Day 5 - Trouble staying awake

[emilaiti]

Hey everyone!!

 

This is my first whole30 and so far I haven't had too many issues. I haven't craved chocolate or sugar in the past three days which is HUGE because I used to have a ridiculous sweet tooth which caused me to eat some sort of sweet at almost every single meal. My biggest issue is that I am a computer science major and therefore am staring at a computer screen pretty much all day and night working on homework so I don't have the luxury of not using electronics before bed because I pretty much spend all of my free time working on homework or one of my research projects. So there really is no escape from my electronics. After reading It All Starts With Food, I made the connection that my cortisol levels never properly decrease because of the artificial light from my computer screen. Which makes sense because I am on my laptop all of the time doing homework/research.

 

Anyway, I've noticed that I tend to be fairly sleepy all of the time. I do have more energy since I started my whole30 but I get hit with waves of super sluggishness and sometimes fall asleep/take naps in the lab on my laptop. Naps help to an extent but I have a rather strict schedule I like to follow to ensure I finish everything I need to and taking naps all of the time doesn't really help and ends up just wasting time. Any other suggestions?

 

Thank you

[MeadowLily]

Go outside and take a walk, breath some sweet clean air into your lungs...even for only 10 minutes around the block.   The extra sleepy phase should pass in about 12 days.  I know that homework goes on well into the night.  Try to get to bed on time.  Don't drink any caffeine and report back.

[AmyS]

I teach college so if your schedule is even a little bit like mine, this is mid-semester time, with Just About Everything Either Due Or Tested. Everyone I'm teaching right now looks half dead! 

 

It is really hard to alter your schedule once you've set it for the semester. I know this. But you might take some time to evaluate your schedule to see if there is ANY wiggle room for, say, earlier bedtimes (don't laugh too hard), and even, if possible, longer sleep times at night. There really is just no substitute for sleep.  What's happening is that you're not having the constant sugar highs/crashes, which is fantastic!! But your body is showing you how tired it is. Anything you can do to get rest right now is great.

 

I also want to say how impressed I am that you're taking this on right now. I've been talking to my students about adequate rest and nutrition, just in general terms, and I know how hard it is when stress is high.

 

If you'd like some more specific tips, post a couple of days' worth of meals, sleep, exercise, water consumption, stress levels, and anything else you think would be relevant, and we can help you out.

[Ytu]

Can you have f.lux installed on your computer? It dims the screen light to a warmer, softer light when the sun has gone down. it might help a bit. I've heard of people having good experiences with wearing red or orange goggles after sundown, too, to block out blue light.

[emilaiti]

@Medowlily - I have ADHD so I will pass out immediately after anything with caffeine, so no caffeine for me But I will definitely try walking around outside when I get sleepy. I almost always go to bed before midnight and wakeup anywhere from 7:30am -9am. 

 

@AmyS - I will try to rearrange my schedule a little bit. I am taking 18 credits with 2 research projects, also have a horse on campus with me, two foster dogs and am part of a varsity sport, so sleep is tends to be the one thing that gives. 

As for daily meals, breakfast(around 8) is usually two or three bananas fried in coconut oil with cinnamon with a handful of blueberries and a glass of hot water with cinnamon.

Lunch (around 11) is has been either grilled garlic lime chicken with grilled asparagus, taco meat (with my own seasoning) and zucchini with salt/pepper/garlic, homemade dolmathes (lamb, onions, dill, mint, olive oil, wrapped in grape leaves with lemon and olive oil sauce) and salad with olive oil and vinaigrette I make. 

Dinner(around 4) is leftovers from lunch with the addition of two servings of fruit (usually either a box of raspberries and/or a box of blackberries and/or an apple) and broccoli or asparagus. 

Then I usually have another meal around 8pm that is another salad or asparagus. I am absolutely addicted to asparagus, its my kryptonite! 

I've been suggested to try to eat eggs for breakfast but the smell of them makes me physically ill and I will actually throw up. We never really understood why this happens. Same thing happens when I am around fish.

Water, I drink almost a glass of water every hour, not including what I drink during/after workouts.

Exercise, I row so we have either weight lifting for an hour or are on the rowing machines for about an hour and a half doing pieces from 5-15 minutes, depending on what our workout for the day is. I also ride my horse 5 days a week for a solid 20 minutes. 

I am generally not too stressed. I have a lot going on but because of the way I arranged my schedule and my friend group, we make sure we are never really stressed because we know it inhibits our academic/athletic performance (I know I am incredibly lucky to have these people in my life and so grateful they keep me calm 90% of the time!). But this week I do not have anything due but I have an exam next week and a grad school interview over spring break with University of Washington which I am incredibly nervous but confident about. I've been working/catching up on my research projects a lot because most of my midterms were last week. 

 

@Ytu - I will definitely install that application! Is it specifically the blue light that causes the cortisol levels to not adjust properly? 

[MeadowLily]

Okay, you need your rest and some protein at breakfast.  More protein at supper and less fruits. Catch you out there on the trail.  Find some protein that agrees with you at breakfast...fruits make me very sleepy without protein.  Your blood sugar needs proteins and good dietary fats....including those should help your sleep.      

[ladyshanny]

Starting your day off with that much fruit is going to set you up for blood sugar fluctuations all day.  It looks like you're having about 5-6 servings of fruit every day, our recommendation is no more than 1-2 servings (fist sized) eaten as part of a meal that also contains protein, veggies and fats, never eaten alone.  You might consider trying to use the fruit as more of a condiment than a main dish.  Apples or berries in your salad, for example?

 

You don't have to eat eggs for breakfast, you can eat absolutely anything you would eat at any other meal.  Leftovers are very popular, veggie and protein skillet-hash is very popular, soup with protein in it.  Consider that you are waking up after (not much) sleep and the first thing you are giving your body is a massive dose of sugar. Not the best way to treat yourself and doesn't teach your body how the rest of the day is going to go.

 

Make sure that your fourth meal also includes protein and fat, not just salad.  Are you giving yourself pre and post workout meals?

 

Sleep for you is a definite issue but you can make some progress by making some changes in your fuelling too.

[emilaiti]

@ladyshanny I will definitely cut down on fruit. I ate sausage for breakfast yesterday and ate two servings of fruit yesterday, and it made a significant difference! I had more energy throughout the day and did not have my sleepy spells in the early afternoon like usual. thank you for the suggestion!!