What can I do about too little sleep?

[Tux]

It's not that i have trouble falling asleep, i have plenty of klonopin, with my job, personal training, and trying to get my internet business going, at the moment I usually am lucky to get about 5hrs a night. It hasn't affected my weight gain TOO much yet, but I know it will, and it affects my strength, immune system, appetite, and makes me feel like crap alot. Anything I can do till I get a few more clients and my online business takes off and I can start getting 8-9hrs a night again? Any suggestions would be most welcome!

 

[gstacker]

i feel for you and ive been there many times but the truth is theres no substitute for a goodnights rest.... its a struggle for me too to, i wish there was 32hours in a day or 9 days in a week somtimes

 

[Tux]

So no suggestions on how to avoid or stave off some of the sides? This will only last a few more weeks, by end of feb. at latest I'll be back to 8-9hrs a night. Thanks for at least replying though.

 

[musclemom]

There are no substitutes for sleep. You can trick yourself by taking stimulants, you can take vitamins and eat well to optimize your health, but no, there is nothing you can do that will make up for missed sleep.

A lot of people are under the impression that sleep is wasted time spent doing nothing. Sleeping is not only when our bodies recuperate and repair, but when our brains perform vital "housekeeping."

Sleep is so critical that if you really, really are lacking in it, you should cut back on how much you are working out and give that time to yourself in extra hours of sleep several nights a week. Eventually you will reach a point of diminishing returns if you push anyway. When you become physically and mentally exhausted your life starts to unravel.

I wish you the best of luck in your new ventures!

 

[billfred]

So no suggestions on how to avoid or stave off some of the sides? This will only last a few more weeks, by end of feb. at latest I'll be back to 8-9hrs a night. Thanks for at least replying though.

Take a nap after lunch. It is what all great workaholics do.

 

[STUNNAMAN]

read up on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleep

This is what I use:

Biphasic sleep with a long sleep episode at night and a "siesta" in early afternoon is also easily explained and justified by circadian rhythm research.

I was doing 3 hours at night and 3 in the day - fine for a while... now it's more like 5 night 2-3 in the day cause a little less busy

in the same situation as u with the internet biz, i find splitting up the sleep lets u get more quality work done... hour right after waking up just fly through emails,coding... also great if you have to deal with international partners and clients as you will be awake for at least part of their business day

and makes eating more meals easier

try it out -- its not for everyone; hard to get started but well worth it

 

[TheOak84]

Smoke pot, sleep well.

 

[Mavafanculo]

I guess there's 2 aspects to sleep deprivation, avoiding catabolism and maintaining mental and physical performance.

1) catabolism - when you are sleep deprived, your body starts to interpret that as a "flight" scenario and cortisol levels shoot up. cortisol eats muscle. some helpful supp's:

-> glutamine and bcaa's - helps keep cortisol levels low and also the glut interferes with exiting cortisols muscle wasting effects

-> Vitamin C hi-dose- studies have demonstrated it can blunt the post-workout spike in cortisol, I imagine it would do the same under other triggers (lack of sleep)

-> phosphatidyl Serine (sp?) - same as above


2) performance -

-> Creatine - yes, creatine. studies have shown HUGE improvement in sleep-deprived memory and physical performance ( as well as strength) tests in college age and elderly subjects

-> tyrosine - an amino acid, tested successfully in sleep-deprived air force pilot simulator studies

-> panthotenic acid - supports adrenal function and aids stamina

also, in general supplement with a hi quality whey protein which will help immune function and support serotonin levels, both of which will be negatively impacted by sleep deprivation

 

[bigdofba]

I guess there's 2 aspects to sleep deprivation, avoiding catabolism and maintaining mental and physical performance.

1) catabolism - when you are sleep deprived, your body starts to interpret that as a "flight" scenario and cortisol levels shoot up. cortisol eats muscle. some helpful supp's:

-> glutamine and bcaa's - helps keep cortisol levels low and also the glut interferes with exiting cortisols muscle wasting effects

-> Vitamin C hi-dose- studies have demonstrated it can blunt the post-workout spike in cortisol, I imagine it would do the same under other triggers (lack of sleep)

-> phosphatidyl Serine (sp?) - same as above


2) performance -

-> Creatine - yes, creatine. studies have shown HUGE improvement in sleep-deprived memory and physical performance ( as well as strength) tests in college age and elderly subjects

-> tyrosine - an amino acid, tested successfully in sleep-deprived air force pilot simulator studies

-> panthotenic acid - supports adrenal function and aids stamina

also, in general supplement with a hi quality whey protein which will help immune function and support serotonin levels, both of which will be negatively impacted by sleep deprivation

Good post!

 

[nikkita]

reduce stress so that the hours you sleep count

 

[kiosk]

is not necessarily quantity of sleep, but quality of sleep and more importantly delta wave (deep) sleep cycles and REM sleep....there is no magic amount of sleep although 7-8 hours is the norm some people do just fine with 5 others need 10

is worse 10 hours tossing and turning than 5 hours like a log

so focus on quality first...a simple test, if you are sleepy during the day then you are sleep deprived, and there is no replacement (not yet !)