Results matching “log”

Sleeping at the Keyboard.

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.

- Edgar Allen Poe


It's been almost a month now since I formally made the switch to biphasic sleeping, and in that time I've only tried one minor adjustment to the routine (which overall I'm very happy with): the timing of the nap. Formerly it started around 7-7:30pm, this week it started around 3pm. As before, the idea was still to make this a 90 minutes dose of shut-eye.

There are several reasons for this. Among them :

8 hours after rising

I read recently that the taking of an afternoon nap approximately 8 hours after rising was the optimal procedure. Somewhat skeptical, I decided to test it for a week (without making any other changes to my daily routine); moving the 19:30-21:00 nap to a 15:00 start. The result? Well, it was a long week.

Trying to sleep in the afternoon is - as anyone who's ever worked shifts will attest - an acquired taste. With the additional ambient light and sound, even getting to sleep proved a challenge. This was compounded by the fact that I wasn't all that tired by 3 in the afternoon.

Rather than sleeping deeply for most of the 90 minutes, I found myself getting 20 minute 'power naps' (more on those in a minute). Quite refreshing at the time, but not enough to live on in place of the 90 minute variety.

Pre-dinner

The timing of the nap placed it between the usual lunch and dinner times, leaving room for a small meal at 14:30 or so. I was curious to see the effects of this.

General skepticism

It has to be said that this is the reason for trying any number of things - biphasic sleeping included. Tweaking the nap time was no exception.

Benefits

Well, I'm finding it hard to think of any (for the mid afternoon timing that is - the notion of napping is already firmly in mind as a good one). As one part of a biphasic routine, the afternoon start time just didn't work for me.

Negatives

Aside for a new-found taste for 'power naps', there really wasn't much to suggest a permanent switch to an afternoon nap. The difficulty in getting to sleep, the brevity of sleep and the compounding sleep deficit all conspired to terminate this change after the week; quickly moving me back to a 19:30 start. Much better.

Another negative aspect of an afternoon nap - at least the 90 minute variety I was shooting for - is just the inconvenience. Even if you can shuffle your schedule around to allow a brief chunk of personal time, 90 minutes is quite a lot. I'm used to seeing work colleagues falling asleep at the keyboard (only to wake 20 minutes later and resume typing as if nothing happened - very amusing), but if they were out for 90 minutes I suspect it would feel odd.

Workouts

Switching to an afternoon nap affected workouts in one fundamental way - the new nap time overlapped my favourite time to hit the iron. This meant that I was usually awake and thinking about that day's schedule during the time when I should've been alseep. Conversely, workouts were now conducted during the former nap time.

Overall the situation was far from perfect.

Caffeine consumption

Taking a nap in the afternoon means that the only reasonable times to have a coffee are early morning, or shortly after the nap. As these reasonably rare caffeine sessions are traditionally in the early afternoon, this is just one more change.

Incidentally, the 'caffeine nap' is an acquired taste. It felt less effective than a 20 minute nap, minus the caffeine.

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.

- Edgar Allen Poe

It's been almost a month now since I formally made the switch to biphasic sleeping, and in that time I've only tried one minor adjustment to the routine (which overall I'm very happy with): the timing of the nap. Formerly it started around 7-7:30pm, this week it started around 3pm. As before, the idea was still to make this a 90 minutes dose of shut-eye.

There are several reasons for this. Among them :

8 hours after rising

I read recently that the taking of an afternoon nap approximately 8 hours after rising was the optimal procedure. Somewhat skeptical, I decided to test it for a week (without making any other changes to my daily routine); moving the 19:30-21:00 nap to a 15:00 start. The result? Well, it was a long week.

Trying to sleep in the afternoon is - as anyone who's ever worked shifts will attest - an acquired taste. With the additional ambient light and sound, even getting to sleep proved a challenge. This was compounded by the fact that I wasn't all that tired by 3 in the afternoon.

Rather than sleeping deeply for most of the 90 minutes, I found myself getting 20 minute 'power naps' (more on those in a minute). Quite refreshing at the time, but not enough to live on in place of the 90 minute variety.

