8 Steps Set Up A Solid Bedtime Routine (Find The Eight Episode #10)

You probably know of Michael Phelps, the competitive swimmer and winner of 28 Olympic medals. 

He has a really specific pre-competition routine that he follows the exact same way—he has the exact same breakfast, does a specific series of stretches, and does a certain number or laps.

We're going to use a similar idea here, but instead we want to be triggering the state of being calm and ready for sleep. 

So today we’re going to go through 8 steps to help you set up a solid bedtime routine.

STEP #1: DECIDE ON A START TIME 

I’ve used this analogy before but if you don’t define the time you want to start winding down and are aiming for bed, it’s like being told to show up for school ‘on time’ without being told the actual time you need to be there.  

Decide when you’d like to aim for sleep based on when you have to wake up and set an alarm for 1 hour before this time so that you remember when to start your routine.

STEP #2: SET ALARMS

Set alarms for this time as well as for 5 minutes later and set these alarms on repeat so you don’t have to remember every day.

When the alarm goes off, if you’re in the middle of something, you’re likely going to need another 5 minutes to tie off loose ends--To say goodbye to friends or to write a note to yourself about where you left off in your school work.

Now we’re going to get into the structure of the actual routine:

STEP #3 (OPTIONAL): PREPARE FOR SLEEP 

If you haven’t changed, brushed your teeth, washed your face, and the done the rest of your bathroom routine earlier in the evening, do this first thing.

STEP #4: DO A TRANSITIONAL ACTIVITY FOR 20 MINUTES 

A transitional activity is an activity that is enjoyable enough that it’s less painful to stop what you were doing before the alarms went off.

This could be listening to a podcast, watching a 20 minute show on TV (with the TV screen dimmed as much as possible), having a quiet chat with a friend or a family member, listening to a relaxing playlist, or playing musical instrument.

STEP #5: DO A RELAXING ACTIVITY FOR 20 MINUTES

Now it’s time to move into an activity for about 20 minutes that will actively help you to relax.

Stretch. Do a relaxation exercise with an app like Calm or Mindshift. Capture your thoughts in a journal. Read. Draw. Have a shower or take a bath.

Don’t do this in bed. Instead do this in your comfy spot.

STEP #6: GIVE YOURSELF A TREAT FOR THE LAST 20 MINUTES OF THE ROUTINE 

It’s helpful to have a little reward for yourself at the end of the night.  

Reserve a magazine, podcast, book, or audiobook for the end of the routine.

This will help motivate you through the routine and will reinforce the routine has a habit.

STEP #7: GET INTO BED ONLY IF YOU ARE ON THE EDGE OF SLEEP  

At this point, if you feel like you could sleep, get into bed.

Otherwise, stay out of bed and continue with a relaxing, non-screen activity until you really feel as if you could sleep.

Remember, it will be tempting to rush into bed before you are sleepy but remember this tends to work against you (as we talked about in episode 1 and episode 4).

STEP #8: HAVE A BEDTIME SCRIPT PREPARED FOR AFTER YOU GET INTO BED

Once you feel sleepy and decide to get into bed, to help prevent your mind from becoming very active active, give it a little task.

You can try visualizing a calm, happy memory or imagining a continuation of your favourite movie or book.

It's helpful to have a script that isn’t too stimulating but will help crowd out the worries and other alerting thoughts that tend to come up at that time.

WHY BEDTIME ROUTINES ARE SO HELPFUL

Bedtime routines can not only help you trigger sleepiness and give you that buffer between the busyness of the day and the quiet, relaxed state you want for sleep but they also prevent you from doing stuff that will alert you.

Plus, if you do the same routine over and over, the routine will become second nature and you don’t need to figure out what to do in the moment.

With time, you become trained to associate these bedtime activities with getting into that calm sleepy zone and you may eventually be able to shorten the routine to 20-30 minutes.

Now how do you follow through with a bedtime routine and still prioritize sleep even during really busy times, like during exams?

Or, if you’re doing something really fun when your alarm goes off to start your routine?

In Episode 12, we’re going to define the reasons why prioritizing your sleep matters to you because that can make a big difference.

It’s also important to remember that every night is not going to be perfect.

There will be nights when you don’t get enough sleep because you choose something else over sleep.

But you can safeguard yourself from slipping into chronic difficulties with insomnia or sleep deprived by setting up these routines now and following them as consistently as you can.

ACTION: 

As soon as you can, grab a piece of paper and sketch out a rough bedtime routine you’d like to try.

Next, set the alarms on repeat to remind you to start your bedtime routine for tonight.

If would like a cheat sheet to help you set up your bedtime routine, you can find it here.

SUMMARY:

If you want to avoid getting caught up in activities that keep you awake and know you need to carve out time to get your body and mind into the right state for sleep, automating what you are going to do with a solid bedtime routine is a great investment. 

Remember, these are the 8 steps:

1. Choose a time to start the routine, starting 60 minutes before you want to target sleep

2. Set two alarms, one 60 minute before your target sleep time and one 5 minutes later

3. Then, get ready for sleep by brushing your teeth, washing your face, and getting change

4. Move into a 20 minute transitional activity

5. Then do 20 minutes of a relaxing activity

6. Reward yourself with a treat at the end of the routine

7. Stay out of bed and continue relaxing activities until you are one the edge of sleep

8. Have a mental script prepared for after your get into bed to keep your mind from becoming alert

What To Do When You Can't Sleep: Your Three-Step Plan

• Episode 1: The No. 1 Sleep Trap That You Need To Avoid

• Episode 4: Is Your Bed Keeping You Awake?

• Episode 7: What To Do When Your Mind is Keeping You Awake

• Episode 12: The Rested Version Of Your Life And The Big Three: Why Bother With Sleep?