Talia Shapero Adult Sleep Coaching Services

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Talia Shapero Adult Sleep Coaching Services

Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Talia Shapero Adult Sleep Coaching Services, Health & Wellness Website, 822 Richmond Street West suite 102, Toronto, ON.

As a sleep coach, I help identify the imbalances that are impacting your quality of sleep and put together a plan to get your sleep on-track for lifelong improvement.

08/09/2026

🌙 Could nightshade foods be affecting your sleep? 🌙

Nightshade foods include:
• Tomatoes & tomatillos
• White potatoes (not sweet potatoes)
• Eggplant
• Bell peppers & chili peppers (jalapeños, habaneros, cayenne, etc.)
• Spices like paprika, cayenne, and chili powder
• Foods made from them, including salsa, marinara sauce, ketchup, and hot sauce

The good news? For most people, nightshades are incredibly nutritious. They're packed with fibre, vitamin C, potassium, antioxidants like lycopene, and many other nutrients that support overall health.

So why do they get a bad reputation?
Nightshades naturally contain compounds called alkaloids. While these compounds are harmless for most people, some individuals may be sensitive to them. In susceptible people, they may contribute to digestive discomfort or inflammation, which can indirectly affect sleep.

Here's how nightshades may interfere with sleep:
🌶️ Digestive discomfort – Bloating, stomach upset, or gut irritation can make it harder to fall or stay asleep.
🔥 Heartburn & reflux – Tomatoes, spicy peppers, and hot sauces can trigger reflux in some people, especially when eaten late in the evening.
🍕 The "meal effect" – Often it's not the nightshade itself, but the meal it's part of. Think pizza, spicy pasta, burgers and fries, or rich Mexican dishes—large, high-fat meals eaten close to bedtime are more likely to disrupt sleep.

✨ If you think nightshades are affecting your sleep, try this:
✅ Eat dinner 2–3 hours before bedtime.
✅ Limit spicy nightshade foods in the evening.
✅ Keep a food and sleep diary to identify patterns.
✅ If you suspect a sensitivity, try eliminating nightshades for 2–3 weeks, then gradually reintroduce them one at a time.
✅ Remember that your overall sleep habits—consistent bedtimes, regular exercise, and managing stress—will usually have a much bigger impact than any single food.

08/04/2026

The other night I was out with some friends for dinner and there was a discussion around nightshade foods. Riveting right? 🤣 One of my friends made a statement that nightshades are the only produce that grows in the dark, I immediately fact-checked this because I thought it was an outrageous remark but also - I was so excited for it to be true so I could make the connection that “Whoa! Are WE like nightshades?? We also do so much growing in the dark!”

So here’s what I discovered:

No, nightshades (like tomatoes, peppers, and potatoes) cannot grow in total darkness. They need light for photosynthesis to convert water and carbon dioxide into sugars and starches. BUT - while they need light to create energy, nightshades do most of their actual physical cell expansion and growth at night.

It got me thinking though... maybe we're not so different after all.

Just as plants use the energy they capture during the day to fuel growth at night, our bodies use sleep to do some of their most important work. While we're asleep, we consolidate memories, repair tissues, release human growth hormone, regulate hormones, strengthen our immune system, and support brain health.

We often think of sleep as "switching off," but it's actually when some of our most important growth and restoration takes place.

Anyway, just some food for thought today…

07/30/2026

What’s a go-to rule I follow as a sleep coach?

I don’t turn off the lights until I am sleepy.

One of the biggest mistakes that I see with my clients (and that I used to do) is going to bed when tired but not SLEEPY. A lot of us may feel run down, emotionally drained and maybe physically tired but we’re not actually sleepy.

What does sleepy look and feel like? Lots of yawning, the need (not want!) to be horizontal, eyes rolling back, head bobbing back, maybe you even have that wooziness feeling….so many us get into bed because we think it’s time (I always counted backwards from my wake time - how many hours do I have to sleep until I wake?!) but in reality, sometimes our body just isn’t ready to sleep. And what happens then? Wakefulness in bed. Frustration. And a poor association now linking your bed as a place of stress and alertness.

Now am I recommending throwing all bedtimes and wake times out the window? No! But some nights we may just not be sleepy at our regular time. Maybe something is on your mind. Maybe it’s that 4pm coffee you had. Maybe you were sedentary all day or maybe you did a high intensity workout too close to bedtime and you’re feeling energized. Instead of forcing yourself to fall asleep, just accept that you’re awake, do something enjoyable and relaxing, keep your alarm set for your usual time and sleep will come.

07/24/2026

Not all evening exercise is detrimental to your sleep health. If you’re a night owl and go to bed past midnight, there’s nothing wrong with an 8pm kickboxing class.

Exercise can be a productive activity to release some energy before starting to wind down for the night. However, if you notice that certain types of exercises get your heart rate up too much and as a result, you find it difficult to fall asleep, try engaging in a less intense form of movement. Leisurely, moderate-intensity workouts and mind-body activities can be especially beneficial for getting a good night’s sleep.

