If there’s one thing TikTok does well, it’s that it makes everyday topics go viral. Slap on a Gen Z name, add pastel infographics, and suddenly it’s trending.
And sleepmaxxing is right up there on the list.
But is it—something that we naturally do—even worth the discussion?
Perhaps. And perhaps the social media trend dressed up in clickbait clothing is finally what makes us pay attention to something many of us take for granted: sleep.
What is sleepmaxxing?
The “sleepmaxxing” definition boils down to this: doing everything you can to get the best sleep possible. It’s a mix of the word “sleep” and the idea of going all-in (“maxxing” out) on your rest routine.
It’s part of a bigger wave of “maxxing” trends—like gymmaxxing, skinmaxxing, and even girlymaxxing—where people gamify self-care. Sleepmaxxing just happens to hit a universal nerve: most of us are tired, and most of us want that to change.
Sleepmaxing is just a marketing tool to make all the standard sleep health recommendations sound new and sexy.
— Dr. Sara Mednick, sleep researcher at the University of California, Irvine
The thing is, we all know getting our beauty sleep is important. Even Dr. Michael Breus, a Diplomate of the American Board of Sleep Medicine and a Fellow of The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, has been saying this for years.
“You can go for about four days without water, you can go for about 25 days without food,” The Sleep Doctor points out in his Mindvalley program, The Mastery of Sleep, “[but] you can only go for six or seven days without sleep.”
Still, not all sleep experts are buying into the sleepmaxxing hype. Some see it more as a flashy rebrand of common advice.
As sleep researcher Dr. Sara Mednick told Mindvalley Pulse, “Sleepmaxing is just a marketing tool to make all the standard sleep health recommendations sound new and sexy.”
Call it a trend, call it a gimmick, call it whatever you want… But the need behind it is real.
The reality behind poor sleep habits
Despite knowing the obvious, getting quality shut-eye (not to mention quantity) is still something a lot of us struggle with. Here are some concerning facts:
- A 2024 Gallup poll found that 57% of U.S. adults feel they’d be better off with more sleep.
- Only 26% report getting 8+ hours a night.
- According to a global survey by Globescan and IKEA, people are getting about 1 hour and 20 minutes less sleep than they actually want each night.
- When it comes to the up-and-coming generation (who are the likely starters of this sleepmaxxing trend), less than 20% of teens are getting the recommended amount of rest on any given night, according to a National Sleep Foundation report.
- Teens with poor sleep are over five times more likely to experience depressive symptoms.
The reasons why people aren’t getting the necessary zzz’s aren’t quite clear. The same 2024 Gallup poll shows that stress has been on the rise for the past 30 years (aside from a short dip in 2003).
These days, 49% of adults in the U.S. say they feel stressed out on a regular basis. And it’s even higher for women (53%) as compared to men (45%).
For Flavia Ramos-Mattoussi, a senior research associate at Florida State University, high stress led to Graves disease, which was followed by insomnia and irregular sleep patterns that still affect her today.
“I’m a night owl,” she shares on Mindvalley Stories, “and have trouble following what is good for me and changing my bad bed habits.”
So yeah… even if the name’s obnoxious, maybe it makes sense that people are turning shut-eye time into a full-on lifestyle.
The fact is, the sleepmaxxing trend is getting younger people talking about sleep. And for a generation raised on hustle culture and 2 a.m. scrolling marathons, that’s a serious win.
What are the main benefits of sleepmaxxing?
Here’s what you get when you go full-on sleepmaxx:
- Better memory. One night of solid rest can boost problem-solving skills and creativity.
- More emotional resilience. Quality sleep keeps your amygdala (the brain’s panic button) from hijacking your emotions. You’re less reactive, more balanced, and less likely to spiral over a late Uber Eats order.
- Immune system upgrade. Deep sleep helps your immune system recharge and fend off invaders. Chronic sleep deprivation? That’s like sending your body into battle with a butter knife.
- Steadier blood sugar. Sleep helps regulate blood pressure and glucose levels. The lack of it is linked to everything from heart disease to type 2 diabetes.
- Better weight management. Poor sleep messes with your hunger hormones, ghrelin and leptin. You’re more likely to crave sugar and carbs when you’re tired and less likely to resist them.
- Higher productivity (without the burnout). Sleepmaxxing is about doing more with less stress and better focus.
The bottom line is, “the shorter your sleep, the shorter your life,” as Matthew Walker, Ph.D., writes in his bestseller, Why We Sleep.
He points out, “The leading causes of disease and death in developed nations—diseases that are crippling health-care systems, such as heart disease, obesity, dementia, diabetes, and cancer—all have recognized causal links to a lack of sleep.”
