My wife just had our baby boy and we’re struggling to get a consistent sleep pattern figured out. It’s been really hard to say the least! Our health & fitness is a big priority to us, but with poor sleep patterns it has made it hard to workout, eat healthy and manage stress. I was also a firefighter for six years and understand the struggles of shift work.
Sleep deprivation can cause a rise in cortisol levels and stress. These factors can lead to stored fat deposits, chronic disease, an unhealthy lifestyle, and less motivation to take care of yourself.
So what are you supposed to do if you have a baby who keeps you up at night or your career calls for crazy nights?
You’re in luck! There are two small steps you can take to help reduce the amount of cortisol your body is producing and manage those sleepless nights.
Obviously it’s best to try to catch up on sleep, but this is not always possible, so here are some tips my wife and I are taking to manage our sleepless nights.
First, taking a magnesium supplement has been really beneficial for us. Magnesium helps regulate the hormone cortisol, keeping your levels down, and assists in giving you a higher quality of sleep. It’s like taking a chill pill.
Our favorite magnesium supplements are MagPure Malate, Magnesium Glycinate and ConcenTrace Mineral Drops. We take the MagPure in the morning, drink the Trace Mineral Drops in a glass of water during the day and take the MagPure at night.
Second, we’ve reduced the number of days we’re working out from five to four. Sounds crazy right? But when you workout you’re creating stress on your body. You’re breaking down your muscles which also need to be repaired. If you’re not sleeping well your body has to kick into overdrive to recover which can cause a compromised immune system leading to sickness.
Taking an extra day or two off will benefit your recovery and reduce the stress of trying to make it to the gym so often. The extra day of rest has benefited us a lot!
I hope our tips can help you as well!
If you’re interested in more help on managing your sleep, book a free consultation with one of our awesome coaches → https://msgsndr.com/widget/booking?calendar=cG0F1o7IB58d8xZGxrOo,CMDz4uSx2R7G2nBd7yl1