I’ve never really struggled with sleep, until sometime in 2021.

On occasion, I’d either struggle to fall asleep or wake up just after midnight and then lye awake for 3+ hours before falling asleep again.

So I decided to look at my daily activities to see what could be affecting my sleep.

Scientists have determined that getting a good night sleep on a regular basis is important for a multitude of reasons;

Now if that’s not a good enough reason to get a good nights sleep I don’t know what is.

Want to understand the science behind why we sleep and why it’s so important for us? This is probably the most comprehensive resource on sleep and might just convince you why to try and sleep better.

Our lifestyles play a big role in how well we sleep at night (or day, maybe you work nights), so it’s worth looking at your day-to-day activities that might be impacting your sleep.

Whilst this is definitely not a definitive list, here are some things that have helped me get better, more consistent sleep;

Our circadian rhythm which regulates our sleep pattern is governed by our exposure to light.

By stepping outside first thing in the morning after waking up we expose ourselves to natural sunlight (even on a cloudy day) which will help us sleep better at night.

This also has the added benefit of getting Vitamin D from the sun.

This probably won’t come as a surprise to you that moving (using up your energy) will help you sleep easier at night.

If you’re not used to regular exercise, try and find something you enjoy and work it into your routine – something is better than nothing, you don’t have to suffer for it to count.

My go-to is a daily walk, but on occasion, I might mix it up with;

Coffee and other caffeinated drinks (like teas and energy drinks) might be hurting your sleep.

Caffeine has a half-life of around 6 hours, meaning if you drank a cup of coffee at 4 pm, by the time you go to bed at 10 pm, half of the coffee will still be in your system.

So cutting out caffeinated drinks around mid-day to early afternoon might be a sensible idea.

Keep hot drinks hot for up to 4 hours with a reusable coffee cup 

Looking for a stylish, reusable cup for your hot drinks? I’d definitely recommend this coffee cup from Chilly. I use it most mornings when I have to commute into an office.

Working before bed is my Achilles heel (I’ve found this can also extend to checking emails).

If I try and squeeze in a couple of hours of work before bed, I’ll often think about the task for a couple of hours into my sleep time.

Blue light (which comes from things like the sun and artificial lights like our mobile phone screens) and the brightness of light, suppresses the body’s release of melatonin – a hormone that makes us feel drowsy.

Being exposed to blue light in the evening can trick our brain into thinking it’s still daytime – leaving us alert instead of tired.

Journaling might sound like something teenage girls might do, but after experiencing some really bad brain fog, I decided to try this Braincare journal by Heights.

A one-of-a-kind, interactive A5 journal, designed to change the way you think

Whether this is down to the journal itself or a multitude of other things I incorporated into my daily life, I’ve not experienced brain fog as mentioned above.

Doing this activity just before bed, also allows me to reflect on the day and practice gratitude – the activity itself doesn’t take long at all, maybe 2 minutes.

One of the first things I do when getting into bed is fill out my journal for the day. It helps me to practice gratitude and reflect on the day that has passed.

Struggling with sleep? Here are 6 things that helped me get better more consistent sleep.

building-a-consistent-walking-habit.mp3

At the start of the month, I set myself a goal to develop a more consistent walking habit. This was for several reasons:

Before this, how often I walked fluctuated from week to week, but it’s something I enjoy doing so I figured it should be a relatively easy habit to develop.

There were a couple of things that made this easier for me:

Before covid, I’d regularly listen to audiobooks on my commute to work (I completed ~25 books between 2018 and 2020 which I wouldn’t have otherwise).

Since working from home from early 2020 (now self-employed), I haven’t been able to find a place in my schedule where listening to audiobooks works for me.

So I decided to try and stack my walking habit with listening to audiobooks.

I had the proof is in the plants on my radar from months prior so I grabbed a copy on Audible.

The proof is in the plants provides such a great overview of how a plant-based diet impacts our personal and planetary health. Simon also tackles the question of why there is so much conflicting information out there and uses science to back it up!

If you want to try listening to audiobooks, choose subjects you’re interested in, it could be;

Don’t choose a book you’ll end up hating, just because you think you should – this should work as an aid and not a deterrent.

The best time to walk is what works best for you. For me that is:

I’m more of a morning person and like to get out when things are quiet.

On top of this, it’s great to achieve something early in the day and not have to worry about it later.

Failing or in addition to a morning walk, next up would be lunchtime. Lunchtime walks have saved entire afternoons of work for me – as the break and fresh air helps to clear my head.

