We all sleep. In fact, people spend 1/3 of their lives asleep on average. So whenever we purchase a mattress, we should look at it less as a purchase and more as an investment to our health and well-being. It’s going to cradle us every night for up to 8-12 years. But what kind of mattress are you going to get?
You might stop and listen as we recommend a firm mattress. Maybe you’re into soft mattresses, and that’s fine. But you might be surprised to learn the unusual facts of firm mattress benefits before you’ve even laid down on one.
So read on as we cover eight possible benefits from sleeping on a firm mattress:
1- Lower Back Health
Remember when Goldilocks tried all the different beds in the Bear family’s home? Papa’s was too hard, mama’s was too soft, but baby’s was just right?
Well, it’s likely that Baby bear had a mattress that was just the right combination. — A of hard and firm for his tiny lower back and Goldilocks found it agreeable to hers as well.
People who suffer from lower back pain tend to favor medium-firm to straight-up firm mattresses, as well as memory foam beds.
These beds are going to provide better molding support to your lower spine while you sleep. This prevents it from twisting at odd angles and giving you aches when you awaken.
2- Back Sleepers Love It
Some people sleep on their backs at night, rather than their sides or stomachs. If you’re a back sleeper who has a soft mattress, the chances are good that your heavier lower half is going to sink a little lower than the rest of you.
Essentially, you’ll wake up with a stiff and sore lower portion. Back sleepers tend to favor the firm mattress benefits they receive from a harder sleeping surface.
This better supports their spine from their preferred angle, keeping them from sinking lower.
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3- It’s Cooler, Chillier.
In the summertime, a warm mattress is a major nightmare. People need to maintain cooler body temperature when they’re sleeping for optimal sleep quality. If you’re too hot, you’re not going to sleep.
Unfortunately, a softer mattress which makes you sink down will also absorb more body heat. This makes your nighttime respite not as pleasant as it should be.
Because you’ll sink less on a firm mattress, more heat will escape from your body into the air, rather than the bed itself. This keeps you cooler at night, allowing you to sleep better.
4- It Distributes Weight
If you’re testing a mattress at the store and it starts to slump a little bit, it’s probably too soft. A mattress with too much give will cause you to sink deeply into it, which some people like.
However, it really isn’t good on your back and again, will cause you to get too warm, faster. If your mattress is just soft enough to relax on without sucking you into its belly, then you might have found your match.
You should be able to sit or lay on its edges without the risk of sliding or rolling off of it. This is one of many firm mattress benefits that convince people to try them every year. The firmness prevents a lot of embarrassing tumbles out of bed at night.
5- You Won’t Disrupt Your Partner
This is a big one. If one half is a light sleeper and the other a heavy sleeper, then you might be surprised to find that the type of mattress can make all the difference. The heavy sleeper might be restless, rolling and tossing and turning all night, thus keeping their light sleeper partner awake.
A firm mattress absorbs the energy of motion, preventing motion transfer better than a softer mattress. Memory foam beds do this as well.
This way, if you have to get up for a Jimmy Riddle in the night, you’ll create less of a jiggling disturbance. A disturbance that could waken your peacefully sleeping partner, both in the exit and the return.
6- It’s Good For Chronic Pain
If you suffer from chronic pain, a firm mattress might intrigue you. In order to sleep properly, we have to maintain a neutral spine. This improves oxygenation and better breathing, as well as align our spines and necks near perfectly.
This prevents the dreaded aches and pains in the morning, especially for someone who may be struggling with this more than they’d care to admit.
It also improves circulation, which is a string of good news for anyone who routinely awakens with tingling and numb extremities.
7- Less Pressure on Muscles
If you often wake up feeling stiff and tense, it’s probably because you were too tense while you were sleeping. Too much pressure placed on your body from a soft mattress can cause this tenseness.
You coil yourself into compensating positions to support yourself at night, thus straining your muscles needlessly.
A firm mattress takes this tension out of the equation by allowing your body to relax and uncoil more naturally. This lets you essentially melt into a peaceful, loosened sleep.
8- Heavier People Will Find it Suitable
Softer mattresses sag easily under a lot of weight, which makes them less than ideal for heavier-set people. The added weight could also cause the mattress to start to sag prematurely, deflating its lifespan with every use.
A firm mattress is designed for better all-around support, which makes it great for bigger people. They have an easier time climbing into the bed, and even better, a far, far easier time getting out of it.
They don’t have as much of a slump to climb out of, which makes their mornings start off on a far better foot than otherwise.
There have been a lot of studies on the firm mattress benefits versus a softer one, and while ultimately it’s your personal decision, you should still take your health into account.
Maybe a softer mattress is more your style, but you shouldn’t have to sacrifice the health benefits of a firm mattress for the comfort of a softer one.
We have many different sleep technologies available to us these days that there’s virtually no way you should have to choose. When you go shopping, just ask as many questions as you can and test every mattress you see. You’re bound to find the perfect one for your particular body type.
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