Forget waking up at dawn: Young Koreans are embracing 'sleep maxxing'

Sleep maxxing is gaining attention among young Koreans as an alternative to the earlier miracle morning trend, emphasizing sleep quality over early rising. Followers use routines, sleep masks, supplements, fragrances and wearable devices to improve and measure rest. The trend reflects chronic fatigue and stress, but experts warn that excessive focus on sleep scores and routines can create additional anxiety.

South Korea’s Quality of Life of Youth 2025 report found that 32.2 percent of people aged 19 to 34 experienced burnout in 2024.

The number of patients receiving medical treatment for sleep disorders rose from 1.04 million in 2020 to 1.3 million last year, according to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service.

Kang uses a smartwatch, supplements, a sleep mask and earplugs as part of an effort to improve sleep quality.

Jung Hye-won dims the lights, reads an e-book, uses a steam eye mask and massager, and sprays fragrance on her bedding before sleep.

Samsung Medical Center neurology professor Joo Eun-yeon said excessive pressure to sleep well can increase alertness and interfere with sleep.

Published Oct 7, 2026 12:00 am KST

Items used by office worker Kang to get a good night's sleep include, from left, a massager, sleep earplugs, a theanine supplement and a sleep mask. Courtesy of Kang

Forget waking up before dawn to squeeze in another hour of self-improvement. For a growing number of young Koreans, getting ahead now means getting better sleep.

The "miracle morning" trend, which encouraged people to wake up early and devote the extra hours to exercise, studying and other forms of self-development, once swept through Korea. Now, a contrasting wellness trend known as "sleep maxxing" is drawing attention among younger generations.

The term combines "sleep" with "maxxing," internet slang for maximizing or optimizing something. Rather than simply trying to sleep longer, followers seek to improve sleep quality by systematically adjusting everything from daily habits to their bedroom environment.

Kang, a 30-year-old office worker, is among those willing to spend money in pursuit of a better night's sleep. A smartwatch tracks total sleep time and the proportion of deep sleep, while supplements are part of a routine aimed at relaxation. A sleep mask and earplugs have also become bedtime essentials.

"There were many days when I was exhausted but couldn't actually fall asleep once I got into bed," Kang said. "I can't reduce the amount of time I spend working, so I'm trying to properly manage at least the time I have for sleep."

Jung Hye-won, 31, who works at an information technology company, has developed her own "sleep routine." After showering when she gets home from work, she dims the lights and reaches for an e-book instead of her phone.

When her eyes feel tired, she uses a steam eye mask. When her body feels stiff, she uses a massager to relax. Just before getting into bed, she sprays a sleep-inducing fragrance on her bedding.

"It's like warming up before exercising," Jung said. "I'm giving my body a signal that it's time to sleep."

Changes in Park's weekly sleep scores, as measured by a smartwatch / Courtesy of Park

Sleep maxxing focuses less on "how long you sleep" than on "how well you sleep." For some adherents, that means turning sleep into something to be measured, analyzed and optimized.

Park, 35, who experienced sleep problems after leaving a job a year ago and recently found a new one, starts each morning by checking the sleep score recorded on a smartwatch. Lifestyle changes, including giving up caffeine, have been introduced one by one to see how each affects the score.

"I consistently manage the quality of my sleep because I'm worried that poor sleep could interfere with my schedule the next day," Park said.

From ‘sleep when you're dead’ to investing in rest

The rise of sleep maxxing represents a notable shift in a society where sacrificing sleep has long been associated with hard work and ambition. A Korean expression roughly equivalent to "you can sleep when you're dead" reflects an attitude that has often treated sleep as time that could be spent working, studying or improving oneself.

Behind the growing appreciation for rest, however, are chronic fatigue and stress among young Koreans.

According to the "Quality of Life of Youth 2025" report from South Korea's national statistics agency, 32.2 percent of people aged 19 to 34 said they experienced burnout in 2024.

Data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service also show that the number of patients receiving medical treatment for sleep disorders increased from 1.04 million in 2020 to 1.3 million last year.

But efforts to perfect sleep can create a paradox: Trying too hard to sleep well can itself become another source of stress.

"When my sleep score is low, I immediately start worrying that I'm going to feel terrible that day," Park said. "Paying so much attention to the score actually made me become obsessed with sleep."

Jung described a similar pressure.

"If I skip even one part of my bedtime routine, I get anxious that I won't sleep properly," she said.

Experts say increased attention to sleep can be positive but warn against turning rest into yet another performance metric.

"It appears that the pressure to constantly manage oneself amid intense competition has now extended to sleep," said Joo Eun-yeon, a professor of neurology at Samsung Medical Center. "The stronger the thought that you must sleep well becomes, the more alert you can become, which can interfere with sleep."

Joo said sleep naturally varies from day to day and cautioned against becoming overly concerned about nightly scores.

"Rather than letting yourself be swayed by sleep scores, it's important to consistently maintain a regular daily rhythm," she said.

The irony of sleep maxxing may therefore lie in its attempt to optimize something that often comes easiest when people stop trying to control it. For young Koreans who once embraced early mornings as another opportunity for self-improvement, even going to bed has become something to work at.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.

