Miami, FL

Get better quality sleep in 2024 with these five tips

Published

2 years ago

January 1, 2024

Get better quality sleep in 2024 with these five tips

(CNN) – Each new year offers hope for a new beginning that focuses on you. Will it be eating a healthier diet? Getting more exercise? Nurturing new and old relationships? Reducing or coping better with stress at home and at work?

All these efforts are sure to bring benefits to your long- and short-term health. Yet you’re more likely to succeed in your objectives, experts say, if you start by focusing on better quality sleep. Being well-rested boosts mood and improves energy, thus giving you a jump start to achieve your dreams and goals.

The “sweet spot” for restorative slumber is when you can sleep continuously through the four stages of sleep four to six times each night. Since each cycle is roughly 90 minutes long, most people need seven to eight hours of relatively uninterrupted z’s to achieve this goal.

The good news is you can easily train your brain to get restorative slumber. Here are five science-backed ways to obtain high-quality sleep in 2024.

Establish a sleep schedule and stick to it
Establish a set wake-up time, even on weekends, vacations or after a night of poor sleep, experts say. If bedtime and wake-up times change from day to day or on weekends, your sleep rhythms aren’t predictable, and the body doesn’t know how to respond, clinical psychologist and sleep expert Michael Grandner told CNN in an earlier interview.

“The brain likes regularity and predictability,” said Grandner, who directs the sleep and health research program at the University of Arizona and the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Clinic at the Banner-University Medical Center in Tucson.

“Waking up at the same time every day,” he said, “and then adding light and movement as soon as you wake up, will set your other rhythms for the day and give you increased energy and mood.”

Avoid certain food and drink
Don’t turn to alcohol to calm your nerves or help you sleep. Alcohol may help you fall asleep, but it traps you in the lighter stages of sleep. Your body needs to experience all three stages of sleep – light sleep, the REM or dream state, and deep sleep – to repair and restore itself fully.

Staying away from caffeine after midday and avoiding heavy or spicy foods that can create heartburn or other digestive issues can help as well.

Practice good sleep hygiene
There are many more ways to train your brain to go to sleep and stay asleep. Good habits include eliminating blue light and noise, taking warm baths or doing yoga for relaxation, and keeping the bedroom cool and free of electronic devices.

Science tells us that we rest better in cooler temperatures of about 60 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit (15 to 20 degrees Celsius).

Blue and other LED lights emitted by laptops, smartphones and television interfere with the production of melatonin, the body’s sleep hormone.

Make the bedroom sacred
Last, but definitely not least, reserve your bed for sleep and sex. As normal as it may seem sometimes to work from bed or play games with the kids in bed, doing so doesn’t teach your brain to view the bedroom as a place for slumber.

The holy grail of sleep tips
There’s one more recommendation that Grandner swears by, saying that in his clinic it is as effective as prescription sleep medications: “The best sleep tip you can ever give somebody is get up – don’t lay in bed awake but not sleeping.”

“Whether it’s the beginning of the night or the middle of the night, if you’ve been awake for 20 or 30 minutes, get up and reset,” Grandner said. “Maybe you just need five minutes to get sleepy, or maybe an hour, but don’t spend that time awake in bed.”

Why is that so important? Because lying in bed awake can form an association in your brain that can lead to chronic insomnia, Grandner said. Instead of being a restful spot where you peacefully fall asleep, your bed becomes an anxious place where you toss and turn and wake up tired.

“It’s counterintuitive, but spending time in bed awake turns the bed into the dentist’s chair,” he said. “You want the bed to be like your favorite restaurant, where you walk in and you start getting hungry even if you just recently ate. You want the bed to do that for sleep.”

Still not sleeping like a baby? You may need professional sleep training or a visit with a sleep specialist to rule out sleep apnea or serious sleep disorders. Search online for a diagnostic sleep center in your area.

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Miami, FL

Magic complete rare sweep over Heat, and more takeaways!

Published

8 hours ago

March 15, 2026

Press Room

Magic complete rare sweep over Heat, and more takeaways!

While the Orlando Magic nearly blew another large lead, they outlasted the Miami Heat once again, this time inside Kia Center. The Magic’s 121-117 win moves a full game up on the East standings against their Florida foe, where they stand alone as the No. 5 seed.

What were a few of our takeaways?! Let’s examine!

Orlando escaped despite another late comeback from opponent:

Mar 14, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley goes to gather his team during a timeout against the Miami Heat during the first half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Playing their third game in four nights, the Orlando Magic came out guns ablazin’. They had their best first quarter of the season, scoring a season-high 41 points against a soft Heat defense on 16-of-23 shooting — including 20 points (10-13 FG) coming inside the paint alone.

They were easily the more physically dominant team. Orlando was stifling the Heat offense while capitalizing on easy looks and pushing the envelope whenever the situation required offensively. Ultimately, the Magic scored 71 first-half points, tied for their third-most in a first half this season.

Yet, we saw another large lead — 22 points, to be exact — vanquish because of poor decision-making and even worse shooting. Orlando nearly doubled the Heat in turnovers (19-10) and shot just 37.2 percent in the final quarter.

The Magic escaped, but it was a far-from-pretty final five minutes after the first ~42 were largely uncompetitive. Surviving these large blown leads isn’t sustainable long-term.

The Jamal Cain revenge game, like everyone expected:

Feb 5, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic forward Jamal Cain (8) shoots during the second half against the Brooklyn Nets at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images | Mike Watters-Imagn Images

We could talk about Paolo Banchero’s 27 points or Desmond Bane’s 21, but I want to shed light on Jamal Cain.

