Sleep Smarter: 21 Essential Strategies to Sleep Your Way to a Better Body, Better Health, and Bigger Success

by Shawn Stevenson

Epsom salt is actually a form of magnesium called magnesium sulfate.

The topical magnesium that I use and that I recommend for my clients is 100 percent bioavailable and 100 percent pure, and the stuff just flat-out works. A night hardly ever goes by that I don’t rub this magnesium into my skin, because I’ve consistently found that my sleep quality is even better when I use it.

Keep the topical magnesium right by your bedside and apply it right before you hop under the covers.

Fresh air is very important. Did you know that the ions in the air you breathe can become “stale” and less energizing? The air you breathe carries more than just oxygen into your cells; it also carries other ionic elements that are vital for your health and well-being.

Negative ions are present in abundance near waterfalls, ocean surf, rivers, and mountains. Many of us have experienced breathing the “fresh air”

Air ionizers are not just good for your sleeping space;

Humidifiers bring a bit of moisture back to the air, providing that water element we’d find in a sanctuary environment.

Take the English ivy, for example. NASA listed it as the number one air-filtering houseplant. It has an unmatched ability to absorb formaldehyde (a known neurotoxin),

Another great plant for your sleep sanctuary is the perennial snake plant. It doesn’t require much light or water to thrive.

The smell of jasmine wasn’t found to make people sleep more, but instead, to improve the quality of sleep by reducing interruptions in normal sleep patterns.

It’s also important to note that men produce four times more prolactin when having an orgasm through intercourse as compared to masturbation.

“Sleep deprivation can increase your risk of erectile dysfunction.”

the brain is actually the largest sex organ because of the vital role it plays in sexual arousal (whoever said size doesn’t matter?). Cultivating your brain-body connection is critical to a fulfilling sex life and getting the best sleep ever.

Did you know that your skin actually has receptors that can pick up light? These photoreceptors are similar to those found in your retina, so your skin can literally see.

Personally, this is the one thing that instantly had a beneficial impact on my sleep. I blacked out my bedroom and have been getting the best sleep of my life ever since.

try utilizing the soft light of candles in the evening to transition to a great night of sleep.

Whether you choose to do a full workout in the morning or afternoon, make sure to get some activity in during the first part of the day regardless.

You can take just a few minutes to do some body weight exercises, go for a power walk, do some rebounding on a mini-trampoline, do some yoga, hit a few sets of kettle bell swings, do Tabata, or so many other things.

If

you prefer to do a full workout in the morning, then simply do that. Whatever way you slice it, the clinically proven benefits of activity in the morning are just too good to pass up.

If you’re really serious about being the healthiest person you can be, you’ll set your personal exercise appointment and sleep time first, then schedule everything else around them. TRAIN SMART POWER TIP #3 Do something you enjoy!

TRAIN SMART POWER TIP #4 Get

an accountability partner. Statistics show that having external accountability drastically increases your rate of follow-through.

themodelhealthshow.com or subscribe to The Model Health Show on iTunes, Stitcher, or anywhere you can listen to podcasts on your favorite device. You can also join the Sleep Smarter Facebook group via the bonus resource guide (sleepsmarterbook.com/bonus) and get

up with some helpful accountability there, too.

poor night’s sleep led to less frequent and shorter workouts the next day.

Focus on compound lifts that really give you the most bang for your buck. You can grab some sample step-by-step exercise protocols in the Sleep Smarter bonus resource guide.

Cell phones, televisions, desktops, laptops, iPads, Kindles, tablets, and more. Many people have turned their bedrooms into miniature Best Buy locations. But what are the health risks associated with this? And what in the world is it doing to our sleep?

What about for mama and papa? Well, a recent study that tracked the sex lives of 523 Italian couples found that couples who don’t have a TV in their bedroom have about twice as much sex as couples who do (this is the part of the book where some people smack themselves and then go and get the television out of their bedroom).

To avoid this seduction of keeping your cell phone

near your bedside, simply take action to use an actual alarm clock.

Our mattresses can literally be a conductor of EMFs. That’s not great news, but don’t freak out. We’ll talk a little bit more about mattresses in Chapter 15, but if you already love the bed you’re in, you can simply get some EMF shielding bed lining for use on your already existing mattress. This bed wear is shown to have a shielding effectiveness of 99.7 percent. You can find more information through the bonus resources at sleepsmarterbook.com/bonus.

