The Standard

Sleeping Beauty had it easy. One prick of the finger and she was out. Outside the magical world of Disney, however, sleep rarely comes so easy. Here are some tips from The Standard Spa, Miami Beach to help you maximize life’s most underrated activity:

Sleep makes you strong, pretty and smart. Remember this.
Sleep is a heightened anabolic state, accentuating the growth and rejuvenation of the immune, nervous, skeletal and muscular systems. Sleep also promotes immune function, restores metabolic balance, and increases brain proteins.

Sync Your Cycle Sleeping occurs in cycles that last around 90 mins. Awakening in the middle of one is unpleasant. Do your best to awake at the top of your cycle. Try this sleeping calculator to figure out when to set your alarm.

Sleep is like a pull-up, impossible to cheat Sleeping and exercise are two sides to the same coin. Be regimented with both. Sleep is vital to any exercise program because all of the changes brought about by exercise take root while you’re asleep.

All napping is power napping Americans frown on napping past the age of six but that’s because we’re idiots. Napping does wonders for the body. It increases your creativity and productivity, restores memory, and decreases stress hormones. Twenty to 30 minutes tends to be the magic number, as anything over that isn’t really a nap, and might disturb your sleeping cycle.

Meditation: sleep’s waking cousin Soothe your mind connecting to your breath, seek your inner calm repeating a mantra or affirmations, find stillness by meditating to clear your thoughts, quiet outer noise. The Standard Spa has one-on-one meditation to help get you started or check out our guide here.

Massage, the next best thing If you are having trouble sleeping, try Massage. It does wonders for jet lag, helping to re-calibrate your body to new time zones. Try having an evening massage. Releasing the day’s tensions is the perfect primer for a great night’s sleep.

Relaxing Rituals Sometimes our bodies need a little coaxing to get in the sleeping mood. Plan a little extra time to de-stress and try any or all of the following:

1. The Bath: Draw it with one of our favorite sleep enhancing scents, Chinese Herbal Bath, “Restful Sleep” or Santa Maria Novella, “Relaxation Oil.”

2. Heavenly Scents: Keep fragrant cut flowers in your bed room, or perhaps a favorite candle, room aroma or incense.

3. Tea Time: Steep a calming herbal tea and sip chamomile, valerian root or lavender.

4. Get clean, really clean: The Standard Spa has amazing D.I.Y. skin regimen cleanses that tone and moisturize with nourishing serums. You can double-up with a customized face masque as well as a nighttime body treatment. We recommend for the body Biologique Récherche “Crème Reparatrice” and their soy based “Crème MSR-H Body.”