Time to chill out, literally

 

Welcome to part III of your journey down into the cave of deep, dark, cool, sleep.   You should be maintaining your sleep routine, even if you are still refining it, and sleeping in pitch black -- just like that cave.   This time you're going to focus on temperature, and to a lesser but related extent, bedding. That, plus some quirky facts and more are below. Ready to spelunk? cool it now Adobe Stock For your third challenge, you're going to literally chill out. How chill? Between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit (15 to 20 degrees Celsius), which science tells us is ideal.   That's probably colder than you normally keep your thermostat, and you may think the cold will keep you alert, but do it anyway. It's an experiment. And if it works, it could be a game changer.   Bedding matters, too. Mattresses and pillows can affect temperature. There are cooling pillows, and you want a blanket that keeps you comfortable but won't overheat you.   This challenge requires trying different combinations to make you comfortable but always cool.   Start by setting your thermostat to 65 degrees Fahrenheit before you go to bed tonight.   If you're not a fan of air conditioning, there are ways to stay cool in the height of summer without AC, like closing the doors of unused rooms. sleepy facts Humans are the only mammals that willingly delay their own sleep.   did you know? Wooden and stone "pillows" have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs dating back to 2000 B.C. (They must have been hard-headed.)   healthy hint Your ability to learn new things drops 40% when you don't get enough sleep, according to the National Institutes of Health. quote of the day "The amount of sleep required by the average person is five minutes more." -- Wilson Mizener Playwright quirky sleep solution Taking a warm bath or shower before bed as part of your ritual (see the first challenge) can actually facilitate the natural process of your body temperature lowering. The warm water draws your blood from your core to your skin's surface where it can more easily cool. You want your core body temperature to drop by about 2 to 3 degrees to initiate and maintain deep sleep.   If that sounds nice, take that bath or shower an hour to 90 minutes before bed and ride the warmth down to your cool room temperature and feel the sleepiness kick in. lullabuy iStock Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have a cooling sheets and pillows guide. And for temperature control they recommend getting a Nest, a "smart" thermostat that learns your temperature preferences, automatically programs itself, gives energy-saving notices, and has movement detection (so it can power down if you've left for vacation and forgot to say goodbye). nighty night Feeling chill about this whole sleep thing? You got this. Just be cool, man. Until part IV, so long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, good night.