Wind Down: What 10 Minutes Before Bed Does to Your Sleep
You're in bed. Phone face-down. But your ribs are still holding the tension from your day. Your intercostal muscles — the small muscles between your ribs — tighten when you're stressed. They restrict your breathing to the upper chest. Shallow breath keeps your sympathetic nervous system active. Your body stays in "go" mode even though your brain is saying "stop."
That's why you can be exhausted and still can't fall asleep.
The Wind Down programme
Two weeks. Ten minutes before bed. Seven nights a week. The programme combines gentle yoga movements with extended-exhale breathing to release the physical tension that keeps you awake.
Week 1: rib-cage release and breath awareness
Child's Pose — 60 seconds, forehead on floor, vagus nerve activation through gentle pressure.
Supine Twist — 45 seconds each side, spinal decompression.
4-7-8 Breathing — 4 cycles. The extended exhale shifts your nervous system toward sleep.
Week 2: deeper holds and progressive relaxation
Legs Up the Wall — 2 minutes, passive inversion draining the day from your lower body.
Seated Forward Fold — 30 seconds, head below heart.
Extended Exhale breathing — 4 counts in, 8 counts out. The simplest parasympathetic tool that exists.
What you'll notice
By night 3, most people report falling asleep faster. Not dramatically — maybe 10 minutes sooner. But the quality changes first. The breath work reduces the time your body spends in light sleep and increases deep sleep phases. By week 2, the sequence becomes automatic. Your body recognises the first pose as a sleep cue.
The session player
Wind Down sessions play on a dimmed Ink background. Voice cues are slower than daytime sessions (~120 wpm vs 140). The evening close chime has a longer decay. Everything about the experience says "sleep is next."
This is one of four starter programmes in Sthira Me, each designed for a specific life pattern. The app adapts to your space, your body, and the time of day.
Your 5-Day Desk Reset arrives within minutes of joining. After that, the only emails you get are the rewards you unlock by sharing — the printable practice library, your founder rate locked at £59.99 a year — plus one note when Sthira Me opens its doors. Nothing else.