The Most Underrated Secret to Good Health

If you want radiant skin and vibrant health, listen up! In this podcast episode, I’m sharing the most underrated secret to good health. Imagine yourself waking up every day feeling energized, motivated, grateful, and ready to take on the day. Mmm, doesn’t that feel good! Even the thought of that feels good!!! Now, I want to put a tool in your back pocket that helps you feel your best. I want you to know that you feeling good from the inside out is possible. And it starts right here with the tools and feel good tips in this episode. So let’s do this!

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LINKS:

✿ Favorite CBD brand for better sleep.
✿ My go-to Probiotics.
✿ Discover your sleep type!

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The Most Underrated Secret to Good Health

I bet you’re dying to know – what’s the number one, most underrated secret to good health? And I’ll come right out the gate and tell ya. But before I do, I’ll be honest – I’m a little worried that once I do, you’ll lose interest in this episode. It may be easy to tune this one out because maybe it’s something you’ve heard before. That’s why I want to approach it from a little bit of a different angle. And I want to challenge you to be willing to see things differently, to be willing to find one thing in this episode that stands out to you as something you want to take feel good action on. Listen out for that one thing because y’all, sometimes all it takes is one tip, one tool, one light bulb moment to help you show up for yourself in a new, empowered way. So hear me out! One of the BEST things you can do for vibrant, radiant health is (drumroll please!) SLEEP.

When you’re asleep that’s when your body heals, digests food, processes memories, builds new proteins, detoxes, builds immunity, balances hormones and so. much. more. Sleep is magic. If you don’t get deep, quality sleep you feel it. Your whole body is affected. Every organ in your body is affected. Every system in your body is affected.

Have you ever noticed how different you feel when you’re deprived of sleep!? Your mood changes. You get a lil grumpier. You feel a little more on edge. Easily angered, easily triggered – ah, that’s real. Your food cravings change – you crave saltier foods and sweeter foods. PS did you know – that’s because your body is running low on energy and it needs you to supply the energy in the form of food. You’re not feeling energized naturally so your body needs you to add it into your body. And sugary foods and high carbohydrate (high carb) foods give your body a quick boost of energy. If you eat a donut, bagel, or bowl of spaghetti it gives your body a quick boost of energy that is definitely much needed in the moment but we know sugar is absorbed into our blood quickly and it’s used up quickly.

Then we inevitably feel that sugar crash and may even find ourselves reaching back out for that second donut or that fourth cup of coffee. A lil pro tip: If you do eat something sugary or high carb, pair it with a healthy fat (something like avocado, almond butter, chia seeds) and a protein. That will help balance your blood sugar! 

But back to sleep — Sleep impacts your hormones. Lack of sleep keeps you in a fight or flight state. When you’re constantly in this state your body holds onto weight out of a need — or perceived need, rather — for survival. Your body holds onto fat out of survival. It’s a survival mechanism! It is so hard to lose weight when you’re stressed, when you’re not getting good sleep, and when you’re not fueling your body with nutrients.

With that said, let’s team up together and decided here and now not stress about stress. Yes, we know that if we’re not getting good sleep it’s going to negatively affect our body. BUT don’t let that keep you awake at night – ha, see what I did there!? Instead, let’s let this information empower us. We are empowered, uplifted women. We are here for a purpose. We are insanely amazing in every possible way. Stress doesn’t get to take us out.

If anything, I want you to know when you support your body and when you put tools in place that allow your body to do what it does best, your body performs optimally. Your body feels good. Your body already knows how to fall asleep and heal. It’s not something we have to force. Rather, it’s something we get to allow.

Allow your body to do what it does best!

Friend, let’s get back to supporting our bodies with foods and habits and a mindset that helps us feel good from the inside out.

I promise, you will feel the difference. 

So we know sleep is mega important but what can we do if we’re not getting good sleep or if falling asleep is really difficult?

Well, instead of giving you a list of tips with everything you “should” do to get better sleep, I want to use this moment as an opportunity to say that you already know at least a few things you can do. You’re just not doing them. Or let’s word it like this: maybe your environment isn’t supporting the helpful sleep habits you know you could be doing! 

Listen, if we want to build better habits and make a change in our life, it starts will awareness and acknowledgment. From there, we want to knock down every barrier that stands in our way so we can set ourselves up for success and actually put new changes and habits in place.

Your environment has everything to do with your success in getting better sleep.

