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How to Get A Well-Rested and Better Sleep

How to Get A Well-Rested and Better Sleep

If you are looking to develop a better bedtime routine to help you fall asleep easier, I will walk you through how to go about that in today’s post.

Keep on reading to find out!

This post is sponsored by PURPLE. All opinions are my own.

There’s a time when you don’t know why you can’t get a good night’s rest. You blame it on stress. Your daily mood seems to be unpleasant on the day you don’t get a good enough rest. I experienced quite often when I did some activities that would block me from going to bed. For example, drinking too much caffeine during the day, feeling stressed and anxious about certain things, overthinking, and couldn’t get comfortable with my mattress and pillow.

Different factors come to play with people who have a hard time falling asleep. You have to notice what the causes are that make you have a sleeping issue. To help you get started with a better sleep routine, below are things you should be doing.

Tips to Get A Well-Rested and Better Sleep

ONE: If you are a caffeine drinker, make sure you don’t drink caffeine at night.

Overloading on caffeine during the day and a few hours before bed may prevent you from sleeping as caffeine blocks the adenosine receptor. This sleep-promoting chemical is produced in the brain during our waking hours. When caffeine blocks this process, we remain alert and vigilant. Caffeine notably reduces the time of slow-wave sleep, which is the stage of deep, restful sleep that leaves us feeling refreshed and alert in the morning. If you want to drink the caffeinated drink, you still can. But you shouldn’t be drinking any less than six hours before your bedtime. (source

TWO:  Make sure your room is clutter-free and peaceful.

Clutter-free and clean rooms are always the best way to get a good night’s rest. Think about it, when you go to a hotel, that clean, open, and free space just makes you want to relax. So why not try the same at home? Take anything out of the bedroom that doesn’t belong and only keep things that promotes a relaxing environment. Adding lavender essential oils to your diffuser makes the room more relaxing and promotes calming sleep. This simple step will get you feeling more relaxed and peaceful when it’s time to call it a day. It helps fight the common cold. 

 

 

THREE:  Do not look at bright screens before bedtime.

Research has shown that the blue lights on your smartphone, laptop, and TVs trick your brain into staying awake. Your brain will have difficulty adjusting from looking at your phone screen and being in an awake mode to trying to close your eyes for bedtime. The best thing to do is to have a set time when you will no longer look at screens before bed. Give yourself an hour or so to wind down and not look at your phone. 

 

FOUR:  Don’t eat right  before going to bed. 

We all have those cravings before bed as it has been some time since you had dinner and are getting ready for bed. Eating right before sleep will make you more restless and find it harder to fall asleep. This is because your metabolism has to breakdown the food you just ate. Not only that, that the created heat from breaking down your dinner makes in more uncomfortable when trying to sleep. Best practice, don’t eat anything for at least 2 hours before bedtime. This gives your body ample time to break down your food and calm down.

 

 

FIVE: Calm your mind with yoga, meditation, or relaxation music.  

If you ever find yourself not being able to sleep, it might be caused by a busy mind. The best way to combat this is by doing some light activities like yoga or meditation. By clearing your mind from a busy day allows your body to relax and get in the mode of sleep. Listing to relaxing music is also a good idea, just nothing fast-paced or loud.

 

SIX: Make yourself a sleeping and waking up schedule.  

Having a routine sleep schedule will help train your brain and body to fall asleep and wake up at specific times. This is a simple and easy step you can take to help make your sleeping habits more pleasant. You can start by creating a good night time routine and stick with it to see your sleeping patterns and progress. Adjust it as you go along to make your sleep better.

 

SEVEN:Pay attention to your mattress, bedsheets, and pillows. 

 

It goes without saying that a relaxing sleep must include a proper setup. Invest in a high-quality mattress, soft bed sheets, and a comfortable pillow.

Purple gave me a chance to try out there new patented purple grid technology in- the Harmony Pillow. This is the world’s first and only pillow with Purple Grid™ Hex, which instantly adapts to your head and neck for total support. 

 

The Purple Grid™ Hex is specially formulated and engineered for head and neck support with the soft hexagon-shaped air channels that optimize the dynamic response and airflow for maximum comfort. 

 

360º Purple Grid™ Hex instantly adapts for total no Pressure® Support. 1,500+ open-air channels let air flow freely, so you’re always on the cool side of the pillow. Moisture-wicking Breeze Mesh cover complements the cool, soft support of the pillow.

