Sleep: Your secret weapon to lose weight and boost overall health

Create a sleep-conducive environment:

This practice has significantly helped our patients. Ensure that when you intend to sleep, your room is pitch dark, turn your phone screens upside down, and switch off all electronic devices that emit blue light. When in a pitch-dark room, the pineal gland releases melatonin (the sleep-inducing hormone), signalling to the body that it's time to fall asleep.

This might not be very easy if you live in a busy city, with all the streetlights, traffic, and general chaos. Some people use blackout curtains but still find that light finds its way through the gaps. In such cases, resort to using eye masks, which guarantee a pitch-dark environment and can help you fall into a deep sleep. However, some people do not like the feeling of something tied to their head while they sleep - in this case, you can simply place a rolled t-shirt over your eyes, achieving the same effect. So, find ways to create your pitch-dark environment because remaining in a pitch-dark room will ultimately help you fall asleep.

Deep breathing to activate the parasympathetic nervous system mode:

While sleep is a natural process, you need to be in the right state for it to occur. This state is the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), also known as the rest and digest phase. There's no way you can feel sleepy if you're in the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), also known as the fight and flight phase.

The quickest way to transition from SNS to PNS is to slow down your inhales and exhales. One such breathing technique is box breathing. Inbox breathing, the pattern that follows is - inhale, hold, exhale, hold. So, for beginners, a 4:4:4:4 count is a great start. That's 4 counts inhale, 4 counts hold, 4 counts exhale, and 4 counts hold. You can repeat this 4-5 times to experience relaxation. Once done, lie down and drift off to sleep.

Sunlight exposure during the day:

Walk to your nearest window, lift the curtain slightly, and soak in all that natural light. Ideally, it's best to wake up before the sun rises, and as it begins to rise, gradually look at the sun or the sky to connect with natural light. If you live in a place where the sun doesn’t shine, that's okay natural light alone can still be beneficial.

This resets your circadian rhythm and melatonin levels for the next 12 hours, meaning that connecting with the sun and sunlight in the morning helps you sleep better at night and fall asleep faster.