Hey again, guys! If you’re reading this week’s blog, I can only assume that you’re a creature of habit. I am too! I absolutely love traveling, but my least favorite aspect is that I never seem to be able to sleep as good on a trip as I do in my own bed at home. Being in a new place with unfamiliar routines and surroundings can really impact you negatively, even if you don’t realize it at the time.
Sleep is the singular (in my opinion) most important controllable factor when it comes to your health and fitness. This is easily the most underrated tool in the health industry. Your body does a LOT while you’re sleeping: recovery, resetting, healing, and hormone regulation just to name a few.
I find that when I travel, I often sacrifice sleep quality AND quantity. I end up just surviving on the adrenaline and excitement of being in a new place. Usually, though, this leaves me exhausted when I get home, feeling like I need a vacation from my vacation. The good news? This is a problem with a solution! Maximizing your sleep while you travel can definitely help minimize the stress elsewhere. With that in mind, here are five tips for sleeping great while you travel!
Be Active
If you’re traveling for leisure, this one can be easy to skip. You think “I’m on vacation, I’m not wasting time in the gym!” and I totally get it. However, even doing something short and quick can help improve your sleep quality drastically. Especially if you’re used to working out at home – your body craves routine just like you do, so if you go from regularly working out to not doing anything, you might find yourself restless at the end of the day.
This can happen a couple of different ways. First, if you’re staying somewhere with a gym (hotel, resort, etc.) just go for 20 minutes! I’ve said this before: something is better than nothing. You don’t have to spend an hour in the gym while you’re on vacation. Just go move and I promise your body will thank you later!
Another way to ensure this happens – if you’re doing a lot of exploring or sightseeing, walk! Try not to Uber to every single destination on your list for the day. Walking is SO good for you, and like sleep, is very underrated.
Set Your Room Up For Ideal Sleeping Conditions
This can be tricky in a space you can’t control. However, there are two big things that can help. First, make sure your room is cool at night! If you’re going out for dinner, try turning the air conditioning in your hotel room or Airbnb down before you go out. That way, when you come home and start getting ready for bed, the temperature is ideal for sleep!
Second, make sure your space is dark. When I travel, I always take a sleeping mask. I don’t sleep in one at home, but you just never know when you travel. You could be staying in a hotel with thin curtains. Making sure all the lights are off and it’s totally dark, even if that means using a sleeping mask, will seriously improve your sleep quality.
Take Time to Meditate Before Bed
Meditation can manifest in a lot of different ways, so hear me out. For me, it’s reading a book. It could be journaling, it could be some stretching or light yoga, or it could be sitting still, breathing, and reflecting on your day.
Whatever it looks like for you, try to be intentional about slowly turning your brain off. Quiet your mind and come down off your “high” from the day. Especially when traveling – I often find my mind reeling at night over everything I saw or did that day. Doing this can help you fall asleep a lot faster when you get in the bed!
Avoid Screens Before Bed
I know, I know – this is the most annoying thing to hear in the world. Who doesn’t like to get in bed and crush a few minutes of Merge Mansion or whatever game you’re playing? However, taking in light, especially from screens, keeps your eyes super active. This tells your brain that it’s not time to get sleepy yet. Not only will it take you longer to fall asleep, but once you are asleep, the quality of your sleep will not be as good.
As a general rule of thumb, I try not to look at screens for at LEAST thirty minutes before bed. Research shows that an hour is even more ideal, but be realistic with yourself. If you’re not used to doing this, start with something small and attainable (that’s thirty minutes for me!).
Sleep Supplements
I’ll talk about two supplements here; one I use daily at home, and the other I use when I’m traveling. First up: Beam Dream. Beam is the product I rarely go a night without. Beam is a powder product that contains five natural sleep ingredients. It comes in several different flavor choices and mixes with hot water or milk, making it the perfect bedtime “dessert”. Here are their five listed sleep ingredients:
I have had AMAZING results with Beam – however, I don’t love traveling with it because you never know what’s going to be available. Sure, I can take my powder with me wherever I go, but will I have access to a cup and spoon? Hot water?
The other product, which I use when I’m traveling: Melatonin. I often choose this to travel with instead of a powder because melatonin comes in pill form. I find this much less stressful and all around easier when I’m in an unfamiliar place.
Obviously, I would never recommend taking a supplement if you weren’t doing the first four things already. Supplements are not a “fix all”. Before you take melatonin, did you put your phone down an hour before bed? If not, start there. Once you are consistently doing the first four things, THEN think about adding a sleep supplement at night if you still find it’s necessary.
As always, I’d love to hear from you guys! Is there anything that you find helpful for better sleep that I didn’t include in this list? Remember, sleep is SO important. Don’t forget to prioritize it, even when you’re traveling!
