Sleep problems?

[Lexxie&Nicky]

I have always had trouble going to sleep and tend to sleep as late as my kids will allow. I tried two days in a row to get up early and run before my husband left for work, but couldn't do it. I go to sleep so late that it is mere hours before my alarm goes off. Rather than just blowing off running {as might have happened in the past} I have been running after my husband gets home and it cools off some between 8-9 pm EST. That being said, since I started, I cannot get to sleep. I mean 4-5 am and I am still awake. I cannot keep going like this, woke up with a headache both days and need to rest.
As I said, sleep is a problem for me normally but this is above and beyond - I am guessing that it is connected to my exercise.

Any advice, tips, tricks I might try?
Thanks!

 

[WDWFAN9]

Gosh, I don't have any suggestions, I just hope it gets better for you. I do all my training on a TM after 7PM and don't have any problems with sleep. I know that if I could only train in the morning it would never get done. I do have trouble sleeping the night before a race, and have found that one Tylenol PM helps, but that is only a once-in-awhile event.

Hang in there!!

 

[LadyDooley]

I run in the evenings as well, between 8-9 pm... I actually pretty much wear myself pretty well out and found that since I have been running I have slept better than in the past.

I too go to bed late and get up late. by 2 am I am ready for bed.

I wish I had better advice, the only thing I do is eat kind of heavy after my run.. that may be what makes me sleepy

 

[MeredithRX]

This is exactly why I can't exercise in the evening. I'm also not a morning person, so the majority of my daily exercise breaks are done on my lunch hour. The only morning I can drag myself out of bed is Saturday morning for my long distances. Ugh! I have a lot of trouble getting to sleep if I don't consciously make the effort.

My problem is (and I had this problem in the past when I was working late and not getting home until 9:30 or 10 at night) that after exercise and late work, I can't seem to shut my mind off. I think it messes with my natural rhythms and makes me think it's time to be awake. I always assumed it would wear me out and I'd go right to sleep, but it does exactly the opposite. No matter how tired I am, my brain just won't shut off and let me go to sleep.

The only time I exercised/worked late and then slept successfully was by making sure I took special steps once I got home. I immediately took and shower and got ready for bed. No eating a meal (maybe a small snack if I did a lot of exercise), no TV or computer time, nothing but bedtime stuff. If I started trying to pay bills or watch a quick TV show or eat dinner...I was awake until 4am. I had the best luck when I got dressed for bed, turned down the lights, and grabbed a book for an hour or so. I still fall asleep much better that way!

Good luck!

 

[Lexxie&Nicky]

Thanks everyone!

That is exactly my problem - my mind just keeps going and going.
I ran late this morning and did I pay for it - it was humid and I still have a headache.
I am just going to have DH get me up - if I set an alarm, I will just hit snooze.

I am going to try to get up tomorrow morning and I will let you know how it goes. Maybe if I actually get out of bed, I will be too sleepy to realize I am going to exercise until I get back

 

[crewmatt]

One thing I'd caution you against is having too much sports drink or anything with a lot of sugar in it, it can keep you up. I personally love running at night as it helps relax me.

 

[Lexxie&Nicky]

Thanks Crewmatt - I am afraid that I am not to the point that running relaxes me yet. I do hope that it does, but I really need to lose 35 pounds and so it is still work at this point. I think if I could get 20 off running will become much easier.

I will remember that if I run at night again, I am really hoping to get into a morning routine.
Thanks again all

 

[buckeyecinderella]

I share your pain! I am completely not a morning person. So it is literally painful for me (headaches even nausia sometimes) to get up early to run. On the other hand, if I run in the evening, even early evening, it can cause problems for me to go to sleep. I guess I am still just too wired to fall to sleep at a reasonable time.

I would love to become a morning runner. But until I figure out how to go to sleep at a decent hour, I'm not sure it is possible. I can manage to get up early one day a week for my long run on the weekend. But on a regular basis, I need sleep. If I don't get enough, I am worthless the rest of the day.

