Sleep: Your strongest natural muscle builder

How do you increase Testosterone levels?

How can you increase Growth Factor levels?

How do you get broken down muscles to repair and rebuild themselves?

How do you get Cortisol levels down so you build more muscle and reduce fat?

Surprisingly, by sleeping! Sleep is one of the most powerful muscle builders out there. Those who get enough quality sleep build more muscle, get stronger and leaner faster. This is a fact. On the opposite of this, those who sleep little or have poor quality sleep are weaker, have less hard muscle mass and store more fat.

Below you will find some helpful tips on getting better quality sleep to increase muscle growth and how to reduce bad quality sleep.

Ways to get better sleep:

Caffeine

Caffeine is probably the biggest culprit in the quest for better sleep. Caffeine disrupts and ruins good sleep. The extent depends on the person. For some people a small cup of coffee can ruin their sleep, for others it may take a few.

If you are looking for good quality sleep, caffeine should be avoided - totally. This means caffeine in the form of tea, coffee, energy drinks, supplements, hot chocolate, cocoa, chocolate and so on. Any amount of caffeine can act as a stimulant and interfere with your sleep.

Heavy Meal

Avoid having a heavy meal at least 3 hours before sleep. A heavy meal takes a long time to digest and affects your sleep.

Anxiety

If you are anxious about things, you may find it very difficult to go to sleep. Try relaxation/meditation techniques. Remember to always try and live in the present. Worrying about the past or future won’t help you sleep.

Relaxation

Some nice music, some candles, low light… anything that makes you relax is good for you.

Herbal teas

Herbal teas can be a great help to get you to relax and unwind. This is especially so if you find it difficult to go to sleep or you keep waking up.

Valerian is a well-known sleep aid.

Chamomile tea can help you relax.

Melatonin pills can remedy your erratic sleep patterns.

Keep hands and feet warm

When your hands and feet are warm, you are more likely to fall asleep. You can even “imagine” them warm and this will help you sleep.

Animal protein/fat

Avoid eating animal fats and animal proteins late in the day. This can affect your sleep. Bad dreams and nightmares can often come from eating animal products late in the day.

Postpone worrying/ brainstorming

Some people get into the habit of trying to solve their problems at night. This thinking/brainstorming at nights may sound like a good idea but it is not when it comes to trying to go to sleep. Leave thoughts like this for during the day and try and just relax without worrying about things.

Routines

See if you can get into a routine and go to bed at the same time and wind down in the same way every night. A routine can help many people have a good night’s sleep.

Naps

Naps or so-called power-naps are a good idea to catch up on lost sleep however if you find it difficult to fall asleep at night or you keep waking up then you should avoid having naps during the day.

Natural light and being outside

It is always best to be out and about and get as much natural light as possible. This will help you sleep well at night.

Late night stimulation/tv

Many people watch TV or are on their phones and tablets at nights. This is fine however if you are finding it difficult to fall asleep or waking up in the middle of the night, then this sort of stimulation should probably be avoided. Try and wind down at night with a good relaxing book that you really enjoy reading.

No alcohol before bed

Alcohol may relax some people into sleeping however it does interfere with the “quality” of your sleep and can well mean you wake up tired and feeling like you haven't slept at all!

Avoid too much liquid late

Drinking too much liquid at nights just before sleep may mean a full bladder which can wake you or keep you awake. Try and avoid drinking too much liquids before sleep. This is especially so for liquids which have a tendency to flush out a lot of water such as watermelon or orange juice.

Visualise a peaceful place

This is a great technique to go back to sleep. Visualise a beautiful peaceful place in your mind and take yourself there. Enjoy the views, air, tranquility of the place and in your mind’s eye, walk around.

Light, noise, temperature

Best atmosphere for sleep is low light, no noise and a cool temperature.

There you have it. Many ways of helping you go to sleep, go back top sleep and have better quality sleep. When you have good quality sleep, you will boost Testosterone, Growth Factor, reduce cortisol, build more muscle and strength and lose weight. Start tonight.