Pre-dinner

The timing of the nap placed it between the usual lunch and dinner times, leaving room for a small meal at 14:30 or so. I was curious to see the effects of this.

General skepticism

It has to be said that this is the reason for trying any number of things - biphasic sleeping included. Tweaking the nap time was no exception.

Benefits

Well, I'm finding it hard to think of any (for the mid afternoon timing that is - the notion of napping is already firmly in mind as a good one). As one part of a biphasic routine, the afternoon start time just didn't work for me.

Negatives

Aside for a new-found taste for 'power naps', there really wasn't much to suggest a permanent switch to an afternoon nap. The difficulty in getting to sleep, the brevity of sleep and the compounding sleep deficit all conspired to terminate this change after the week; quickly moving me back to a 19:30 start. Much better.

Another negative aspect of an afternoon nap - at least the 90 minute variety I was shooting for - is just the inconvenience. Even if you can shuffle your schedule around to allow a brief chunk of personal time, 90 minutes is quite a lot. I'm used to seeing work colleagues falling asleep at the keyboard (only to wake 20 minutes later and resume typing as if nothing happened - very amusing), but if they were out for 90 minutes I suspect it would feel odd.

Workouts

Switching to an afternoon nap affected workouts in one fundamental way - the new nap time overlapped my favourite time to hit the iron. This meant that I was usually awake and thinking about that day's schedule during the time when I should've been alseep. Conversely, workouts were now conducted during the former nap time.

Overall the situation was far from perfect.

Caffeine consumption

Taking a nap in the afternoon means that the only reasonable times to have a coffee are early morning, or shortly after the nap. As these reasonably rare caffeine sessions are traditionally in the early afternoon, this is just one more change.

Incidentally, the 'caffeine nap' is an acquired taste. It felt less effective than a 20 minute nap, minus the caffeine.

A word on the Power nap

As mentioned above, the one positive side-effect of this change was a renewed look at the benefits of power-napping. This is a 15-20 minute dose of rest which has been employed by many people - from the famous to several of my work colleagues - over the years. I tend to view it as a snack - very helpful at some times, but not a regular habit.

The reason it works is simple (although the underlying chemistry covers years of study) :

spending time awake gradually throws the body's sodium/potassium levels out. Sodium and potassium are involved in the transportation of chemicals into and out of your brain, and the less effective these are the more tired you feel. A bit of time in the Theta state (deep relaxation or meditation) resets these levels, leaving you feeling refreshed.

If you're looking for a little help in getting to sleep quickly enough for this to be viable, consider trying the Pzizz software (recently reviewed on The Daily Giz Wiz podcast - episode 177, Oct 24 2006) - random soothing sounds while you're asleep with an alarm at the end. Perfect. If you're anything like me, however, grabbing a 20 minute sleep isn't particularly difficult.

A few of this week's blog finds :

Dar Kush
Dar Kush is the online home of novelist and martial artist Steven Barnes. A mix of clubbells, kettlebells and politics. An interesting read.

Grab the feed

Strengthopedia
A recent comment from bdckr put me on to this one. Dale Harder is a former world-record holder, Highland Games participant and lover of the more unusual strength disciplines. His newsletter looks great, not to mention the photos scattered throughout his site. Pull up a chair and get comfortable.

Journey into Krav Maga
Here you'll find Firewalker's opinions on the Krav Maga fighting system - looks promising.

Grab the feed

Ultimate Health and Conditioning
As he says on the site:

This site is about functional strength, balance, agility, endurance, nutrition and general health. I'm not following a specific agenda. I'm not anti-supplement, or anti-weights, or anti-anything. I don't give a shit how you get healthy and fit, just that you get there.

Superb stuff. Well worth checking out.

Grab the feed

Golf Fitness Boot Camp
For those integrating golf and fitness, Brian's site BKS Golf is an excellent start. His blog, which follows the progress of the BKS Golf fitness bootcamps, is also a great read.

Grab the feed

Why not grab all the feeds as a single juicy opml file.

