The Founder of FORWARD__Space Uses This Under $25 Pillow Spray to Fall Asleep ASAP
Welcome to Sleep Diaries, where interesting people share a week’s worth of late-night habits. They’ll tell you, the reader, how they wrap up their day, how they get to sleep, stay asleep or fall back asleep, and how they feel when they wake up in the morning. Why? Because sleep is America’s Most Wanted thing. We chase after it like an elusive elixir that'll make us look younger and feel less stressed. (Maybe because it will.) We thought by getting people to share what works for them-and doesn’t-it might help you find better ZZZs. Or at least give you something entertaining to read. This week, we have Kristin Sudeikis, choreographer, artistic director, master teacher, and founder of FORWARD__Space, an interactive, immersive space that hosts 50-minute classes anchored in dance, music, wellness, and sweat.
I definitely spent some of the past few nights lying wide awake thinking about writing this sleep diary. That’s because sleep has always fascinated me. The fact that we, as humans, cannot exist, let alone properly function without it has always been an interesting truth. All people, all over the globe have to sleep. Throughout my life, I have often been asked if I ever, in fact, sleep. At slumber parties I was always the last one up. And I used to listen to music to fall asleep-specifically to a tape that would automatically flip from side A to side B. Sleep and I have had a long, ongoing dialogue. And with that...
Let's talk about sleep baby, let's talk about you and me, let's talk about all the good things and the bad things sleep can be.
Friday: Mixing Music
I took a late-night, music-filled road trip home from Montauk after being by the ocean for a beat. I got back to NYC around 2 a.m. and stayed up creating my playlist for tomorrow's 10:35 a.m. class at FORWARD__Space. After much anticipation and excitement, FORWARD__Space opened its doors in Soho in October. I often say it’s for those who used to dance, love to dance, or just want to dance. Seeking (and finding) fresh, new music on this particular evening made me lose track of time-I think I nodded off around 3:30 a.m. Needless to say, not too much sleep.
Saturday: Late-Night Writing
After a slamming day at FORWARD__Space, I grabbed dinner with friends in Brooklyn at a spot called Putnam's-I’m a big fan of the salt n’ pepper shrimp. Then, I headed home and rewatched Beyoncé’s Homecoming with the same amount of awe as I had during my initial viewing. [Insert the mind-blown emoji here.] When it ended, I most certainly did not sleep. Writing well into late hours of the evening is a practice I regularly get down with-my writings encompass everything from ideas I hope to bring to fruition to tasks that need to be completed. When I’m ready for bed, I use a spritz or two of This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray and cross my fingers and hope it works out (it usually does). While I’m drifting off, I like to call back the day, exhaling gratitude into the various people, places, conversations, and more that I encountered. I also check in on what I could have done better.
Sunday: Game Night
I spent the early part of Sunday at FORWARD__Space teaching and catching up on correspondence. I was thankful that the second half of my day was free. I kicked it at Olea, a Mediterranean restaurant in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn. I was with a group of loved ones and we spent hours talking about all things life, music, politics, art, possibilities, and on and on. The fireside chat turned into an impromptu game night with these incredible people. I won. Just kidding. Sort of.
Monday: Dance Party
Tonight was a truly epic evening of immersive dance vibes at FORWARD__Space. I taught FORWARD+ which consists of nonstop, high-energy, and athletic movement set to what I like to call one-of-a-kind, blow-yah-mind playlists. Then I taught FORMS, which is an all-level contemporary dance class. It's a deep dive into more of an expressive, technical, primal, and emotive side of movement and uses everything from Radiohead to Mumford and Sons, John Legend, Solange, Sigur Ros, Moses Sumney, Ben Platt, and Maggie Rogers. Afterwards, I ended up chatting with folks until around 11 p.m. The adrenaline from such an intense and FUN night of dancing and music led to an evening of nooooot really hitting REM. I caught up on some video edits that I wanted to comb through for phenomenal artist, Ben Harper. I just finished choreographing and co-directing a video with him-which I am deeply honored to be a part of, to say the least.
Tuesday: Collaboration Nation
It was another full day of creating, dancing, and working at FORWARD__Space. We are prepping for an activation in the Hamptons this summer, launching a new capsule collection of merchandise, collaborating with DJ MoMa on an event on May 10, and hosting an upcoming benefit for the public that is in support of Sandy Hook Promise. I also spent time on the phone discussing a dream project with musicians I am infinitely moved and inspired by. After leaving FORWARD__Space, I headed next door and grabbed a glass of Sancerre and a kale salad at Rintintin before heading home. I was actually able to get to bed at a decent hour, but woke up around 1 a.m. feeling under the weather.
Wednesday: Sick Day
It happened-I went down in a blaze of glory. I ended up getting super sick and was down for the day. I took an all-natural Rested supplement from Modern Nature along with some Plant Alchemy Concentrated CBD Oil from The Alchemist's Kitchen to help ease the edge of feeling super wonky. It helped big time. My body spoke and I listened to what it needed-which was to sit my ass down.
When I wake up feeling sick, I take an all-natural Rested supplement from Modern Nature along with some Plant Alchemy Concentrated CBD Oil from The Alchemist's Kitchen to help ease the edge of feeling super wonky.
Thursday: Back At It
Tonight, I went to a new experiential exhibit in New York City called Frequency. The creators are seeking to push and expand awareness around human consciousness and a FORWARD__Space team member is part of the creative team. The title for Thursday evening’s event was "How to be Human." We did some interactive, guided collective meditation. Then, I chilled and chatted with the folks until 10:30 p.m. I had a late night bite in the West Village at Balaboosta. The energy and buzz of such an interesting evening resulted in me being wide awake. I decided to partake in an extremely rare late-night past time-I began scrolling through the never-ending vortex of the elusive app known as Instagram. I let the Explorer channel take the lead and followed its direction through many a meme and what have you. I ended up finishing some undone tasks before drifting into dreamland in the early morning hours.
Kristin Sudeikis is a choreographer, artistic director, master instructor, and founder of FORWARD__Space. To learn more, follow @FORWARD__Space on Instagram and head to www.forward-space.com.
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