The Sleep Coach to England's Football Stars On How to Get A Good Night's Sleep

Nick Littlehales gives his advice to all the stars - David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Christiano Ronaldo and top Olympic cyclists.

They just want a good nights sleep.

One of the first things he advises athletes who date models and pop stars is — sleep alone in the lead up to a big game.

The man who used to sell beds for a living has become a self taught sleep expert who scoffs at urban myths about the sleep inducing properties of warm milk, ocean sounds and essential oils.

Littlehales says sleep is much more scientific. He says the temperature of your room should be 16 degrees, you shouldn't use a pillow and if you miss your normal bedtime, you should wait 90 minutes before attempting to sleep.

He also says that the whole 'eight hours of sleep every night' is rubbish and what you don't get can be made up with naps during two natural siesta times during the day.

Littlehales says we’re never taught how to sleep and modern life and electronic devices have so completely disrupted our natural sleep rhythms we’re no longer getting enough to maximise mental and physical recovery.

“The side effects of poor sleep can affect reaction times and decision making. You need to recover so you are physically and mentally alert,” he says.

“Given the right attention, a good night’s sleep can be the secret to unlocking our full potential,” he says.

And he's not wrong - poor sleep is now being linked to rising levels of Type 2 diabetes in western societies as well as obesity.

Littlehales says there are seven secrets to getting better sleep that everyone needs to be aware of.

The first is that our bodies operate according to a circadian rhythm.

Your body is triggered to wake up at sunrise and sleep when its dark and the temperature falls.

Secondly, we all have a genetic sleep chronotype that determines whether we perform better in the morning or the afternoon and we need to be aware of it and compensate for it if we have to perform at our peak at a time when we would naturally be feeling low.

Thirdly, sleep is divided into stages that last for 90 minutes each, says Littlehales. Instead of aiming for eight hours sleep we should instead be trying to get five cycles of 90 minutes, or seven and a half hours, he says.

You should work out a regular wake up time of, say, 6.30am and work backwards to determine a bed time of 11pm.

If circumstances mean you miss that bedtime you should wait until 90 minutes later, 12.30am to go to sleep, and get four cycles that night, he says.

During the next day try to make up the lost sleep by taking a nap either between 1-3 pm or 5-7pm.

His fourth tip is to learn how to regulate our exposure to light to prompt sleep and wake times.

Too much exposure to artificial light at night makes to harder to sleep, not enough light in the morning makes it harder to wake.

You should try and get some exposure to direct sunlight during the day to stimulate melatonin production.

If you use block out blinds in the bedroom to help you sleep you need a daylight simulator to switch on light when your alarm goes off to help you wake, he says.

Tip number five involves developing a pre and post sleep routine.

Start winding down 90 minutes before you go to sleep, take a break from technology like mobile phones, tablets, move to a darker environment, eat if you are hungry, empty bowel and bladder, declutter your mind. Do not watch dramatic television, read the news headlines or an exciting book or do anything that will make you anxious.

The sixth pointer is to get the right bed.

“Before you buy footwear you establish your foot size first, “he says.

“In the same way you need to find how your profile relates to the mattress,” he says.

If you are right handed your best sleeping position is on your non dominant left side in a foetal position and vice versa if you are left handed, he says.

When buying a mattress you should purchase one that allows you to lie this way without a pillow so the mattress depresses around your shoulders and hips and there is no more than a hand width gap between you and the mattress.

“Most people are sleeping on mattresses that are too firm,” he says.

The last step is to get the environment in your bedroom right. The ideal temperature for sleep is between 16-18 degrees, men like it colder, women warmer.

He says a neutral coloured bedroom provides fewer distractions and recommends putting black tape over standby lights on televisions and other electronic equipment in the bedroom.

To get the best sleep, don’t share a bed. The ideal situation is for married couples to have one bed for intimacy and separate rooms for sleeping, he says.

THE SECRET OF A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP

1. Wake at sunrise sleep when it is dark and cooler
2. Work out if you perform better in the morning or afternoon prepare to compensate
3. Aim for five 90 minute cycles of sleep, nap if you can’t get it in one continuous stream
4. Learn to regulate your exposure to sunlight in the morning and cut out bright light at night
5. Wind down 90 minutes before you want to sleep
6. Get the right bed, sleep without a pillow
7. Keep you bedroom at a temperature between 16-18 degrees

Source