Not a lot of us can accomplish a full 8-9 hours of sleep every night. We all have those evenings where we keep tossing and turning. Whether it’s a bout of insomnia, a late night out, or an extra early morning, getting up and goin’ on less than 7 hours of sleep can be a total drag.
We’ve rounded up some tips to help you look and feel well rested on little sleep even if you’re struggling on the inside, check em out:
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Skin Tips:
- Brighten your eyes with a cold compress: A quick trick to fight under eye puffiness is to place a spoon in the freezer overnight and then use it as a compress for about 10 minutes the next morning.
- Exfoliate and then balm it up: Your skin can look dull and flaky as a result of too little sleep. To help give your complexion a smooth glow, exfoliate in the shower with a gentle exfoliator, and then use a face balm or facial oil to seal in moisture.
- Slather on some Aloe vera: Aloe vera is one of my favorite ingredients and I use it twice in my wake-up remedies. Sometimes I like to use gel straight from the aloe plant, but you can also buy aloe vera gel at your local health food store. In the morning, I slather on aloe vera gel over my face before I apply my moisturizer (or I use the gel from the plant as a 30 minute mask in the morning). Aloe vera is both calming and anti-inflammatory. So it really helps hydrate and calm down any irritated skin patches. It also feels extremely cooling which will help you depuff.
- Use your coffee grounds to stimulate: Mix your coffee grounds with coconut oil or sesame oil for a body scrub when you take your shower. The caffeine in the coffee grounds will stimulate and tighten your skin. It can get a bit messy so make sure you have enough time for cleanup afterwards.
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Extra Stimulation:
- Lymphatic massage: This is to counteract the puffiness that can pop up when we don’t get enough sleep. We have a full tutorial that you can watch here.
- Take a morning jog or practice a yoga sequence: This is another obvious one, but going for a morning jog or practicing a vigorous yoga sequence can help get your blood pumping and stimulate your mind and body for the day.
- Bombard your room with natural light to signal that it’s time to wake up: If it’s particularly dreary outside, you can also use light therapy.
- Take a shower, but make sure you are temperature cycling: Alternate between a cold-hot-cold shower at the end of your morning routine to help stimulate your lymphatic and circulatory system. This can definitely give you an extra pep in your step.
- Use aromatherapy to stimulate: Energizing essential oils can give you a burst of mental alertness when you’re falling into a slump. Use scents like peppermint, lemon, eucalyptus, and cinnamon.
- If you can’t take a nap, try paradoxical relaxation: This is a technique that many use if they don’t have time for an afternoon nap. Here is an article discussing how to practice this technique.
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Makeup Tips:
- Line your waterline (the area right above your lower lash line) with a flesh colored pencil to erase any redness and look a little bit more awake.
- Contour with bronzer to give yourself an energized flushed tone.
- Use tinted moisturizer instead of powder. This will help keep your skin hydrated and will prevent a “cake-y” look if your skin is already appearing dull.
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How To Feel Well Rested From The Inside Out:
- Coconut water + aloe vera juice + water. Whenever I am running on little sleep, I make sure that I hydrate consistently throughout the day with plain old water, but also coconut water and aloe vera juice to get extra electrolytes. Being dehydrated can make you feel even more groggy.
- Eat foods high in protein, especially foods containing the amino acid tyrosine. Tyrosine is used in our brain to help us make quick decisions and reactions. You can find tyrosine in foods such as: pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and soy if your’e plant-based; and chicken, lean turkey, eggs, and seafood.
- Consume as many “living” foods as you can. This means fresh green juice, and raw salads/meals. You will nourish yourself with natural energy from eating nutrient dense foods that aren’t coming from a box or are processed.
- Limit foods that contain chemicals that calm the brain. The obvious ones include carbohydrates and sugars, and foods that contain high levels of the amino acid L-tryptophan. These foods include beans, turkey, and oats.
What are some tricks that you use to look refreshed on little sleep?
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