Sleep what is that?

CariMurph13

Anyone else struggling with sleep after changing lifestyle habits? I went to personal trainer and was so physically tired but it took me 48 hours to fall asleep and several sleeping tablets that didn’t work!!! I was nearly hospitalised because I just couldn’t fall asleep. I have that a lot of nights at the moment as I’ve restricted my diet to 1280. I’ve been vegan for nearly 20 years but I wonder if this is a macro issue that’s not helping at least. Should I try changing anything or? Thanks in advance, advice and guidance or opinions welcome! X Cari from ENGLAND X

csplatt

Are you too hungry to sleep?

AnnPT77

CariMurph13 wrote: »

Anyone else struggling with sleep after changing lifestyle habits? I went to personal trainer and was so physically tired but it took me 48 hours to fall asleep and several sleeping tablets that didn’t work!!! I was nearly hospitalised because I just couldn’t fall asleep. I have that a lot of nights at the moment as I’ve restricted my diet to 1280. I’ve been vegan for nearly 20 years but I wonder if this is a macro issue that’s not helping at least. Should I try changing anything or? Thanks in advance, advice and guidance or opinions welcome! X Cari from ENGLAND X

As a starting point, I'm concerned that you may've cut calories further than is compatible with best health: How fast have you been losing weight? If you haven't been at it for long, or have had some "eat-backs" along the way, how fast are you trying to lose weight by limiting yourself to 1280.

It's possible that a quite petite, sedentary woman might need to eat that little in order to lose weight at a sensibly moderate weight . . . but it would be punitively low even for me as a non-large 67-year-old woman, even without exercise in the picture.

Severely undereating can affect sleep, for sure. Even if your calories are not too low - which I truly fear they may be - undernutrition can have bad effects on sleep. The exact factors could potentially vary individually. General good nutrition is a good goal: Enough protein (like 1.3-1.8g daily per kg of healthy goal weight), enough healthy fats (maybe 0.7-1 g daily per kg), and plenty of varied, colorful fruits and veggies daily. It's hard to get good nutrition on ultra-low calories.

There are certain micronutrients that can affect sleep, but if you eat plenty of fruits/veggies, those should fall into line reasonably well.

For some people, timing of eating matters to sleep, too . . . but that can cut either way. Some sleep poorly if they eat right before bed, others sleep poorly on an empty stomach. It can require experimenting.

You also mention a personal trainer. There are two things about that: If you're exercising a lot, and only eating 1280, there's a very good chance that you're undereating. Also, if you're exercising close to bedtime, that's a sleep-killer for some people. I've read a few people here say that only morning workouts seem to make their day and sleep fall into place in a good way. Again, that can require experimenting, since it varies individually.

Sleep is - as you know by now - super important for health and well-being. If you find you must lose weight a little more slowly in order to sleep, that would almost always be a good trade-off.

Best wishes!