Supplements for Dieting Insomnia

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xblinkiiix
xblinkiiix Posts: 24 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Whenever I start losing weight I always get hit with the worse bouts of insomnia. Usually it will eventually run its course but the first couple of weeks are miserable. It also feels cyclical since I need sleep to lose weight, but when I'm losing weight I can't sleep more than five hours a night. So frustrating. I take magnesium at night along with ashwagandha, but to no avail. I usually try to steer clear of melatonin because it makes me so groggy in the morning (and I'm already the type of person that will hit snooze for hours if given the chance)...

Tonight is my first night trying Kava after picking it up from a The Vitamin Shoppe earlier in the day. Does anyone else have experience with this? And other than Kava and the other supplements I mentioned above, what would you suggest for my insomnia?



(I've also been reading of Lemon Balm possibly?)


Thanks everyone :)

Replies

  • mpapa1856
    mpapa1856 Posts: 21 Member
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    I like sleepy time teas and my mom said to try a spoonful of peanut butter. I tried it and it worked for me. I wear the blaze and it loosely tracks the quality of your sleep and also your resting heart rate at night. I can’t regularly get more than about 6.5 hours a night and try to catch more one or two days a week. I found I get better sleep if I workout in the morning so that I don’t get too pumped up before trying to sleep. You might also watch out for supplements that may help you loose weight because they have caffeine and other things to artificially speed up metabolism.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,950 Member
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    How much weight do you want to lose and what did you set your weekly weight loss goal to? You may not be getting enough calories, and so you are hungry at night, which is keeping you up. You could also budget some calories for right before bed. I'm like a baby - I sleep better with a full(ish) belly :smiley:

    That said, what brand of melatonin did you try? 1-3 mg of Source Naturals has never made me groggy. Currently taking 1 mg timed release https://www.iherb.com/pr/Source-Naturals-Melatonin-1-mg-100-Tablets/4302

    If you are having trouble falling asleep, I recommend their sublingual. Haven't tried their lozenges yet; they used to be tablets: https://www.iherb.com/pr/Source-Naturals-Melatonin-Orange-Flavor-1-0-mg-100-Lozenges/24650

    There are different forms of magnesium and I don't remember the type people recommended for sleep. I used to take magnesium oxide and it did not help with sleep, in fact, it may have been counter-productive.

    I tried Kava years ago and didn't find it especially helpful.

    Are you exercising regularly, but not too close to bedtime? I find that quite helpful.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    I use this.

    https://www.amazon.com/Natural-Vitality-Supplement-Raspberry-Lemon/dp/B00BPUY3W0/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=calm&qid=1553265461&s=gateway&sr=8-3
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
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    Exercising too close to bedtime makes many people too wired to sleep. However, for some people it makes them tired enough to fall asleep easily. Try changing your exercise timing to see if that helps.

    I can't sleep if I ate too much late in the evening. It's better for me to go to bed just a little bit hungry rather than too full. This is also something that may vary for you depending on your body.

    I also cannot drink caffeine later in the day. I lost my tolerance for caffeine very suddenly in my late 20s. Now I have to switch to herbal or decaf tea in the afternoon instead of just drinking black tea all day. If you drink caffeine, try stopping your caffeinated drinks at noon.

    Finally, I can't take any over the counter sleep medicine. Benadryl (which shares its active ingredient with a lot of OTC sleep medicines) makes me jittery, not sleepy. I have had limited success with Sleepytime Extra, but melatonin works for me consistently. If it's making you groggy, you may be taking too much of it. Melatonin supplements typically come in much larger doses than most people need. I started with 1 mg supplements and broke them into quarters.
  • CharlieCharlie007
    CharlieCharlie007 Posts: 246 Member
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    I think I heard ZMA helps, but do your research.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,104 Member
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    2nd the time release low dose melatonin.

    Any more than 3mg is unnecessary.

    I only take the Melatonin when my insomnia lasts more than a few nights, normally just take Magnesium. But have recently been taking MyProtein's Electrolyte Plus which includes Sodium Chloride & Potassium too.

  • lalalacroix
    lalalacroix Posts: 834 Member
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    I've used kava tea off and on for years. It's helpful for relaxation. I generally also take melatonin or Benadryl for those tough nights.

    I personally have trouble sleeping when I'm hungry and I'm wondering if that could be an issue for you as well.
  • xblinkiiix
    xblinkiiix Posts: 24 Member
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    Thanks everyone for all of the replies!

    I think a huge part of it is I have been going to bed pretty hungry, which leads to me waking up constantly during the night. I probably should eat closer to bed, but is there any truth behind calories turning into fat calories if you eat them right before bed? 😬 or that your body won’t burn the calories as efficiently?
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    xblinkiiix wrote: »
    Thanks everyone for all of the replies!

    I think a huge part of it is I have been going to bed pretty hungry, which leads to me waking up constantly during the night. I probably should eat closer to bed, but is there any truth behind calories turning into fat calories if you eat them right before bed? 😬 or that your body won’t burn the calories as efficiently?

    Nope. None.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
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    xblinkiiix wrote: »
    Thanks everyone for all of the replies!

    I think a huge part of it is I have been going to bed pretty hungry, which leads to me waking up constantly during the night. I probably should eat closer to bed, but is there any truth behind calories turning into fat calories if you eat them right before bed? 😬 or that your body won’t burn the calories as efficiently?

    None whatsoever. Your body burns calories all the time to fuel its basic metabolic processes.
  • COGypsy
    COGypsy Posts: 1,181 Member
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    xblinkiiix wrote: »
    Thanks everyone for all of the replies!

    I think a huge part of it is I have been going to bed pretty hungry, which leads to me waking up constantly during the night. I probably should eat closer to bed, but is there any truth behind calories turning into fat calories if you eat them right before bed? 😬 or that your body won’t burn the calories as efficiently?

    I eat dinner almost immediately (within 30 minutes or so) before bedtime most nights. I've lost 60 pounds and maintained that loss for about 3 years now with that schedule. If calories before bedtime turned to fat in the dark, I'd weigh approximately 567 pounds by now :D

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