Serious Sleepers Unite

A community for serious sleepers is born.

Follow real life behind-the-scenes drama leading up to a much anticipated bed time. I'll be getting ready for bed night after night with the dedication of an Olympic athelete. Night after night, season after season, year after year, I will get ready to sleep.

Great sleeping sessions are a result of rigorous training, focus and a willingness to sleep deeper, cozier and dreamier than the night before. When I wake from a great night's sleep I immediately think "how can I beat that? what can I do today to set the bed and my head so to speak to sleep even better than that?"

Whether you're a world class sleeper or an insomniac you no doubt value and work towards your own ideal sleep goals. Let's break out the terminology. A Competitive Sleeper is someone who takes their sleeping seriously. A Competitive Sleeper may be a master at grabbing a few winks at a stop light, or someone who can log 12 hours + of worry free sleep every night without a bathroom break. A great night sleeper may not be the best team member to compete in afternoon nap events. The last thing I want to do is create outsiders in the magical and serious world of sleep. I understand that everyone has their own process and their own scale on which they measure sleep success. There are no outsiders at Competitive Sleeper. If you have ever gone to bed then Competitive Sleeper welcomes you and the details prior to, during and after your sleep. Yes. Competitive Sleeper embraces insomniacs. Often I find that the insomniacs have such a deep appreciation for a qaulity sleep session that their appreciation for the act itself actually serves to underscore sleep value for those of us that do sleep and that sleep well. Ever find yourself losing your competitive edge? Maybe you go to bed with out fluffing the pillows or tucking in the sheets? You take what the night dishes out rather than really sleeping for the gold? A few nights of insominia always serves to push fading sleep stars back into the limelight.

Be aware that being the "best" or let's say the Lance Armstrong of Competitive Sleeping isn't about lazing or dreaming your way through the day. The "best" sleepers don't necessarily log the most hours. In fact, I've seen some of the most renowned endurance sleepers have their medals challenged on the basis that depression was fueling their sleep marathons. This is a topic that will be explored in a dedicated post. In short, great sleepers get the sleep they need when they need it. They lay down, they close their eyes, and they work at it through the entire session. It's that simple.

Think sleeping is easy? Think again. Sleeping requires a rarified set of ingredients that must blend at just the right time. Think of it as science. Room temperature, body temperature, light levels, seratonin levels, and bedding are just a few components required to set the stage for a top notch sleep. Even if you're master enough to align all of the above night after night then you still need to achieve a level of exhaustion that will lead your body to sleep. A day without just the right amount of exercise can lead to a sleepless night. Then it's back to sleeping in the minor leagues with hyper-active rookies and past-prime vets so desperate to achieve their life-long dreams that no one can catch a wink in the club-house.

Talk to some of the greats. They'll tell you that what you do with your waking hours is as important to your sleep session as the efforts you put forth when the lights go out. It's natural for recreational sleepers to assume that competitive sleepers compete because they're lazy much in the same way that non-basketball players assume that basketball players compete because they're tall. Not so. No matter what the sport, it's for the love of the game and as a note, studies have shown that the legends of sleeping (and you know who I'm talking about), have the most active and productive waking lives, next to seasonal fisherman. I'll close this out by quoting the first rule of sleeping as outlined by none other than Vince Lombardi. Most remember him based on his waking successes as the Green Bay Packers football coach. Winner of the 1st and 2nd Superbowls. But Vince Lombardi lead a second secret life. A night life. Filled with sleep. Great sleep. The quality of his slumbers only equalled by the quality of each victory on the field. In the past we had assumed that he retired each night like every Tom, Dick and Harry but his personal journals detail a strategic sleeper who turned in with a game plan every single night.

" Great sleepers don't succeed on sleep alone. Great sleepers shape their slumber with the events of their waking lives. Having the full knowledge that every waking moment will contribute to or be reflected in his sleep, a great sleeper embraces each waking moment with a measured gusto; for it is our consiousness that defines our unconsciousness." V. Lombardi

Upcoming - Recreational Sleepers vs. Competitive Sleepers