There’s also evidence that being out in nature helps to improve our mental health as mentioned in plant therapy.

Being surrounded by nature is both good for our mental and physical health. The evidence shows a clear link between being in nature and better sleep, reduced stress levels and much more.

A little incentive goes a long way, you can choose to either:

Loss aversion (preferring to not lose what you already have, instead of gaining something you don’t have), is a very strong motivator.

I decided to download the Treekly app – where they plant trees if you hit a certain step count (even on the free plan).

I chose to upgrade to the plus account, which meant I paid £3.99 a month, and for each day I did 5,000 steps they’d plant a tree.

Weather you stick with the free plan, or upgrade to the paid version – you can turn your steps into trees all whilst creating a healthy habit.

When we look at starting new habits (especially exercise related), there’s often a lot of equipment and gadgets you could buy, but I’d encourage you, to try and use what you have.

There will be exceptions to this, depending on your circumstances and what you’re doing, but you can often do a lot with what you already have.

And once it’s become a habit, you can then reward yourself with some of those things you know will really help you.

If I keep my walking habit come April, I’ll reward myself by upgrading my shoes to something like Vivo Barefoot shoes – designed to be more like our natural foot.

Vivo barefoot shoes aim to provide protection to your feet and then get out of the way so your feet can do what they’re meant to.

If you want to build better habits, like walking, consider changing some variables (depending on how new you are to it);

Don’t overextend yourself in the beginning, start small and work your way up. These principles can be used for developing any habit.

If you want to learn more about building habits and sticking to them, I’d recommend grabbing yourself a copy of Atomic Habits. James talks about habit stacking, the compound effects of habits and much more.

How I used habit stacking, incentives and finding the right time to walk to build a consistent walking habit.

I built a consistent walking habit, here’s what helped

To a small container add oats, flaxseeds, chia seeds and almond milk – mix together and place in the fridge overnight or for at least 6 hours

Once ready to eat, take it from the fridge and add banana, strawberries, raspberries and blueberries

Sprinkle on top flaked almonds and sunflower seeds

Chop the cauliflower and add to a pot of boiling water – cook until softened and drain.

To a blender add the cooked cauliflower, nutritional yeast, cashew nuts, dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt and almond milk. Blend until smooth.

Cook the pasta according to instructions, drain and put to the side.

Heat a wok on medium heat. Once hot add olive oil and onion cook for 3 minutes.

To the wok add mushroom and crushed garlic cook for 3 minutes.

Add the cooked pasta to the wok, along with the creamy sauce, mix it all together and cook for 2 minutes.

Serve in a bowl and top with chopped parsley and more lemon juice if desired.

Heat a wok on medium heat. Once hot, add oil, onion, cumin and cauliflower. Add a splash of water and cover – cook for 5 minutes stirring often

Stir in the lentils and cook for 2 minutes

In a small bowl, mix together the tahini, smoked paprika, lemon juice and crushed garlic – give it a taste and add more lemon juice if preferred 

Spread the sauce over your wrap, top with the cauliflower and lentil mix and garnish with chopped red chilli and coriander

Add dates and water into a bowl and place in the microwave for 1 minute.

Remove from the microwave and mash with a fork.

Microwave for 1 more minute and mash with a fork until it turns into a paste.

Stir in the peanut butter and almond milk.

Place the oats, protein powder, chia seeds and cacao into a separate mixing bowl.

Pour the peanut butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well (add more almond milk if too dry).

Add the mixture to a small dish and place in the fridge for at least 60 minutes.

Add vegetable stock and miso paste to a stock pot and bring to a boil – around 3 minutes

To the stock pot, add mushrooms, ¾ of the spring onion, carrot and broccoli – cook for 4 minutes until tender

Whilst this is cooking, cook the noodles according to the instructions

Enjoy with chopped parsley and the remaining spring onion

Cook noodles according to instructions and drain once cooked.

Heat a wok on medium heat. Once hot, add oil and mushrooms – cook for 3 minutes.

Whilst the mushrooms are cooking, in a small saucepan, add sugar and soy sauce, cook for 2 minutes or until it thickens (stirring often) – when ready remove from the heat.

To the saucepan add rice wine vinegar and maple syrup – stir together and leave for later.

To the wok add the sliced red pepper, sliced spring onion and all the spices – cook for 2 minutes.

Add the noodles to the wok and pour the sauce over the top – mix it all together and take off the heat.

