possible.

5 ways to smile more:

1. Surround yourself with happy positive people
2. Just do it – decide to be a smiley person
3. Make time for yourself: it is easier to smile when you aren’t stressed and rushing
4. Play, have fun, be present in the moment.
5. Carry a photo with you that always puts a smile on your face.

No excuses – now you know how powerful your beautiful smile is!

10 Ways to beat stress

1. Start by being kind to yourself. Recognise that the voice is your head is very powerful so be sure to speak to yourself the way you would speak to a friend.  If you feel the voice in your head is mean you need to take control of this, catch it every time and try saying something different to yourself, slowly overtime this mean voice habit will disappear and be replaced by self-love and self-nurturing

2. Plan treats: Be sure to know what activities make you happy and try to plan these into your life. g. put a walk on the beach in your diary a couple of times a week.  You need to prioritise these activities and not wait for spare time.

3. Turn off your phone! Your phone should be your convenience.  You do not need it at all times, turn if off when you exercise, play with the kids, eat meals, between 7pm and 7am etc.  Also think about turning off your notifications permanently and just make set times throughout the day to check your emails etc.

4. Get outside: nature heals so start spending as much time outside as possible (even if it is only in the backyard) but getting to the bush or ocean is even better. Time to time to slow down and look at the beauty of nature.

5. Slow your breath, every hour take 5 slow, deep breaths in and out through your nose.

6. Let go of your worries especially if there is nothing that can be done, or you are worrying about something that has already happened. Write your worries down on a piece of paper than tear it up and throw it away.

7. Sleep more: ensure you have a bedtime routine where you go to bed and get up at the same time everyday (even on the weekends) and you are getting enough hours.

8. Eat clean and avoid foods that will increase anxiety levels. Caffeine, chocolate and sugar are perfect examples of foods that directly cause the stress hormone cortisol to be produced.  Calming foods include water, herbal teas, fruit and vegetables.

9. Exercise: try to fit a brisk walk into your day (even better if it is outside in nature)

10. Meditate: download a mediation app and get started today. There is now so much research showing just how effective meditation is

If your stress and anxiety doesn’t improve with the tips, see your GP

The shorter cooler days can have an affect on your mood and energy meaning that you are more likely to want to curl up on the couch with a cup of tea then go for an early morning walk.

It takes a little more motivation and effort to exercise over winter, but time outdoors has significant benefits to your health and well being, improving memory and reducing feelings of stress and anxiety as well as the fitness benefits.

Being in fresh air actually increases your immunity which means you have less chance of getting colds and flues.

Spending time in natural light will aid your sleep cycle meaning you will fall into a deeper sleep and wake up feeling more refreshed and also plays a role in maintaining adequate vitamin D levels which is essential for you bone, teeth and muscle health.  You will also feel more alert for the whole day.

No more excuses – set the alarm and start the day with a brisk walk, you’ll be glad you did.

There are 2 main types of motivation

1. Intrinsic: this is based on internal factors and your own personal desire to achieve something.
2. Extrinsic: this is when external factors are encouraging you, e.g.- a reward or a threat if you fail.

People are often motivated by a blend of both of these types of motivation, e.g.- if you are participating in a fun run you may win a medal, but you will also get the personal satisfaction of doing your best.

To keep your self-motivated, write down why you are doing what you are doing, what you are hoping to achieve and how that will make you feel.  This will then become the intrinsic motivator to keep you going.   Then tell your friends and family and ask for them to help keep you on track this accountability will become your extrinsic motivator, maybe even promise yourself a reward if you achieve your goals for a bit of extra motivation!

Learn how to interpret the nutrition fact labels on food packets.

Firstly you are best to avoid food in a packet altogether, try to shop the periphery of the supermarket: fruit and vegetables and meat, aim to eat the foods your Great Grandparents would have eaten.   Of course we all buy some packaged foods so it is important to know what you are looking at when checking food labels:

1. The order matters: the ingredients are listed in order of how much they contribute to the product. So if you see sugar high on the list you know there is a lot of sugar in that product.  You might be surprised, it is not just the obvious ones like lollies and biscuits but also sauces, breads and dairy products!  Basically any word that ends in ‘ose (sucrose, glucose……) is sugar.
2. The fewer the ingredients the better, and if you haven’t heard of an ingredient you certainly don’t want to be putting it in your precious body! If the list is long it is a good indicator that the food you are looking at is highly processed and likely full of additives and chemicals.
3. Even supposed healthy foods like soups and dips can be full of colours, sweeteners and preservatives so ALWAYS check the label.
4. Be wary of BUZZ words, as healthy and organic eating is on trend marketers are taking advantage of it and putting all sorts of words on the packaging that have healthy connotations but the reality is that there is no governing body around what they can put on the label. It can be very misleading e.g.- organic compared to all ingredients certified organic.  The first product might only be 1% organic and may not even be certified – SCARY!!

It is worth taking the time to read your food labels and make sure you know exactly what you are choosing to fuel your body with.

Happy shopping!