Exercise makes me tired!

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digdeep2011
digdeep2011 Posts: 31
in Fitness and Exercise
I wake up at 6 every morning, get the kids ready for school and at 8.30 - 8.45 I make my way down to the gym. I usually do either a spin class or weights and 20 minutes cardio. I will also be up to day 6 of my 30 day shred. The thing is as soon as i get home and have a shower, all i want to do is sleep! The rest of my day is carried out in a sluggish kind of way. I eat a good breakfast, porridge, milk and raisins one hour before working out and I always have a protein drink after my workout. Isn't exercise suppose to give me energy? I am in bed by 11 at the very latest so I get enough sleep at night?
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Replies

  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
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    I always hear "work out in the morning and you'll have so much energy all day." But for me, that is TOTALLY false. I typically work out after work around 6pm or so, and am able to get in a great burn and then go home, eat dinner, shower, and go to bed. I sleep like a rock.

    This morning, because I've got stuff going on after work, I went to the gym at 5am. I have been SO TIRED all freaking day. Plus, I didn't have as much energy for a good workout as I do in the evenings.

    I just think it's different for everyone. Some people are too amped up after a work out to sleep--not me. The key is just doing what works best for you!
  • eddie8131
    eddie8131 Posts: 600 Member
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    I absolutely think that more sleep is the answer. How much more is a personal thing. I have a 6:00am spin class which is a 45 minute drive away (from my driveway to on-the-bike), so I must be out the door at 5:15am which means having everything ready the night before and getting out of bed at 5am at the very very latest. When I go to bed at 11 or 12 I cannot function the following day so I did 10pm and it made all the difference. Although that early I did have to kind of force myself to sleep. You just have to find that "sweet spot" for yourself. Part of it for me was ego. I wanted to believe I can wake up early without enough sleep but it was foolish.
  • CallmeSbo
    CallmeSbo Posts: 611 Member
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    Low and medium intensity workouts make me feel refreshed. But high intensity workouts like spinning, HIIT make me feel sleepy. I usually take a nap after doing them.
  • zenJes
    zenJes Posts: 198 Member
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    im definitely not an early morning person and i think the big thing is the time of the morning. When i train at night ie 6 or 7pm im way more on to it and alert and then sleep like a rock after! But i have bootcamp 3 mornings a week, the tue and thur 6am workouts are horrible for me, im usually half a sleep and only get into the zone in the last 20 so minutes of the workout and then after i am tired all day but for some reason if we take it back an hour like on saturdays where i have a 7am class i love it and im pumped all day.. so i think it just depends on you!! and that extra hour does make a difference, so maybe try getting to bed just a tadge earlier..
  • MB_Positif
    MB_Positif Posts: 8,897 Member
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    Hmm...try getting some good protein before your workout too. I find that when I eat some protein first thing in the morning I feel better most of the day :)
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    Are you sure your nutritional needs are being met? 10 bucks says you're undereating.
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
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    I absolutely think that more sleep is the answer. How much more is a personal thing. I have a 6:00am spin class which is a 45 minute drive away (from my driveway to on-the-bike), so I must be out the door at 5:15am which means having everything ready the night before and getting out of bed at 5am at the very very latest. When I go to bed at 11 or 12 I cannot function the following day so I did 10pm and it made all the difference. Although that early I did have to kind of force myself to sleep. You just have to find that "sweet spot" for yourself. Part of it for me was ego. I wanted to believe I can wake up early without enough sleep but it was foolish.

    I do agree with you that adequate sleep is TOTALLY essential, however mornings are just not for everyone. I'm a big advocate of getting your 8 hours in, and I pretty much always do, but even so morning workouts are just not for me. I would love to enjoy working out first thing, simply because then I have more time with my family at the end of the day, but I just don't see it happening no matter how well rested I am.

    But you're very right about sleep---it's your friend!
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
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    maybe you're not getting all the nutrients you need.
  • LoriBarefoot
    LoriBarefoot Posts: 218 Member
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    I'm the same way! No matter what time of day if I run (I'm fine if I walk) I am a zombie afterward. My husband laughs at me. I don't want to eat, shower, change, cook, NOTHING! I just want to sleep!
  • MMarvelous
    MMarvelous Posts: 1,067 Member
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    I absolutely think that more sleep is the answer. How much more is a personal thing. I have a 6:00am spin class which is a 45 minute drive away (from my driveway to on-the-bike), so I must be out the door at 5:15am which means having everything ready the night before and getting out of bed at 5am at the very very latest. When I go to bed at 11 or 12 I cannot function the following day so I did 10pm and it made all the difference. Although that early I did have to kind of force myself to sleep. You just have to find that "sweet spot" for yourself. Part of it for me was ego. I wanted to believe I can wake up early without enough sleep but it was foolish.

    I do agree with you that adequate sleep is TOTALLY essential, however mornings are just not for everyone. I'm a big advocate of getting your 8 hours in, and I pretty much always do, but even so morning workouts are just not for me. I would love to enjoy working out first thing, simply because then I have more time with my family at the end of the day, but I just don't see it happening no matter how well rested I am.