Dr. Breus, too, believes sleep is non-negotiable. “Everything you do, you do better with a good night’s sleep,” he says in his Mindvalley program.
So strip away the TikTok filters and influencer jargon if you must. But sleepmaxxing can help give your slumber the red-carpet treatment it deserves.
What are some common techniques used in sleepmaxxing?
Here’s what can help you go from rest-deprived to well-rested:
- Make your bedroom completely dark
- Keep your room temperature between 60–67°F (15–19°C)
- Stick to consistent sleep and wake times
- Get sunlight within an hour of waking
- Use blue light blockers in the evening
- Avoid screen time after 9 p.m.
- Add white or pink noise if needed
- Do a short stretch or yoga session before bed
- Try non-sleep deep rest, like breathwork, meditation, or hypnosis
- Journal before bed to clear your mind
- Eat magnesium-rich foods
- Take a supplement (like Mindvalley States’ DREAM)
- Use a weighted blanket for gentle pressure
- Limit your alcohol intake
- Diffuse calming scents like lavender or sandalwood
- Track your sleep with a ring, app, or diary
- Try mouth taping to promote nasal breathing
- Switch to red lighting in the evening
- Splash cold water on your face or take a quick cold shower
Important note: While sleepmaxxing can help with sleep optimization, it can go sideways if it turns into an obsession.
“Sleepmaxxing can backfire if it turns what should be a restorative process into a high-pressure chore,” Dr. Anita Shelgikar, director of the sleep medicine fellowship at the University of Michigan, warns in an article on CNN. “For some individuals, being overly attentive to sleep optimization and sleep patterns every night can increase stress and worsen sleep over time.”
Experts like her recommend sticking with what’s proven. And if you’re still struggling, it’s always advisable to consult with a healthcare professional.
How you can sleep better, according to The Sleep Doctor
While not every expert is sold on the sleepmaxxing trend, there’s no denying that it pushes us to think differently about rest.
Everybody needs sleep… But what a lot of people didn’t realize is that everybody’s sleep needs are different.
— Dr. Michael Breus, trainer of Mindvalley’s The Mastery of Sleep program
Dr. Breus has long been an advocate of this. And his insights help take the sleepmaxxing meaning to a whole other level for lasting results.
1. Understand your chronotype
“Everybody needs sleep,” says Dr. Breus. “But what a lot of people didn’t realize is that everybody’s sleep needs are different.”
And your sleep schedule? It depends on your chronotype, a.k.a., your biological clock’s natural rhythm, hardwired into your DNA.
There are four of them:
- Bears follow the sun. Most people fall into this group. They thrive on structure and 7–8 hours of steady sleep.
- Wolves are the night thinkers. Creative, intense, and often misunderstood. They come alive when everyone else is winding down.
- Lions are the early risers, high-functioning before breakfast, and often asleep before the credits roll.
- Dolphins are the light sleepers, always half-awake, often dealing with insomnia, and rarely feeling fully rested.
Knowing which category you fall into gives you the blueprint for when your body and brain actually function best.
For instance, if you’re a Wolf, your brain doesn’t hit peak focus until late afternoon. Forcing yourself into a 7 a.m. productivity sprint is like driving with the brakes on. But shift key tasks to later in the day and suddenly, you’re in flow.
Or if you’re a Lion, your energy spikes early. Schedule workouts or deep work before lunch, and you’re unstoppable. Wait until evening, and you’ll be running on fumes.
What’s your chronotype? Take the quiz and find out instantly.
2. Build your day around your internal clock
Contrary to popular belief, your sleep starts the moment you wake up, not at night. According to Dr. Breus, everything you do during the day—how you hydrate, move, eat, and even sip your coffee—feeds into your ability to sleep deeply later on.
“Each chronotype would have a different morning routine,” he says. “What works for one person would not work for another.”
But what would that look like for you? Lions should front-load their energy. Wolves need a slower ramp-up. Bears run best on routine. And dolphins do better with flexibility and gentler transitions.
The thing is, a strong day sets up a solid night. That could mean:
- Hydrate first thing (you lose nearly a liter of water overnight).
- Get sunlight within 15–20 minutes of waking—this resets your circadian rhythm.
- Hold off on caffeine for at least 90 minutes after waking (your cortisol is already doing the job).
- Eat smart. Focus on protein-rich breakfasts and avoid carb-heavy lunches that crash your energy.
- Stretch, move, and breathe. Even small rituals can keep your body alert and in sync.
- Take a power nap. Twenty-five minutes or less. Anything longer than that, and you may feel worse, not better.