It can feel overwhelming to look at a list of tips and be like okay well dang, now I have to make all these changes. That can feel like a lot. So instead of just telling you what new habits to do, I’m going to share shifts your can make in your environment that will help you build better habits around sleep.

If you want to put new habits in place that actually help you feel the way you want to feel, you need to make shifts in your environment.

Your quality of sleep directly impacts your capacity. We know we can’t pour out of an empty cup. So if we wake up already on empty, dang it’s going to be a long day. But if we wake up full, wow – think of all the possibilities. And this isn’t just something that’s goals. It’s really, truly possible!!!!

Now just for the sake of sharing really practical tips for you, here are 10 things you can do in real life to get longer & deeper quality sleep at night. Sleep is the most underrated secret to good health. It’s not dieting. It’s not working your brains out. It’s not doing all the hacks. It’s sleep!!

As I move through this list, listen out for one thing that hits you. Find one thing you want to put into practice. And remember, making one small change at a time is POWERFUL. Progress beats perfect every single time. And as a side note, there are so many other tips and tricks I didn’t include in this list so if you have a specific challenge with your sleep, please reach out to me on Instagram. I’d really love to get a DM from you and help you find a creative solution to get better sleep at night. 

2 Environment Shifts You Can Make for Better Sleep

01: Make your room a no phone zone!

WHY? Blue light exposure really messes with your brain and keeps your brain active. This is problematic when you’re trying to go to sleep because you know it’s time for bed but the blue light from your phone, kindle, or laptop is sending signals to your brain that keep you awake! Your body starts producing more serotonin to keep you up which is the opposite of what we want to happen. PLUS, when you’re always working, scrolling, or watching tv from bed it sends a single to your brain that your bedroom is a place of work, comparison, and or a place where you feel a bit more stressed out. We don’t want that when we’re trying to fall asleep! It’s helpful for your brain to have one place where it does one thing. When you start associating your bedroom as a place of rest, restful actions will follow. Another reason why having a no phone zone in your bedroom is helpful is because of the signals your phone emits. If you keep your phone on your nightstand while you sleep, your brain and body are more exposed to the radiation from your phone’s wifi, cellular, and bluetooth signals. If you can, leave the phone out of your room. Use an old school alarm clock if you can, put your phone in airplane mode, or leave it in do not disturb mode throughout the night. You may have a really real reason for keeping your phone on your nightstand at night – like if you want to make sure you’re available for any emergency calls. But just check in with yourself. Is it a real reason or are you just making an excuse because it’s easier and a cop out for you not taking action? For me & my husband, I turn my phone completely off every night around dinner time and leave it in the kitchen. Bill keeps his phone on the floor, away from his head and turns on “do not disturb” mode. We’ve even told our parents that if something comes up in the middle of the night to call Bill because my phone will be off. BTW I just learned this but when you put your phone in do not disturb mode it stills always any calls from your favorite list to come through.

02: Pick a designated spot in your home for movement.

Since we know that your environment is a huge trigger in you building better habits, let’s pick one spot in your home where you go to move! Movement is such a powerful tool in getting better sleep at night – especially moving your body first thing in the morning. Naturally, you’re supposed to feel more energized in the morning and less energized at night. Your body knows what it’s doing! One way we can give ourselves a boost of energy and starting syncing into our circadian rhythm is by doing some form of movement in the morning. You don’t even have to do a full on sweaty one-hour HIIT workout for you to reap the benefits of this. 10-20 minutes is all it takes for you to feel energized, vibrant, and ready to take on the day. Take your dog for a walk, do 5 simple stretches, press play on a 10 minute YouTube yoga flow, breathe deep for 20 breaths, do 10 simple squats – ya’ll quit making movement complicated. I know you have good intentions. I know you want to do a full on one-hour workout but hey, please don’t beat yourself up if you’re not fully there. Show up today with your best. Move today with the time you have. I know for a fact you have 5 minutes to move. It’s way easier and pleasurable for you to want to use those five minutes to scroll or watch a video online. So that’s why we want to create a rhythm and habit out of daily movement. Movement can be something you love doing. So make it fun for yourself! Pick out one place in your home that’s dedicated as your movement spot. When you wake up in the morning, go there. Orrrrr wake up, make your coffee, then go there! And once you’re there, move!! Keep it simple. Make it fun. Cheer yourself on every step of the way. You need yourself to be your own hype person sometimes! And the more fun you have showing up for yourself, the easier and easier it’s going to get. This is backed by science! The more fun a habit is, the easier it is to do it. The easier a habit is, the more likely you are to do it.

