[quote]The Mighty Stu wrote:
I’ve always been okay so long as I eat frequently, but as someone else pointed out, it’s the huge carb laden lunch that can hit people with that afternoon drowsiness. Personally, I keep most of my carb meals around my workout, so with so much P+F throughout my work day my blood sugar levels are fairly steady.
Sleep is another story though -lol. I’ve always been a very poor sleeper, so little things like not watching tv before bed, and some extra minerals and sometimes Z-12 can make a big difference for me.
S[/quote]
Ya, I’ve been limiting carbs to around workouts like you said for a number of reasons the drowsiness being one of them. Maybe I’m not eating frequently enough. If things don’t improve I’ll try more frequent meals.
Normally I hold off two hours before training for a meal, then after I’ve finished I take a short nap somewhere in that two hour space. Might be counter-productive for some people, the extent of which I’m not sure, and it does sound really simple and bare-bones, but I feel better training that way. Not entirely sure if it’s something that would benefit a lot of people, but maybe worth trying at the least if everything else starts to become cumbersome.
If you’re fortunate enough, a mid day nap does wonders. It’s night and day in the gym when I take a nap on my lunch break and when I don’t. Other than that, playing around with when you eat carbs can help the lethargic feeling.
[quote]Gambit_Lost wrote:
How is your sleep? How many hours? [/quote]
Sleep is okay and getting better. I take ZMA & Z12 every night. I’m usually in bed by 10 and most days I wake around 7. I wake up 3-4 times a night though. [/quote]
Considering you sleep so well, it could be your adrenal gland or thyroid gland that isn’t performing optimally. JM and TC wrote great articles on how to optimize each respectively.
Taking iodine for the last 4+ months has changed my daily routine dramatically. I haven’t taken one single nap since and sleep 5-6 hours 4 days a week and 7-8 hours on the other three.
Replacing breakfast and lunch with bcaa+eaa+coffee+greentea has also prevented the carb comas I was prone to. The buildup of catecholemines in the brain around midday is quite powerful and keeps me highly focused in class. Martin Berkhan writes about this phenomenon on his website if you are interested
[quote]Gambit_Lost wrote:
How is your sleep? How many hours? [/quote]
Sleep is okay and getting better. I take ZMA & Z12 every night. I’m usually in bed by 10 and most days I wake around 7. I wake up 3-4 times a night though. [/quote]
Considering you sleep so well, it could be your adrenal gland or thyroid gland that isn’t performing optimally. JM and TC wrote great articles on how to optimize each respectively.
Taking iodine for the last 4+ months has changed my daily routine dramatically. I haven’t taken one single nap since and sleep 5-6 hours 4 days a week and 7-8 hours on the other three.
Replacing breakfast and lunch with bcaa+eaa+coffee+greentea has also prevented the carb comas I was prone to. The buildup of catecholemines in the brain around midday is quite powerful and keeps me highly focused in class. Martin Berkhan writes about this phenomenon on his website if you are interested[/quote]
[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:
If you’re fortunate enough, a mid day nap does wonders. It’s night and day in the gym when I take a nap on my lunch break and when I don’t. Other than that, playing around with when you eat carbs can help the lethargic feeling.[/quote]
[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:
If you’re fortunate enough, a mid day nap does wonders. It’s night and day in the gym when I take a nap on my lunch break and when I don’t. Other than that, playing around with when you eat carbs can help the lethargic feeling.[/quote]
No naps for me :([/quote]
Naps are unlikely to affect nighttime sleep if taken before 2pm, so the so called power nap right around lunchtime would be ideal.
[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:
If you’re fortunate enough, a mid day nap does wonders. It’s night and day in the gym when I take a nap on my lunch break and when I don’t. Other than that, playing around with when you eat carbs can help the lethargic feeling.[/quote]
No naps for me :([/quote]
Naps are unlikely to affect nighttime sleep if taken before 2pm, so the so called power nap right around lunchtime would be ideal.[/quote]
I use to take power naps when I was in the military. They really do help. They just don’t fit my schedule now.
I take dopa mucuna, green tea, B-complex, and 7-keto dhea. These all seem to give me consistent energy through the day. Before workouts (tough ones) i take caffeine 200mg, jack3d and rhodiola. I think energy levels start in the brain with neurotransmitter levels. The dopa mucuna seems to boost dopamine. Thats what i’ve inferred from the increased libido and workout motivation anyway.
[quote]theBeth wrote:
I take dopa mucuna, green tea, B-complex, and 7-keto dhea. These all seem to give me consistent energy through the day. Before workouts (tough ones) i take caffeine 200mg, jack3d and rhodiola. I think energy levels start in the brain with neurotransmitter levels. The dopa mucuna seems to boost dopamine. Thats what i’ve inferred from the increased libido and workout motivation anyway.[/quote]
If you’re eating and sleeping enough, your energy levels should be ok. Caffeine is useful, but be careful you don’t use it to hide deeper problems with sleep and nutrition. And like others said, make sure you take the time to truly relax, when you can.
If you’re doing everything right and still feel abnormally fatigued, you could have any number of medical problems - best to see a doctor in that instance.
[quote]Consul wrote:
If you’re eating and sleeping enough, your energy levels should be ok. Caffeine is useful, but be careful you don’t use it to hide deeper problems with sleep and nutrition. And like others said, make sure you take the time to truly relax, when you can.
If you’re doing everything right and still feel abnormally fatigued, you could have any number of medical problems - best to see a doctor in that instance.[/quote]
Ya, I will keep an eye on it. Hopefully some small changes will help. It really only happens during the work week when I’m not busy. Otherwise I feel great.
HOT-ROX - nothing keeps me awake as effectively! This week I’ve had a 30-hour shift and a 24-hour shift in addition to the usual 10-hour shifts (94-hour week - sweet sweet overtime!) and Hot-Rox were pretty much the only thing that kept me going!
[quote]Grumpig Hunt wrote:
HOT-ROX - nothing keeps me awake as effectively! This week I’ve had a 30-hour shift and a 24-hour shift in addition to the usual 10-hour shifts (94-hour week - sweet sweet overtime!) and HOT-ROX were pretty much the only thing that kept me going![/quote]
My gut doesn’t appreciate HOT-ROX so much…I agree they do keep you awake though!
