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Sweaty Summer Days I Can Handle. But Hot Summer Nights? Absolutely Not.
Sleeping in sweaty sheets is among the worst things life has to offer. And, not to sound like a doomsday prepper, but the planet is only getting hotter. Last summer there were record-breaking high temps in NYC, and this year the heat is already upon us.
I’m getting flashbacks to last year’s summer nights of peak discomfort—when my body decided to ignore my “moisture-wicking” sheets and wake me up in a steamy, fake-feverish frenzy… And that was even before my fiancé and I started sharing a bed.
With summer coming in (very) hot, I was doing some serious deliberation on the Eight Sleep Pod Cover. Athletes and tech enthusiasts rave about this thing on Twitter—they say it’s clinically proven to improve your sleep and lower your energy bills, but I became obsessed with its ability to regulate your bed’s temperature. At $2,000+, it costs a pretty penny, but when I saw they offered the ability to pay in installments with Affirm, I finally just bit the bullet.
And when I tell you this is the best thing I’ve ever invested in, I mean Warren Buffet might even be jealous.
Here’s the Full Lowdown on Eight Sleep
I learned quite a bit about this company during my obsessive research phase. Apparently, sleeping cool isn’t just about comfort: it’s about longevity. Tossing and turning all night means our bodies don’t get a real chance to recover, which can lead to chronic health problems and higher chance of injury.
To combat this, Eight Sleep, now an award-winning company backed by pro athletes, scientists, and wellness experts, set out to create technology that can heat and cool with you throughout the night—keeping you calm, cool, and passed TF out all night long (no matter the temperature outside).
The tech uses a water-filled Hub system and an accompanying app that tracks your sleep cycles and metrics like heart rate variability and respiratory rate. As you move through different sleep cycles, the Hub allows warm or cool water to flow into the mattress cover, making temperature adjustments throughout the night for your optimal rest and max deep sleep.
According to their website, Eight Sleepers report up to 34% more deep sleep, up to 32% improved sleep quality, and up to 19% increased recovery. It’s like an automatic jump to smarter, cooler, and deeper sleep. They have both a mattress and a mattress cover, but we went with the cover because you can just toss it on your current bed (alright, and because it’s cheaper).
We’ve Been Using the Eight Sleep for a Few Months—Here Are Our Favorite Things
- The temperature autopilot. Yes, it is as cool as it sounds. Using your sleep data, the mattress cover proactively makes changes throughout the night, keeping you at the perfect temperature to stay in REM sleep. It can learn your cycles and anticipate changes needed over time, and even takes into account the temperature of the room. Basically, the whole bed feels like the cool side of the pillow, thanks to your own personal Jarvis.
- No more blasting the AC. Which means (thank goodness), no more outrageously high NYC energy bills. Also, let’s be real, that never really works anyway. If you’re a hot sleeper like me, it’s a tale of two cities inside and outside the covers… and sweat just turns to ice. Which is somehow worse. Cooling from within using the Eight Sleep has been a complete game changer.
- Dual 👏 Temperature 👏 Zones 👏. My fiancé is a naturally cooler sleeper than me, so this is one of our favorite features. The Pod tech makes different adjustments for each side of the bed, so we can both be at our ideal temperatures even when right next to each other. (She’s also ecstatic that I’m finally able to lift my summer ban on snuggling in bed.)
But Wait, There’s So Much More!
Seriously, though. Since we started using Eight Sleep, we’ve been sleeping fantastic and feeling even better. Falling asleep faster and staying asleep longer does actual wonders for feeling refreshed in the AM. There’s even a “gentle-rise alarm” that uses a warm, easing vibration to get us up for the day—a welcome upgrade from being jolted awake by an air-siren iPhone alarm.
My fiancé says it’s enormously helped her workout recovery, and I’m noticing a big-time boost in my attention and focus at work. I used to think I wasn’t a morning person, but now it’s my favorite time of the day.
It’s also been crazy to watch our sleep improve in real time through the app. It tracks our REM and deep sleep over time, and even gives us a “Sleep Fitness Score” that we (of course) made into a competition…
But With Better, Cooler, Deeper Sleep—Everybody Wins.
I used to dread sleeping in the summertime like it was a 3 month trip to the dentist. But now it’s back to being my favorite time of the year. The energy bills stay low and I stay on my well-rested high.
And yeah, the Pod Cover was definitely a bit pricey. But it’s hard to put a price on waking up every morning feeling like a million bucks. And since I took advantage of Eight Sleep’s partnership with Affirm, I’m only shelling out a few dollars a day, so it’s no sweat. (Literally.)
