Today I would like to share with you a very easy way to feel more rested and/or not as tired upon waking up in the morning. I learned it about a decade ago and it works very good every time I implement it.
We've been taught by the media that we should be sleeping 8 hours a day - no more, no less. Some scientists agree with it, some don't, but this post isn't a debate on whether it's enough or too much. Maybe I'm speaking only for myself, but even if one gets full 8 hours of sleep at night they still often wake up exhausted. Well I've got a remedy for that.
The 90 minute rule - sleeping in multiples of 90 minutes. Why does it work so well? Because when we sleep, we experience sleep cycles that last about 90 minutes. Waking up in the middle of a sleep cycle is unnatural and therefore you'll feel tired. However, if you wake up towards the end or in the very beginning of a sleep cycle. What's pretty fascinating is that if you don't set an alarm you'll most likely wake up in a multiple of 90 minutes!
This is why after waking up having completed 7 hours and 30 minutes (5 sleep cycles) of sleep or even 6 hours (4 sleep cycles) you'll feel more rested than waking up after 8 hours (5.3 sleep cycles)
It's a very simple way to feel refreshed in the morning, but there is one caveat. Sleep cycles only occur when you're sleep, not when you're just in bed. And most people don't fall asleep immediately after closing their eyes on their soft mattress. To get around this, try to measure how long it takes you to fall asleep from the moment you get into your bed and factor that in. For me it's about 30 minutes, so I set my alarm for 6.5h after I go to bed - half an hour of being awake + 6 hours (360 minutes/4 sleep cycles) of sleeping.
If you implement this method not only will you have more time to do whatever you want, but you'll also have more energy to devote to it. To help you I made this chart. It includes data for both naps (left side) and regular, full time sleep (right side). But remember that "Bed Time" refers to the time you fall asleep, not the time you go to bed. Sweet dreams!
