When ideas get into our heads, it can be hard to focus. For many, this happens right when they put their head on the pillow. In addition to stress or worrisome thoughts, a lack of exercise can negatively affect your sleep, especially if you feel unconfident in your own body.
However, a new study found that learning how to move and track exercise helps encourage people to not become active but stay active. “In the study, 162 adults who had never counted steps before wore tracking watches for four weeks. One group was given a watch that wildly inflated step counts — instead of averaging 7,000 steps, they thought they walked 9,800. Another less-fortunate group wore a watch that deflated step counts, lowering them by about 40 percent, to around 4,000 a day.”
Those who tracked 7,000 steps a day reported better moods and higher self-esteem. Tracking their exercise also equated to eating better with more produce and vegetable consumption and fewer higher-fatty foods.
On the opposite side of the study, those who were unable to achieve 7,000 steps, specifically lingering under 4,000, were moodier, sadder, and maintained poorer eating habits. One way to help boost your confidence is to journal your fitness journey. From your sleeping habits, exercise patterns, and food consumption, journaling can be the missing piece to improving your mindset.
Journaling
If you are experiencing an unusually high amount of stress and neglecting your physical health, journaling can be the answer to start piecing together with your doctor before taking the next step with a sleep study.
Pete Bils, vice president of Sleep Science and Research at Sleep Number, notes that when we are anxious, cortisol is released into the bloodstream like a shot of caffeine at bedtime. Journaling can be an extra step towards an anxiety-free night. The lows also can help journal and think about all the negatives and positives that could occur.
What to track for your doctor could be helpful as well:
- Wake up and bedtime
- The last time and meal you last ate
- The season and room temperature
- How tired you were at work
- The last drink you took (water, caffeine)
- Any medications you took
- Time of day and amount of exercise during the day
Healthy Fitness Targets
When talking through your unhealthy habits with your doctor, it is important to recognize how you are sleeping. The American Health Association recommends a number of steps to achieve a healthy amount of fitness into your week to maintain a wholesome approach to health.
- Strive for 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity cardio activity.
- Add muscle-strengthening activities like weight or resistance training with bands 2 days a week without a back-to-back workout.
- Get moving. Less time sitting at home on the couch watching tv helps you sleep well. Start with light-intensity activity like a walk before eating dinner.
- Set a goal not based on steps but on activity. Start with 3 days a week to be active for 30 minutes then continue to build gradually over time. You will start to feel more confident as you go!
- Purchase a fitness tracker to maintain not to achieve what others are doing.
You can easily cross a line into overtraining or over-exercising so keeping a journal or tracking your progress helps keep you in check. Dr. Anna Lembke, professor of psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine, shared that “too much exercise causes physical, social, emotional distress, and when it’s compulsive and extreme, can exhaust the brain’s ability to continue to make dopamine.” An accountability partner also can bring balance so think about a trusted person who can keep you healthy physically, mentally, and emotionally.
If you find yourself having a hard time finding the right balance of sleep and exercise, you may need a consultation with a sleep study medicine professional. Call Alaska Sleep Clinic today for your free sleep assessment.
