Wind-down routine timer
Falling asleep on time starts hours before bed. Enter the time you want to be asleep and the timer builds a personalised evening countdown — when to stop caffeine, finish eating, switch off screens, and dim the lights.
Why a wind-down routine works
Your brain can’t slam from full alertness into sleep on command. Sleep is a gradual hand-off: body temperature drops, melatonin rises, and the nervous system shifts out of “go” mode. A consistent routine gives those processes the cues and the time they need, so by the time your head hits the pillow your body is already most of the way to sleep.
The single most powerful cue is light. Bright and blue-rich light — phones, laptops, overhead bulbs — tells your brain it’s still daytime and suppresses melatonin. Dimming lights and dropping screens an hour before bed is the highest-impact change most people can make.
The steps explained
- Caffeine cut-off (6 hours before). Caffeine has a half-life of 5–7 hours, so an afternoon coffee is still circulating at bedtime. See exactly how much with the caffeine calculator.
- Last big meal & alcohol (3 hours before). Heavy digestion and alcohol both fragment sleep. Alcohol may help you fall asleep but wrecks the second half of the night.
- Finish intense exercise (90 minutes before). Hard workouts raise core temperature and adrenaline; gentle stretching or a walk is fine.
- Screens off / night mode (60 minutes before). Swap to dim lighting and something low-stimulation — a book, a shower, quiet music.
- Dim the lights & start your ritual (30 minutes before). Brush teeth, set tomorrow’s alarm, cool the bedroom to 18–20°C.
- In bed, lights out. If you’re not asleep in 20 minutes, get up and do something calm rather than lying there frustrated.