7 Practical Tips to Sleep Better Tonight

~ CBD before bed is really helpful. I’ll link my favorite CBD company here. If you use my link, you get $20 off and this company is beyond incredible. I use CBD when I have headaches, when I’m super sore from a workout, when I’m cramping on my period, and an hour before bedtime. It has really clean ingredients and more importantly, it works.

~ Incorporating probiotics into your wellness routine can improve our sleep and the health of every single system in our body. Focusing on gut health is an absolute must if you want to look and feel your best. And what’s so cool is that when you sleep better, your gut health improves. And when your gut health improves, sleep improves. It’s a beautiful cycle and one we can definitely be taking advantage of. I’m linking my favorite probiotics brand here. If you use my link you’ll save $50 off your purchase of $75 or more.

~ Eat your last meal near sunset. This gives your body enough time to digest food before bed. Meaning, it can spend more time and energy during sleep to help your body repair, refresh, and replenish. Eating your last meal near sunset also helps you stay in sync with your body’s natural circadian rhythm. 

~ Drink more water at the front end of your day – not right before bed – to avoid waking up and going to the bathroom!

~ Sleep with the temperature between 60-67 degrees (which to me is so cold!) so we keep ours about 70 degrees.

~ Next, it’s helpful to discover your sleep type! There’s a quiz linked in the description from a book I love called, The Power of When. The author shares about 4 different sleep Chronotypes that help you discover the best time for you to fall asleep and wake up, based on your natural energy cycles! Instead of just following the advice to sleep 8 hours a night, The Power of When helps you get crystal clear specific on what’s best for YOU. And that’s empowering!! PS – I’m a dolphin! And in the quiz you’ll find out which animal Chronotype you are :)

~ Lastly, BREATHE. If you feel anxious about falling asleep and waking up the next day, breathe. When I feel anxious before bed. I visualize myself falling asleep with ease. I picture myself hearing my alarm in the morning and when I hear it, I smile. I feel grateful. I imagine myself waking up, turning off the alarm, stepping out of bed, making my bed, and drinking a glass of water with so much joy and energy. I tell myself, “I trust myself to get it all done.” I visualize all that and really feel it in my body. Then, I let myself do what it does best. I let myself fall asleep. I trust that I’ll be able to get it all done and I trust that even if I don’t, I’m okay, I’m still enough, all is well.

That’s our episode :) I want to leave you with this:

You are worthy of rest.
Rest is self care.
Rest is healing.
Rest is rejuvenating.
Rest is productive.

When you allow your body to sleep, you’re giving yourself the opportunity to heal. And this healing takes place in your physical body but also mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, too.

Friend, you’re doing a really good job.

Keep doing your best. Little by little. Bit by bit. Day after day.

You don’t have to do more to be more.

You are already enough.

You are so wise and intuitive already. You know what your body needs. Allow it! Savor sleep. Enjoy sleep. Treasure sleep. It’s the most underrated secret to vibrant, radiant health and it’s yours for the taking :)

Now before we go I want to hype up my girl, Rikki – she’s a coaching client of mine and she left this review on the Podcast. I wanted to share it with you too and also say to Rikki, thank you so much for leaving this review. I would love to give you a free 30-minute coaching call on me to and this is literally such perfect timing because we just finished our 3 month coaching package. Next week is our final session and I’m so excited to gift you one more bonus call :) Rikki’s review says, “The Best Person to Have in Your Corner! Madison! My life has changed for the better since I started working with you and listening to the podcast. Thank you so much and I’m sending you lots of love and hugs. Me and veggies might be besties after the latest episodes.” Ekk. That makes me so happy! I love working with you, Rikki. Thank you for being apart of The Fit Flamingo.

And friend, I’m sending YOU so much love and hugs. You are enough.

Have a specific question? Send me a DM on Instagram!

Friendly reminder: You are enough.

Hi, I’m Madison Deaton. As a personal trainer, nutrition and self-love coach, I focus on the inside first, helping you get to the root of why you think and feel the way you do. Then I use things like functional fitness, holistic nutrition, mindset and self-love tools to help you connect with yourself on a deeper level, see things from a new perspective, and unlearn habits that no longer serve you so you can take up space, step into your power, and become the woman of your dreams (friendly reminder: she has been YOU all along). Welcome to The Fit Flamingo! I’m so glad you’re here.