The Best Somatic Exercises to Do in Bed: Six Bedtime Somatic Exercises and Their Benefits

Somatic exercises are rising in popularity, and for good reason, due to their effectiveness. If you’re not familiar with somatic exercises, they’re exercises that involve performing movement simply for the sake of movement. So rather than simply focusing on the end result, they focus on your present bodily sensations to help connect your mind and body. 

These exercises are simple yet effective and they’re done with little to no equipment. They can even be done in the comfort of your own home. And when we say comfort, we mean it. There are quite a few somatic exercises that can be done in bed! These bedtime somatic exercises can be done either before bed or literally in your bed. 

In this blog post, we’re going to look at a few of the best somatic exercises to do in bed and before bedtime to help improve your sleep.

What Are Somatic Exercises? 

Before we dive into bedtime somatic exercises, let’s first define what somatic exercises are. “Somatic” means “of, or relating to, or affecting that body” (9). Therefore, somatic exercises are movements that focus on strengthening your mind-body connection to help relieve tension and promote overall physical and mental well-being (13). In addition, somatic movement may help with chronic pain, trauma healing, relaxation, flexibility, mobility, and managing emotions (16).

There are somatic exercises for a variety of things, including for weight loss, lowering cortisol levels, releasing pent-up emotions, and releasing trauma. However, in this article, we’ll be focusing on somatic exercises that you can do either in bed or before bedtime to help your quality of sleep.

What Time of Day Is Best to Do Somatic Exercises?

You can do somatic exercises at any time of day, but the best time of day is either first thing in the morning or before bed. One of the wonderful things about somatic exercises is that they only take around five to 20 minutes a day to do – how long you want to spend on them is up to you and your busy schedule. Even just performing somatic exercises for five minutes a day can help remind your brain to keep your body flexible and help strengthen the mind-body connection (11). 

Performing these exercises as soon as you wake up can help prepare you for the day by focusing on establishing control over your muscles after a period of inactivity (6). 

At the same time, performing somatic exercises at night can help relieve stress and tension from your day, in addition to helping you achieve better, more restful, and deeper sleep by calming your nervous system (6). If you’re looking for a simple, effective way to help improve your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep, performing bedtime somatic exercises may be the best time of day for these movements (17).

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Should You Do Somatic Exercises Before Bed?

Yes! Somatic exercises are great to do before bed. Doing these exercises either before bedtime or in bed can have many benefits that will help provide you with better sleep. This is due to the effect certain somatic exercises have on helping you balance and calm your nervous system. As a result, this can help your nervous system shift from the sympathetic (fight-or-flight) activation to parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) activation, which results in helping you fall asleep and ridding your mind of an overload of thoughts and emotions (15). 

Performing somatic exercise at bedtime can have many benefits, including increasing the quality of your sleep. Good-quality sleep is incredibly important, not just for productivity but also because it has a major impact on your mental, emotional, and physical health (15). But how do you get good sleep to begin with? Some of the main factors that help achieve a restorative night’s sleep are your mental, emotional, and physical state (15). 

How do you get into the cycle of improving your mental, emotional, and physical state in order to attain a better night’s sleep? Well, one of the best ways you can achieve this is by using somatic exercises at bedtime to calm your nervous system (15).

Read more: Somatic Movement Therapy: Practices and Benefits for Everyday Life

What Somatic Exercises Can I Do in Bed?

When thinking of exercise, you most likely think of a high-intensity workout that leaves you sweating and out of breath. While those types of workouts are good, somatic exercises, although they’re usually low-intensity, are still incredibly beneficial. And one of the best parts about them is that there are certain somatic exercises you can do while simply lying in bed. Let’s look at a few of the best somatic exercises to do in bed for tension relief.

Arch and Flatten

If you’re struggling with lower-back pain and are looking for an exercise to help you release and regain control of your lower back and abdominal muscles, the arch and flatten exercise is the one for you. This is a type of proprioceptive exercise that can help release involuntary muscle contractions in the lower back and abdomen, helping with muscle tightness and lower-back pain by alleviating compression of the lumbar muscle (2). 

To perform the arch and flatten exercise:

1. Start by lying on your back with your knees bent. 
2. Arch and flatten your lower back.
3. Inhale while going up, and exhale while going down.
4. Repeat this exercise a few times, making sure to do it very slowly and consciously (11).

Arch and Curl

The arch and curl exercise engages the muscles in your lower back, abdomen, and chest to help release involuntary muscle contractions in them. It also releases lower-back tightness and pain, neck tightness and pain, headaches, and shallow breathing (1). Although it’s simple, this exercise works to touch a variety of conditions—and all from the comfort of your bed!

To perform the arch and curl exercise:

1. Lie on your back with both knees bent and your hands interlaced behind your head.
2. Inhale while lowering your head and arching your back—engaging the abdominal and chest muscles to help lift your head up and curl toward your bent knees (1). 
3. Exhale while lifting your head and flattening your back. 
4. Repeat this exercise one to 10 times, making sure it’s done slowly and consciously each time (11).

Seated Twists

Lastly, the seated twists exercise is a great somatic exercise for those who are experiencing tightness and pain in their back, neck, or abdomen. This exercise helps you regain control of the muscles that rotate your spine and helps with conditions such as tightness, disc problems, scoliosis, and pelvic rotation (7).

To perform the seated twist exercise: 

1. Find a comfortable place to sit. Don’t rush through this process and take your time slowly doing this exercise.
2. Place your right hand on your left shoulder with your knees bent.
3. With your knees facing left, rotate your trunk to the left three times.
4. Hold your trunk motionless at full left, then turn both your head and your trunk to the right and back three times.
5. Next, turn both your head and your trunk in alternate directions three times for the full spinal twist. 
6. While holding your trunk to the left, alternate lifting your face to the ceiling and dropping your eyes to the floor three times. 
7. Finish this exercise by repeating this process while holding your trunk to the right (11).

