Exercises for Insomnia

If you've ever spent an entire day outside running around, chasing your children or taking a hike, you probably found it easy to fall asleep. Insomnia wasn't nagging at you after you'd exhausted your body through physical activity.

For some people though, that rule doesn't apply to them. Intense physical activity while working the muscles and getting the heartbeat up, can work as a stimulant and instead of drifting easily to sleep, a person can find themselves wide awake fighting insomnia.

Keeping our bodies active is important. Not just for the obvious physical benefits but also because regular exercise can be a natural cure for insomnia. It's important to choose exercises that will work towards the goal of sleep as opposed to the exercises that energize you to a point that sleep becomes almost impossible.

Yoga is a method of exercise that people have been doing for centuries. It involves a series of stretches and breathing exercises that work to tone the body from the inside out. Most cities offer several choices in yoga programs. Often many yoga studios even offer a free drop-in class. This helps you become familiar with the program and the series of stretches that are involved. If it's something that you enjoy you can quickly incorporate it into your fitness regime and before long you'll feel the positive benefits in relation to your sleep patterns as well.

Walking is a great exercise to combat insomnia as well. With walking though timing is very important. You don't want to go for a long and strenuous walk shortly before you are retiring for the evening. During the walk your heartbeat will have become elevated and many of your muscles will be tight. If you go from moving at a steady pace to trying to lay silently in the bed, chances are that sleep will elude you for at least a couple of hours. Your body truly does need a cooling off period, so the benefits of walking in relation to insomnia can be most profound if the walking is done earlier in the day.

Another exercise that has a positive result when it comes to insomnia is swimming. Swimming at a steady pace up and down the length of the pool allows your muscles to be worked out gently and the water offers a soothing quality that many other exercise regimes don't. Also, if you are swimming at a public facility, they also often offer free use of a sauna or a hot tub. Both of these allow your body to relax and can help prepare you for sleep.

Exercise can be a great way to naturally fight insomnia, however the success of that depends a great deal on the type of exercise. Pick something not too strenuous that is soothing and allows you to easily shift from the activity to preparing for bed. If you make exercise a regular part of your evening routine, you'll find yourself waking up to a night free of insomnia.

Yoga - The Solution for Insomnia

At one time, or another, all of us have experienced insomnia for any type of reason.  There are times when lack of sleep just can’t be helped, such as: the loss a loved one, going through a divorce, and losing your job. 

These are some of life’s serious crisis situations, where we have to let time heal, and try not to fall apart in the process.  Some of the solutions below will help insomnia, but they will not heal grief. 

However, if you are continually staying awake over trivial matters, these solutions will aid you to get a good night’s rest.  Remember - not every solution will work for everyone, so try the easiest ideas and make them fit into your lifestyle.

Do you have one or more problems, on your mind, that are troubling you at bedtime?  If so, write it down and leave it on the kitchen table where you sit in the morning.  This is a form of compartmentalization, where your subconscious mind works on a solution, and you and your conscious mind get some needed rest.

You will be surprised what happens the following morning.  The problem is much less important or your subconscious found the solution.  This technique is so powerful that many successful people use it, even when they don’t really have a problem.  This keeps you organized, on a daily basis, and you will get more accomplished in life.

That leads into the next idea, which is establishing a daily routine.  Your body has a natural cycle, and most of us ignore it.  Modern humans are more out of tune with their bodies than ever before, so we have to get back to basics and design a schedule for all tasks - including sleep.

You should exercise every day, but your exercise routine should end two hours before bedtime, at the latest.  This allows your body and mind “cool down” time.  If you can exercise earlier in the day, feel free to do so.

Exercise will give you extra energy during the day, and help you get a good night’s sleep, when you need it.  If you don’t exercise, don’t feel alone, but do take action.  Gentle Yoga postures are a great way to start.

If you find the right Yoga teacher, you will learn controlled breathing (pranayama), stage-by-stage relaxation, and meditation.  Each is a powerful technique for winding down before bedtime.  You always practice controlled breathing with either, stage-by-stage relaxation, or meditation. Some people practice stage-by-stage relaxation in bed and fall asleep in the process.  This is not a bad thing, if your ultimate goal is to fall asleep.

Now let’s look at a few other ideas, such as alcohol and hidden caffeine.  Alcohol has a way of getting you to sleep, but sleep is often interrupted during the night.  One suggestion, if you enjoy drinking:  Have one small drink; preferably wine, with your meal.

Caffeine is in coffee, many teas, many sodas, and a variety of other drinks.  Drink water later in the day, and give your body a rest from caffeine.

Here are a few actions to take before bedtime:  Eat very light, read a book about something peaceful, and take a shower or a bath.  You don’t have to do everything, but one of the above-mentioned ideas will work for you. 

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