If you all recall in this post, I pretty openly admitted I wake up super early and go to bed pretty late. It's a curse that I thank my parents for (my dad is the early riser and my mom is the night owl) -- but hey, no one's pointing fingers here (love you, Mom and Dad!). And really, ever since hitting my 20s bouncing from different writing gigs at newspapers and magazines (where deadline nights are crazy) and then moving over to the world of start ups and tech companies (where schedules are even more bipolar) sleep became less of a priority. Caffeine became my best friend. The struggle with under eye bags became very real.

And then, I hit a wall. It's funny how out of no where, you can suddenly realize that it's time to adult up about something. I turned that corner recently with sleep.

Since leaving my full-time job at Google to try my hand at this whole freelance thing, I was a bit wary that I would fall further into the trap of never sleeping -- a fault I can recognize about my personality: when I'm proving to myself that I can do something, I tend to go overboard. And while I'm definitely still guilty of this, I've made a point to develop a routine that helps me mentally, emotionally and physically unwind at the end of the day (at a semi-reasonable hour, if I'm lucky!). Here's 5 little steps/tweaks/improvements/habits that have made all the difference between getting a measly 4 hours of sleep to now averaging 7-8!

ONE: Starting to switch my workouts from mornings to evenings. A few things to note here. Of course, this largely depends on my schedule for the day, as an evening workout may not always necessarily be feasible. Plus, I also realize, working out in the evenings can cause your adrenaline to spike, thereby making it harder for you to fall asleep soon afterward. Those things aside, I have to say, this step alone has been a game changer for me.

As you all know, I'm training for yet another marathon this November and in addition to bumping up my daily cardio, I'm now including more high intensity interval training classes (like at Fhitting Room here in New York), to really beef up my strength training focus. Between the two, if I can time it just right at the end of the day, I'm EXHAUSTED in the best way possible. And not just a "man, that was a rough workout" but more like I can't wait to get home, take a cold shower and hop into bed; my body barely flops in, it feels that heavy.

TWO: Stepping up my mattress game. It's odd (or perhaps it's not odd?) to me that somehow at the age of 30, I've never actually picked out my own mattress. It's not something I've needed to really do myself, I've never had to browse through a mattress sale or go to a mattress store before and decide on the best one for me. They've either been chosen for me by my parents or been given to me from friends who no longer needed their Leesa king size mattress. They had decided to get a bigger bed so gave the mattress to me, they still stuck with Leesa and even got a discount for it from leesamattresscoupons.com/ for it. It was a win-win situation really! Both scenarios, I realize I'm extremely fortunate for and I'm by no means complaining. To even have a mattress and a place to rest your head at night is a blessing that I'll never take for granted.

That said, for something as personal as sleep, I guess it only makes sense that a mattress really becomes an extension of you -- I mean, think about how much time you spend there in a week. A month. A year. 10 years. How comfortable and how well it accommodates your particular sleep patterns is usually pretty indicative of how well you sleep for said week, month, year, 10 years. And I was more than ready to evaluate my current one, so when the folks over at Helix Sleep asked me if I wanted to try out their custom mattress building program, I was instantly curious.

The process kicks off by taking a short personal questionnaire to help their team understand your sleep habits, your preferences, any body issues/quirks that could be relevant as well as your partner's needs, in case you're sharing the bed. Side note: Unfortunately, you can't note your pet's preferences, but it's feedback I intend to pass along! 🙂 What I found so interesting throughout all of this, were the things I've never really asked myself or considered. Am I hot or cold at night? Do I sleep mainly on my back, side or stomach? How might my body type affect my overall sleep quality?

Based on the feedback above (and perhaps a little showroom testing if you can happen to swing by their office here in New York, which I did), I landed on MY mattress. Medium to firm (sounds about right, I usually hate hotel beds for being too soft), moderately strong back support throughout (due to my placement on the BMI scale), moderately cool temperature wise (I tend to get hot) and a high elasticity point (meaning the mattress' ability to relieve pressure on certain body contours, important for someone like me who sleeps on their side).

The results? It showed up about a week and a half later in a very compact box (I'm still amazed a queen size mattress fit in there), and I've been sleeping on it since for a few months now actually. I'm pleased to report I've already noticed a huge difference in my back and neck, both of which I think were lacking the support they needed while I slept and overall, my new firmness has been a game changer for overall ease to which I fall asleep. My old mattress was more on the plush, soft side, and it always took a bit of mental focus to actually fall asleep -- now, I hardly even think about it.

THREE: Investing in my "sleeping" pillow. This probably sounds odd, coming from someone who has 4 rather oversized, perfectly good pillows already on her bed -- so why add another one? Here's why. I recently discovered Night Pillows thanks to my friend's Grace's write up about them here and was intrigued by the idea of a product that not only had beauty benefits (the silk design of the pillow is better for your skin and hair), but also boasted ergonomic benefits. It's essentially made with memory foam. I've been sleeping on mine for the past few months as well (right around the same time I got the mattress), and have been really pleased with my overall experience. My neck feels less propped (as I sink nicely into the pillow now) and I've noticed my facial creams better absorb at night (whereas I felt before there was a good amount of it that ended up on my cotton pillow suitcase while I slept). I would highly recommend investing in another pillow so that you can sleep just as well as me. You could also read some Reviews by Kieran of The Dozy Owl and see what his recommendations are. He's an expert so you'll definitely find some useful information.

FOUR: I swear by my nightstand MVPs. They never let me down. Period. They are as follows: Goop Facial Oil, Aesop hand cream, a L'Occitane pillow spray, lavender in a small vase, and eye mask, my rotation of books, my journal for a few evening writing exercises and a 1-liter Smart Water bottle, which needs to be finished before I go to bed. I like to think allowing myself this little ritual of indulgences that make me happy or make me feel centered, will help me want to go to bed sooner (and so far, so good!).

FIVE: Unplugging as much as possible. I'm sure this has been recommended numerous times on countless other blogs and that's because, it's true! If you can actually push yourself to do it. For me, this means my main distraction (that being my phone) needs to physically be out of my space while I'm getting ready for bed, or in studio apartment terms, not reachable from my bed. Lately, I've been turning my phone to silent and charging it in my kitchen. It requires a whole lot more effort to check Instagram if I have to hop over to my kitchen counter to get it.

And there you have it! My 5 little steps for a better night's rest that have made all the difference for me! Do you guys have any tips/tricks you'd like to share that have worked for you? Please do share!

Photos by Lydia Hudgens