I am really worried about how early I'm going to have to get up for the Princess 1/2 - probably 3 AMish. It will likely be more difficult than the run itself - that's how bad it is for me! So I too am looking for suggestions. But it may be something I'll just have to deal with when the time comes. I have read where if you get enough sleep in the days prior to a race, if you don't sleep much the night of the race, generally you'd be okay. I hope that is true!

 

[swim-mom]

Im not a morning runner, as I need to eat and have coffee and just "veg".

However, I did run 5 miles last night at 11pm and was done at 11:58pm --- by the time I showered and iced it was almost 1am before I could relax to sleep.

I find I can fall asleep, but it does interfere with with my ability to be alert the rest of the day too. Coffee is my friend, but it should not be my best friend - LOL

Sadly, my LR is on Sunday so either I get myself together and run earlier or I have to deal with being dead tired on Monday.

to think next week is 6 miles.....................

 

[cewait]

First I am not a doctor... but physiologically and in laymans terms

You need to run in the morning until you get a few more months exercise under your shoes. The muscles in the body need time to cool, recover, feed and relax. As this process works your blood chemistry is probably glucose rich as it attempts to feed the muscle. This is also 'brain food' and with the higher levels you are not going to easily shut the brain down.

Once you are into a routine for a few moths and fitter aerobically you will burn a little higher percentage fat as fuel and the glucase levels will not be as high - allowing the brain to be quieter at bedtime.

 

[Lexxie&Nicky]

Great info - thanks!

I woke up again with a bad headache today, I am having trouble with my bed I guess. I slept the Sunday night in my son's bed and woke up as DH was coming in to wake me for my run. For a little experiment, I will be sleeping in his bed again tonight and see what happens tomorrow morning!

 

[SamSam]

I feel your pain...I am not a morning person and much prefer all my exercise to be in late afternoon. I did try to do early am exercise (5:30am), thinking I would eventually start being able to go to sleep earlier than my usual 12pm....didn't happen! After 2 months I finally decided this just didn't work for me.
Because of the heat, I do now go out for my miles by 9am, but definitely not 6am! I wish I was a morning person, but I'm not...I'm at my best late morning and early afternoon.

If I workout after 7pm, it will keep awake.

 

[Lexxie&Nicky]

I didn't make it out at all today I ended up just having a rotten day and I felt bad because by the time DH got home, I was really ugly. It was his birthday too! I thought I would get out at least for a 20 min walk but then my mom, step-dad and niece showed up and that went out the window. I even have felt off physically today - headache went away within a couple of hours so I am beginning to wonder if it is because I didn't get a run/walk in at all today. Am I becoming one of those people who 'like' to exercise? Wouldn't that be something?

Days like today make me really wish I had a treadmill, I have central air so I could have used that - it was hot and humid today, there was no way I was pushing a buggy and listening to two kids whine just for a walk.

 

[MommyMcQueen]

I too tend to have some sleep problems too - I'm also an evening runner. I usually run between 7-8pm and it takes me a while to unwind after I get home. Most nights I'm able to fall asleep by midnight, but on nights of my long run I hardly sleep at all - even though I'm exhausted! Besides being so stiff and sore, the use of any fuel products can really effect me. I'm also very sensitive to caffeine (can't have a soda with caffeine after 12;00pm otherwise I'm up all night) so it is a balance using the right amount of product for energy for my runs but not soo much that I'll be up all night. (I'm just starting to use some fueling products so I'm still working on this balance.)

On nights I don't run I usually go to bed much earlier and am able to fall asleep pretty well - last night I went to bed right after my kids at 8:30pm!

One other note on the caffeine - I used to be able drink anything until a few years ago, then all of a sudden I was not able to drink any, I'd lay in bed all night with my mind just racing. I don't know if you're drinking much of anything with a lot of caffeine in it, but for me I'm usually okay if I have one for lunch, but anything after that during the day keeps me up for hours at night. Cutting out caffeine has helped a ton!

Good luck and hope you get a good nights sleep!