How I Start Nightttime Wind Down Time

Anyone else having sleep issues lately?  I don’t know about you, but my beauty rest is so important.  Seems like every time I read something about sleep the author talks about the importance of nighttime wind down time.  I decided that I had to come up with a nightly wind down time for myself.  It seems to be helping.  Thought I would share it with you.

My nighttime wind down time usually starts with the usual face and tooth cleaning rituals.  Next is lotions/potions time.  Some nights, time permitting, a good tub soak in Dead Sea Salts between the two.  So once that is complete I move on to stretching and calming my body.  In my ideal world 15-20 minutes of this gets to happen.

Setting the Mood

Depending upon my mood and what has happened that day I will turn on my latest read via audiobooks or I open up the Headspace app.  Multitasking in a calm way.  My preference is to start with rolling my body with the big orange foam roller and from there I work on parts of my body that need some TLC from the day and my workouts.  Sometimes it’s just stretching and other times I use some props for deeper stretches and releases such as a yoga strap or the Orb.  The Orb is the bomb for your glutes.  Just roll around on that baby and you will find the spots that need a release.

A Treat for the Feet

Anyone else missing the foot massages that come with routine pedicures?  Not exactly something that you can do for yourself.  Enter the yogi balls.  These have been a livesaver for me.  The ball isn’t too hard or too soft.  A minute or two of rolling it around under each foot feels heavenly.

The “Icing on the Cake”

Since we are spending more time on computers and devices the shoulders need some TLC.  I have found that lying in reclining butterfly pose on my bolster really finishes things off.  Here’s a link in case you aren’t familiar with the pose.  It helps to open up my chest and relax my shoulders.   Some nights I will just lay on the floor like this for a good 5 minutes.  It truly is the “icing on the cake”.  Then I crawl into bed and am able to drift off.

Here’s an example of reclining butterfly pose.

Even if you only find one little part of this helpful I will be so happy for you and a better night’s sleep.

Hugs and Sweet Dreams,