The Nighttime Routine That’s Totally Changed How I Sleep

I love being busy. I’m the type of person who creates to-do lists just to check things off of them and will absolutely email you an itinerary ahead of a group vacation. (Sorry!) I love when my days are jam-packed with meetings and errands, since I believe I’m functioning at my best when I have things to do.

However, and this is a big however, that energy is very hard to turn off. While I’m in go-go-go mode during the day, at night — specifically when I’m trying to sleep — I find it almost impossible to let my mind rest. I close my eyes and see a list of tomorrow’s to-dos and feel my mind racing at the excitement of upcoming calendar invites. I want to rest so I can be recharged for the next day, but that part is much easier said than done.

A few months ago, I realized I needed to make a major adjustment to my nighttime routine. I wasn’t going to change who I was during the day — I love Day Me. But at night, if I wanted to be ready to take on the next day of activities, I was going to need help.

Here’s the routine I found to be the game-changing wind-down I needed to be fully refreshed every morning.

First: Don’t Rev Up Before Laying Down

While I love being busy and saying yes to new projects and plans, I am also someone who knows the importance of me time, and pausing and unplugging for at least an hour during the day to be active. This can be something as simple as a walk or a yoga class, or an intense HIIT cycling ride that leaves me drenched in sweat.

Before I adjusted my nighttime routine to benefit much-needed wind-down time, I was usually doing a strenuous workout and going straight to bed. In my head, this was allowing me to burn off that final bit of energy I had from the day so I could crash, but instead it just revved me up more.

By moving my workouts up a few hours (after work, but now a few hours before bed), I was able to get a good active session in, while giving myself time to come down from the adrenaline of the exercise.

Don’t Underestimate The Luxury Of A Hot Shower

Does it seem like a no-brainer to give yourself 20 to 30 minutes of peace after a workout and before bed? Yes, but I can’t stress enough just how helpful taking a nice hot shower before bed has been for me. There’s something about a full reset before getting into bed that helps signal to the brain that it’s time to slow down, even if it is interrupted with an intrusive shower thought or two along the way. (Better to get those thoughts out in the shower than right before you’re about to drift off to sleep!)

End Your Day With OLLY Sleep Gummies

Remember that workout I moved to earlier in the evening? Well, sometimes that sweat session is going to leave you sore, which isn’t going to help with a peaceful and refreshing night sleep. Enter OLLY’s Muscle Recovery Sleep gummies, which combat sore muscles while you sleep, helping you stay asleep and wake up without feeling the pains of yesterday’s workout.

Along with melatonin, which is a natural hormone our bodies produce that helps with sleep, the Muscle Recovery Sleep gummies also have Vitamin D and tart cherry, which OLLY claims can help reduce muscle soreness and boost muscle strength, and provide antioxidant support.

And for the rest days, I take OLLY Sleep gummies, in Strawberry Sunset, which contain melatonin, L-theanine (an amino acid that encourages calmness), and botanicals to help soothe you to sleep.

I’ve learned that checking off to-dos doesn’t end when the sun goes down. Setting yourself up for a successful, restful sleep is just as important as everything you want to accomplish during the day, and should be taken just as seriously. Because without quality sleep, that morning to-do list is going to become a to-don’t list, and who wants that?