Let me begin by saying that this has nothing to do with the sex thread!
My question is how much sleep do you get each night?
I find when I’m training a lot I only get 6-7 hours per night, but my body craves more. Eventually, my body wins out and I’ll go through a week or two where I am physically unable to get up when the alarm goes off and end up sleeping through my morning run. I’ve got a 2 year old so going to bed earlier is not an option, so my training is very cyclical.
I only get between 5 and 7 hours as well and miss about half of my morning work outs during the week and start later than I want to on the weekends.
It’s strangely reassuring to know that I’m not the only slacker.
"My question is how much sleep do you get each night? "
I have to have a minimum of 7 hrs per night or I just don’t function. Also I tend to be a night owl by my natural bio rhythym, so going to bed between 11 PM and midnight is not uncommon on week nights. On weekends I will often sleep late on one of the days if there is nothing going on. Seems to replenish my batteries. Fortunately my wife is the same way.
Most days during the work week, I will quite often take a nap - yes a nap. Often feel a little lethargic right after eating lunch, so I lay down for about twenty minutes and drift into a semi-sleep, sort of a power nap. Always much more refreshed afterwards. Since my office is part of my home, it’s possible for me to do this. It was part of our natural cycle in our hunter/gatherer era. Even today a mid day siesta is common in many cultures, particularly in hot climates. It’s been demonstrated that scheduling businesses meetings, etc right after lunch is not as productive as early morning. More people should take a twenty minute nap right after lunch.
I use my need to sleep to regulate my workouts. If I am very tired after my typical seven plus hours per night, I need to back off the training. This process goes in a cycle and gives me a forced form of periodization. When I have overdone it, my sleep pattern will tell me to back off for as much as two or even three days.
When I wake up on my own after 5 to six hours of sleep, I know I am ready to go again. My body sets up about a two to three week cycle this way. If I try to push past the cycle, I typically break.
This works for me, but it hasn’t gotten me past MOP consistently, so take it for what it is worth.
I think what you eat and when you eat it play a big role in determining the quality of sleep one gets. This is my own personal experience: I work full time (plus a little), attend night school, train for tri’s. I get 6.5 hours of sleep per night seven days a week (sometimes less). I wake up well rested and ready to train, work and study. I’m 35 btw. What has helped me is to not eat big meals in the evening. Also, I avoid simple carbs in the evening. Essentially, my dinners consist of chicken and vegitables. I also eat fish and small amounts of red meat. During finals week, I opt for liquid meals in the evening. It is my beleif that consuming big, hard to digest meals or meals that whack your blood sugar in the evening prevent a person from getting quality sleep. No scientific studies to back it up, just my own observations. You might give it a try.
Brett
I have to have a minimum of 7 hrs per night or I just don’t function.
wow, I wish I would function with a minimum of 7hrs of sleep a night! I need around 8-9. When I train alot (>5hrs day) I need a good 10hrs or more 
Otherwise my concentration ability and the performance during practices decreases greatly. I observe unusual high HR during practice and can also monitor my recovery process by the HR/feeling in the morning. Did I mention the bad mood I get in?
I realize that I need lots of rest. Therefore I train according to how I feel. Of course it looks nice in the training log to have systematic training weeks, yet the stressors of my current lifestyle come in waves. Some weeks are easy, others are f&@!n hell.
I personally believe that it is important to get the apropriate rest after workout sessions in order to see improvement. Not that I try to wuss out on practices, but I believe that athletic progress comes though the systematic combination of physiological stimuli (training), proper nutrition, and sufficient recovery.
It’s also interesting that I no longer get sick as often as I used to. When I used to swim for a stupid swim coach that even lacked the most basic knowledge of physiological principles, I got ill all the time. Especially during the winter. I definitely think that adequate recovery is the main reason to explain that one.
so here is my advise to all of you who feel bad for skipping training sessions for recovery reasons: DON’T!! what’s better for you in the long run? take it easy for a couple of days or even a week or miss an entire week or two later on because you ignored your body’s need and got sick?
btw. Just in case your curuious, I’m not a slacker, last week rode 520km with 6700m altitude change. And yes, I know that I have a long ways to go.
have fun @ training and get sufficient recovery,
daniel
I use my need to sleep to regulate my workouts.
completely agree!
You get 6-7 hours?!? A night?!? I’m so jealous! ;p
I get about 5-6 hours most nights, and maybe 7 or so on weekends. Sometimes I’ll nap on the train on the way to work, and I usually take a nap on the weekends. I do find that when my training hours go north of 12 per week, I start zoning out at work sometimes. My biggest problem is with swim. I have to get up for 5AM swim three days a week, and I will invariably be tired for the whole day after that. The funny thing is, I can get up at 5 AM every day with no problems, but when I have to get up at 3:30-4:00 for swim, it really affects me. I’ve started going to bed at 9:30 on swim nights just so I can get 6 hours in.