Biggest Surprise

JRadd14

So I've been using the BM Link for about 2 weeks now. I knew that when I got it and started looking at the data there would be some surprises, such as how much energy is required to burn cals, etc. Since I'm away from home roughly 12 hours a day and sit at a desk most of the time, I knew getting in lots of steps and activity each day, but I didn't know it would be as hard as it is (which is why I've lost some but have remained at the same weight for the last 2 weeks...

But the biggest surprise was sleep! My goal is to get 7.5-8 hours. I try to be in bed before 9pm and my alarm goes off around 4:45/5am. While my sleep efficiency is decent (over 85%), I'm only averaging around 6 hours of sleep a night! I knew I was tired but I had no idea! And I could say the device is inaccurate, and it's possibly a tad off, but when I can see when I fall asleep, when my alarm goes off, and if I've gotten up in the middle of the night for something I see that too. It's all there. Clearly I'm not getting enough sleep, and that effects EVERYTHING...

Since I would really like to get up around 4am to workout in the mornings it's crucial that I start getting to bed earlier. I've used Natural Calm in the past when I did the Clean Cleanse and really like it so I'll likely start taking that and see what happens. It's also sometimes hard getting to sleep with the sun setting later and later, etc.

Anyone else have this problem or suprised and how little sleep they were getting? Any tips on getting more sleep??

verdemujer

Definitely I had that as a big surprise. What I find, is that the devise actually shows me up in the middle of the night for 15 to 30 minutes and I have no memory of it. I asked my husband, who does wake up if I get up, and he said no, I'm not sleep walking. I sent BM an email and they came back and told me that it is actually designed to register sleep when a person lies on their back, arms down at their side. Any other position effects the stats. I spend a lot of time sleeping on my side and my arms are almost always up under my pillow or curled up in front of me. I had my armband about six months when I went to see my doctor. I took all my data to him and he saw the poor sleep data too. He was concerned enough that he actually called me later after the appointment to talk with me about it. We are giving it a year with some adjustments to my diet and me upping my vigorous exercise attempts. If I still have this issue in a year, than we well conduct some sleep tests to see what is really going on. My husband did say I spend more time snoring in the past couple years than I did when we first were married. And I have found, as I've lost weight, that my sleep percentage is improving.

zlauerMom

Sleep was a big eye opener for me. In the winter my husband set the heating system back a little at night. He set it to come back to temperature at 5:30 in the morning. I could see where it would come on in my sleep pattern every day. LOL

Also, on nights my husband stays up late, I can tell what time he went to bed by looking at my sleep blips. My pets are a big problem for me, too. When they decide they want to join us or leave us in the night, I wake up. I never thought much about it until I could see it in my sleep pattern.

So far my strategy to deal with this is to make up for it on weekends. I can often get extra sleep on a Sunday morning.

JRadd14

Definitely I had that as a big surprise. What I find, is that the devise actually shows me up in the middle of the night for 15 to 30 minutes and I have no memory of it. I asked my husband, who does wake up if I get up, and he said no, I'm not sleep walking. I sent BM an email and they came back and told me that it is actually designed to register sleep when a person lies on their back, arms down at their side. Any other position effects the stats. I spend a lot of time sleeping on my side and my arms are almost always up under my pillow or curled up in front of me. I had my armband about six months when I went to see my doctor. I took all my data to him and he saw the poor sleep data too. He was concerned enough that he actually called me later after the appointment to talk with me about it. We are giving it a year with some adjustments to my diet and me upping my vigorous exercise attempts. If I still have this issue in a year, than we well conduct some sleep tests to see what is really going on. My husband did say I spend more time snoring in the past couple years than I did when we first were married. And I have found, as I've lost weight, that my sleep percentage is improving.

I too often lay on my side. I'm finding the data seems pretty accurate. And I too often have blips when my husband comes to bed late, etc. Did the doc say vigorous activity would help? I get moderate but very little vigorous so maybe I should focus on getting more. The Natural Calm supplement helps with relaxation, so I'm hoping it will keep me asleep and I'll get a more restful sleep despite my husband, dogs, etc.

