Table of Contents

1. Life Update

2. Tools and Tips

3. Readers’ Favorite

4. Stuff

Life Update

I love the little things.

Simple things that make my life more enjoyable.

Like a new coffee mug, I got for free.

Nespresso is extremely popular, and I’ve been drinking it for 8 years.

But despite years of buying Nespresso machines and capsules, I never received a gift from them— not once!

Everyone I know who drinks Nespresso has received glasses, mugs, fancy storage boxes— you name it.

But not me.

Why is that?

Well, recently my mom was offered a gift from Nespresso and let me have it.

So after 8 years, I finally got my complimentary glass Nespresso mug.

And let me tell you, the coffee tastes better in it ☕.

Why do these small things make us so happy?

Number 135!

It’s a different one today!

Tools and Tips

It took me a long time to build up the courage to write about this subject.

You see, writing a newsletter means significant exposure. Your personal life is documented online, and you can't take back what you've written.

But there's something I've been doing for 6 months now that I haven't written about.

Something that has transformed my well-being and health tremendously.

Something that most people consider weird.

Sleeping on the floor.

My sleep is MUCH better (6.5 hours on the floor feels like 8 hours on a regular bed), NOTHING ever hurts, and my body feels much more flexible.

When I sleep on regular beds, I notice my sleep quality deteriorate.

So today I'm going to share it with you.

We'll discuss why we sleep on beds, how babies sleep, what you need to buy, and what to expect when you first sleep on the floor.

🔵 Why Do We Sleep on Beds?

It is the same reason we sit on chairs:

Back in the day, commoners—the "low-level" people, the poor—all slept and sat on the floor.

The royalty, the "high level" people, the rich— they had beds and chairs.

All the poor commoners wanted to live like royalty. To have servants, gold, and to live in a castle.

But they couldn't.

What they could do was build themselves chairs and beds.

So they did.

Since then, we have slept on beds and sat on chairs.

Since then, anyone who sleeps or sits on the floor is still considered "low level".

Not everywhere, though. More in the Western world.

In the Eastern (healthier) parts of the world (Japan and Korea, for example)— many sit and sleep on the floor.

🔵 What do Babies Do?

Babies and toddlers will ALWAYS prefer sitting on the floor, not on a chair.

They have no problem sleeping on the floor, not in a bed.

We are all born this way.

As I'm writing this, my 2-year-old kid is taking a nap on the floor (he has a blanket underneath him, and that's it). He sleeps much longer there, and so deep.

But what happens when we grow up?

We stop doing it. And our bodies adjust to the mattress and chair.

When we sleep on a mattress, our muscles begin to work HARDER.

Why harder?

Because mattresses don't support our body well. Whatever is heavy (pelvis, head, shoulders) will sink, and whatever is light (hands, feet) will stay above.

So, what do your muscles do?

They change their shape and become tense to keep your body straight. With time, they become stiff.

This is why you sometimes wake up with back pain, muscle pain, or neck pain.

You slept, but your muscles worked hard.

🔵 Things to Buy

If you want to try floor sleeping, you don't need to buy anything.

Simply put a thick blanket on the carpet, or a very thin mattress (like a yoga mat).

If you want to go all in, I recommend you invest in a good Japanese mattress. I've been using this one and I'm VERY happy with it.

Some people will place a dedicated mat under the mattress (like this Tatami Mat), but it's unnecessary and complicates things.

All the other stuff will be the same as what you already use— same sheet, same pillow, same blanket.

🔵 The First Week

So you understand why floor sleeping is good for you, but what's it like?

Well, you won't know until you try it. And it will take you around a week to get used to it.

In the beginning— you will wake up MANY times.

You will feel pain in several areas— mainly the pelvis, shoulders, and scapulae (the pointy bones on the sides of your back).

Why do they hurt?

Because your body is so used to being tense to keep itself aligned.

After a few days, ALL your muscles will relax and this pain will go away. You'll be like a baby again.

Another challenge will be getting up from the mattress. Getting up from the floor requires much more effort than a regular bed.

You'll use muscles you rarely use as someone who lives in the Western world—muscles that older individuals NEVER use, which is why they consider sitting on the floor IMPOSSIBLE.

When you sleep on the floor, you use these muscles.

After about a week, you'll decide if you want to keep going. You can also do it from time to time.

But at the end of the day, watching a toddler sleeping comfortably on the floor, this is the way to go.

Readers’ Favorite

The second (spring) semester is here!

Here, I wrote about the most productive gear I use in academics all the time.

Stuff

💡Gear I use - Desk Cable Organizer

This organizer will tidy up all those messy charging cables on your desk.

I have one at home and one in the office.

Epilogue

That’s it for this issue.

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See you next week!

Shay