Home› General Training Discussions

12/10 Friday OS Confessional: What Keeps You Up At Night?

Coach PatrickCoach Patrick
in General Training Discussions

Note we started this in Nov OS last week around food, and I thought I'd bring it to the greater Team. Enjoy!

Without a doubt, the most important part of the OS is properly recovering from all the hard work. For me, the best option is a solid night's sleep. After several years of work and six years of marriage we finally have a nice 9:30pm bedtime...so I can be up at 4:30 to get it done in the AM. More importantly, early to sleep means less chance of binge eating! 

Every once in a while I get stuck up reading the news, but I turned of the TV years ago...curious to know what's your "evening kryptonite" is that waylays you!?

Comments

  • Scott AlexanderScott Alexander
    Working out TOO late at night, keeps me wired for HOURS afterwards. Difficult to sleep when your endorphins and testosterone are raging.
  • BenBen

    Internet forums.

  • mattsullmattsull

    I'm usually good at getting to bed at a reasonable hour. If anything keeps me up it will be the computer. Every once in a while I'll watch TV late but I can usually sleep in the next day when I do that. Sleeping in for me is 6:00.

  • Nemo BrauchNemo Brauch
    Work. Turning my head off from thinking about the stuff that will be facing me in the morning.
  • gilliattgilliatt
    My laptop, since I can bring it to bed w/ me I often times don't shut the thing as soon as I should. I should just come to bed w/ out it. That and 911 callers but I guess that is what I signed up for.
    early to sleep means less chance of binge eating! 
    Good call!
  • afrostafrost
    Kids' homework! Inevitably about 9:30, I get the request - Oh, Mom, can you give me a hand with this? I don't really get "X". This is after repeatedly asking them whether they need any help with homework at around 6:00. And being the sucker that I am, I help them! Aaarrrggghh!
  • dan_forbesdan_forbes

     Silence keeps me up.  Once everyone is in bed, I get my workout in, then its silence... I can do whatever I want and not have to listen to anything.  I do sacrifice a lot sleep sometimes, but I need decompression time no matter what.  I have no idea how my wife gets home, goes through the craziness of 3 kids, and then can fall right to sleep.  I am a big "me time" person when everyone is catching z's.  

  • manconamancona
    A 10 month old that thinks 1 AM and exactully 1 hour before whatever time dad has to get up that day are the perfect times of day times to scream until someone comes and plays with her.

    It could be so much worse though and I'm thankful to have a happy little girl with way too much energy.
  • jetskrjetskr

    My sore, twitchy legs! image

    Other than those, just stress from work but I'm starting the process of looking for a new gig.  The job market is slowly opening up, at least for IT, and life is too short to deal with what's going on at this office.

  • Chris M.Chris M.
    Posted By Patrick McCrann on 10 Dec 2010 10:08 AM

    Note we started this in Nov OS last week around food, and I thought I'd bring it to the greater Team. Enjoy!

    Without a doubt, the most important part of the OS is properly recovering from all the hard work. For me, the best option is a solid night's sleep. After several years of work and six years of marriage we finally have a nice 9:30pm bedtime...so I can be up at 4:30 to get it done in the AM. More importantly, early to sleep means less chance of binge eating! 

    Every once in a while I get stuck up reading the news, but I turned of the TV years ago...curious to know what's your "evening kryptonite" is that waylays you!?



    Patrick someone made a video just for you.

    www.youtube.com/watch

    As I'm sure Dan G has experienced, I have spent so many nights at work never going to sleep at all that when I have a chance to go to bed at  a normal time I am so thankful that I get right into bed and fall asleep.  If by chance I do splurge and stay up later than normal I will most likely be on the computer.  

  • tuckermtuckerm
    I'm an information junkie so I would guess my iphone is mine. I don't sleep enough as is with getting home @ 12:30 and waking in the 7s to get up with the kids but my iphone addiction doesn't help. I think I need an intervention.
  • ironmtngrlironmtngrl
    I recently just figured out how to get to sleep at a decent hour. Key is giving myself an hour in the bedroom, reading a book, magazine, relaxing and not doing anything that is too exciting. I can't get to sleep if I stay busy right up to the time I want to go to bed. Lately my kryptonite is doing stuff related to my new power meter (like staying up late to get it installed, or figuring our WKO+, listening to power webinar.) Luckily my job is somewhat flexible and if I really need to I can sleep in and get to work late.
  • Carrie ChavezCarrie Chavez
    Would saying Steve keeps me up too late image be innappropriate?

    Ha! I couldn't resist.

    Have a great Friday!!
  • CarlCarl
    I lay awake at night thinking over my workouts and LOL regarding the progress I have made on the bike. Also regarding the runs. I am a long distance runner by heart and sould and I tell you this OS running stuff has tore me up and hacked me out a few times. A few years ago a 5:15 mile was confortable when I was doing speed work BUT I stopped the speed work the past few years and started doing 3-4 marathons per year and several tri's -spring and OLY....Well then I started suffering from ITB every year....no matter how slow I brought the training up it still hit me and on the Prednisone I went. So I lay there thinking.....Damn this is going good, smooth and feeling well. The body composition is coming just with the workouts and eating smarter. I didn't swallow all of the Kool Aid though and have been doing the EN OS Intermediate swimming program. Needed a lot of work with my stroke and technique. I can see the progress but it feels as I try to go long and strong I start to tire and break down. 7 days a week for the past 6 weeks has been wonderful for me. I have also included stretching, Yoga, and core religiously but have taken out everything else including lifting.