 

Once I laid on it for some time, I could feel the pillow staying cool without absorbing my body heat. I usually would sweat during the night when sleeping on my regular pillow, but I am very impressed that I felt cool and comfortable all night with this one. When I woke up in the morning, my neck and shoulders felt great-which is a plus. It was very nice to finally find a super comfy pillow that keeps me sleep tight all night long. 

 

My daughter and husband love this pillow too. I will have to get a few more for all of us. 🙂 

 

The downside of this pillow is the high price point of $159. However, I have to say it’s a good investment to help you get a deeper and better sleep. 

 

If you are interested in giving it a try, you can try the Purple® Harmony Pillow for up to 100 nights. If you don’t love it, return it for a full refund. Your Purple® Harmony Pillow is guaranteed to last and is protected by a 1-year limited warranty.

 

You can receive a 10% discount if you are Military members, Healthcare and Frontline workers, and Educators and students.

 

As you know, when it’s time to sleep, your bed should be the most comfortable and relaxing place to be in your home. You can learn more about PURPLE and their other products HERE.

Share with mE:

What is your advice on getting better sleep?

I hope you find helpful tips from this “How to get a well-rested and better sleep” post. Remember, you may need to develop a good habit, keep your bedroom environment clean and calm, take a break from overthinking, and find the right bed accessories that could potentially make you sleep comfortably. 

Have you check out my post on “Why We Choose to Build Our Home“. 

Thank you for stopping by All About Good Vibes.

Stay safe and sleep tight tonight!

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My New Favourite Running Shoes from adidas

My New Favourite Running Shoes from adidas

Sharing with you my new favourite running shoes from adidas. If you are looking for a new pair of good shoes to go for a walk or run, keep on reading. 

I also share a few quick facts to motivate you to go for a run or walk this week. 

Now, let’s dive right in!

This post has been sponsored by adidas. All opinions are my own.

If you like going on a walk, a morning jog, or a fun afternoon run, you don’t want to miss this post. Today, I want to introduce you to my new favourite slip-on shoes from adidas, Ultraboost Slip-On DNA Shoes, which I pretty much wear every day since I got them.

What I like about these adidas Ultraboost running shoes are:

1) They feature a slip-on design and a sock-like fit that makes it so easy and quick to wear.

2) How light and comfortable they are. 

3) They are very versatile and can be worn for any activities you are doing.

4) You can dress up or down with these shoes. Either you are thinking about a sporty chic or a classic look, you can create any of them with these shoes.

5) This product is made with Primeblue, a high-performance recycled material made in part with Parley Ocean Plastic. 50% of the upper is textile; 75% of the textile is Primeblue yarn—no virgin polyester.

I can’t say enough good things about these shoes- you have to feel them for yourself. These Ultraboost Slip-On DNA Shoes come in four colours, black, white, light pink and black with leopard sole. I have two pairs, one in black and one in white. My shoe size is 38, and they fit me perfectly.

Since we are talking about running shoes, I want to share a few quick facts to motivate you to go for a run or walk this week. 

Running and walking helps you burn calories.

You’ll burn about 100 calories if you walk one mile. If you walk five to eight miles, you’ll burn about 500 to 800 calories which is about the same as running for an hour. 

You will feel happier.

Your body will release a feel-good hormone called endocannabinoids, also known as “Runner’s High”, at some point. Endocannabinoids can move easily through the cellular barrier separating the bloodstream from the brain. These mood-improving neuromodulators promote short-term psychoactive effects such as reduced anxiety and feelings of calm. A study published in 2012 in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that just 30 minutes of running during the week for three weeks boosted sleep quality, mood, and concentration. (Source)

It helps fight the common cold. 

Even a quick, 30-minute workout can stimulate and boost your immune system and prevent you from catching a cold. Also, running and walking for about 30 to 45 minutes every day can improve a person’s immunity and help them fight off most diseases and illnesses. (Source)

For today’s look, I’m wearing the Believe This 3-Stripes Medium-Impact Rib Bra underneath a leopard-print bomber-length sweatshirt– made with French terry cotton fabric that is soft and lightweight. Their cotton products support sustainable cotton farming- this is part of adidas ambition to end plastic waste. ?? Pairing it with adidas Primeblue track pants– relaxed fit with ankle zips and side zipper pockets. Complete the look with my new favourite slip-on shoes.

Share with mE:

Do you like walking or running?

Now that you know why running and walking is good for you and where to get a good pair of running shoes: I hope you will have a fantastic walk and run next time. 

 

Thank you for stopping by my blog today. If you miss my last post on my life update, make sure to check out this post, “Why We Choose to Build Our Home“. 

 

See you next time!

