My Daily Domestic Diigolet 03/14/2008

V/ Lord, have mercy.

R/ Lord, have mercy.
V/ Christ, have mercy.

R/ Christ, have mercy.
V/ Lord, have mercy.

R/ Lord, have mercy.
V/ Jesus, hear us.

R/ Jesus, graciously hear us.
V/ God, the Father of Heaven,

R/ have mercy on us.
V/ God, the Son, Redeemer of the world,

R/ have mercy on us.
V/ God, the Holy Spirit,

R/ have mercy on us.
V/ Holy Try, One God,

R/ have mercy on us.
 R/for ff: pray for us.
Holy Mary,

St. Joseph,

Renowned offspring of David,

Light of Patriarchs,

Spouse of the Mother of God,

Chaste guardian of the Virgin,

Foster father of the Son of God,

Diligent protector of Christ,

Head of the Holy Family,

Joseph most just,

Joseph most chaste,

Joseph most prudent,

Joseph most strong,

Joseph most obedient,

Joseph most faithful,

Mirror of patience,

Lover of poverty,

Model of artisans,

Glory of home life,

Guardian of virgins,

Pillar of families,

Solace of the wretched,

Hope of the sick,

Patron of the dying,

Terror of demons,

Protector of Holy Church,
Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,

R/ spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,

R/ graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world.

R/ have mercy on us.
He made him the lord of his household.

R/ And prince over all his possessions.
 Let us pray. O God, in your ineffable providence you were
pleased to choose Blessed Joseph to be the spouse of your most holy Mother;
grant, we beg you, that we may be worthy to have him for our intercessor
in heaven whom on earth we venerate as our Protector: You who live and
reign forever and ever. R/ Amen.

Diet and sleep are inextricably intertwined.  If you think you can master your sleeping habits without improving your diet, you’re deluding yourself.  Seriously.
Unfortunately most people — Americans especially — consume a truly hideous diet these days, filled with hormone-laden animal products, artificial ingredients, sugar, caffeine, salt, white flour, and heavily processed junk.  An unhealthy diet will tax your endocrine system (which is responsible for hormone production), and that is going to prevent you from enjoying restful sleep.
What works well for me is a whole foods vegan diet, heavy on the raw fruits and veggies. 

If you’ve been messing with your physiology by consuming excessive sugar, caffeine, processed foods, etc, I highly recommend you fix your diet first before attempting to master your sleep habits.  Otherwise you’re only going to frustrate yourself.

Fresh fruit is perhaps the ideal food to eat for your last meal, especially low-sugar fruits like tomatoes, avocados, peppers, and cantaloupe.  Personally I’m not a big fan of having nothing but fruit for dinner, but when I do, I usually don’t need as much sleep, and I almost always wake up feeling more alert.  So regardless of what my mind has to say about it, my body clearly likes it.

A very close second choice for an evening meal would be fresh veggies, especially a big salad.  After that would be lightly cooked veggies.  The less processed your evening meal, the less energy it will take to digest, and the less it will disrupt your physiology.  If you eat crap before bed, you can expect to feel like crap in the morning.

You’ve probably heard this advice before, but there’s a difference between hearing advice and applying it.  So go apply it, and get thine ass to the gym.  At the very least, run around the block for 25 minutes each morning.  If you don’t do it, you don’t know it.
When I’m exercising aerobically every day for at least 20 minutes, I can shave a good hour off my sleep each night, which more than compensates for the exercise time.  I wake up feeling more alert and energetic too.  But the best part is that I enjoy better concentration and alertness all day long.  It works way better than caffeine… and without the crash.

If you don’t like the way you spend your mornings, you may suffer the problem of waking up without getting up.  A good morning routine can help remedy that.  It’s important to have something to look forward to that makes you eager to get out of bed.