What Exercise Is Best Before Bed?

We’ve already gone over some beneficial somatic exercises you can do in bed while lying down. Let’s look at a few additional bedtime somatic exercises you can do either in bed or in a chair and help improve your sleep. 

The bear hug is a simple yet soothing exercise that focuses on the soothing power of self-touch to help lower cortisol levels, which makes it one of the most effective somatic exercises for reducing cortisol levels (15). In addition, the eye press breathing exercise focuses on ridding your body of distractions and helps you slip into a state of calm and relaxation, both of which are essential for a good night’s sleep (15).

Let’s dive into these three exercises deeper and discuss how to perform them, in addition to how they are beneficial for helping you achieve a deep, restful night’s sleep.

The Bear Hug

There’s nothing quite like a good bear hug from a friend or a loved one, but have you ever tried giving yourself a really mindful bear hug? In fact, giving yourself a bear hug can provide a lot of benefits. The bear hug exercise is a technique that helps you fall asleep better by relaxing and releasing the many thoughts and emotions that are overloading your mind (15).

This is a grounding technique that helps reduce your feelings of being overwhelmed and feeling tense (15), which can often catch up with you at the end of the day as you’re trying to sleep. This is one of the simplest somatic exercises for reducing cortisol levels (18). It does this by using touch to soothe you, which signals to your brain to slow down your rate, leading to lower cortisol levels (15). Studies have shown that an increase in cortisol levels can result in sleep deprivation (5). Therefore, lowering cortisol levels can improve sleep.

To perform the bear hug exercise:

1. Sit down in a comfortable place, such as your bed.
2. Alternately tap each shoulder, firmly but gently, while facing straight ahead.
3. Keep your head straight and move your eyes in the corresponding direction.
4. Adjust your pace as it’s comfortable (3). 

Read more: Somatic Bedtime Routine: How it Helps and What it Looks Like

Eye Press Breathing

It may not be news to you that distractions such as your phone can hinder and negatively affect your sleep and ability to fall asleep. In fact, the blue light from your phone screen not only makes falling asleep difficult, it also makes it more difficult to wake up the next day (14). That being said, taking the time to unplug and rid yourself of distractions before bed can provide you with better-quality sleep. This helps your body slow down and finally rest (15). 

This technique is a slow-paced breathing technique that helps calm your nervous system. As you do this bedtime somatic exercise, you’re communicating to the nervous system that it’s safe to slow down by closing your eyes, focusing on the lower belly, and breathing slowly through your nose (15).

To perform the eye press breathing exercise:

1. Lie down in bed.
2. Press your wrists gently across your closed eyes. 
3. Focus on taking slow, deep breaths through your nose while filling your belly with air and exhale as your belly falls flat. Continue this cycle of breathing for a few minutes. When you’re ready to close this practice, take your time to relax your breathing and slowly open your eyes. You may even fall asleep during this exercise. (15). 

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What Is Somatic Work for Sleep?

Somatic work for sleep involves somatic techniques that help manage insomnia by improving the mind-body connection (10) to help your body relax and prepare for a deep, restful night’s sleep. This is done by using somatic exercises to cultivate awareness of bodily sensations, release tension, and calm the nervous system (10). As a result, you experience more peaceful, rejuvenating sleep. 

One of the main factors that contribute to poor sleep is stress and feeling overwhelmed. These somatic exercises help manage this by helping release stress, muscle tension, emotions, and feeling overwhelmed, which promotes a sense of calm as you fall asleep (10).

Many of these bedtime somatic exercises also focus on restoring balance and a sense of calm in your nervous system. Those who struggle with insomnia or sleep issues are most likely carrying a great deal of stress and emotions, but by consistently practicing somatic exercises before bed, you can start to see an improvement in your sleep and overall well-being (15).

Frequently Asked Questions

• What time of day is best for doing somatic exercises?

You can do somatic exercises any time of day, but the best time to do somatic exercises is typically as soon as you wake up in the morning or immediately before bedtime. If you’re doing somatic exercises with the goal of releasing emotions, stress, and feeling overwhelmed, then doing them at bedtime can help improve the quality of your sleep (17).

• Is it a good idea to exercise before bed?

A gentle, low-intensity workout before bed can help you fall asleep faster and spend more time in a deep sleep. However, a high-intensity workout may negatively affect your ability to sleep well (4).

• Is it OK to do calisthenics before bed?

Performing calisthenics before bed can help lower cortisol and reduce distress, which can lead to a better night’s sleep (8). 

• Is it okay to do resistance training before bed?

One study found resistance exercise helped people achieve an additional 40 minutes of sleep and reduced the number of times they woke up during the night (12). 

The Bottom Line

In conclusion, somatic exercises, which focus on the movement and sensation of the body to strengthen the mind-body connection, are gaining popularity for their effectiveness in improving physical and mental well-being. One of the best things about somatic exercises is that they’re low-intensity and can be done in the comfort of your own home and even in the comfort of your bed. 

Despite their simplicity and ease, involving little to no equipment, they can be incredibly beneficial and even help relieve tension, enhance relaxation, and address various issues such as chronic pain, trauma, and emotional distress. Practicing somatic exercises, particularly before bedtime or in bed, has been found to significantly improve sleep quality by calming the nervous system and transitioning from a state of distress to one of relaxation.

To learn more about the benefits of bedtime somatic exercises, check out our blog and read our posts on somatic stretches in bed, meditation for insomnia, and exercises to do in bed.