Josh Allen already has MVP status on the football field, earning the NFL’s Most Valuable Player honor for the 2024 season. Now, as he enters his ninth year as quarterback of the Buffalo Bills—and his first season as a new dad—he’s focused on mastering something else: sleep.
Between late-night diaper duty and preparing for another jam-packed NFL season, quality rest has become more of a priority than ever before. That’s one reason Allen has partnered with Natrol, a natural sleep aid brand, and incorporates its Ultra Sleep and Ultra Energy products into his wellness routine to help support both recovery and daytime energy.
Allen sat down with Prevention to share how sleep is key to his performance and recovery, the sleep tips and tricks that help him drift off to dreamland, and the wellness habits that help him show up feeling his best—on the field and at home.
What does bedtime look like for Josh Allen? Give us a peek at your wind-down routine.
In the past, being in bed before 11:30 p.m. was a win for me. But since becoming a father, I get into bed around 9 p.m. or 9:30 p.m. My wife and I are trying to limit screens because of the whole blue light thing and how it can impact your ability to fall asleep. It’s hard sometimes, especially when there are things to do or convos to have that you didn’t get to during a busy day, but we’re trying to be more strict with it—like, hey, when we’re in bed, this is what we’re doing, we’re sleeping. There are also those circadian rhythm lights that I see on “the feeds” that start to wind down for you—I really want to look into that and try to use them moving forward.
You just celebrated your very first Father’s Day—how has becoming a new dad impacted your sleep?
It’s given me a whole new perspective on sleep and the reality of sleep. There have been multiple nights in the past few months where I’ll have some 3 a.m. or 5 a.m. wake-up calls with the baby, and the next day I’ll definitely find myself being a little more irritable. But I just say to myself, “all right, let’s chill out, you’re good, just get a better night’s sleep tonight,” and I move on—and implementing Ultra Sleep and Ultra Energy into my regimen helps me do that. I don’t think that sleep is a luxury; it’s the foundation of everything, especially my own performance on and off the field. So going into this year, there’s that commitment to making sure I can maintain quality sleep.
How do sleep aids fit into your regimen, and how do they help you feel your best morning to night?
I don’t take them every night; I take them when I know I have the opportunity to get extra sleep and when I know I need the extra help—like now, when I’ve had a long few days. Ultra Sleep has 5 mg of melatonin to help get you fall asleep a little better, plus GABA and other natural ingredients (like tart cherry, lemon balm, and chamomile) that help with the quality of sleep. I do, personally, feel a difference when I take it. I do feel like I fall asleep quicker and stay asleep throughout the night better (this is so important because your body rebuilds and recovers while you snooze). And then, if you feel your best during the day, it’s going to roll into the night, it’s just a snowball effect.
What were some of your go-to sleep tricks growing up/in college?
When I couldn’t sleep, I used to try to think of nothing and then count to 100—I feel like I never made it to 100. And in college, we had a sleep doctor come talk to our team, and they told us something that stuck with me: they said keep it cool, quiet, and calm at bedtime. So when I’m in the hotel rooms for games, I turn that sucker [thermostat] all the way down.
Besides collecting ZZZs, what other wellness habits help you feel your healthiest?
Working out and making sure I’m lifting weights—I think those are some of the best things you can do for your health. I love saunas, and there’s lots of great science-backed stats on the health benefits of saunas. I also do red light therapy, physical therapy, and massages after games—those are the main things for making sure my body is in the right spot to perform. But sleep is really the most important piece of it all that a lot of people neglect.
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