JRadd14

Ditto on the weekends! I was just so surprised ... I thought I was getting around 7 hours when it is more like 6 or less. I do think the data is fairly accurate. And I do notice blips when my husband comes to bed late, the dogs wake me up, etc.

I'm hoping the Natural Calm helps me get better, deeper sleep so I'm not waking up multiple times... we shall see!

verdemujer

Yesterday I rode my bike to work and back home for the day plus did half my normal tuesday class for the core portion. It was 24.5 miles total and 3 hours of exercise with 30 of that being vigorous. I slept 7.5 hours last night with just minutes spent in non-spleep - 88% efficiency according to my band. Probably one of the best nights sleep I've had in a long while. So, yes, I would have to say that upping my vigorous exercise does help. I have noticed that on those days where I have exercised like that, I do sleep much better and my efficiency number is always higher than on my more normal exercise type days. Getting that vigorous number up is a pain in my tush though. I actually set my met level a small bit lower because it wasn't registering some of my activity at all as vigorous. I spin and bike fairly often and it just wasn't picking it up even though I could be pushing until it felt I was going to drop going up some hill. Now it tends to pick those minutes up more often.

infamousdrew76

Keep in mind that sleep is tracked very much the same way in which everything else is throughout the day. Meaning, a large part of it is based upon the data taken from the 3-axis accelerometer and fed into algorithms. Meaning, movement can be interpreted as being awake even though you are actually asleep. I tend to sleep on my stomach with my arms under my pillow and I believe the movement in my sleep is sometimes interpreted as interupted sleep.

I get a lot of the same results you are all talking about in which the bodymedia says i've gotten 6 hours of sleep when i've been asleep for 8. I doubt the data given by it because I have had a couple sleep studies done over the past couple months, and I sleep like a champion. I had previously had surgery to remove my tonsils, adenoids and uvula due to obstructive sleep apnea. My tonsils had gotten huge over the years and they were obstructing my airway when I slept. The sleep studies I had before surgery were very poor, and the Dr. told me I could have slept for 20 hours and still been tired. I was getting to the point where I would just nod off at my desk if I closed my eyes.

I guess my point with that last part is if you really think you are sleeping poorly, you should get it checked out. I've been down the road of not sleeping well, and it blows. There are simple questionares you can find online that will score you and risk for sleep disorders if you think you are in that category.

Becky388

I knew before BMF that my sleep was a mess but had NO idea how bad of a mess until I saw it in the graphs. My sleep pattern most nights look like a scan bar code, LOL.

JRadd14

Yesterday I rode my bike to work and back home for the day plus did half my normal tuesday class for the core portion. It was 24.5 miles total and 3 hours of exercise with 30 of that being vigorous. I slept 7.5 hours last night with just minutes spent in non-spleep - 88% efficiency according to my band. Probably one of the best nights sleep I've had in a long while. So, yes, I would have to say that upping my vigorous exercise does help. I have noticed that on those days where I have exercised like that, I do sleep much better and my efficiency number is always higher than on my more normal exercise type days. Getting that vigorous number up is a pain in my tush though. I actually set my met level a small bit lower because it wasn't registering some of my activity at all as vigorous. I spin and bike fairly often and it just wasn't picking it up even though I could be pushing until it felt I was going to drop going up some hill. Now it tends to pick those minutes up more often.

Good to know - I'll look into upping my vigorous activity... and yes, it's a bear to actually get "vigorous activity".... I have no problem with Moderate, but vigorous is quite challenging!

JRadd14

Keep in mind that sleep is tracked very much the same way in which everything else is throughout the day. Meaning, a large part of it is based upon the data taken from the 3-axis accelerometer and fed into algorithms. Meaning, movement can be interpreted as being awake even though you are actually asleep. I tend to sleep on my stomach with my arms under my pillow and I believe the movement in my sleep is sometimes interpreted as interupted sleep.

I get a lot of the same results you are all talking about in which the bodymedia says i've gotten 6 hours of sleep when i've been asleep for 8. I doubt the data given by it because I have had a couple sleep studies done over the past couple months, and I sleep like a champion. I had previously had surgery to remove my tonsils, adenoids and uvula due to obstructive sleep apnea. My tonsils had gotten huge over the years and they were obstructing my airway when I slept. The sleep studies I had before surgery were very poor, and the Dr. told me I could have slept for 20 hours and still been tired. I was getting to the point where I would just nod off at my desk if I closed my eyes.

