How to Get Back on Track After a Long Weekend

Summer holiday weekends in the USA typically consist of backyard barbecues, ice cold booze, and a lot of red white and blue. The extended weekend is a nice break, but staying up late and sleeping in can disrupt our regular sleep schedules.

We’ve all been there: disrupted sleep, forgotten diet, and the rest of the week looming in front of us. Here’s how to get back on track after the long weekend.

Think positively

Don’t get discouraged if you can’t fall asleep right away. Believe your sleep will get back on track. Focus on relaxing, but don’t obsess over it. Try not to relive the excitement of the weekend in your mind, but instead try a calming activity like reading to help you fall asleep.

Hydrate

Those alcoholic watermelon coolers may have sounded great this weekend, but now you’re regretting them. Wake up feeling refreshed by drinking water before bed to prevent thirst and dehydration disrupting sleep. Make sure to hydrate when you wake up as well.

Routine, routine, routine

It’s important to get back to your normal routine as quickly as possible.

Time your meals

Over the weekend, eat that burger early between 6-8. Heavy meals close to bedtime can disrupt sleep. But don’t fret if your mealtimes were out of whack over the weekend. To get back on track, try to eat at the same time every day. This will not only help with portion control, but it can help you sleep better. Our bodies’ routines are all connected, so if one thing is off then it can affect something else.

Wake up and go to bed at the same time

Most of us tend to stay up later when we know there’s no work the next day. However, this can harm our sleep schedules and make it more difficult to wake up and fall asleep during the week. Try to stick to a strict bedtime and wake up time, and don’t stray from it more than a half hour. Eight’s Smart Alarm on the Eight app can help with this. It wakes you up during your lightest sleep stage within a half hour of you alarm. The Eight app can also tell you when it’s time to go to sleep.

Follow these few simple tips, and you’ll be back to your well rested self in no time!