Orlando Magic forward Jett Howard was a late scratch due to illness, opening up an opportunity for Cain to get some burn … against his old team, where he spent two seasons.

And the fourth-year wing had his best game of the season.

In 19 minutes off the bench, Cain tallied a season-high 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range. He had seven rebounds while meeting Jaime Jaquez Jr. at the rim in the third quarter.

His impact was present and, frankly, rather unexpected, given the role that the two-way wing has possessed for most of the season.

Magic now complete rare sweep:

Mar 14, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic guard Desmond Bane (3) drives to the basket against the Miami Heat during the first half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

As we discussed above, the final score may have been closer than how it felt, but the Orlando Magic completed a unique season sweep in their biggest game of the season.

Orlando entered having won four straight and six of its last eight against Miami. Now, it can add another W to the ledger, completing a rare five-game series sweep over the Heat.

The last time the two teams played five times in a single season was 1993-94, with the Magic taking three of those five meetings. This four-point victory also marks the first time they have swept the season series since 2007-08, when the Heat won 15 games (compared to the Magic’s 52).

Winners of seven-straight, Orlando improves to 38-28 and is now two games up on Miami in the loss column (one game total). It was a huge win with roughly four weeks left in the season.

Man turns himself in as the driver of a fatal Miami hit-and-run after a good samaritan reports to police

Published

20 hours ago

March 14, 2026

Press Room

Man turns himself in as the driver of a fatal Miami hit-and-run after a good samaritan reports to police

March 14, 2026 / 7:40 PM EDT
/ CBS Miami

A man is behind bars in connection with a hit-and-run crash that killed a pedestrian in Miami.

Deshawn Daniels, 41, was charged with leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death, according to his arrest report.

Deshawn Daniels, 41, turned himself in to Miami Police in connection to a hit and run that killed a 62-year-old pedestrian

Miami-Dade Corrections

According to Miami police, Daniels did not slow down or stop after hitting Antonio Sanchez, 62, who later died at the hospital.

The incident happened on Friday, shortly before 3:30 a.m., in the area of Northwest 12th Avenue and 28th Street.

The report said it was an anonymous citizen who went to the Miami police station and told the front desk that there was a beige SUV in their apartment complex that matched the description of surveillance video they saw on the local news.

Detectives arrived at the apartment and reviewed the videos to confirm that it was the same car that hit Sanchez. The damage on the front of the SUV also matched what they were looking for, which Miami Police spokesperson Mike Vega said was “extensive damage in the front end.”

While they were investigating, Daniels turned himself in voluntarily at the Miami police station, admitting that he was the driver involved in the crash.

Police said at the time of the incident that if Daniels hadn’t stopped, he wouldn’t have faced any charges since the light was green when Sanchez crossed the street. However, because he left the scene of the crash, he is facing a felony charge.

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Miami, FL

Orlando Magic-Miami Heat Injury Report, Betting Lines, How to Watch, Lineups & More

Published

1 day ago

March 14, 2026

Press Room

Orlando Magic-Miami Heat Injury Report, Betting Lines, How to Watch, Lineups & More

Game date, time and location: Saturday, Mar. 14, 8:00 p.m. EST, Kaseya Center, Miami, Florida

TV: FanDuel Sports Network Sun, FanDuel Sports Network Florida (Orlando)

Radio: 104.3 FM (Miami/Ft. Lauderdale), ESPN 106.3 FM, (West Palm Beach), FOX Sports Radio 105.9 FM (Ft. Myers/Naples), 1450 AM (Suart), 97.7 FM (Florida Keys), WAQI 710 AM (Spanish-language broadcast, South Florida), 104.5 FM The Beat (Orlando)

VITALS: The Miami Heat (38-29) and Orlando Magic (37-28) meet for the fifth and final regular season matchup. So far this season Orlando have won all four contests which also includes an NBA Cup quarterfinals game on December 9. Last season, the teams split the series, 2-2. The Heat are 81-65 all-time versus the Magic during the regular season, including 45-26 in home games and 36-39 in road games.

PROJECTED STARTERS

MAGIC

G Jalen Suggs

G Desmond Bane

C Wendell Carter Jr.

F Tristan da Silva

F Paolo Banchero

HEAT

G Davion Mitchell

G Tyler Herro

C Bam Adebayo

F Pelle Larsson

F Andrew Wiggins

INJURY REPORT

MAGIC

Franz Wagner: Out – Ankle

Anthony Black: Out – Abdominal Strain

Jonathan Isaac: Out – Knee

Jamal Cain: Out – G League (Two-Way)

Colin Castleton: Out – G League (Two-Way)

Alex Morales: Out – G League (Two-Way)

HEAT

Tyler Herro: Questionable – Quadriceps

Norman Powell: Questionable – Groin

Dru Smith: Probable – Hip

Andrew Wiggins: Out – Knee

Nikola Jovic: Out – Back

Keshad Johnson: Available – G League Assignment

Trevor Keels: Available – G League (Two-Way)

Jahmir Young: Out – G League (Two-Way)

Vlad Goldin: Available – G League (Two-Way)

Terry Rozier: Out – Not with team

Spread: Heat -3.5 (-112), Magic +3.5 (-108)

Moneyline: Heat -164, Magic +138

Total points scored: 235.5 (over -110, under -110)

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call .

QUOTABLE

Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley after their win over the Washington Wizards: “I saw second night of a back-to-back take place. I think our guys got ahead a little bit. They did a great job of playing with pace, playing with speed, coverages, trying to keep guys in front of us. You got to give Washington a ton of credit, you know, what they’ve been dealing with over the last couple of days. They came out and played hard and that was a big portion of it.”