The Scientific Reason You Love Sleeping With One Foot Outside Of The Sheets

There’s one nighttime move that works like a charm when it comes to falling asleep, and it seems to be almost universal. It isn’t listening to white noise or drinking a sleepy girl mocktail, but something even simpler: sticking your foot out of the covers.

There are thousands of posts about it on social media, like one from creator @naomidugdale who said she has to stick her feet out of her blankets in order to fall asleep, even when it’s winter. In a clip posted in August, @fictionwithmila talked about the joy of sleeping in a cold room, and then added that she also has to stick one foot out in order to snooze.

When you think about it, you likely poke a foot out, too, probably without even realizing it. It’s natural to want to slide a few toes into the cool night air, especially when you can’t fall asleep. It feels like an instant reset, and may help you fall asleep pretty much instantly — and there are quite a few reasons for that.

According to Leah Kaylor, Ph.D. MSCP, a psychologist and sleep expert, sticking out a foot from under the covers has a lot to do with fine-tuning your body temperature. It’s a small adjustment that strikes a balance between feeling too hot and too cold, and that can be the key to snoozing through the night.

Why You Stick Your Feet Out At Night

One reason why it feels good to stick a foot out of your hot, heavy blankets, even when your head and arms are already in the fresh air, is that your feet are essentially built-in thermostats.

“They have more special blood vessels [near the surface of your skin] — called arteriovenous anastomoses — that help the body dump heat efficiently,” Kaylor says. “Arms don’t have as many of those, so a foot does the job faster.”

For many, it comes down to preference. “Some people unconsciously do it for comfort or sensory balance — feeling a bit of cool air can make the body feel ‘just right,’” she says. “Others might do it to reduce restless leg sensations or mild overheating that keeps them awake.”

If it makes you feel more comfortable, then it makes sense why you’d want to release a foot from your tangle of bedsheets, but according to Kaylor, it can also be a necessary part of falling asleep.

The Science

Many sleep experts recommend taking a warm shower before hopping into bed to nod off faster. “Your body temperature naturally drops when you fall asleep,” Kaylor says, which is why standing in the steam, then promptly cooling off, can create the perfect conditions for you to doze.

Exposing a foot works in much the same way. “[It] helps release heat quickly, which signals to your brain that it’s time for rest,” she says. “The ‘one-foot-out’ trick actually aligns with sleep science: your core temperature needs to drop by about one to two degrees to initiate sleep. So that one exposed foot might be your brain’s clever way of engineering better rest.”

Not only does it help you fall asleep, but this trick can also help you get better quality Zs. “Cooling the body slightly can promote deeper, more stable sleep and reduce night awakenings,” she adds. “It mimics what happens naturally in the brain’s sleep-wake cycle — when core temperature dips, melatonin rises.

It’s why Kaylor recommends sticking a foot out, or even uncovering both your legs, the next time you’re tossing and turning. “It’s a simple, safe way to help your body cool and cue sleep onset naturally.”

Source:

Leah Kaylor, Ph.D. MSCP, psychologist and sleep expert