Serve with chopped coriander and a squeeze of lime juice.

For all those eaters craving something sweet yet healthy.

Heat a wok on medium heat. Once hot, add oil, onion and red pepper – cook for 10 minutes until they soften

To the wok, add garlic, red chilli, spices and quinoa – cook for 2 minutes, stirring often

Add the tomatoes, kidney beans and vegetable stock – bring to a gentle simmer and cook for ~20 minutes until the quinoa is tender

Give it a taste and add more salt if needed

Serve with sliced avocado, chopped coriander and a squeeze of lime juice

Add chopped potatoes to boiling water and cook for 4-5 minutes

Whilst the potatoes are cooking, add oil to a wok, once hot add the sliced leek, salt and pepper – cook for 3 minutes

To the wok add the mushroom and cook for 2 minutes

Add cornflour to the wok and slowly pour in the vegetable stock – mixing whilst doing so

Drain the potatoes, add them to the wok along with rosemary

Pour the vegetable mix into a baking dish and cover with pastry – pierce with a fork several times

Place in a pre-heated over for 30 minutes

To a small saucepan add oats, flaxseeds, cinnamon, half the banana and almond milk – cook for 5 minutes

Move to a bowl and mix in the peanut butter

Add the toppings – banana, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and pumpkin seeds

Start the day off right with this berry packed bowl of porridge. This meal is packed full of plants – a great way to get a variety of plants.

In a measuring jug add vegetable stock and cornflour – mixing well.

Heat a wok on medium-high heat. Once hot, add oil, garlic, broccoli and carrot – add a splash of hot water, cover and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the chickpeas and red bell pepper - cook for 2 minutes. 

To the wok, add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, maple syrup, hoisin sauce, chilli flakes and mix.

Give the cornflour mixture another stir and add it to the wok – cook for 2 minutes.

Add the noodles to the wok – cook for 2 minutes. Once the sauce has thickened take it off the heat.

Garnish with sesame seeds and chopped spring onion.

Heat a wok on medium heat. Once hot, add oil and onion – sauté for 5 minutes

Add spices, salt, crushed garlic, grated ginger and chopped butternut squash

Pour in the vegetable stock and bring to a simmer

Add in the red lentils, chickpeas and tomatoes

Partially cover the wok with a lid or tin foil and cook for 15 minutes – until thickened and squash is tender

Add the spinach and cover, once wilted stir in the coconut cream

Heat a wok on high heat, once hot add olive oil

Into the wok add chopped onion, mustard seeds and coriander seeds – sauté for ~3 mins

Add crushed garlic, grated ginger and chilli flakes – sauté for ~2 mins

Add drained lentils and chopped tomato – cook for ~4 mins

Drain and rinse the kidney beans, then add half to a bowl and crush with the back of a fork.

Heat a wok on medium-high heat. Once hot, add oil and sliced onion – fry for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add sliced mushroom and fry for 4 minutes until soft.

Squeeze in the garlic, tomato puree, cumin, smoked paprika and kidney beans – cook for 1 minute.

Add the vegetable stock and cook for 6 minutes – take off the heat once done.

In a small bowl add the mayo, chipotle paste and season to taste with lime juice – mix well.

To a wrap add baby gem lettuce, a couple spoonfuls of the bean, mushroom mix and sprinkle some feta on top with a drizzle of the chipotle mayo.

Finely chop the onion into small pieces and add half to the mortar

Deseed the chilli, finely chop and add to the mortar

Chop up the coriander and add half to the mortar

Roll the lime on a chopping board, cut in half and squeeze the juice into the mortar

Use the pestle to mash up the ingredients for ~1 minute

Spoon out the avocado into the mortar and mash together with the pestle

Move the contents of the mortar into a serving bowl, add the other half of the onion and coriander

Chop up the tomato into small pieces and add to the serving bowl

Season with salt and pepper and mix it all together

Give it a taste and add more lime if needed

Guacamole is a delicious avocado based dip, eat it on it’s own, use it as as a topping or eat it as a snack with some tortilla chips.

Tasty plant-based recipes & more

Berry overnight oats

Creamy mushroom, cauliflower alfredo

Cauliflower & lentil wraps

Leek, mushroom & potato pie

Quinoa chilli

Mushroom, carrot & broccoli ramen

Chickpea & squash dhal

Asian style spiced veggie noodles

6 ways to get a better night sleep

I built a consistent walking habit, here’s what helped

New plant-based recipes & articles every month