Smart goals 2020 goals what are smart goals planners

Why We Chose to Build Our Home

Why We Chose to Build Our Home

How January flew by like a wind in the storm. I think the older you get, the shorter the months are! Anyway, are you excited for February? Do you have any big plans coming up? I have a big project this month, and I am talking about it today in this post.

Photo credit: IG @janicejoostemaa

Last month, my husband and I decided on our goal #10: Decide on my future home plan, either buying land and building my dream home, buying a new house, staying in our current home, or moving to a new country. So, we finally decided to sell our lovely first home and purchase land to build our dream house this year. 

 

At first, we were putting an offer for one of the houses we liked. It didn’t go through obviously as we were too late and the home already had nine other offers in front of us. Crazy right? So, we chose not to go through with it and reconsidered our options. 

 

After thinking back and forth, changing our mind a million and one times, re-asking ourselves what we should do, is it the right time, why do it, what makes it a plus than a minus, we agreed to one of the most crucial factors that life is too short, why wait? Let’s build the house and do whatever is going to fulfil life and make us happy.

I will be back on blogging more often again after things settling down. There is a lot of packing before we move to my parents-in-law house. We will be fixing their home while we are staying there too. I am excited to share with you all of the projects while building our home.

Here is a quick inspiration on how we want our home to look like.

Photo sources from top to bottom left to right.
One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten | Eleven | Twelve

Here are a few reasons why we chose to build our home rather than buying one:

ONE: Design

We will build the home to look exactly how we want it. As I love designing and decorating my home, I am excited to bring my ideas and dream floor plan to life.

TWO: Price

It’s cheaper to build one rather than buying one.
After calculating the cost of buying a new home and building one, we found that building will be cheaper plus we will get the equity out of it when the house is finished.

THREE: Feng Shui

We will have a chance to pick the land, house number, house direction, and all things Feng Shui related, it wasn’t an easy process, but we will get what we want.

Share with mE:

Would you want to build your dream home and why?

We are excited to share our home building journey with you.

There are things in life that take time to achieve, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait to achieve it.

Smart goals 2020 goals what are smart goals planners

2020 Recap and My 2021 Goals

2020 Recap and My 2021 Goals

Today, I revealed my 2020 goal results on the blog. Find out why I haven’t been active online; your well wishes are welcome in the comments.

Read along to find out!

What a year it has been! Congratulations on making it through the craziest year in history. I hope you are staying safe and in good spirits. 

 

This year, 2020, I felt like I neglected my blog and felt more depressed than ever. I didn’t feel like writing anything. I didn’t want to take photos because I gained so much weight. On top of that, I tried to do so many things, and it burned me out. Even though it’s been challenging, I am glad I could do what I could to make sure my family is safe, healthy, and happy altogether. 

 

I set ten goals and shared them with you in this post last year. I also shared some tips on achieving your goals and using SMART Goals (goals that are SpecificMeasurableAchievableRealistic, and Time-based) to help you have a better chance of achieving your goals well. You can read them here if you want to learn more.

 

Today, I will walk you through all of my 2020 goals I set and share with you what had happened to each of them. 
Smart goals 2020 goals what are smart goals

My 2020 Goals

One: Doing a HIIT workout at least once a week

I did it, and I overdid it and injured myself, plus added a new health problem to my pelvic floor. Damm! I had to go to the acupuncture every week for almost five months to help with the issue. Now, I can’t work out like I used to do. I can only do some light movements, and that’s about it. 

 

My tip for you is to not go overboard on anything you do because the price you have to pay isn’t worth it. 

 

Two: Eat less carbs and more good fat

I did the less carbs thing but was somehow eating more bad fat than I used to, which caused me to have high cholesterol that never happened to me before. I always had a higher level of good than ordinary people. Well, now, I have cut back almost entirely after seeing my blood test result back.

 

Three: Launching my own cooking course

Unfortunately, I launched the other two businesses before the cooking course. I still have it as one of my goals, but I don’t think I would pursue it in 2021. We will see what happens.

 

Four: Paying off all of my debt

I did it! Yay! But I did put myself into a smaller one when working on my businesses. I hope I will pay it off soon in 2021. 

 

Five: Going on a date with my husband at least twice a month

It was a dream since we couldn’t go anywhere. But we watched countless movies and shows together this year. 

 

Six: Having baby number 3

My husband and I decided to wait for a few years. We might go for twins! I will keep you posted!

 

Seven: Publish my very first book

I started to put things together, but it didn’t happen before the year came to an end. Hopefully, next year will be the year!

 

Eight: Save more money

Sorry, not sorry! I didn’t have any extra to save as I used my savings to spend on my business. This would be the main focus in 2021 to save more money and be more organized this time around.

