Should You Sleep on the Floor?
Sleeping on the floor is beneficial in many ways. Nowadays, doctors are even prescribing stiff sleeping places to people suffering from anxiety. There are many reasons to why sleeping on a hard surface is beneficial for you, and we will be covering a few of them in this guide. We will try to help you figure out why you should sleep on the floor and in which case you should avoid sleeping on the floor. Furthermore, we will also guide you about different helpful sleeping positions on the floor and the surfaces that can help you sleep properly.
If you lack a good mattress to sleep on, you may be more prone to find alternalte places to sleep, so with that said, let’s dive right in:
The Benefits of Sleeping on the Floor:
- Your Back: Sleeping on the floor seems painful. It feels like it’s going to hurt your body because you have something stiff to sleep on. When you sleep on the floor, it gets painful in the beginning, but gradually you attain peace from this habit. It aids in keeping your posture correct, which is also good for your lumbar region. Your back will get all sorts of benefits ranging from body aches relief to the proper alignment of the spine. You won’t regret it because Science has proven it.
- Pain: As soon as you make this transition from mattress to the floor, the first thing you notice in your body is your body pain. It starts to minimize first and then leaves your body completely. It is generally seen in most of the cases no mattress company could claim this ever. It keeps your body aligned with the floor. A mattress can provide contour and firmness to your body, but a moment comes when you feel so relaxed that you are sinking in and lose all the favorable stiffness.
- Posture: The most useful factor in sleeping on the floor is the body posture. A lot of people don’t realize how important it is. An appropriate posture is accountable for the pain-free spine as well as for keeping the internal organs from mixing — correct posture results in too many benefits. By sleeping on the floor, the body attains the support that is good for the vertebral column and will eradicate the pain. It will also help to minimize stooping that is caused by the constant use of the mattress.
- Your Rest and Energy: The habit of sleeping on the floor grants a soothing feel of rest, unlike sleeping on the mattress it gives you the feeling of getting up early in the morning without laziness. To grow, it’s necessary to come out of your comfort zone. Use of the soft mattress can provide you blissful feeling for a moment, but in the long run, they are unhealthy for the body.
The Drawbacks of Sleeping on the Floor:
- Exposure to Dust: The drawback of sleeping on the floor is not so severe. But the patients of asthma and similar disorders, who cannot resist dust, might get in direct contact with it. To avoid this, you should clean the floor properly because the ratio of advantages is higher than drawbacks.
- Health Issues: Hypothermia can be a disadvantage during winter or in extreme weather conditions. Because in the absence of mattress, you get too close to the floor and easily interact with freezing temperature to get chronic Cold and other ailments to your body.
- Discomfort for Side Sleepers: Side sleepers! It might be discomfort able for you to sleep on such a stiff surface for longer periods. It can be hurtful for the bones and lower body that constitutes back, hips and legs. It favors the back and stomach sleepers.
You may want to check out the best air mattress to use when sleeping on the floor.
Sleeping Positions for the Floor:
Best Mattresses for Sleeping on Your Side:
If you see around yourself, you will observe that many primates are the side sleepers, and make a pillow to give rest to their heads by keeping their arm underneath. Many studies proved that Pillow in entirely unnecessary while sleeping, especially when lying on one side. Unless the shoulder is fully stooped, it will aid in the appropriate support for the neck.
As you are created by nature, so it can tell better what the logic behind everything is. This position also prevents a sleeper from bugs and other harmful things that can enter the body through an open mouth. In this position, your mouth remains closed while sleeping. Another benefit is that it keeps your spine aligned to support smooth breathing by attaining favorable posture. Learn what mattresses are best for side sleepers.
Sleeping on Your Stomach
The position of your body decides a lot about what quality of sleep you have as a sleeper. Stomach sleepers are addicted to their habit, but in the long run, they get deprived of so many benefits that a back sleeper gets.
