Normally, I do yoga on Thursday afternoons. But on October 26, I decided to try it in the evening around 7:30 p.m.—and then went to bed shortly after. The sleep I had that night was incredible!

Check out the results:

I honestly can’t remember the last time I slept that long. It was the longest stretch of REM sleep I’ve recorded since tracking my patterns with an Oura ring. The next morning, I felt refreshed, energized, and had a fantastic workout.

Coincidence? Or was it the yoga?

I searched PubMed and only found two papers on the topic, so I decided to run a little personal experiment. I waited about a month and then repeated the evening yoga session.

Here’s what happened:

Granted, this is a very limited n=1 experiment—only two trials, and a million variables could be at play—but it’s an interesting start. One thing’s for sure: anything that improves your sleep will also improve your results.

You build muscle in bed, not in the gym.

Quality sleep is key for muscle growth, fat loss, and overall performance. We all know the basics of sleep hygiene by now: avoid screens and blue light before bed, skip caffeine and heavy meals in the evening, keep your room cool, silent, and dark… and so on.

Certain recovery methods can support better sleep as well. Personally, I get deep, restorative sleep after an adrenal IV drip or a good salt bath. Now I’m adding evening yoga to that list. Not a full-blown workout—just a few gentle, targeted poses based on how your body feels.

Try it one night and see what happens. If it helps, make it part of your regular routine.