 

Nine: Renovate my home

We did use a lot of time (money too!) to work on our home. We re-did the guest bedroom (I call it my studio), fixed the kitchen, rearranged the living room, and added an in-home cafe, which I still owe you the final look of how it turned out.

 

Ten: Vacation in Europe

Unfortunately, we had to cancel our Europe trip due to the pandemic. But we were glad to have done some traveling early in 2020, where we went back to Thailand (traveling inside the country) and visited Japan and South Korea before things started to worsen. Vacationing in Europe will always be our goal that we will achieve soon.

Now that you know what happened to me in 2020, I am excited to share my goals and plans for 2021.

Smart goals 2020 goals what are smart goals

2021 Goals

One: My health is my number one priority in terms of self-care, so I will do whatever it takes to make my body happy and healthy again.

Two: Spend more quality time with my family

ThreeFocus on my kids’ education.

Four: Don’t make any more debt and pay off the existing ones.

Five: Be in control of what I can control. 

SixFocus on my existing businesses:

Seven: Connect with my old friends

Eight: Get rid of the work/ things that I am not passionate about anymore and only focus on what I love doing and enjoying.

NineTravel inside and outside the U.S.

TenDecide on my future home plan, either buying land and building my dream home, buying a new house, staying in our current home, or moving to a new country. 

Eleven: Do what makes me happy because I can’t please everyone. 

Twelve: Save more money!

 

Download Free 2021 Goals Template

Right-click and save. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @curatedbymollie and @allaboutgoodvibesofficial. Can’t wait to see your 2021 goals!

Share with mE:

What’s one of your biggest
2021 goals?

I have the SMART versions in my planner, but the above goals are the general ideas of what I plan to achieve in 2021. I can’t wait to start working on all of my 2021 goals. I hope you have a great start to the new year—Happy New Year’s Eve!

Thank you for stopping by All About Good Vibes.

See you next year!

Smart goals 2020 goals what are smart goals planners

Holiday Shopping with Adidas

Holiday Shopping with Adidas

Who else is already starting their holiday shopping?

I am! In today’s post, I am sharing some of my favorite pieces I got from adidas COLD.RDY Collection

Keep on reading to find out!

snack bar decor idea for your home

This post has been sponsored by adidas. All opinions are my own.

There is one season that I bet most people are waiting for all year-round to celebrate, the one that will bring them joy and happiness. Can you guess what season it is? You are right; it’s the holiday season!

 

This year, especially, most people will be happy to spend time with family and relatives indoors and outdoors. Given the unique year, I know everyone is grateful for their family and the time we get to spend with each other. 

 

Let’s finish this year strong, and make the holiday shopping fun begin, shall we? 

Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite pieces from adidas that would be perfect for Fall/Winter. They are a part of the COLD.RDY collection. This collection is designed to defend you from the cold with the ultimate insulation; it keeps warmth locked in. Layers let you optimize your temperature while innovative, breathable materials keep you dry.

 

I guarantee you that you will enjoy wearing these clothes. These pieces are so comfy they will keep you nice and warm during those cold, breeze days. Best of all, they make great gifts.

Here are the pieces I wore in this post.

I also wanted to share some quick shopping tips to get you ready to shop during the holidays this year. These tips can help you save some money and won’t make you miss any deals when shopping.

Five
HOLIDAY 
shopping tips

tip
ONE

Sign up for the newsletters to not miss any updates or deals from your favorite brands. For adidas, sign up here

tip
TWO

Sign up for their Reward Program to get exclusive discounts and start collecting points when shopping so you will be able to use them for future purchases. For adidas, they have their Creators Club, and you can sign up here.

tip
THREE

Make a budget and stay on top of it.

tip
FOUR

Make a list of what you would like to get. This way, you won’t go over your budget and will buy everyone the right gifts.

tip
FIVE

Shop mindfully and only shop for something you or your loved ones will use. Think about the lifestyle, the seasons, and the specific trips that will occur in the next couple of months.  

If shopping for kids, think about the ages and sizes of the time you will gift them. Make sure you don’t get too small of size, or they won’t be able to use your gift after the holidays. 

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Share with me:

What would you gift yourself this year? 

 

I hope you found this post helpful and got some ideas on what to shop for this holiday season and how to make the most of your money.

Be sure to check out adidas website, and start shopping.

Thank you for stopping by All About Good Vibes.

Stay well! 

See you soon in my next post!

snack-bar-decor-idea-allaboutgoodvibes.com-Mollie-Larsen-@curatedbymollie

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