I guess my point with that last part is if you really think you are sleeping poorly, you should get it checked out. I've been down the road of not sleeping well, and it blows. There are simple questionares you can find online that will score you and risk for sleep disorders if you think you are in that category.

Thanks for the info! In my case I think outside factors are affecting my sleep (stress, hubby, dogs, etc.)... and I've been under more stress than usual lately. And based on what you stated maybe I'm getting a little more sleep that it gives me credit for, so perhaps I'm closer to 7 hours sleep. I'll continue to work on it and if it doesn't improve I'll check with my doc. TY!

JRadd14

I knew before BMF that my sleep was a mess but had NO idea how bad of a mess until I saw it in the graphs. My sleep pattern most nights look like a scan bar code, LOL.

Ditto, Lol... and I feel it!

verdemujer

Keep in mind that sleep is tracked very much the same way in which everything else is throughout the day. Meaning, a large part of it is based upon the data taken from the 3-axis accelerometer and fed into algorithms. Meaning, movement can be interpreted as being awake even though you are actually asleep. I tend to sleep on my stomach with my arms under my pillow and I believe the movement in my sleep is sometimes interpreted as interupted sleep.

I get a lot of the same results you are all talking about in which the bodymedia says i've gotten 6 hours of sleep when i've been asleep for 8. I doubt the data given by it because I have had a couple sleep studies done over the past couple months, and I sleep like a champion. I had previously had surgery to remove my tonsils, adenoids and uvula due to obstructive sleep apnea. My tonsils had gotten huge over the years and they were obstructing my airway when I slept. The sleep studies I had before surgery were very poor, and the Dr. told me I could have slept for 20 hours and still been tired. I was getting to the point where I would just nod off at my desk if I closed my eyes.

I guess my point with that last part is if you really think you are sleeping poorly, you should get it checked out. I've been down the road of not sleeping well, and it blows. There are simple questionares you can find online that will score you and risk for sleep disorders if you think you are in that category.

Thanks for this post. I don't think I have really big issues as I haven't had tonsils or adnoids in a very long time. Though adnoids can grow back. But the fact that I snore now when I use not too as me interested in checking it out. I too think there are outside factors like hubby/kid/dog/temperature going on while I sleep but not all of it. I also know I sleep better if I'm hydrated. That's something else that can effect my sleep rythyms is if I am drinking enough fluids. As I said in my OP, if it's still there in a year, then we will look at it. Right now, while I'm more tired some days then others, I'm not falling asleep in the middle of sentence or while driving or sitting at my desk [well most of the time on that last one : D] so I think it's more the outside influences that are effecting me. And perhaps I'm a very vivid dreamer that moves a lot. :laugh:

determined_erin

I was very surprised by my amount of sleep. I felt like I always got 8 hours, but in reality, I get between 5 - 6 hours each night. Within the 4 months I've used BodyMedia, I have only slept 8 hours a few times! I have always felt lethargic and tired throughout my life, and I thought it was because of my weight. Now I know it's because I never give myself enough sleep.

debaloo

I was curious about my sleep as well. I snore and have an appliance to prevent snoring but wasn't sure how well it worked. When I forget to put it in (last night) my sleep was broken up. At one point it says I was awake for 17 minutes, but I don't remember. If I wear it I will get a solid night sleep (according to the armband).

8 hours of sleep is ideal but if for some reason you can't get 8 hours of sleep it's important to go to sleep at a time that coordinates with your REM cycles. Here is a link to a website that allows you to put in your wake up time and it will give you the options of what time you can go to sleep so you aren't waking up in the middle of a REM cycle which will leave you tired.
www.sleepyti.me

There are some natural things you can do to help with sleep. Just off the top of my head... keep away from a screen for at least an hour before you want to fall asleep. Take a hot bath or shower before getting in bed, the shock of the temperature change is supposed to make you sleepy. Read in bed.
Hope some of that helps.