Insomnia

[Carrera]

Anybody suffer insomnia? I notice that now I'm training very hard I don't feel tired - which isn't a good thing.
For example, yesterday I rode my bike about 3 hours pretty hard then went to work. I did a 12 hour shift through the night and finished at 7.30 a.m. Soon as I got into bed I didn't feel tired and couldn't sleep.
I winded up with just 2 hours sleep and am aware this is a problem as I know sleep is very important for anyone who trains hard. I've tried taking valerian root, hot milk drinks and herbal teas and sometimes I can get 8 hours. Other times I simply don't feel tired (like this morning).
Is this more to do with working shifts or does intensive aerobic work cause problems with sleep patterns?

 

[zaskar]

I had the same problem till i got use to the training, in my case my hrt took to long to come down so it kept me up. ( i think) don't worry soon you will have no choice but to sleep.

 

[Postie]

Originally posted by Carrera
Anybody suffer insomnia? I notice that now I'm training very hard I don't feel tired - which isn't a good thing.
For example, yesterday I rode my bike about 3 hours pretty hard then went to work. I did a 12 hour shift through the night and finished at 7.30 a.m. Soon as I got into bed I didn't feel tired and couldn't sleep.
I winded up with just 2 hours sleep and am aware this is a problem as I know sleep is very important for anyone who trains hard. I've tried taking valerian root, hot milk drinks and herbal teas and sometimes I can get 8 hours. Other times I simply don't feel tired (like this morning).
Is this more to do with working shifts or does intensive aerobic work cause problems with sleep patterns?

Hi Carrera.

The problem is completely normal. I don't think I've trained with anyone at any endurance activity that can't relate.

Inability to sleep is an indication of overtraining as is an increase in morning heart rate. If the sleep problem exists after each and every workout you're probably not incorporating enough of the longer easy stuff. However, I can not train with a complete void of the problem either. When I pick up the training to the point of being "heavy" and incorporating much more then just cycling, then I find that it takes a couple of months before my sleep ability adjusts to the extra effort.

You'll probably want to treat the "sleep remedies" with some care though because people that get used to taking things to help them sleep often find that their bodies respond with not being able to sleep without a "remedy".

 

[Carrera]

I'm relieved it's not just me who has this problem then. I don't specifically feel overtrained but I do feel far more alert and nervous than is usual with too much energy. Normally I'd get into bed after a night shift and simply fall asleep. These days I get into bed and don't feel tired.
It's true I go pretty hard on the bike, although not beyond what's sensible. I did manage to sleep well this morning but was forced to take medication - which I agree isn't a good thing to do. I was hoping a herbal remedy might help but the herbal remedies seem to mild.

Originally posted by Postie
Hi Carrera.

The problem is completely normal. I don't think I've trained with anyone at any endurance activity that can't relate.

Inability to sleep is an indication of overtraining as is an increase in morning heart rate. If the sleep problem exists after each and every workout you're probably not incorporating enough of the longer easy stuff. However, I can not train with a complete void of the problem either. When I pick up the training to the point of being "heavy" and incorporating much more then just cycling, then I find that it takes a couple of months before my sleep ability adjusts to the extra effort.

You'll probably want to treat the "sleep remedies" with some care though because people that get used to taking things to help them sleep often find that their bodies respond with not being able to sleep without a "remedy".

 

[Postie]

Originally posted by Carrera
I'm relieved it's not just me who has this problem then. I don't specifically feel overtrained but I do feel far more alert and nervous than is usual with too much energy. Normally I'd get into bed after a night shift and simply fall asleep. These days I get into bed and don't feel tired.
It's true I go pretty hard on the bike, although not beyond what's sensible. I did manage to sleep well this morning but was forced to take medication - which I agree isn't a good thing to do. I was hoping a herbal remedy might help but the herbal remedies seem to mild.

I can relate to what you're saying. I find the herbal remedies quite mild myself and find I'm too quick to turning to a medical one. The one saving grace I have is that 35% of the time the sleep aids cause the opposite affect and give me a bad "almost nervous" night sleep. It is mentioned on the box that it could happen. However the fact that this happens makes it much easier to keep me from wanting to use them sparingly.

I also know what it's like to over train. I've never over trained to the point of becoming worse at what I do, but I have had the symptoms of "increased bad mood", increased resting heart rate (not long term just over the period of a few days until I give myself a couple days off), and an inability to sleep. In time I realized that added recovery efforts reduced these issues while allowing no negative response on my gains.

Good luck.

 

[Aztec]

Thsi absolutely applies to me. A hard session cuts my ability to sleep way down. The night of a twilight criterium is the worst, even 4 hours later I can't hardly fall asleep. Yesterday I did a hard interval session in the morning, and STILL slept poorly. After 5 hours, BANG, that was it. I fell asleep OK, but woke early. Grrrr.

Note: hard weighting does the same thing to me. Especially one that involves squats (although it's been a year+ since I've done that).

 

[Carrera]

Weight-training doesn't usually affect my sleep negatively. When I used to weight-train exclusively I think I tended to sleep excessively since my fitness level wasn't that good and the muscular effort just made me sleep more (10 hours at a time!).
Of course, mattters are complicated by the fact I work nights. Today, for example, I got back home about 8.00 in the morning after a 12 hour shift and simply couldn't sleep. I ended up doing a cycle training session and headed way out into the country. Funnily enough, anyone who (like me) is crazy enough to skip sleep and head for the hills may find that the effects are odd. What I found today was that I soared up hills without even getting remotely out of breath while the norm is to find myself puffing a lot more.
I ended up going to bed around 3.00 in the afternoon and got up at around 7.00 p.m (at least 4 hours is better than nothing).
It seems that what's happening is my fitness level has improved somewhat while increased oxygenation has kick-started my metabolism. This probably wouldn't trouble people who don't work nights and keep a regular sleep pattern but, on a personal level, I'm finding shift work and training aren't easy to reconcile.
You can buy non-prescription sleeping aids but I was hoping herbal remedies might help or possibly herbal teas. However, the herbal option has turned out to be too mild so I'm now trying Diphenhydramine Hydrochloride - a none-prescription drug that's available over the counter at a chemists.
If anyone knows of any good herbal alternatives I'd be interested as I'm not keen on using pharmaceuticals.

Originally posted by Aztec
Thsi absolutely applies to me. A hard session cuts my ability to sleep way down. The night of a twilight criterium is the worst, even 4 hours later I can't hardly fall asleep. Yesterday I did a hard interval session in the morning, and STILL slept poorly. After 5 hours, BANG, that was it. I fell asleep OK, but woke early. Grrrr.

Note: hard weighting does the same thing to me. Especially one that involves squats (although it's been a year+ since I've done that).