"Who should be more stressed about getting a good night's sleep tonight: a project manager with a 9 a.m. presentation, or an Olympian who will be launching their body 60 feet into the air, desperate to land a trick they've spent four years perfecting? Most sane people would say the latter. In practice, it's usually the former. The overwhelming majority of Americans deal with stress-disrupted sleep. We toss and turn, anxious about how crucial tonight's rest is for tomorrow's performance."
"Research shows Olympians worry about sleep, too. They're only human. The difference is they have a game plan for that anxiety - one they repeat consistently, whether the next day brings a medal event or just another training run. They use visualization techniques, lean on tech (within reason) and learn to fall asleep anywhere, even on the Olympic Village's infamous mattresses. Here's the good news for ordinary Americans: sleep isn't an extreme sport."
"Kern told The New York Times that she regularly practices box breathing in order to calm down at the end of the day. It specifically helps her stop "replaying races" in her head. The method involves inhaling for four seconds, holding for four, exhaling for four, then holding for four, repeated on a loop. It's a proven stress-reliever, and popular with Navy SEALs."
Anxiety about performance commonly disrupts Americans' sleep, causing tossing, turning, and cyclical worry around deadlines. Olympians experience sleep worry but counter it with repeatable pre-sleep plans. They rely on visualization, moderate technology use, and the ability to fall asleep in varied environments, including unfamiliar mattresses. Specific practices include box breathing—inhale four seconds, hold four, exhale four, hold four on a loop—to halt replaying events. Athletes also bring familiar items when traveling to recreate comfort. Ordinary people can adopt these consistent wind-down habits to lessen sleep-disrupting stress and improve nighttime rest.
Read at InsideHook
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