Dr. Breus, himself, who’s a natural Wolf (but shifting toward Lion territory with age), starts his day at 6:15 a.m. with hydration and sunlight to activate his system. He adds a one-minute meditation in the shower, then refuels with a protein-rich breakfast like an omelet with avocado.
It’s simple, sure, but it’s built to sync with his biology and sharpen his energy.
3. Use the “Power Down Hour” to wind down
It’s no secret that sleep is not an on-off switch. As much as we try, we can’t simply unplug and shut off. (That is, unless you’ve mastered the military sleep method or you’re running on fumes.)
“There’s a process that needs to occur,” Dr. Breus points out. “And you’ve got to give it the amount of time it needs to happen.”
He suggests something he calls “Power Down Hour”: one intentional hour before bed, broken into three 20-minute blocks.
- First 20 minutes: Take care of loose ends, like prep lunches, pack bags, tidy up. Clear the mental clutter.
- Second 20 minutes: Hygiene. Brush teeth, wash your face, maybe take a warm bath. A drop in core body temperature afterward helps trigger melatonin.
- Final 20 minutes: Fully unplug. No work, no revenge bedtime procrastination, no stimulation. Read, breathe, stretch, or use his favorite 4-7-8 breathing technique to lower your heart rate and prep your brain for sleep.
Start simple. Set an alarm to remind you it’s time to power down. If you’ve got a partner, loop them in so your routine doesn’t get hijacked by dishes or a late-night Netflix binge.
4. Watch your “sleep stealers”
Caffeine, alcohol, blue light, and late-night stress are all known to mess with your sleep. That doesn’t mean cutting out every glass of wine or deleting TikTok. Dr. Breus just recommends smarter timing. For Dolphins and Wolves, the margin for error is even thinner, and the effects show up fast.
Sleep deprivation can sneak in through the back door. It doesn’t always look like exhaustion. It can show up as mood swings, slower thinking, and even weight gain.
That’s why putting your sleep hygiene first isn’t optional. Skip caffeine after 2 p.m., shift that glass of wine earlier, and power down your screens an hour before bed.
Even with the best routine, life happens. A night flight, a crying baby, or a bad case of somniphobia can knock things off track. When that happens, Dr. Breus says recovery is possible.
“On a short-term basis, catching up on sleep can reverse some of the problems associated with insufficient rest,” he says. And here’s what he suggests:
- Sleeping in by 60 to 90 minutes on Saturdays.
- Taking short naps between 1 and 3 p.m.
- The nap-a-latte, where you have a quick cup of black coffee followed by a 25-minute nap. When you wake, the caffeine hits just in time to keep you sharp without the crash.
Don’t feel bad if your sleep routine falls apart; it happens. What matters, though, is making sure you’re finding a way back in.
5. Track your sleep and tweak accordingly
If you want to improve your sleep, you need to understand it first. Dr. Breus recommends tracking everything from your bedtime to your energy levels during the day.
It’ll help you see the patterns matter. You see, sleep follows rhythm, not randomness. Here’s what to monitor:
- What time you actually fall asleep
- How long it takes you to get there
- How many times you wake up at night
- How consistent your bedtime and wake-up time are
- How your energy feels in the morning, afternoon, and evening
Plenty of the best sleep trackers can help with this (Dr. Breus uses the Oura ring). But your own notes matter, too.
“The actual process of writing it down, each morning, turns out to be very important in shaping your behavior,” he explains. “You’ll look at the last day, your day, a couple of days back, and you’ll start to notice trends.”
Just don’t get too caught up in chasing perfect stats. A little variability is normal, and obsessing over data can actually lead to worse sleep (yep, that’s called orthosomnia). Use the numbers as a guide, not a grade.
Futureproof your well-being
You’ve tried the blackout curtains. The supplements. The hacks. But somehow, you still wake up tired. Still feel wired at night. Still wonder why sleep feels so out of reach.
The Mastery of Sleep can be your reset. And you can start with a free lesson that gives you access to foundational insights from Dr. Michael Breus’ decades of sleep research.
You’ll get a clearer picture of why sleep slips through the cracks and what it takes to build the kind of nights your body actually responds to.
Jonathan Aliaga Ramirez, a Mindvalley member from Bolivia, knows this conundrum all too well.
“After trying hundreds of times to have an organized routine and peak productivity, I realized that the main reason for me to give up all of those times, was my sleep,” he says of his experience prior to taking the program. “Now, I feel pretty much energetic during the day, and I feel I sleep so good.”
So if your body’s been begging for rest, like Jonathan’s, this is your next move.
Welcome in.
