Exercise-Induced Insomnia

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BrewerGeorge
BrewerGeorge Posts: 397 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Anybody have experience with exercise insomnia? I've recently been having a lot of trouble sleeping on nights that I have Muay Thai. Last night I was up until after 4am. I used to have insomnia quite a bit when I was fatter, but that's all-but disappeared since I've stopped drinking so much and begun losing weight. This insomnia is new, and like I said only on nights that I box.

Researching the web a bit, I'm only finding references to insomnia caused by glycogen or carb deficit after intense exercise (mainly from paleo or Atkins-type sites), but I'm not exactly cutting carbs. I'm eating just under 1600 Cal per day and 2200 on the days with Muay Thai, which is supposed to give me a 900 Cal/day deficit. My baseline goal carbs are 219g/day (goes up to 300g on boxing days), so I should be FAR from carb deficit territory, right?

I'll try adjusting my eating so I have more carbs right after exercise and before bed, but I don't have high hopes for the reasons above. Does anybody have any experience or advice other than that?

Replies

  • Joneses17
    Joneses17 Posts: 135 Member
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    I have experienced this if I workout after work and near bedtime. I have had to adjust my schedule and workout before work. This is often the case regardless of the type of workout however more noticiable after a cardio workout. I attribute the insomnia to the energy boost your body gets after a workout. Even though I often feel drained immediately after I complete my workout I get a slight boost of energy an hour or so after my workout which is just enough to keep me restless at night.
  • jaxdiablo
    jaxdiablo Posts: 580
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    I just had a case of this issue last night. I got home from the gym right around 7:45. I had lifted from like 6:10 to 7:15, got to the house, made dinner, did my normal wind down relax watch crap tv routine. Went to bed around 11:00, was up till like 1:30 just rolling around. I didn't wake up through out the night which is very nice for a change. And I woke up feeling very refreshed this morning at 7:30. I know I need more than 6 hours of sleep, but apparently that was enough last night. As for the nutrient reasons behind this, I really have no idea, but if there is more insight I'd love to know about it.
  • mallorybriann
    mallorybriann Posts: 1,380 Member
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    I went to the gym at 10 pm and couldn't get to sleep and when I finally did, I was up, tossing and turning and had awful dreams.
    Seems like when I work out late, my dreams are more vivid :(
    I'd love to know.
  • Catzwitch
    Catzwitch Posts: 205 Member
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    I know if I workout anytime after 8:00 PM I am up till all hours of the night. My energy levels increase significantly after a workout. This would be awesome if I could manage to get my butt out of bed in the morning to workout, but I am not a morning person and that just ain't happening.
  • BrewerGeorge
    BrewerGeorge Posts: 397 Member
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    My class is at 6:30-7:30 and I NORMALLY don't even go to bed until at least 1:00. (What I'm calling insomnia is me tossing and turning until 4:00 or 5:00.)
  • ashnm88
    ashnm88 Posts: 748
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    I can't workout within 3 hours of going to bed or I toss and turn all night.
  • wonca
    wonca Posts: 81
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    If you don't already do a post work out recovery drink, you can use that to carb load. 3:1 (or 4:1) carbs to protein is what I do.
  • slarkin57
    slarkin57 Posts: 2
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    Hi,
    Did you ever find a solution for this?
    It's really a problem for me. Lack of sleep = no will to exercise.
    I had been going to the gym a lunch time but am going to try early mornings before work.
    Let me know if you've come across any other fixes.
    thanks

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