Congratulations on committing to your sleep fitness with the Eight Sleep Pod. To help you get the most out of your sleep, we’ve compiled a list of hacks, tips, and frequently asked questions.
How to prep for seamless set up of your Pod
Before set-up, ensure that you have both box 2A and 2B. Once both have arrived, you are ready to start setting up your new Pod.
We recommend setting up your Pod 2-3 hours before bed time to give time for the “Priming” process. The “Priming” process, or the process of filling your Active Grid with water, will take some time. The Eight Sleep app on-boarding guide will walk you through the necessary steps for the setup process. During this time, you will be prompted to add distilled water and hydrogen peroxide to the Water Reservoir. Please have 2 gallons of distilled water and 48oz of hydrogen peroxide (household 3%) on hand.
There are two parts to the Priming process. the first is 10 minutes and the second may take up to 90minutes. While this is taking place, you are able to sleep on the bed and use the temperature features, but you might notice reduced thermal performance and more noise coming from the unit.
What to keep in mind for your first night
While your Pod is priming, you can set up your Smart Temp profile. Your Smart Temp is the profile you can set on your Pod to adjust to your ideal temperature throughout the night. Overtime, your Smart Temp profile will become more personalized as you sleep more nights on the Pod. Try to avoid extreme temperatures when first setting up your profile, and note that it can take 7-10 days to find your preferred temperature settings.
In addition to your Smart Temp Profile, you can choose to enable GentleRise Wake Up. GentleRise Wake Up will gently vibrate your side of the Pod at your set wake up time and slowly change the temperature to ease your body into a more wakeful state Our members have found this method to be less abrasive and more comfortable to wake up to as opposed to a loud alarm clock.
You’ll wake up to your first sleep report tomorrow morning. The Pod automatically tracks your sleep and provides a customized report on your recovery approximately 30 minutes after you get out of bed.
SmartTemp 101: Find the optimal temperature for you
While your Pod is priming, you can set up your Smart Temp profile. Your Smart Temp is the profile you can set on your Pod to adjust to your ideal temperature throughout the night. Overtime, your Smart Temp profile will become more personalized as you sleep more nights on the Pod. Try to avoid extreme temperatures when first setting up your profile, and note that it can take 7-10 days to find your preferred temperature settings.
Your body temperature needs change throughout the night. While it’s a common misconception that you need one specific temperature for sleep, your body temperature changes throughout the night as you move through various phases of sleep. Smart Temp helps you stay comfortable regardless.
Allow approximately 7-10 days to find the right settings. We typically hear from members that sleeping on a temperature-controlled bed is a unique experience, and it can take 7-10 days to find your ideal settings.
Avoid extreme temperatures. We recommend staying within -1/+1 for the first few nights to ease into your sleep temperature preferences. You can then adjust from there. In fact, only 5% of members prefer to sleep at the most extreme hot and cold temperatures.
Tips to get the most out of your Pod
The Pod is unlike any other mattress you may have slept on. Here are a few key tips to make sure you’re getting the most out of your new sleep experience.
Avoid using mattress toppers. Thick mattress toppers interfere with thermoregulation and sleep tracking; they come between your body and sensors in the Active Grid layer. If you’d like to use one, check out the Pod Protector.
Use Dual-Zone Cooling and Heating. If you sleep with a partner, ensure you are taking full advantage of our dual-zone cooling and heating technology. Within the app, you are able to invite your partner to download the Eight Sleep app and connect to your Pod. Once added, your partner can personalize their own Smart Temp, receive health insights, and set their own options for Gentle Rise Wake Up, all without affecting your side of the bed. Perfect for couples who have different temperature preferences.
Make sure to refill the Hub if the water level gets low. The Eight Sleep app will notify you if your Hub is low on water. Make sure to act promptly for optimal temperature regulation. You will refill your Pod with the same way you did during initial set up.
Sync your Eight Sleep app with other tracking devices. Eight Sleep can also sync recorded sleep data with third-party apps like Apple Health and Google Fit. Within the Eight Sleep app, you can enable the sharing feature … and in the settings on your phone for that specific tracking app, you can check off which specific data will be shared with Eight Sleep.
Pets, kids, and rolling partners may affect your sleep score. Your sleep data is tracked by sensors in the Active Grid layer. If your pet or child sleeps in the bed with you, or if your partner rolls onto your side, the sensor may pick up their movement as yours. It is important to note that if your pets have claws, they can puncture the Active Grid, so ensure you lay a blanket down as a protective barrier if they lay on your Pod.
Better understanding your sleep metrics
Wondering what your Sleep Fitness Score means and how it was calculated?
Your Sleep Fitness Score measures your sleep habits. If you improve your habits, your Score will improve as well.
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Time Slept: Time Slept is the total amount of time you have slept over one 24-hour period. Time slept has the highest impact on your Sleep Score.
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Bed time: Bed time is assessed on the time you have gone to bed averaged over a 7 day period. if you fall asleep at the same time everyday, you will increase your Sleep Score
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Wake up Consistency: The metric uses the time you wake up each day and compares it to the average wake up time of the previous 7 days. A difference of more than 25 minutes will impact negatively on your score.
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Time to fall asleep: Time to fall asleep tells you how long you laid in bed before falling asleep. More than 30 minutes will negatively impact your score.
We designed this score to reflect the most actionable habits that affect sleep quality. Your sleep score is not intended to reflect how you feel in the morning. It is designed to help you cultivate better sleep habits that will improve your sleep quality overtime. You have the power to change your sleep habits and improve your score.
How to consistently get perfect scores. Each factor that affects your score has a goal range. To achieve a perfect score each night, and maintain proper sleep hygiene, you must stay within the goal range of each metric.
Avoid staying awake in bed – it hurts your score. If you read, watch TV or stay awake while you’re in your Pod at night, this will negatively impact your Sleep Fitness Score. This is on purpose: staying awake in bed is not part of a proper sleep routine.
Why to monitor your HRV and what to look out for
HRV (Heart Rate Variability) is one of the most useful metrics in predicting how you’ll feel each day – it helps you better understand how much your body recovered each night.
HRV is an indicator of how your body responds to stress. We wrote a full HRV 101 here. The most important thing to keep in mind is that HRV is a great way to monitor the effects of stress, sleep, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and immune system compromise on your body.
The higher the HRV, the better. Contrary to what you might think, high HRV is a sign that the body is recovering well and ready to take on the day. Higher HRV means it’s a good day to push yourself with extra physical and mental activity.
Lower HRV may be a sign that it’s time to take it easy. If your body is not recovering properly, your Eight Sleep App will alert you that your HRV is below normal. If you see that notification in the App, take it easy with a rest day.
Meditation, white noise, and more
Now that you have started your sleep fitness journey, you can take advantage of all the helpful resources the Eight Sleep App offers.
In Eight Sleep App, there is a library of helpful resources such as Sleep Coaching, mediation, and more. Mediations and white noise can be used to help you clear your mind as you fall asleep, to ensure a faster sleep onset time. If you need some extra help with your sleep regime, you can take a look at your personalized and actionable insights into how much sleep you need, how your behavior affects your recovery, and even bedtime and wake up time recommendations.
Pair the Pod with your other smart home devices for full integration
The Pod has the capabilities to integrate with your smart home devices seamlessly. All Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled devices can be integrated with Eight via IFTTT. There, you’ll be able to see our IFTTT channel for device and trigger suggestions. We also integrate with IFTTT supported devices, including Nest, Amazon Echo (Alexa Voice), ecobee, WeMo coffeemaker and Philips hue. More integrations are coming soon!
