Harness Your Body’s Hidden Powers: 5 Quick Tips from Sauerkraut to Sleep (not Sheep)
digitally altered photo from Canva @pouncetothrive
The Unexpected Link Between Sleep Patterns and Your Health
A recent study from China reveals that stable, moderate sleep patterns are linked to better health, while inconsistent or short sleep trajectories pose risks to physical, cognitive, and social well-being. Learn more.
Think of your sleep as a consistent rhythm, like a metronome, rather than a random, broken-up beat. Our bodies and brains crave regularity, and when we fail to provide it, we start to see the negative effects ripple through every aspect of our lives.
That said, I’m rarely a metronome. I wake up in the middle of the night and often struggle to get back to sleep. However, I do stick to my regular bedtime and waketime. And it seems that’s just as important (if not more) than the actual amount of sleep.
Tired of counting sheep? I’ve found some better ways to get back to sleep. Practice cognitive shuffling instead.
How a Simple Blood Test Could Change Everything
Alzheimer’s blood tests are the key to widespread prevention of dementia, experts say. Showing (with easily accessible measurable data) that lifestyle changes—such as the five essential actions that the Pounce Pot promotes—can improve the trajectory of dementia progression will be a key factor in their wider adoption. (I hope!)
These new tests are a game-changer, not just for doctors, but for me and you. They can potentially give us a clear, measurable way to see the impact of our habits, helping to turn abstract advice into tangible, motivating data.
This is where personal action, and our weekly tips to help achieve them, meets up with science in the fight for a healthier brain. Let’s hope for an easy to use blood test soon!
Sauerkraut and Your Second Brain
The 1440 newsletter is my favorite for daily news highlights; however, they also publish very thorough explanations of dozens of topics. You’ll need some time to read this section about gut biomes, but it’s absolutely worth it if you’d like to understand more. Come back to it later, perhaps.
I’ll be writing about the gut biome in the Harness Hidden Powers section of The Pounce Pot Post, but even if you’re a microbiome novice, don’t let that stop you from taking action to improve yours.
The journey to a healthier gut doesn't have to be complicated. It’s easy to start.
Try adding a tablespoon of good ol’ sauerkraut to your lunch this week. Learn about the top 8 benefits of sauerkraut.
Beyond the Sanitizer: The Unbeatable Power of Washing Your Hands
The list is lengthy, but right next to “improve your efforts to sleep well,” on the inventory of ways you can harness your hidden powers, you’ll will also find “understand your relationship with tiny microbes.”
Interestingly, while some are essential, others are out to kill us. This is where hand-washing comes in. That’s an essential action we can easily achieve daily. I often rush through it, but I really try to be mindful about it. I’m still singing “Happy Birthday” when I wash my hands. A habit leftover from 2021! This simple act is one of the most powerful tools we have to protect ourselves and others from illness.
This teacher’s class experiment reminds us that hand sanitizer is useful, but it does not replace hand-washing.
Try singing a few rounds of “Happy Birthday” (or perhaps the ABCs) the next time you wash your hands. Your future self will thank you when you’re not sick next week.
We have much better things to do with our one wild and precious life than wasting it battling a stupid virus we could have avoided.
The One Hour You Need to Get Ready for Sleep
Get enough sleep this week with my favorite podcaster’s bedtime tips. Notably, Mel does just what I already do: If I need 8 hours of sleep, and I know I’m waking up at 6 a.m., then I must prep to get into bed (count backwards…) at 9 pm!
Sounds ridiculously early, doesn’t it? But by the time I’ve showered, filled up my water glass, taken evening supplements, fluffed up my pillows, reviewed tomorrow’s to do list, applied nail oil and lip balm, texted a friend (or 5) to say goodnight, turned on white noise, read a chapter or two from my stack of books, settled the cats down, located my eye mask, and taken 10 to 15 minutes to actually fall asleep, there’s my extra hour.
Am I wrong?! 9 hours for 8 hours of sleep. 8 hours for 7 hours of sleep. You get the picture. And even that’s assuming pets don’t wake you up repeatedly or too early. (I’m looking at you, Momo, Bobo, Tater, and Green Bean….)
It’s a common issue. Many people don’t think to add that extra hour into their bedtime. But now you know. Try it this week to harness the hidden powers of your sleep.
Email me for a written summary of the podcast, or watch it here. ➜
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