    I have to throw a big "THANKS" out to Dan Gilliatt for keeping on my ass about any extra workouts and lifting. We trained together long enough that he reads me like a book. Thanks Dan for keeping on me and telling me about EN.
    ")")
    Yes and my wife Alison who thinks bed time is midnight or later keeps me awake....
  • ironmtngrlironmtngrl
    In case you needed more motivation to get a good night's sleep...

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-michael-j-breus/sleep-heart-attack_b_789718.html
  • Nate ParadyNate Parady
    Patrick, I'm the same way with needing my sleep... On Friday and Saturday my biggest distraction is the huge sense of rebellion that comes over me and the attitude of "its the weekend" and "who needs sleep" Even with this attitude my wife and I are typically in bed by 1100 on the weekend.
    During the week the biggest distraction is the desire to just spend some time relaxing with my wife watching TV, etc..image.
    The wife and I both have jobs, 2 year old daughter = we are pretty busy until about 8-8:30pm getting everything ready for the next day and putting the kid to bed...oh ya, and cleaning up the dishes type stuff.
    I've fallen off the discipline wagon really hard when I find myself playing Play Station Modern Warfare 2 past my bed time...
  • J.T. ThompsonJ.T. Thompson
    Two main activities keep me up....One would be reading/skimming the internet.....never seems to be enough time to get to everything I want to read....

    The other would be training.....When I'm working in NYC, have 3 hours a day of commuting, so often not getting to work outs till later in the evening, and just find it hard to walk in the door and go to sleep.....

    Overall, pretty disciplined about catching some Z's....and getting cat naps on the train....image
  • Christian RabbatChristian Rabbat
    A 10 month old that thinks 1 AM and exactully 1 hour before whatever time dad has to get up that day are the perfect times of day times to scream until someone comes and plays with her.
    @Matt - I was going to say the same thing, but 3 times over. No, not triplets, but 3 girls aged 7 and under. I believe these are the good sleepless times. Soon I will be staying up worrying about their well-being.
  • NortonNorton
    Accchhh; my athletic achille's heel: staying up late.

    I'm a night owl and have been ever since I could remember. My butt could be dragging at 7pm but at 10pm I'm wide awake; it takes real discipline to get to sleep before 11pm. The early starts for brevets have been a remarkable challenge.
  • vanmeverenlawvanmeverenlaw
    Trying to wrap my brain around the positioning on my bud's new Trek Concept. I chased him around the hills north of Fort Collins a few days ago on a 2 hour ride on my Look 576. After our ride, I jumped on his Trek for a little test ride. I felt like a hood ornament on a Ferrari 458 Italia. It has an incredibly aggressive, but oddly comfortable angle and rides like butter. It feels like the bike is behind you and you're floating on air. Wondering how comfortable that position would be for 112 and whether I need to upgrade my three year old Look.
  • Steve WestSteve West
    I guess I'm like Dan F and Bill R - I like the night. Rarely start a workout before 8PM, often not till 9 after Carole is in bed. Dinner can be as late as 11 on some nights after a workout. Also a data geek (like most of us). Forums and blog posts add up too.

    But, once I get to bed - 11:30 or 12:00, I have no problems sleeping. Takes me 3 or 4 relaxing breaths and next thing I know it is 5:30 AM. I tend to sleep like a log....
  • graham_m_dunngraham_m_dunn
    Typically, it's been my three-year old. I used to stay up late fixing and making Unix dance. Now that I do that for money, and I'm chronically sleep deprived, the allure has faded... I was between jobs a couple months ago, and I really was having a hard time remembering what I did in my free time, other than taking care of my son, S/B/R'ing, and sleeping. This was vaguely troubling.
  • Linda PatchLinda Patch

    I rarely get waylayed about turning off the lights. I'm pretty disciplined about that, esp during the week. What disturbs me is still having what seem to be giant, elephant-sized "mom radar ears" that wake up to any sound of teenage boys coming home and going to bed. Is It too late for a school night?  On the weekend--what time is it that they're pulling in? Alternately, it's the no-sound of boys who aren't in when they are supposed to be.  That part of having kids has been exhausting, no doubt about it.

  • ht001ht001
    No issues going to bed here. In fact most nights I'm fighting to hang on until 9!

    I do sometimes wake up in the middle of the night though, thinking about some work task or meeting that I have coming up. That tends to happen mostly on Sunday nights. Generally though we're in bed 9 PM I sleep like a log and then I'm up at 4:45. All of that is great for recovery and general well being, but it sucks for my friends who are sick of us always trying to negotiate earlier dinners or movies! They've started calling us "Old Lady Syptak" and "Old Man Syptak!" image

    Oh, and I do have some fond memories of some sleepless nights (it's clean...don't worry!) ...when I first decided that I would commit and sign up for an Ironman way back in 2005 I was so excited and amped just at having made the decision that there was NO sleeping that night. I hadn't even signed up for one and I was excited. Same thing happened this fall when I'd decided to sign up for TransRockies Run. The sleepless night has become my new most trusted decision indicator for races!
  • Coach PatrickCoach Patrick
    I think we need to start a midnight crew for all you folks. Team OWL! image
  • NortonNorton
    An OWL merit badge?
  • Leigh BoyleLeigh Boyle
    Most nights I'm home at 8 and finishing dinner at 8:30. clean up, throw on some comfy clothes and hit the couch to wind down. If I'm lucky...10:30 in bed?? usually 11 though. Plus side is that I have until 10 the next morning to sleep/train/get butt to office. A little skewed but works for me. image
  • TracyWoodTracyWood

     For me staying up too late on computer + a rotating day/ night, someimes 11a-11P schedule.My body doesn't know if I'm coming or going That can mess up your sleep patterns for sure. I am in the process off developing a pattern with my schedule to help alleviate. Biggest thing I need to change is not sleeping in on my days off, so i can go to sleep early that night

Sign In or Register to comment.