I’m sure you’ve heard a million times that you need a good night’s sleep, but I bet you don’t know why it is so important. There are so many benefits to a good night’s sleep, and there are also some health consequences if you don’t get enough sleep. 

Consequences of Lack of Sleep or Poor Sleep 

Just like any bad habit, there are consequences. If you are not getting enough sleep, there are probably symptoms in your life that you may notice, but not attribute to lack of sleep. Some of these are: 

• Reduced productivity or performance 
• Poor immune response 
• Weight gain or difficulty losing weight
• Reduced brain function 
• Hormone imbalances (and the whole list of symptoms that goes along with that) 

Sleep affects literally every system in your body, and as you can see, poor sleep can lead to some pretty serious consequences. 

Benefits to a Good Night’s Sleep 

Just as there are consequences to poor sleep, there are benefits to having restful sleep. When you fall asleep it is almost like a reset for your body. 

• When you fall asleep your brain flushes the toxins and waste from its system, so it can start fresh the next day. 
• Hormones are released that regulate bodily functions such as hunger and blood sugar levels. If these hormones are imbalanced and not functioning properly, it can lead to weight gain or inability to lose weight. 
• Heart rate and blood pressure are reduced

Tips for a Good Night’s Sleep 

Honestly, sleep quality is one of my goals right now, but I will share with you some tips that I have found helpful. 

• Have a set bedtime: If I know bedtime is 10 pm, I can start winding down and getting the final chores of the night done. That way, by 10pm, I’m in bed and ready to turn off the lights. 
• Put your phone away: I’m not going to lie to you, I struggle with this one BIG TIME. I work all day, and then I come home and work on building this business. A lot of tasks I have for JBF are on my phone or my computer, but I am really trying to shut these off 30 minutes to an hour before bed. Blue light disrupts your sleep cycles, so too much before bed will lead to poor sleep. If I do end up working later than I’d like, I am always wearing my blue light glasses.
• Find a way to wind down: I love to read before bed. It helps to shut off my mind. For you it might be a bubble bath or hot shower. Whatever it may be, try to wind down and find a routine that helps you settle your mind. 
• Diffuse QUALITY essential oils: Everynight, I roll my bedtime roller on the bottoms of my feet, spray my pillow with sleep spray, and diffuse my favorite sleep blend. Since starting this routine, I have had less nightmares and crazy dreams and I am not waking up 10 times a night anymore. Some of my favorite oils to diffuse are Cedarwood, Lavender, Peace and Calming, and Dream Catcher (my MVP for sleep). Peace and Calming and Dream Catcher are Young Living exclusive oils, but they are the best. 

Please don’t just go buy oils from the grocery store. You need to use 100% pure essential oils to get the benefit from them. They may be more expensive, but in the long term, they are so worth it. Young Living’s Seed to Seal promise is the best out there, and I can always trust that I am using quality, 100% pure oils. To learn more about essential oils, click here.

I hope you found this post helpful. If you have any questions, comment down below or dm me on Instagram @jessicabondfitness. Don’t forget to share this post with your friends and Pin it for later. 

RESOURCES: 

• https://www.acefitness.org/education-and-resources/lifestyle/blog/6955/the-power-of-sleep/