THOMAS FAHERTY IDFPA NATIONALS 2012

BOX JUMPS FOR EXPLOSIVE POWER

FUN WITH MY FIRST ATLAS STONE

THE SKINNY ON SLEEP - PART 2

Hi folks I meant to get this post out on monday but had a busy week so here it is! I've heard back from some of you that have said Part 1 really helped you so lets put the nail in the coffin and try to put your insomnia....to bed for good. In part 1 I covered some of the nutritional changes that you can make to boost sleep quality without resorting to booze or sleeping pills. If you haven't yet, I highly recommend giving the pre-bed meal a go each night for a week. 90% of you will find that you drift off more easily, have deeper restful sleep and wake feeling refreshed, alert, bright eyed and bushy tailed.

For those of you that are still having trouble sleeping, I have a few more tricks up my sleeve.

1) Psychological Methods

The psychology that leads to deep restful sleep could be an area you need to work on. You may need to work at developing healthier habits that let your body and mind get into a normal healthy rhythm. Firstly, try to set a certain time that you go to sleep each night, e.g. 10.30pm. Honestly, is that extra episode of crap telly really worth sacrificing your health and happiness by depriving yourself of the healthy sleep your body needs? You probably have is Sky +'d anyway so go to bed. 

Sleep Hygiene

Try to get the room as dark as possible (we have dark purple curtains and dark purple blinds). Try to turn off all electrical equipment and artificial light sources (ipod dock, phone charger etc.) Avoid using laptop/kindle/messing with iphone etc while in bed or getting ready for bed.

Calm Racing Thoughts

If while falling asleep or early into your sleep your mind is racing with thoughts about the jobs you must do tomorrow, a problem you had at work etc. then there are a few tricks you can try. Keep an A4 pad and pen by the bed. If you wake in a panic wondering about your schedule for the following day etc. then jot down a few bullet points of a to-do list, in order for the next day. Keep it brief, one sentence per point. When this is done, put the A4 pad safely away by the side of the bed, set your alarm, and head off to sleep more relaxed and contented.

Progressive Muscular Relaxation

PMR is a technique for reducing anxiety by alternately tensing and relaxing the muscles. It was developed by an american physician named Edmund Jacobson in the 1920s. It is widely practiced by those that suffer from anxiety and also by sports people looking to control their psychological arousal, e.g. pre-competition nerves or before their mental imagery training. It worked a treat for me in college during exam times when I had spent 12 hours studying physics or biomechanics and my brain was swirling with numbers and equations and worried about exams. The basic premise of PMR is that a person cannot achieve mental relaxation while muscular tension exists in the body. The technique teaches you to notice the difference between muscular tension and relaxation. I would normally used a guided practice myself and with my clients by performing this with an audio file on an ipod and headphones while lying on a bed or sofa. This is a very effective method with initial practice sessions taking around 30 minutes. As your skill progresses you can learn to do this in shorter and shorter sessions, with or without the audio file, lying or sitting. Learning to relax is a life skill that everyone should learn. A pity they don't teach this well-researched, highly effective stuff in schools.

2) Restorative Methods

If you've done everything I've suggested so far, and you still can't sleep, which I very much doubt,

you could try a few more methods of physical relaxation. 

Massage

                                      

Invest in some restorative and relaxing massage with a good bodyworker. A lot of people I meet in the gym seem to be gluttons for punishment when it comes to massage. "It was agony, I was screaming in pain, I can barely walk today, jeez it was GREAT!" Look, unless you really require deep tissue massage to treat an injury or serious muscular imbalance, do yourself a favour and opt for the relaxing, restorative form of massage every once in a while. Most other cultures seem to appreciate the benefits of relaxation, whereas I think here in Ireland we think that something has to be horrible to be good for us! If you can't afford to get a professional massage, ask a partner or loved one to give you a nice basic, relaxing massage. Use lavender oil and get them to focus on areas where we commonly hold tension, e.g. upper back, neck, traps, calves, forearms etc.

Epsom Salt Baths

This is one of the most powerful ways of ensuring deep sleep and also boosting muscle recovery, relaxing tired, sore muscles and flushing toxins out of the body. A good hot bath with a big cup of epsom salts thrown in will relax the muscles, lower the blood pressure a bit (our old friend the sleep-boosting magnesium again) and prepare to hit the hay like Rip Van Winkle!