Mental Boosting Tips for Show Day
Sleep hygiene: By Madeliene Painter
We’ve all been there…
Nerves are shaking, thoughts are racing and your heart is beating through your throat. It’s show day! And you need to be on your A game, but if your mind isn’t set right, you know everything will fall apart.
Horses sense our emotions. When you are calm and collected, so will your horse. So doing well at a show all starts with you. So how can we set yourself up for success? Having a good day at a show starts with the night before with getting a good nights sleep. We all know how hard that can be to fall asleep when there is so much going on in your head.
Takes these next steps to help you prepare for bed:
Maintain a regular sleep routine: Go to bed at the same time. Wake up at the same time. Ideally, your schedule will remain the same (+/- 20 minutes) every night of the week.
Avoid naps if possible
Naps decrease the ‘Sleep Debt’ that is so necessary for easy sleep onset. Each of us needs a certain amount of sleep per 24-hour period. We need that amount, and we don’t need more than that.
When we take naps, it decreases the amount of sleep that we need the next night. Which may cause sleep fragmentation and difficulty initiating sleep, and may lead to insomnia and sleep deprivation.
Don’t stay in bed awake for more than 20 minutes.
- If you find your mind racing, or worrying about not being able to sleep during the middle of the night, get out of bed, and sit in a chair in the dark. Do your mind racing in the chair until you are sleepy, then return to bed. No TV or internet during these periods! That will just stimulate you more than desired.
- If this happens several times during the night, that is OK. Just maintain your regular wake time, and try to avoid naps.
Don’t stay in bed awake for more than 20 minutes.
If you find your mind racing, or worrying about not being able to sleep during the middle of the night, get out of bed, and sit in a chair in the dark. Do your mind racing in the chair until you are sleepy, then return to bed. No TV or internet during these periods! That will just stimulate you more than desired.
If this happens several times during the night, that is OK. Just maintain your regular wake time, and try to avoid naps.
Don’t watch TV or read in bed. When you watch TV or read in bed, you associate the bed with wakefulness.
Drink caffeinated drinks with caution
The effects of caffeine may last for several hours after ingestion. Caffeine can fragment sleep, and cause difficulty initiating sleep. If you drink caffeine, use it only before noon. -Remember that soda and tea contain caffeine as well.
Avoid inappropriate substances that interfere with sleep. Cigarettes, alcohol, and over-the-counter medications may cause fragmented sleep.
Exercise regularly
As little as 10 minutes of aerobic exercise, such as walking or cycling, can drastically improve nighttime sleep quality. For the best night’s sleep, most people should avoid strenuous workouts close to bedtime. However, the effect of intense nighttime exercise on sleep differs from person to person, so find out what works best for you.
Have a quiet, comfortable bedroom
- Set your bedroom thermostat at a comfortable temperature. Generally, a little cooler is better than a little warmer.
- Turn off the TV and other extraneous noise that may disrupt sleep. Background ‘white noise’ like a fan is OK.
- Your bedroom should be dark. Turn off bright lights.
- Have a comfortable mattress.
- If your bed partner snores, this could be fragmenting your sleep.
- Consider snoring remedies to help stop snoring.
- If you are a ‘clock watcher’ at night, hide the clock.
Have a comfortable pre-bedtime routine
- A cool shower
- Meditation, or quiet time
- Avoid screens 1 hour before bed
If you are still having issues falling asleep, then I would recommend a sleep supplement with ingredients that are proven to help you to get deep and restful sleep before the show day. Scroll down for more.
Madeliene’s Recommendation
If you are still having issues falling asleep, then I would recommend a sleep supplement with ingredients that are proven to help you to get deep and restful sleep before the show day.
MasterBrain PM has a combinations of efficacious doused ingredients to help relax your mind and promote deep, rejuvenating sleep so you can focus your best the next day.
Next I want to talk about mental focus during your show. Sure caffeine can help, but how much can you have before bad side effects start to happen?
To optimize your mental focus, you want to make sure you are eating balanced meals throughout the day and hydrating adequately. You are an athlete just like your horse, so treat your body right and give it what it needs.