Biomechanist and bestselling author Katy Bowman utilizes a basic electrical timer to do this automatically. You simply install it in the socket where you plug your router in, and just set it to turn the power off during your preferred sleepy time. You can find more info about these easy-to-use electrical timers in the Sleep Smarter bonus resource guide as well.

Let’s take a look at the impact that being overweight has on cortisol, for example. Research presented by Deakin University in Australia showed that after consuming a meal, overweight individuals secreted radically higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol. People with a healthy weight showed a 5 percent increase in cortisol levels after consuming a meal, while overweight and obese individuals’ cortisol levels increased by a whopping 51 percent! These high cortisol levels translate to higher blood sugar, lower insulin sensitivity, and increased levels of inflammation.

As a result, the researchers found that each group equally boosted their sleep quality by about 20 percent, with a reduction in belly fat being the best indicator of improved sleep. This study also demonstrates that even without the vast benefits of exercise, the power of simply changing your diet has a huge impact on the results that you get.

You don’t want to lose weight. You want to lose fat. Remember, when it comes to this, it’s all about the hormones.

Now understanding the fact that sleep deprivation decreases your insulin sensitivity, disrupts your hormonal cycles, and depresses your brain function, we know that her statement is 100 percent true. It’s time to put all the excuses aside and give your body the sleep it requires to finally lose the weight and get the body and health you truly deserve.

If you really need to have something to eat closer to bedtime, have a high-fat, low-carb

snack. This will ensure that your blood sugar stays stable. In contrast, if you eat a higher-carb snack right before bed, your blood sugar will spike, and the impending blood sugar crash can be enough to wake you up out of sleep.

Remember this always: Nutrient deficiency will lead to persistent overeating (which will lead to poor sleep and poor overall health).

Have your first meal be an epic one. Start your day off smart. Most people in our modern world have been programmed to start their day by having dessert for breakfast: oatmeal, toast, pancakes, bagels, cereal, fruit smoothies, and more. You’re starting your day with a huge insulin spike and setting yourself up for a day of fat storage because of this. Here we have one of the biggest secrets to long-term fat loss: Keep insulin down through the first part of your day. The morning is the ideal time to get in your real food, superfoods, and healthy fat supplements because you’re right next to your cabinets at home. A breakfast of a vegetable omelet, sliced avocado

topped with kelp granules (a sea veggie that’s great for thyroid function), and some omega-3 supplements is a hormone-healthy way to start your day.

Instead, if you’re going to make a smoothie, then make a green smoothie with a focus on the green. Load that blender up with a ridiculous amount of green leafy vegetables like spinach, some berries, protein powder, almond butter, some cacao powder (real chocolate powder), cinnamon, unsweetened almond milk, and maybe half a small banana or stevia to make it taste nice. The greens and micronutrients will help to keep that insulin response to a minimum. Even though green smoothies are okay, the best breakfast option for most people is to go with some protein (like eggs, steak, or salmon), veggies (cooked and/or raw), and some healthy fats (like avocado, coconut, olives, or nuts and seeds).

Memory processing is predominantly affected by different stages of REM sleep. If you get optimal REM sleep, all is well,

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis found that participants who had disrupted sleep cycles were more likely to show signs related to Alzheimer’s disease than normal sleepers. This is another blatant cry to not mistake sleep quantity for sleep quality, and to avoid things that hurt your sleep and hurt your brain.

“Numerous studies have shown that sleepiness can impair driving skills as much as being drunk. In fact, being awake for 20 hours straight makes the average driver perform as poorly as someone with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 percent, now the legal limit in all states.”

Many experts will tell you that sleeping on your back is the ideal position to be in. There are several reasons that this could be accurate. First of all, your spine can be in the best

position here (as long as you don’t make some of the mistakes we’ll talk about in a moment). You will also have less likelihood of digestive distress, like acid reflux, in this position. And, for all those who are cosmetically conscious, sleeping on your back allows your facial skin to breathe, so you’ll be less prone to having breakouts and early-onset wrinkling.

The downside of sleeping on your back is the greater likelihood of snoring and sleep apnea. This is partly because when we sleep on our backs, gravity can force the base of the tongue to col...

You don’t have to get the most fancy-pants mattress in the world; just make sure that you’re not sinking in so much that your spine’s natural curve is compromised. We’ll talk more about mattresses shortly.