July Challenge: No Screens 1 Hour Before Bed
TL;DR
For the July Challenge, put away all screens one hour before bed, six nights per week. Choose your bedtime, prepare your phone and alarm in advance, plug it in, and replace the screen time with a simple activity you can repeat each night. The first few evenings may feel unfamiliar, but consistency will help turn the final hour of the day into a reliable signal that sleep is approaching.
The July Challenge
No screens during the final hour before bed, six nights per week.
This includes phones, televisions, computers, and tablets. The goal is to create a consistent period between the stimulation of the day and the start of sleep.
Screens keep the brain engaged through light, information, novelty, and constant opportunities to respond. Even when the content feels relaxing, the brain is still watching, reading, processing, scrolling, or deciding what comes next. Melatonin is also being suppressed by the bright blue-lights.
The final hour before bed is an opportunity to reduce those inputs.
This challenge will require some planning. Simply deciding to use your phone less is usually not enough. Phones are connected to alarms, messages, calendars, entertainment, reminders, and many small tasks that feel urgent at the end of the day.
A clear routine makes the boundary easier to follow.
Start by choosing your bedtime
The one-hour window needs a clear starting point, so begin by choosing your intended bedtime. If you plan to be in bed at 10:00 pm, screens go away at 9:00 pm. That is your screen cutoff.
Before the cutoff, make sure everything you need from your phone is complete.
Set your morning alarm, if you need one. Check your calendar. Send any necessary messages. Finish anything that would otherwise give you a reason to pick the phone up again.
Then plug it in. Place it somewhere that does not require you to look at it again. Bonus points if your phone is not within reach of your bed.
The important part is that plugging in the phone marks the end of its use for the night. Once it is plugged in, leave it there.
Choose what will replace the screen
Removing a habit creates an empty space. That space needs something to replace it.
Choose an activity that is calm, enjoyable, and realistic enough to repeat most nights. It does not need to be an elaborate bedtime routine.
You could read a physical book, work on a puzzle, take a gentle walk outside, stretch, tidy the house, prepare for the next morning, or have a conversation with someone in your home.
The best replacement is one that fits your life.
If reading feels relaxing, keep a book somewhere easy to reach. If stretching helps you unwind, decide where you will do it. If evenings are the only quiet time you have with your partner, use the hour to talk without a screen in front of either of you.
The activity should be sustainable and repeatable. The goal is to create a routine you can return to, even on ordinary evenings when motivation is low.
Expect the first few days to feel strange
The first few nights will likely be the hardest.
You may reach for your phone automatically. You may feel as though you are missing something. The hour might initially seem much longer than expected. Stick with it.
By the fourth night, the new sequence should begin to feel more natural. You will know when to finish using your phone, where to put it, and what comes next. The final hour will start to feel less like an empty space and more like a routine.
Repetition removes decision-making. The more consistent the sequence becomes, the less effort it takes to begin each night.
Added Bonus
When you plug in your phone, dim the lights and brush your teeth at the same time.
This creates a clear transition into the final hour of the day.
Dimming the lights helps strengthen the contrast between daytime and nighttime. It reduces the amount of light reaching your eyes and supports the body’s natural preparation for sleep.
Brushing your teeth at this time also removes a common problem. You will not need to walk into a brightly lit bathroom just before bed and expose yourself to more light after spending an hour winding down.
Your routine might look like this:
Set your alarm.
Plug in your phone.
Brush your teeth.
Dim the lights.
Begin your chosen activity.
Once those steps are complete, there is very little left to do except move toward sleep.
Why six nights per week?
The goal is consistency without while respecting real life.
Six nights per week gives you enough repetition to establish a pattern while leaving room for a late event, a movie night, a televised sporting event you want to watch, or a night when the challenge is not realistic.
Missing one night does not erase the work from the rest of the week. Return to the routine the following evening.
Circadian health is built through patterns repeated over time.
Morning light helps tell the brain that the day has begun. A darker, quieter final hour helps communicate that the day is ending.
July is about making that transition clearer.
Key Takeaways:
Put away all screens one hour before bed, six nights per week
Choose your bedtime in advance and use it to determine your screen cutoff
Set your alarm morning alarm, finish necessary phone tasks, plug the phone in, and leave it there
Replace screen time with a calm activity that is realistic enough to repeat
For the bonus challenge, dim the lights and brush your teeth when the phone goes away
