How to Get the Perfect Night’s Sleep

Getting a good night’s sleep is something that many people strive for, yet it somehow seems like one of the more difficult parts of your daily routine. If you find yourself struggling to sleep on a regular basis, fear not, we have created a guide to help you get a perfect night’s sleep.

There are a variety of factors that could affect the quality of your sleep, from eating large meals and drinking too much caffeine to needing a digital detox. But just by ditching coffee or spending less time on your phone, you could start to see improvements in the amount of sleep you receive, as well as the quality of sleep.

But what more could you be doing to get a better night’ sleep? We’ve surveyed people across the US and UK to find out what helps them get the best sleep possible.

The timeline to a perfect night’s sleep

Take a look at the timeline below which reveals the routine you should follow to have a perfect night’s sleep.

After you finish work, most people just want to head home and relax, however, our findings reveal that those who enjoy light exercise tend to sleep better, with 1 in 10 (10%) saying they sleep better after exercise. By adding in a gym session, bike ride or even a short walk to your day, you could expect to see an improvement in your sleep.

Healthy diet

Following a balanced diet does not only help your physical health and mental wellbeing, it can also have a huge impact on your sleep quality. Those eating large meals and drinking lots of caffeine during the day could be damaging their sleep quality – from our survey results, we found that 15% of people sleep better when they avoid caffeine and eat smaller meals.

Room temperature

Setting the right temperature and taking time to relax are both key elements of the perfect night’s sleep. Nearly a third of people (32%) said they sleep better in a cool bedroom between 61-65 degrees Fahrenheit, so why not try dropping the temperature when you next get ready for bed and see how much better your sleep quality is? Another great way to prepare yourself for a good night’s rest and become more relaxed is to take a shower or bath before you doze off. Nearly a quarter (22%) of those surveyed said that showering or bathing before bed helps them to sleep.

Digital detox

Taking some time for yourself by putting your phone down and removing yourself from your wider surroundings is a great way to detox from the digital world. Not using your phone before you go to bed can help you to de-stress and clear your mind of any negative or stressful thoughts you may have acquired from a busy day at work. 1 in 10 (10%) of those surveyed agreed that they slept better when they didn’t take their phone to bed. Another great way of clearing your mind and de-stressing is to read a book, with 1 in 8 people surveyed saying that reading before bed made them sleep better.

Room conditions

When it comes to setting up your room for the perfect night’s sleep, you should aim to make the room as dark as possible. Despite some people regularly sleeping with a night light, our study has shown that those who make their room pitch black slept better; of those getting the recommended 7+ hours of sleep each night, just under a quarter (20%) of them use blackout blinds.

Snooze for longer

The final stage of getting the perfect night’s sleep is to aim to doze off between 10:00 pm and 11:30 pm, with almost a third (30%) of those who regularly get 7+ hours of sleep each night going to bed between these hours.

Extra tips for better sleep

It’s not just a change of routine that can help you develop better sleep quality, you also need to consider the environment you sleep in. If your current bed is lumpy or sagging in the middle, a new, high-quality mattress could be the solution. For other suggestions on making your bed more comfortable, take a look at the graphic below.

Our findings revealed two ways you can improve your sleep by creating the perfect bed:

Ending the pillow debate

Let’s talk pillows – our findings have shown that the most popular number of pillows is two, with almost half (49%) opting for two pillows every night. Around 1 in 4 (27%) people sleep with one pillow, 1 in 8 (13%) sleep with three and 1 in 20 (6%) sleep with four.

But how many pillows is best?

Our results have shown that over half (54%) of those getting a good night sleep (7+ hours) use two pillows. So if you’re one of the few that opts for one, three or four pillows, you should consider changing to two, to design a more comfortable sleep environment.

Better habits with bedsheets

Bedsheets are another element of your bed set up that you should be carefully considering to boost your sleep. Perhaps surprisingly, 1 in 10 people only wash their bedding once a month, where experts recommend changing sheets weekly.

By not washing your sheets regularly you are at higher risk of bacterial infections and poor skin, and you compromise your sleep quality. In fact, our results have shown that 30% of people sleep better in freshly washed sheets.

Sleeping in the perfect position

In addition to looking at your routine and the environment you sleep in, we also surveyed what your sleeping position says about you and your sleep quality.

Take a look at the graphic below to find out some interesting stats about your preferred position.

Lastly, could your profession be impacting your sleep?

From our survey findings, we have been able to analyze the professions that get the best and worst sleep as well as who is using the routines and tips we’ve suggested are conducive to quality sleep.

Those working as Electricians have been revealed as the most unhygienic, with over a quarter (28%) admitting they only change their sheets once a month.

Property Developers are night owls. Our survey revealed they had the latest bedtimes; half (50%) said they regularly go to sleep after midnight. Chefs were 42% likely to sleep after midnight.

Lawyers struggle the least to fall asleep with over half (54%) usually drifting off within 30 minutes of going to bed.

Those working in Advertising, Media and Engineering struggle the most to fall asleep with only 17% regularly clocking out within 30 minutes.

Jasmin Lee, sleep researcher at eachnight, comments:

“Getting a good night’s sleep is a crucial part of everyone’s daily routine, but with almost 1 in 10 people regularly going to bed between 12 am and 1 am and working long hours throughout the day, it can be a challenge to relax and unwind once you get home. For those struggling to sleep, this evening routine plan could greatly improve the quantity and quality of sleep you receive.

“Small changes to your daily routine such as exercise or spending less time on your phone at night could result in improved sleep, so why not follow the steps in our guide to see how you can get a perfect night of slumber?”

At eachnight, we consider sleep the number one priority behind a healthier lifestyle. We not only provide tips on getting better sleep, but we also share mattress guides (i.e. Best Memory Foam Mattress) and bedding accessory recommendations (i.e., Best Pillows). Setting up the perfect sleep environment can improve your sleep, giving you a better outlook on life.