Measurement
Check any newest video on Quantified Scientist channel to compare sleep trackers. I chose Fitbit Inspire 3. Just for sleep, Fitbit is good and cheap, but Apple’s Watches have better results for sleep, and heart rate — though I’d need to buy an iPhone as well.
Device | Price | Deep Sleep | Light sleep | REM Sleep | Awake | Average Correlation (All stages) | Average Correlation (Deep, Light, REM) |
Fitbit Inspire 3 | PLN 300 | 79.3% | 72.2% | 62.7% | 86.5% | 75.2% | 71.4% |
Apple Watch SE 2022 | PLN 1379 | 97.4% | 92.3% | 71.8% | 81.0% | 85.6% | 87.2% |
Tips
- it’s generally advised against eating before going to bed, but I often struggled with being so hungry that I couldn’t fall asleep — make sure you don’t do it.
LEVEL 1
Darkness — lights off
These are basics I did that didn’t require much work, but brought me results! Turning off lights & dimming my screen not only makes me feel asleep more, but it generally puts me in more relaxed and sensitive state :)
- turning off lights 3 hours before going to bed
- dimming your screen — use some tool to decrease your screen (desktop & phone):
- brightness (i use quickshade on mac)
- blue light (supported by probably every OS)
- whiteness — dark reader extension
No stimulants
Not drinking stimulants such as coffee, energy drinks, and pre-workout. Sweets also disrupt with your sleep.
Stimulants, especially pre-workout, used to destroy my sleep from time to time — even if I took 1/4 of dose (who puts 200 mg of coffee per dose ⁉️⁉️). Since I almost fully ditched sweets 4 years ago, I’m sensitive to sugars, so one bottle of pepsi can make my night sleepless 😅 I might experiment with coffee and work performance some time though!
Some beats to relax & sleep
I use Endel!
This is fully subjective, but leaving Endel on speakers during the night, helps me to fall asleep faster, and increase a quality of my sleep in terms of feeling rested!
LEVEL 2 (currently)
Blue Light Blocking Glasses
It’s like previous step for your screen, but the orange filter applies everywhere — how cool is that! I do 3 hrs before bed.
100% darkness
It’s either fully blacked room (eventually sleeping mask when you can’t change your environment).
I honestly hate when there’s any light in my room! Darkness not only helps in falling asleep faster, but it’s also so relaxing :D
Be relaxed — cold showers, sauna
I find cold showers the best for soothing anxiety and high heart rate! They give me feeling that no other activity does. They’re probably best to start with, because you can do them regularly at home. Sauna is also great in both getting the stress of you and getting you relaxed, but it’s probably not as available and cheap as cold showers.
Exercise — gym
Subjectively, the day I go to gym, the sleep is always good. It’s probably trivial to say, but it’s often forgotten! I also want to experiment with cardio soon.
LEVEL 3 (in progress)
- sleep time & quality tracking watch
- always-consistent sleep pattern 10 pm → 6 am;
- supplements to save-the-night?