Getting a good night’s rest can sometimes be more difficult than it should be. We’ve found some of the best ways to wind down in the evening to help sleep come a little more easily.

1. Gentle Exercise

Simply by moving around a bit more during the day helps your body use up all that excess energy that may be keeping you up at night.  And even if exercise if not for you, fear not! Just by adding gentle exercises like walking or taking the stairs can be enough to benefit your sleep.

2. Downtime

We’re all guilty of looking too long at our screens before bed now a day and before we know it, those 5 minuets checking Instagram become 30 minutes. Winding down in the evening with a good book or magazine accompanied by some soft or dimmed lighting instead can do wonders.

3. Lighting

Soft lighting before bed can help your body and brain keep to its natural circadian sleep cycle. When lights are too bright at night they stimulate the brain, tricking it into thinking it’s still daytime and not ready for sleep. This makes it much harder for the body to relax and slip off into that much needed night’s rest.

Link: Pictured: Ealing E27 4W Giant ER180 Sunset White LED Bulb - Soho Lighting

4. Late Night Snack?

Late night snacking can be a hard habit to break but the experts at the councilofsleep.org.uk say that all is not lost. Even though it’s recommended you eat no later that 6pm there are apparently some foods that may help you sleep.

It advises: “if you are eating before bed, remember that there three main chemicals that promote good sleep: tryptophan, serotonin and melatonin.”

We can add these into our diet by eating foods such as chicken, turkey, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seed, nuts, beans and milk. So next time you feel those late night hunger pangs strike try reaching for one of these sleep friendly choices instead!

Sleep well!