These include:
◾Yoga
◾Tai chi
◾Resistance training
◾Light Aerobics
◾Walking
◾Stretching

07/19/2026

How to maximize sunshine and movement for sleep:

Get outdoors and work out within 30 minutes to 2 hours before or after sunrise (or waking up). If you can’t get outside and do a full cardio routine first thing, even a short 15-minute walk outside in the morning and at lunchtime can boost your mood, energy levels and strengthen your circadian rhythm. Natural sunshine will continue to send alerting signals to your brain that it is daytime. And remember to take those sunglasses off as they will filter out those important light waves you need!

In the evening however, to further regulate and strengthen your sleep/wake cycle and prepare your body for rest, you should minimize that bright light exposure. Remember, melatonin, the sleep hormone, is triggered by darkness so too much evening light may send a signal to your brain that it is still daytime.

07/14/2026

What I love about summer is being outdoors! Whether it's with work, socially, eating or working out, I want to be outside if I can.

The perks of exercising outdoors for sleep:

☀️Getting daylight exposure first thing in the morning helps sync up your brain’s internal clock (think circadian rhythm that regulates your sleep/wake cycle)
☀️Natural sunlight activates the blue sensors in your eyes, and as you exercise, the sensors will fire up your brain and increase alertness (and reduce depression)
☀️You naturally raise your cortisol to a healthy level in the morning, which will lower inflammation (and inflammation can affect the sleep centers of your brain)

07/11/2026

When is the best time to exercise for sleep?

This is a tricky question to answer because just like eating and resting, most people have a preferred timing that works best for their body.

However, if you’re having trouble getting to sleep at night (and you’re not a high-functioning night owl), earlier in the day is ideal. Working out too close to bedtime might be too mentally and physically stimulating, leaving your nervous system feeling wired and making it difficult to calm down at night and get to sleep. So best to be done with that spin class at least two hours before you want to go to sleep.

Furthermore, if you’re engaging in high intensity cardio activity, your core body temp will rise and for optimal sleep conditions, your body’s temperature should be low. Your core body temperature changes throughout the day – it’s typically at its lowest a few hours before you wake and it’s highest an hour or two before bed. The changes in temperature affect your alertness, muscle strength, and flexibility, as well as your sleep-wake cycle. When your core temperature drops at night, it triggers the release of melatonin and signals to the brain that it’s time to get sleepy.

07/06/2026

Our bodies need to exert effort during the day so we can feel tired at night. It’s as simple as that.

There are a range of drivers that influence sleep, and I would consider movement a key pillar. Engaging in regular physical activity makes it easier for your brain and body to power down at night. Furthermore, sleep can help you see the results of all your hard work and exercise. During deep NREM sleep, our muscles and tissues get strengthened and repaired, optimizing all of our effort at the gym.

07/04/2026

Sleep does not exist in isolation. Data from the Public Health Agency of Canada’s Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Sleep (PASS) Indicators highlights that sedentary lifestyles remain a significant challenge and this may be connected to sleep outcomes.

Canadians are spending a large portion of their waking hours sedentary. Only 27.5% of adults aged 18–64 meet sedentary behaviour recommendations. Adults average approximately 9.3 hours per day sedentary, including 3.5 hours of recreational screen time. Canada’s movement guidelines recommend limiting sedentary time to 8 hours or less per day and recreational screen time to 3 hours or less per day.

The connection between movement and sleep is important: regular physical activity is associated with improved sleep quality and sleep duration while prolonged sedentary behaviour is linked with poorer health outcomes. Canada’s 24-Hour Movement Guidelines recognize that optimal health comes from balancing the full day — moving more, sitting less, and prioritizing restorative sleep.

Summer is a perfect time to get moving! This season, I encourage my Canadian (and other!) readers to make small daytime changes that will support your body’s natural sleep rhythms:
◾getting natural light exposure
◾adding movement breaks into your day
◾reducing long periods of sitting
◾building consistent activity habits
◾replacing (some!) screen time for something restorative

Sleep health is a 24-hour practice, not just an overnight goal.

For more info on the impact and connection between physical activity and sleep, check out my blog “Exercise and Sleep.” Link in bio or visit https://www.taliashapero.com/blog/exercise-and-sleep

07/01/2026

Happy Canada Day!

In lieu of its independence, I wanted to focus on the state of sleep in my nation.

So are Canadians getting enough sleep?

While many appear to be meeting recommended sleep hours, the bigger picture reveals a country struggling with sleep quality and consistency:
◾About 1 in 3 adults aged 35–64 are not getting enough sleep
◾1 in 2 adults report difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
◾1 in 5 Canadians say their sleep is not refreshing
◾1 in 3 report difficulty staying awake during the day — signs that restorative sleep may be missing

When I first meet with clients, a lot of them have this wish to get more hours of sleep. While the average adult needs roughly somewhere between 7-9 hours of sleep per night, there are so many other factors we need to consider before drilling down to the pure numbers:
◾How is the quality of that sleep?
◾Are they keeping inconsistent bedtimes and wake times?
◾What’s their light exposure levels like?
◾Is their bedroom an optimal environment for sleep?
◾Are they moving enough during the day?
◾Any foods or substances or medications that are interfering with sleep?
◾How are they managing stress levels during the day?

Once I identify those imbalances and regulate these factors, THEN we figure out sleep needs and sleep timing.

If you need help sleeping better, book a free discovery with me to find out how I can help!

Address

822 Richmond Street West Suite 102
Toronto, ON

Website

http://www.taliashapero.com/

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