    But you're very right about sleep---it's your friend!

    I don't do morning workouts either except Pilates or Yoga.

    I would recommend more sleep like others as it makes a world of difference.
  • tialynn1
    tialynn1 Posts: 886 Member
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    I am not a morning person. But, since I started this journey, I have been getting up at 5:30 every morning and finding myself awake through the day. I don't get that usual sluggish through the day. I also do a cardio in the evening after work and it doesn't affect me going to sleep. I will say there are some mornings that I am not into it as much as other mornings. But, I feel energized all day afterwards.
  • Vash41288
    Vash41288 Posts: 41
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    Yeah I usually do not like doing work outs in the morning because I feel slightly tired(not exhausted though) through out the day. So I usually go to the gym at 5pm and do 2 1/2 hours then come home shower and unwind. I'm feeling pretty tired yet good by that time, and just relax at home and take care of small things, usually after that I end up getting a nice rest. However sleep and rest days are very very important for over all fitness and muscle growth. If you are getting super exhausted/tired or extremely sore you might be over working out.
  • digdeep2011
    digdeep2011 Posts: 31
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    cool thanks guys :) Ill try going to sleep a bit earlier and maybe having protein powder in my porridge instead of raisins? Id love to work out evenings but the kids make that a bit hard. If all else fails I might just try pushing my routine back an hour or so and see if that helps.
  • cansmith80
    cansmith80 Posts: 67
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    I always hear "work out in the morning and you'll have so much energy all day." But for me, that is TOTALLY false. I typically work out after work around 6pm or so, and am able to get in a great burn and then go home, eat dinner, shower, and go to bed. I sleep like a rock.

    This morning, because I've got stuff going on after work, I went to the gym at 5am. I have been SO TIRED all freaking day. Plus, I didn't have as much energy for a good workout as I do in the evenings.

    I just think it's different for everyone. Some people are too amped up after a work out to sleep--not me. The key is just doing what works best for you!

    I'm with you. I don't care how many hours of sleep I've had, I just can not work out in the morning. I have tried. I do feel energized right after, but I'm ready to pass out before lunch. I get my best workouts in the afternoons right after work.
  • lambertj
    lambertj Posts: 675 Member
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    I used to feel this way and started taking 1000 mg of Vitamin D3 every morning after breakfast, within two weeks my energy level is out of this world. Worth giving a try
  • damonmath
    damonmath Posts: 359 Member
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    I wake up at 6 every morning, get the kids ready for school and at 8.30 - 8.45 I make my way down to the gym. I usually do either a spin class or weights and 20 minutes cardio. I will also be up to day 6 of my 30 day shred. The thing is as soon as i get home and have a shower, all i want to do is sleep! The rest of my day is carried out in a sluggish kind of way. I eat a good breakfast, porridge, milk and raisins one hour before working out and I always have a protein drink after my workout. Isn't exercise suppose to give me energy? I am in bed by 11 at the very latest so I get enough sleep at night?

    You aren't getting enough sleep! Here is my day:

    4:45 - awaken
    5:45 - breakfast
    6:30 - in the gym
    7:30 - recovery drink
    - continue my day
    8:00 - 9:00 - sleep

    If you'll notice I get at least 8 if not 9 hours of sleep a night. This is because I am slamming my body in the mornings. Sometimes your body needs more sleep to repair than you planned for. This is why we take days off. Our bodies can only take so much.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,241 Member
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    Are you sure your nutritional needs are being met? 10 bucks says you're undereating.

    This was my first thought as well. If you are not eating enough you will get really run down by working out. In other words were need more information to really help. What is a typical day like without exercise? What activity level did you set yourself at in the goals section and what is your weekly weight loss goal? Do you eat all your calories and how much protein do you eat? All are important and helpful when seeking to advise you along with knowing how much sleep you get.
  • MrsWife2011
    MrsWife2011 Posts: 28 Member
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    I have actually fallen asleep during a morning workout, at least is was at home, during a high intensity workout video sat down to rest for a min during cool down, closed my eyes and woke up about 20 min later on the floor also done this during cool down in yoga.

    I don't do morning workouts anymore unless I get at least 8 hours of sleep. The right amount of sleep is the key for me.
  • escloflowneCHANGED
    escloflowneCHANGED Posts: 3,038 Member
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    I go to the gym at 5am for an hour, go to work and then go back at 5:30pm, I find the morning workout wakes me up and I feel awake all day. I go to bed at 10:30pm, fridays I go to bed around 2am and I am still good...I don't have kids though, I bet they can suck some energy out of you haha
  • viclee1
    viclee1 Posts: 156 Member
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    how long have you been into that routine? Sometimes it takes awhile for your body (and mind) to get used to it. I get up by 6am every morning, and have just figured that a bit of tiredness goes with the early morning rise! Also having kids is draining! I would make sure to get your iron checked, as it turns out anemia is quite common. Hope you get yourself into a better groove, being tired is no fun!

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