Our society tends to admire those who refuse to go to bed. With so much to do, and so little time to accomplish it, sleep can feel like a waste of a precious resource. Wouldn’t it be great if we could train our bodies to need less sleep?
Sleep is vital for the brain and the body to function at their best, and when a person doesn’t get enough of it, their brain can’t repair or build new pathways. That makes it more difficult to retain information, engage in complex thinking and stay focused. Sleep deficiency has also been linked to physical health problems, such as obesity, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Almost everyone can cut the amount of sleep they need down to six hours a night by using the following plan.
- First, set your alarm for the same time every morning, no matter whether it’s a weekday or the weekend.
- For the first week, delay the time you go to bed by 20 minutes
- For the second week, delay it by 40 minutes
- For the third week, delay it by an hour
- Continue cutting down in 20 minute increments until you are sleeping six hours a night
