Hey ,

We’re back with another episode of “How Can I Stop Sleeping Like Sh*t?”

Today I’ll be going over another controversial Sleep Destroyer:

Exercising too closely to bedtime 

Yes, exercise.

This is controversial because I know so many people who work out in the evening.

While I obviously can't speak for them, I know that if I work out too close to bedtime, I’ll stay awake a lot later, no matter how exhausted I feel.

So I’ll share what I know and you can decide if you think evening exercise is something that might be harming your sleep.

From a physiological perspective, working out raises your body temperature, speeds up your heart rate, and stimulates your nervous system.

This can lead to interrupted sleep and poor recovery.

When we look at our heart rate, for example, there’s a very clear pattern that equates to more restful sleep.

On a heart rate curve graph, such as the one provided by my Oura Ring, an ideal night’s sleep looks like a hammock:

During the first sleep cycles, your body relaxes and your blood pressure and heart rate drop.

Your lowest heart rate occurs when melatonin is at its highest, and the ideal time is the midpoint of your sleep.

After that, your heart rate starts to rise to prepare you to wake up. 

When your heart rate lowers at the midpoint of your sleep, it’s likely that your body was relaxed during the night and got enough recovery.

Now, compare that to this:

See how the heart rate starts high and only lowers right before wake-up time?

This downward slope is a sign your metabolism is working overtime.

When this happens to me, it means I didn’t get enough restful sleep before waking up and I definitely feel it the next day.

While alcohol and big meals too close to bedtime can cause this, strenuous activity at night can cause the same thing.

Now, if you can only work out at night, I wouldn’t skip it because there are too many health benefits that you’d be losing.

Here are some things you can experiment with to see if they help improve your sleep even after an evening workout:

1. Try a lower intensity workout
2. If you have to have an intense workout, try to finish it at least 2 hours before bed
3. Do some cool down stretching or light yoga after your workout to help you unwind and relax
4. Take a cold shower to cool you down...
5. ...or take a hot shower (yes, the polar opposite of the above, but taking a hot shower initiates your body’s own cool-down process. Cold showers wake me up, so when I work out at night, I’ll start with a cold shower then get to warm and end hot, but I make sure I cool down with a fan, an open window, or the A/C when I get to bed)
6. Try some cool-down breathing exercises

Do you exercise in the evenings? How does it affect your sleep?

Let me know!

Ready...set...sleep 😴 

— Michael, Chief SleepHacker

PS – A lot of these Sleep Destroyers require lifestyle changes, and some are much harder than others. The easiest thing you can do to instantly improve your sleep is avoid blue light at night. I use Swanwick Sleep blue-light blocking glasses and noticed a real improvement in my deep sleep. Try them out and if you don’t like them, you can return them within 30 days for a full refund (the Swanwick customer service team is AWESOME, which is why I recommend them above other brands).