Tool
Two-Week Sleep Diary for Adults 50+
What it does
Add each morning when you went to bed, how long it took to fall asleep, and how many times you woke. After a couple of weeks you have your own averages to bring to a clinician. The National Institute on Aging suggests a sleep diary for exactly this.
Add each morning. A couple of weeks is enough. Kept only in this browser.
Read this first
- A diary is a tool for a conversation with your doctor. It does not diagnose a sleep problem and it cannot say whether your sleep is normal.
- Time in bed is not time asleep. The National Institute on Aging says older adults need about seven to nine hours of sleep.
- Your diary is kept only in this browser. Nothing is sent to Fit after 50. Clearing your browser data removes it.
- Talk with your doctor if you have trouble sleeping, are very sleepy in the day, or snore loudly with pauses in breathing.
Related: Sleep after 50: what changes, what helps, and when to ask.
About the evidence on this page
- Review status
- Claims source-checked
- Last updated
- Claims source-checked
- Clinician review
- None recorded. No physician or other licensed clinician has reviewed this page.
The diary follows a National Institute on Aging suggestion. It computes your own averages and nothing more. The checks were prepared with AI assistance and the ratings are proposed, pending confirmation by a person.
Claims we checked
- Moderate evidenceThe National Institute on Aging suggests keeping a sleep diary for a couple of weeks to find patterns to discuss with your doctor.Supportive guidance exists, with more limits or less consistency than a strong rating.This rating is proposed, pending confirmation by a person.Limits: A diary helps a conversation with a clinician. It does not diagnose anything.
- Moderate evidenceThe National Institute on Aging says older adults need about the same amount of sleep as all adults, seven to nine hours each night.Supportive guidance exists, with more limits or less consistency than a strong rating.This rating is proposed, pending confirmation by a person.Limits: One authoritative source was checked. It is a general amount. Some people need more or less, and health conditions matter.
- Moderate evidenceThe National Institute on Aging advises talking with a doctor about sleep problems, and notes that insomnia, sleep apnea, and restless legs syndrome become more common with age.Supportive guidance exists, with more limits or less consistency than a strong rating.This rating is proposed, pending confirmation by a person.Limits: Fit after 50 cannot tell whether you have a sleep disorder. Persistent sleep problems need a clinician.
Sources
- Sleep and Older Adults, National Institute on Aging, NIH (content reviewed February 6, 2025) (2025)
Limitations
- It does not diagnose a sleep problem or say whether your sleep is normal.
- Time in bed is not time asleep.
- Talk with a clinician if you have a health condition, symptoms, or restrictions.
Update history
- : First version published.