However, while sleeping on the floor, if you place your arms under your tummy by imitating a four-legged animal, then you can get an aligned spine. This position is also called as lookout posture or quadrupedal position. Learn what mattresses are best for stomach sleepers.
Sleeping on Your Back
The point that contradicts the studies of researchers is that sleeping on your back prevents you from body aches. One research says that getting rid of the back pain forever can be achieved by sleeping on the floor. Since floor grants you the best posture to lie. It is believed that side sleeping makes your hamstring and flexors suppressed. Pectoral muscles can also get stiff that can be hurtful.
Nature tells another story, plus researchers’ findings are in favor of nature. So try different positions and assess what’s best for your body and the health. Learn what mattresses are best for back sleepers.
Choosing the Right Surface for Sleeping on the Floor:
Tatami:
This flooring cum sleeping surface is inspired by Japanese culture. Don’t think it’s new. It is nearly 12 centuries old. In Japan, these mats are used as a sleeping surface along with other objects. They vary, especially in thickness; it could be a few inches thick and can be as big as the size of the mattress.
In Japanese culture, Tatami is used as flooring in their houses; the comfort level of these surfaces is too high. People used to walk barefoot on them. The reason behind tatami’s comfort is its unique composition. It was made by a rice straw core with a covering of soft rush straw. This combination gave tatami its soft and comfortable feel. This composition is traditional.
Now its modern era and we have innovations in almost everything. So the new tatami is based on wood chip boards or polystyrene foam as a core. The unique design of tatami makes it prominent in use as the most suitable sleeping surface. It is entirely different from a stiff floor; rather, its soft feel provides you comfortable feeling. Tatami these days are considered as mattresses because of too much thickness that rejects its feature of being used as a floor. It is more like a futon that is purely made for the purpose of sleeping.
Futon
The futon is a good replacement of mattresses for sleeping on the floor. They are generally thick and slightly elevated. But they are not as hard as typical surfaces; the thickness does not favor in such matters much.
Whether it’s a futon with its cover stuffed with cloth sitting on a metallic frame or a futon that has a hard base and a soft layer on top, it is too beneficial in helping you make your way to sleeping on floor from the mattress. Learn more from our comprehensive guide to selecting a Japanese futon.
Yoga Mat
Tatami and yoga mat are somewhat similar in terms of softness as they both provide the sleeper with a little softer surface to sleep on instead of laying directly on the floor. The difference is that yoga mat is economically viable. In general, they are available for as low as $10. You can transform this price into bigger figures if you are searching for something luxurious. Above all, this simple thing can turn out to be a fantastic sleeping surface.
Massage Mat
Out of a thousand choices, you have another one that is Massage Mat. They are available in multiple sizes and shapes with enough thinness allowing you to avail the stiffness of the floor rather sinking into something. It also carries drawbacks like in winters, you might feel cold as you will almost be in contact with the floor. However, some have heating options too.
As a modern man, you may not be able to sleep like this. So you can go with the option of a Thai massage mat. It comes with a variety of options like insertion of cotton with other stuff to give it a softer look and feel on the surface. Basically, they are utilized for people during the massage so that people can relax, but they are a good source of a sleeping mat.
While all these ways to sleep on the floor may help, you may still want to buy a better mattress for your bed.
- See Puffy Lux See Review and Get the Best Price
- See Helix Midnight Mattress Reivew and Get the Best Price
- See Nectar Mattresss Review and Get the Best Price
- See Winkedbed Mattress Review and Get the Best Price
- See Bear Hybrid Mattress and Get the Best Price
Use the link provided on each mattress review page to get the link to your deal.
Conclusion:
If the modern era has spoiled our habits of sleeping leading to several health risks. For example, some people ask us what are the best mattress types for chronic back pain. You have a tons of options to correct our habits such as the Massage mat, Tatami Mat, Futon, and Yoga Mat. Now it is up to us to take the plunge and land on the floor to correct our spine, and posture and alleviate body aches.
