Anyone who has even skimmed through many of the articles on this site understand the importance of recovery, especially sleep.
-How many hours of sleep do you REALLY get?
- What time do you really go to sleep? Wakeup?
- quality of sleep?
- any supps you use for enhanced sleep?
(ZMA,tryptophan…etc)
- and what has helped you improve your quality of sleep and overall recovery?
like crap, lately, actually
I used to be good for at least 8 hours of sleep a night, sometimes9, if i was lucky, 10
lots of stress teh last few months, I am getting to the point where 5 is not really unusual and I consider anything above 7 to be lucky
I take melatonin, but to be honest I dont think it does anythign. dont fall asleep any faster, dont feel anymore well rested. I DO have a tougher time waking up/feel more tired waking up, so I’m guessing/hoping that this means I am sleeping more deeply when I take it
ZMA never did anything for me sleep-wise
one thing I do when I’m having trouble sleeping because of stress is listen to MP3s on my computer. Not music, but either audio interviews (all from EliteFTS) or an audio book copy of “Think and Grow Rich” just to have something to “zone out” on instead of staring up at the ceiling working on an ulcer
I’ve always gotten between 6-7.5, and wake up a few times in the night. I do occaisionally get a solid 9, and I feel great afterwards. But it’s not something I can control so I don’t worry about it.
I can control what time I go to be though, so I aim for 9 hours before I have to get up. Even if I’m just lying there awake, I’m comfortable and relaxed, and that’s got to be good for recovery.
[quote] I take melatonin, but to be honest I dont think it does anythign. dont fall asleep any faster, dont feel anymore well rested. I DO have a tougher time waking up/feel more tired waking up, so I’m guessing/hoping that this means I am sleeping more deeply when I take it
[/quote]
Same thing here. I don’t sleep any more than I do without it, and I really feel like shit the next day. So I don’t take it anymore.
Was getting 4 hours of sleep but went to the doctors and got a prescription for zopiclone and now am getting 9 hours sleep.
During the weekdays, I get around 7-8 hours of sleep (go to bed at 8:30pm and wake up at 4:30 am). I take no supplements whatsoever (most of the time).
Personally, on the days I workout, I try not to sleep more than 8 hours. My hormones seem to work better when I don’t sleep in, but on the weekends (my two rest days), I sleep in. I started doing this when, at the same time, I upped my caloric intake. Now I’m gaining mass and getting leaner.
I try not to sleep in due to my “I can’t prove it” theory that too much or too little of anything is bad. Sometimes, if I feel like instantly getting some dream sleep, I take one B-Complex being going to bed.
Also, I make sure to eat before I go to bed. If I am hungry, my body will not allow me to sleep, so I must eat right before bed. This keeps me in asleep in bed, and gives fuel to my muscles, depending on what I eat. It’s possible that all of this is the reason why I never gain any fat anymore.
i go to military school, and the beds are absolute rubbish. but i bought one of those pads that resemble those swedish foam beds, and i put it under the bed condom and blankets.
it definatly improved the quality of my sleep, and although i might only get 6 hours of sleep during the weekdays, i feel much better waking up after having slept on that bad. i’m not talking about the entire mattress, just the pad you can pick up from walmart for like 50 bucks or something.
Yea, for me, its quality over quantity. Even though I don’t sleep in, I feel great after waking up.
I sleep generally around 8-10 hours(summer vacation) now. Without ZMA i can tell i am not getting as deep as sleep.
melatonin , cheese, zma
[quote]medog11 wrote:
Anyone who has even skimmed through many of the articles on this site understand the importance of recovery, especially sleep.
-How many hours of sleep do you REALLY get?
- What time do you really go to sleep? Wakeup?
- quality of sleep?
- any supps you use for enhanced sleep?
(ZMA,tryptophan…etc)
- and what has helped you improve your quality of sleep and overall recovery?
[/quote]
Being stressed and having a busy mind is the one thing that affects my sleep the most. Control that and you’ll sleep just fine imo.
Sleep quality’s been down the drain lately, and ZMA never did anything for me.
I’d be interested to know if anyone has had good experience with melatonine or any other supps.
[quote]Zen warrior wrote:
Sleep quality’s been down the drain lately, and ZMA never did anything for me.
I’d be interested to know if anyone has had good experience with melatonine or any other supps.[/quote]
There are a number of supplements that are supposed to improve the quality of sleep.
The best known is melatonin, but i think most people take too much of it. Start with a 1 mg dose and go up to 2, maybe 3 at most. Also, I have found the sublingual to be more effective as opposed to capsules.
Valerian root is another that is often quoted as promoting calming and sleep. Never did anything for me. My understanding is that it needs to build up in your system, so it must be taken for a few weeks for that to happen.
Supplements that promote calming and improved mode like Sam-e, Gaba and 5-HTP are all supposed to help with sleep. I dont have much experience with them, but they didnt do anything.
From my experience(both personal and buddies who keep the same brutal work schedule as me), sleep problems are almost always either lifestyle issues or psychologically based. Trust me when I tell you that you can get into a bad rut about not sleeping and worry like hell about it.
This of course will make your sleep problems much worse. The good news is everyone comes out of this after they realize they are doing it to themselves.
[quote]KBCThird wrote:
one thing I do when I’m having trouble sleeping because of stress is listen to MP3s on my computer. Not music, but either audio interviews (all from EliteFTS) or an audio book copy of “Think and Grow Rich” just to have something to “zone out” on instead of staring up at the ceiling working on an ulcer
[/quote]
Once you start this it becomes a necessity. I listen to the radio as I go to sleep and I find its almost impossible to fall asleep without it now unless I’m extremely tired. For anyone having trouble with their “mind wandering” this is definitely the best way to overcome that.
6-7 hours, less lately because it’s finals week.
I don’t get very much sleep on weekdays (5 hours), but I have no problem falling asleep at 11:30 pm and no problem waking at 4:30 am.
I also try to either relax and close my eyes or get a 20 minute nap in in the middle of the afternoon if possible.
I also take the stinky Valerian Root capsules at 11 pm, but I don’t know how effective they.
Like others on this thread, I can’t sleep without white noise or audio noise. I usually listen to an audiobook (Napoleon Hill is one my faves, too), but sometimes I will listen to ambient music (Marconi Union) or Dr. Jeffrey Thompson, who creates good theta soundwave cd’s that are great to fall asleep to.
I eat before I go to bed, but not immediately. If I eat 30 min to an hour before, I fall asleep easier. Also, someone on here, I think it was Tampa Terry, said do not take fish oil before sleep because it increases brain activity. He is absolutely correct.
When I was taking the fish oil before bed, my mind would start racing after I laid down, and my roommate said he could often hear me talking, even yelling in my sleep.
Now, the problem is gone.
i take a 3 mg dose of melatonin and am generally out in about 15-20 minutes. i can get 9-10 hours of sleep and still be dead ass tired when i wake up and be a bit sluggish through the day, im not quite sure if its because im not getting good quality sleep or what. i dont usually wake up in the middle of the night, maybe every other night to piss.
8-9.5 school days
around 12 on weekends
melatonin sometimes
[quote]KBCThird wrote:
like crap, lately, actually
lots of stress last few months, I am getting to the point where 5 is not really unusual and I consider anything above 7 to be lucky
…ZMA never did anything for me sleep-wise…staring up at the ceiling working on an ulcer[/quote]
Pretty much the same for me for similar reasons…I’m certain it affects the (lack) of “fast” results of my training, which is consistent, along with age, etc…