What is the best time to exercise? When you can fit it in, even if it’s right before bed. You may have heard that exercising at night can make it harder to fall asleep, but that claim isn’t true. According to the National Sleep Foundation, a study of 1,000 people found no significant differences in sleep quality between people who exercised within four hours of going to bed versus those who exercised earlier in the day.
No matter what time of day you exercise, you’re likely to sleep better. According to a study by the National Sleep Foundation, 83 percent of “vigorous exercisers” got “very good” or “fairly good” sleep, compared to just 56 percent. non-trainers. And exercising before bed can actually improve the quality of your sleep Sports medicinePeople who exercised within four hours of bedtime got more hours of deep sleep than those who didn’t, RunnersWorld.com said.
Quality sleep has a big impact on your risk of early death, disease, and your weight loss efforts. When you sleep less, you eat more…and not quality, nutritious food. One study that was published Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care, It found that when people slept less than seven hours, their daily calorie intake increased by 14 percent, with most of those extra calories coming from high-carbohydrate foods.
Burn more calories by exercising before bed and sleep better to control your appetite. Our fitness experts at The Leaf created this quick bedtime workout to help you on your way to health and weight loss. Just remember to give yourself an hour break after exercise. This will help your body cool down and prepare for sleep, just like after a hot bath.
Start with strength training.
Strength training any time of day improves your sleep. However, a strong session before bed can mean you sleep more soundly, waking less during the night. Of course, it can also help with your weight loss goals The Harvard GazetteThe researchers found that men who did 20 minutes of “daily weight training” had less age-related belly fat gain than those who did the same amount of cardio.
This short workout before bed is lower in intensity, so you won’t sweat as hard or as much in the hours before bed. Complete all sets of each exercise before moving on to the next exercise. Rest for one minute between each exercise and set.
Exercise 1: sit on a chair (or bed)
Stand with your feet hip-width apart, toes slightly pointed out from parallel. Push your hips back to start the squat, controlling your landing as you bend your knees to lower yourself into a chair. Keep your chest up and your weight on your heels as you lower. Keep your body weight in your heels and push back up without using your hands. If this is too difficult, do only the descending portion of the squat while seated, then stand back up with your hands and repeat. Do four sets of five repetitions each. Try to increase the repetitions over time.
Exercise 2: Raised push-up
Place your hands on the seat of a chair or on the fourth step of a ladder. Take the classic push-up position. Arms are perpendicular to your body, your body forms a straight line from head to heels. Keeping this rigid body line, bend your elbows to lower your chest toward the seat. To protect your shoulders from pain and injury, keep your elbows relatively close to your sides, rather than opening them at a 90-degree angle. Click Back to begin. If that’s too hard, try wall pushing instead. Do four sets of four or more repetitions each.
Exercise 3: Gluteal bridge
Lie face up on the mat with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place your hands at your sides, palms up. Keeping your feet flat on the floor, squeeze your glutes to force your hips off the floor until your body forms a straight line from your knees to your shoulders. As you lift, keep your knees and hips parallel. don’t let them pull together. This will engage your hamstrings. Pause for a second at the top of the exercise, then slowly return to the starting position. When you come up, don’t let your heels come off the floor. Do four sets of five repetitions each. Over time, try to increase the number of repetitions for each set.
Exercise 4: Sticking to the wall
Stand facing away from a wall, with your feet about six inches from the wall. Your head, upper back, and buttocks should all be in contact with the wall, and they should be in contact with it throughout the exercise. Place your arms straight up with the backs of your hands, elbows and forearms in contact with the wall. Now slide your hands down the wall by bending your elbows, keeping your hands, forearms and shoulders in contact with the wall. Continue lowering until your elbows are as close as you can get them to your ribs. (You should feel a strong contraction between your shoulder blades.) Pause, then slide your hands up the wall until your hands are overhead. Do four sets of five repetitions each. Over time, try to increase the number of repetitions for each set, aiming for eight repetitions.
Complete some relaxing stretches in bed.
When people with insomnia do yoga, they fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer, says The National Sleep Foundation. Relax your own body with these six-pack recovery stretches after your strength training session and help put yourself on the road to dreamland. Sit on the edge of the bed for the first three stretches, then lie on the bed for the last three.
Stretch 1: Turn your ankles
Sit on the edge of the bed with both feet on the ground. Lift one leg off the floor and circle your ankle 10-15 times in each direction. Repeat with the other leg.
Stretch 2: Lift your heels
Place both feet back on the floor. Press the balls of both feet into the floor and lift your heels off the ground, stretching the midfoot. Do 10 to 15 lifts.
Stretch 3. Stretch to your side
Sit up high. Place your right hand on the bed beside you and raise your left hand to the ceiling. Bend your left arm up and over your head until you feel a slight stretch in your side. Reverse the movement to the starting position. Repeat six to eight times on each side.
Stretch 4: Rocks with your knees to your chest
Lie on your back on the bed. Bring your knees to your chest and grab your feet just below the knees. Gently rock back and forth a few times.
Stretch 5: single knee to chest
Still on your back, straighten your legs. Now bring only one knee close to your chest while the other remains spread out on the bed. Hug the lifted knee toward the chest, then switch legs. Hug each knee three times.
Stretch 6: Lying Arm Circles
Let your legs go straight on the bed again. Spread your arms so that your body forms a “T” shape. Keeping your arms straight, do 10 arm circles forward, then 10 back. Repeat one more time.
Learn More helpful sleep tips and: fitness routines From our health experts at Leaf. We are here to help you achieve your health goals on your weight loss journey.
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*Always talk to your doctor before starting exercise.