“睡眠最大化”正逐渐成为韩国年轻人关注的焦点，它取代了早起的“奇迹早晨”潮流，强调睡眠质量而非早起。追求睡眠质量的人们会使用睡眠习惯、眼罩、营养补充剂、香氛和可穿戴设备来改善和监测睡眠。这种趋势反映了慢性疲劳和压力，但专家警告说，过度关注睡眠评分和睡眠习惯反而会加剧焦虑。

韩国《2025年青年生活质量报告》发现，到2024年，19至34岁的人群中有32.2%的人会经历职业倦怠。

据韩国健康保险审查评估院统计，接受睡眠障碍治疗的患者人数从2020年的104万人增加到去年的130万人。

为了改善睡眠质量，康使用了智能手表、营养补充剂、睡眠眼罩和耳塞。

郑惠媛在睡前调暗灯光，阅读电子书，使用蒸汽眼罩和按摩器，并在床单上喷洒香水。

三星医疗中心神经病学教授朱恩妍表示，过度追求良好睡眠的压力会增加警觉性，从而干扰睡眠。

发布于2026年10月7日凌晨12:00（韩国标准时间）

上班族康女士为了睡个好觉，使用的物品包括（从左至右）：按摩器、睡眠耳塞、茶氨酸补充剂和睡眠眼罩。图片由康女士提供。

别再想着天不亮就起床挤出一个小时自我提升了。对越来越多的韩国年轻人来说，想要成功，就得睡个好觉。

“奇迹早晨”风潮曾席卷韩国，鼓励人们早起，并将多余的时间用于锻炼、学习和其他形式的自我提升。如今，一种截然不同的健康潮流——“睡眠最大化”——正吸引着年轻一代的关注。

这个词结合了“睡眠”（sleep）和“maxxing”（网络俚语，意为最大化或优化某事物）。追随者们并非仅仅追求延长睡眠时间，而是通过系统地调整从日常习惯到卧室环境等方方面面来改善睡眠质量。

30岁的上班族康女士也愿意花钱改善睡眠质量。她会佩戴智能手表追踪总睡眠时间和深度睡眠比例，并服用一些助眠补充剂来放松身心。眼罩和耳塞也成了她睡前必备的物品。

康说：“很多时候我筋疲力尽，但躺到床上却怎么也睡不着。我无法减少工作时间，所以我尽量合理安排睡眠时间。”

31岁的郑慧媛（音译）在一家信息技术公司工作，她养成了一套自己的“睡眠习惯”。下班回家后，她会先洗个澡，然后调暗灯光，不再玩手机，而是拿起一本电子书来看。

当她眼睛疲劳时，她会使用蒸汽眼罩。当她身体僵硬时，她会使用按摩器放松身心。临睡前，她会在床单上喷洒助眠香氛。

“这就像运动前的热身一样，”郑说。“我是在给我的身体发出该睡觉的信号。”

朴女士每周睡眠评分的变化（由智能手表测量）/ 图片由朴女士提供

睡眠优化法与其说是关注“睡眠时长”，不如说是关注“睡眠质量”。对一些拥护者来说，这意味着要将睡眠变成一种可以衡量、分析和优化的东西。

35岁的朴女士一年前离职后出现了睡眠问题，最近才找到新工作。她每天早上醒来第一件事就是查看智能手表上的睡眠评分。为了观察每项改变对睡眠评分的影响，她逐一尝试了各种生活方式的改变，包括戒掉咖啡因。

“我一直很注重睡眠质量，因为我担心睡眠不足会影响我第二天的日程安排，”朴女士说。

从“死后才睡觉”到投资休息

“睡眠最大化”的兴起标志着社会的一个显著转变，在以往社会中，牺牲睡眠往往被视为努力工作和追求抱负的象征。一句韩语谚语“死了才能睡”反映了一种观念，即人们常常把睡眠时间视为可以用来工作、学习或自我提升的时间。

然而，在人们对休息日益重视的背后，是韩国年轻人普遍存在的慢性疲劳和压力。

根据韩国国家统计局发布的《2025年青年生活质量报告》，2024年，19至34岁的人群中有32.2%的人表示会经历职业倦怠。

来自健康保险审查评估服务机构的数据还显示，接受睡眠障碍治疗的患者人数从 2020 年的 104 万人增加到去年的 130 万人。

但追求完美睡眠的努力可能会产生悖论：过于努力地追求良好睡眠本身可能会成为另一种压力来源。

“当我的睡眠评分很低时，我就会立刻开始担心当天会感觉很糟糕，”朴女士说。“过分关注评分反而让我对睡眠产生了执念。”

荣格也描述过类似的压力。

“如果我睡前例行程序中哪怕漏掉一个环节，我都会担心自己睡不好觉，”她说。

专家表示，更加重视睡眠可能是有益的，但警告不要将休息变成衡量绩效的又一个指标。

三星医疗中心神经病学教授朱恩妍表示：“看来，在激烈的竞争中，人们不断自我管理的压力如今已经延伸到了睡眠领域。‘你必须睡个好觉’的想法越强烈，你就越容易保持警觉，这反而会干扰睡眠。”

Joo表示，睡眠质量自然会因人而异，并告诫人们不要过分关注每晚的睡眠评分。

“与其受睡眠评分的影响，不如坚持保持规律的作息时间，”她说。

因此，睡眠最大化的讽刺之处在于，它试图优化的恰恰是人们不再试图控制睡眠时，睡眠反而更容易达到最佳状态。对于曾经将早起视为自我提升机会的韩国年轻人来说，就连睡觉都成了需要努力的事情。

本文来自《韩国日报》（《韩国时报》的姊妹报），由人工智能生成系统翻译，并由《韩国时报》编辑。