One Unexpected Way I Improved My Sleep and Elevated My Daytime Energy
And 3 awesome side effects that came along with it
The most profound change in my sleep happened over the last few months and it had nothing to do with pillows, sleep positions, or pills.
There is enormous evidence demonstrating the power and importance of quality sleep. Your ability to sleep has implications in virtually all aspects of your life, especially your energy levels.
Optimizing for health and wellness is a natural side-effect of a fitness career. I’m also as guilty as anyone for trying to improve an internal process with external solutions.
Over the past 17 years, I have tried melatonin supplements, expensive mattresses, and different pillows in an effort to improve my sleep. They worked to varying degrees but nothing ever seemed to stick or make a noticeable difference. My sleep quality still fluctuated and it wasn’t until recently that I started doing one thing that has transformed this crucial aspect of a healthy life.
If you have spent any amount of time looking for ways to improve your sleep and energy, you can benefit from applying the following knowledge to your routine, especially if you work from a computer. Your mind will have greater clarity and you’ll have more restoration rest. There is no equipment or money required either, just you and your body!
Get your head straight
The neck is the bridge between mind and body. The circulation of blood across this bridge helps your brain function the same way rivers and streams feed larger bodies of water. During optimal blood flow, the brain is working at its best. When blood flow is restricted across this critical area, however, everything the mind tells the body to do is limited. This blood flow is essential for incredible sleep and energy.
The quality of soft tissue affects blood flow penetration. There are more than 20 muscles and layers of fascia that connect your head to your shoulders. Not to mention the nine vertebrates in this area of your spine and the nerves that run through and around it.
These nerves demand 20% of your blood despite accounting for only 2% of your body weight. This uneven distribution highlights the importance of our nervous system and why we benefit from improving the blood flow to and from our brains.
Blood flow becomes restricted when we position our necks in suboptimal positions for long periods of time. If you spend any significant amount of time in front of a computer you will understand how difficult it is to keep your neck from leaning forward towards the screen. This extra effort spent by your muscles to accommodate this poor position consumes precious resources that could go to your brain.
When you sleep, your body will biologically adapt to these conditions. The muscles, tendons, ligaments, and fascia that have been under stress all day are reinforced to handle your suboptimal positioning. Over time, scar tissue, weakness, and stiffness build up in your neck and further exacerbate the issue.
Restoring optimal neck position and strength to its supporting tissues will improve blood flow to your brain. Your mind will function with greater clarity and focus. When you rest, the improved blood flow will allow your brain to optimally rejuvenate your body.
To do this, you need to physically straighten out your head.
Two movements to improve this fundamental property of quality soft tissues
I spent over 7 years as a CSCS certified coach and these are two of the many ways to be proactive with your neck health. These are both exercises that can be done at the beginning and end of your day with no required equipment. You may be surprised with how challenging they can be but consistency is always key to seeing long-term results.
One key principle that applies to both these exercises and every movement you make is tensegrity. Tensegrity is the “length” and “space” that yoga practitioners talk about during poses. It is the act of creating tension along the direction of the muscle. You can apply this principle if you hold your arm in front of you like you are pushing a button. Then reach it as far as you possibly can in that direction until you physically can not reach it anymore. The activation you feel in your muscles creates tensegrity in your arm.
When doing these two exercises below, imagine your head is floating away from your shoulders in the direction of your spine. Think of a hot air balloon attached to the top of your head. It would create an elevating effect and this gives your neck muscles a great starting point for movement. This intention creates tensegrity in your neck.
Disclaimer: I am not a chiropractor and this is not medical advice. Always consult a doctor if discomfort and pain dominate your experience.
Simple holds
Lying face down or face-up on the floor allows you to easily strengthen the muscles in the front and the back of your neck. With your face down, keeping your chin tucked towards the center of your collar bones, hold your head up with your ears aligned with your shoulders. The key is not letting the chin “escape” from the neck so the entire back of the neck activates.
When done correctly, you sense the tissues on the back of your neck and even your scalp begin to work. They might shake a little or feel warm. Either way, they are getting more blood flow from your body to account for the increased activity.
Do 2 sets of 5–10 seconds to start.
Start with 5–10 seconds at a time to test the waters. There should be no effort put into the rest of your body. After 2–3 sets, turn onto your back and repeat a similar process.
Neck shoulder separation
After the simple holds, start to incorporate very slow, small rotations from left to right. You will start to feel and sense the muscles around your neck respond to this different way of using them.
It is important to start really small and ensure your whole body isn’t rotating with your head.
Do 2 sets of 5–10 seconds to start.
Start with 5–10 seconds at a time to test the waters. There should be no effort put into the rest of your body. After 2–3 sets, turn onto your back and repeat a similar process.
A triad of benefits
There are many benefits to improving blood flow all throughout your body. These are some of the noticeable benefits I have had in my life over the past 2–3 months since I started prioritizing my neck health.
Sleep quality and dreams
My sleep has improved, hands down. Since strengthening my neck with intention I have had a deeper, uninterrupted sleep with more frequent vivid dreams. When I wake up, I am having a better recollection of those dreams as well. It is also much more rejuvenating to wake up after a deep night’s sleep.
Emotional energy levels
Your neck is the bridge between your thoughts and emotions. Emotions happen physically in the body before we associate them as feelings with our thoughts. If your neck has restrictions, you will reduce the flow of emotion into the body and, therefore, reduce the level of your experience. The opposite is also true and strong emotional experiences are critical to forming strong memories.
Calm flow
There has been a remarkable change in my sense of calm since focusing on my neck. I have entered more periods of a focused flow state where I am working on tasks without a sense of time. As a result, productivity and output have increased.
The likely cause here is greater activation of the vagus nerve that travels along the gut-brain axis. It also travels through the neck to get to the brain and optimizing the neck position and blood flow will lead to better vagus nerve activation.
What started as an effort to remove some tension in my neck has led to cascading changes to my daily life. Adding neck strength as a focus to your movement routines can have extraordinary and unexpected benefits. After going through this process it seems straightforward that improving the quality of your neck muscles would improve the function of your brain and body but it is often the simplest solution that works.
Unlike many of the advertised solutions that sell you an external product to improve your health, you can make a lot of progress just by using your own body. If you explore and experiment enough with consistency, you will have small breakthroughs that have an enormous impact. These are the types of changes that can improve all of our lives.
If you enjoy learning how to leverage subtle shifts in your knowledge for bold changes in your life, let’s connect! You’ll get the perspective of an English major turned Engineer for a healthy balance of science and practical experience.
