How to build a night routine that improves your sleep

You crawl into bed exhausted, but your head won't shut off. You toss, you check your phone "for a second," and suddenly it's 1 a.m. The next day you drag your feet, drink more coffee than you should, and swear that tonight you'll go to bed early. And again it doesn't happen. The problem is rarely that you "can't sleep": it's that you never gave your body any signal that the day was over. A night routine isn't a luxury for zen people, it's the switch your brain needs.

1. Set a shutdown time, not just a bedtime

Most people set a "bedtime" and blow past it. What works is setting a shutdown time: the moment work, chores and big screens end. That time lands 60 to 90 minutes before you lie down.

Pick a schedule that fits your actual life, not your ideal self. If you fall asleep at 1, don't aim for 9. Move it earlier by 15 minutes a week until you hit your goal. Sustainable beats perfect.

2. Dim the lights and put the screens down

Your brain makes melatonin in darkness. The white and blue light from bulbs and phones tells it "it's still daytime."

• Turn off the overhead lights and keep only a warm or dim lamp.
• Turn on night mode or a warm-light filter on your devices.
• Put the phone down at least 30 minutes before sleep; scrolling keeps your mind revved up.

If leaving the phone is hard, charge it away from the bed, on another table or in another room.

3. Build a short, repeatable sequence

The power is in doing the same thing every night. Repetition turns the steps into an automatic "time to sleep" cue.

Build a sequence of 4 or 5 simple actions, for example: brush your teeth, lay out tomorrow's clothes, jot down 3 to-dos to get them out of your head, stretch for a minute, and get into bed to read. Don't change it every night: the point is for your body to recognize it.

4. Get the worries out of your head and onto paper

Often you don't sleep because your mind is still solving tomorrow. The fix isn't to "think less," it's to dump your mind onto paper.

Keep a notebook by the bed. Before lying down, write down whatever is circling: tasks, ideas, worries. You don't have to solve it now; you just park it for tomorrow. Your brain stops replaying it once it trusts it's written down.

5. Calm the body so the mind follows

A wired body won't fall asleep. Give it a physical signal of calm with breathing or relaxation.

Try 4-7-8 breathing: inhale through your nose for a count of 4, hold for 7, exhale through your mouth for 8. Repeat four times. It's simple, free, and lowers your heart rate. Add a cool room and full darkness, and you're giving your body everything it needs to let go.

A night routine only works if you repeat it, and that's exactly where almost everyone fails: the first week goes great and then the chaos comes back. That's why Cero Excusas exists: it reminds you on WhatsApp about your shutdown time, asks you the next day whether you kept it, and if you ignore it, it calls you. Not to scold you, but so that routine stops being a nice intention and becomes your new normal.