Sleep should be easy, but with our regular routines and an almost daily onslaught of anxiety-inducing news, many of us are tossing and turning all night long. Pandemic has only increased this restlessness. You can do exercises for better sleep right on the bed.

Exercise can reduce the quantity of your time it takes to go to sleep and also the amount of your time spent awake at night time. It also increases sleep time and quality. While experts suggest avoiding vigorous exercise within an hour of bedtime, stretching and meditative movement like yoga has been found to enhance sleep quality. These kinds of exercises increase comfort, in which the body experiences a flood of calming hormones and physiological reactions that quiets the body’s systems down. You can try these right on the bed on a mattress before sleep. 

Breathing exercises for better sleep

When you’re doing deep-breathing exercises, you should take care of a good posture to get the foremost benefit. Lie in bed on the mattress or sit so your spine is straight, and your trunk is grounded. Take a deep, slow, sustained breath that starts at the underside of your diaphragm; this can be called belly breathing. Target filling your stomach so it swells, then let the air expand from the underside of your thoracic cavity up toward your throat, so your lungs are the last to rise. Inhale for 3 counts. Hold it for 2. Then, exhale slowly for 4. You need the exhale to be longer than the inhale. The most vital thing is to try and do this while your mind is relaxed, you don’t need to deep breathe while watching television or checking email.

Visualization for better sleep

To quiet the day’s stresses, you've got to practice it. It’s like all other skills. It won’t come automatically or immediately, you have got to schedule, practice, and attempt it continuously. Luckily, it’s simple and easy to implement whether you’re on a plane or lying in bed.

You most likely don’t realize you’re in constant conversation with yourself. Count to 100 and distract your brain. Imagine that you’re erasing your disruptive thoughts as if you were deleting stuff on your phone. Any style of technique or exercise that gets your brain to cut down is great. Start with just five minutes of quiet time, then try and go longer, adding 3-5 minutes daily. Close your eyes and take yourself back to a more relaxed place, whether that’s a quiet playground or relaxing memory. Stay in this moment until you drift to sleep.

Meditation

Meditate regularly before bed so your body associates sleep with this exercise and creates a relaxation response. However, some people experience rejuvenation after meditating and have a tough time falling asleep for a few hours after. Do some trial and error- avoid meditation practices that stimulate your mind, and go for ones that help wind you down. To be safe, meditate a minimum of half an hour before you intend to really go to sleep.

Close up all stimuli in your bedroom. Power down your electronics, dim or shut down the lights, and eliminate any distractions. Now, sitting up in bed, close your eyes. Depending on your senses and how much you would like to involve them, some people wish to have quiet music or a diffuser with a comforting scent. You can also meditate along with your spouse. You won’t feel as self-conscious doing it together, and it can help create a routine you’ll persist with. Read meditation for better sleep 

Stretches for better sleep

Anything that contracts and releases your most-stressed joints is encouraging for sleep. Stretching your hips and back- two of the foremost stressed areas, are the most important. Lie on your front and arch your back, to not induce any pain or injury, but enough to induce a stretch. Butterfly stretches are great before bed. 

Find out the reasons for stress for the tightness in your joint. If you are waking up with stressed joints, it might be time to change your bed’s mattress. Explore Livpure mattresses- it has a huge range of memory foam and ortho mattresses to relax your back and hips and ease any sore joints- available in 6-inch mattress size and 8-inch mattress size. 

Yoga for better sleep

Cat/Cow Pose

Alternating between cat and cow yoga poses releases upper-back and neck tension and synchronizes breath and movement. Acquire a tabletop position on a medium-firm bed- just like a latex mattress or high resilience foam mattress from Livpure, with hands under shoulders and knees under hips. As you inhale, drop the belly, press the chest forward, and appearance up. Exhale, tuck the chin toward the chest and around the spine. Move fluidly between the two poses so with each inhale you get into the cow pose and with each exhale you get into the cat pose. Take 3 to 5 breaths. Repeat.

Child’s Pose

The child’s pose releases tension within the back and shoulders gently stretches the hips and has an overall soothing effect. For this pose, draw your heels back to your hips and bring your chest between your thighs. Your big toes are touching each other and your knees are as far apart as they have to be to allow you to breathe deeply. Walk your hands go in front of you, stretching through the arms. Your forehead can rest on the bottom, or, for a mini massage, place a ball or massage ball under your forehead and gently roll from side to side.

Figure-Four Stretch

This stretch also referred to as “supine pigeon” in yoga, unveils the hips, relieves pressure within the lower back, and counteracts an excessive amount of sitting and poor posture. Lie flat on your back with your knees bent upwards. Place your right foot on the region of your left thigh just above your knee. Stay here, or hold onto the rear of your left thigh and gently pull both legs toward you. Flex both feet, keeping your left foot at knee height at least, or higher if you can. Stay like this for five to ten breaths then switch sides.

Knee to Chest to Spinal Twist

This combination pose stretches the hips as well as the lower back. Stretch out both your legs and place them together. Curl your right knee into your chest clasping your fingers around your right shin and stretch your low back and hips. Hold for 3 breaths. Release your knee and stretch it by placing it across the left leg for a spinal twist. Turn your gaze to the right. Hold this position for five to ten breaths and switch sides.

Conclusion

The question here arises how many days or months or years it will take to see any benefit in our sleep. The good news is, you would be able to see a difference for better in the quality of sleep on the first night only. Hence, drop everything today and start simply following these easy exercise routines for better sleep!