A few of this week's blog finds :

Dar Kush
Dar Kush is the online home of novelist and martial artist Steven Barnes. A mix of clubbells, kettlebells and politics. An interesting read.

Grab the feed

Strengthopedia
A recent comment from bdckr put me on to this one. Dale Harder is a former world-record holder, Highland Games participant and lover of the more unusual strength disciplines. His newsletter looks great, not to mention the photos scattered throughout his site. Pull up a chair and get comfortable.

Journey into Krav Maga
Here you'll find Firewalker's opinions on the Krav Maga fighting system - looks promising.

Grab the feed

Ultimate Health and Conditioning
As he says on the site:

This site is about functional strength, balance, agility, endurance, nutrition and general health. I’m not following a specific agenda. I’m not anti-supplement, or anti-weights, or anti-anything. I don’t give a shit how you get healthy and fit, just that you get there.

Superb stuff. Well worth checking out.

Grab the feed

Golf Fitness Boot Camp
For those integrating golf and fitness, Brian's site BKS Golf is an excellent start. His blog, which follows the progress of the BKS Golf fitness bootcamps, is also a great read.

Grab the feed

Why not grab all the feeds as a single juicy opml file.

This is a very comprehensive look at the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet by Under the Bar's Kristoffer Lindqvist. If you've ever wondered just what this diet entails, or words of wisdom by someone who's used it on several occasions, look no further than this piece. Superb.

This is a very comprehensive look at the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet by Under the Bar's Kristoffer Lindqvist. If you've ever wondered just what this diet entails, or words of wisdom by someone who's used it on several occasions, look no further than this piece. Superb.

The latest episode of The Fitcast features an interview with Dr John Berardi. Just a few of the subjects discussed :

• A recent study in Sweden on overfeeding. Participants were asked to maintain as sedentary a life as possible for a month, whilst consuming twice their body's required calories. Based on the findings from the pilot group alone, this is set to be a very interesting piece of research.
• A study on fish oil supplementation was discussed, as well as Dr Alan Logan's comprehensive book on the subject - The Brain Diet.
• Also on the bookshelf; Berardi's own work - Metabolism Advantage. Based on the synopsis given on the podcast, and the two bonus chapters available on the book's site, this is a great read.
• The Q&A covered the expected areas of protein consumption and maintaining a low bodyfat. Also noted were Berardi's thoughts on the Velocity Diet.

Oh, it's a long one (coming it at almost two hours). Sit back and enjoy the ride.

The latest episode of The Fitcast features an interview with Dr John Berardi. Just a few of the subjects discussed :

• A recent study in Sweden on overfeeding. Participants were asked to maintain as sedentary a life as possible for a month, whilst consuming twice their body's required calories. Based on the findings from the pilot group alone, this is set to be a very interesting piece of research.
• A study on fish oil supplementation was discussed, as well as Dr Alan Logan's comprehensive book on the subject - The Brain Diet.
• Also on the bookshelf; Berardi's own work - Metabolism Advantage. Based on the synopsis given on the podcast, and the two bonus chapters available on the book's site, this is a great read.
• The Q&A covered the expected areas of protein consumption and maintaining a low bodyfat. Also noted were Berardi's thoughts on the Velocity Diet.

Oh, it's a long one (coming it at almost two hours). Sit back and enjoy the ride.

Protein Shake.

Why we rest

Before diving into the subject of 'Fuel and Rest', lets take a look at the reasons for resting in the first place. It's all related.

Breaking this down, we have three basic periods of rest :

rest breaks between workout sets

These breaks serve to allow the body a return to a 'normal' (for that individual) range - particularly the heartrate. This slowing of heartrate is accompanied by a more regular breathing pattern.

Rest breaks also serve to replenish the body's stores of both ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) and CP (creatine phosphate) . A shorter break (say, less than 2 minutes) increases reliance on LA (lactic acid) in the following set. Lactic acid itself, elevated during periods of intense exercise, returns to normal levels after 30-60 minutes [2].

short naps

These fall into two categories. The first is a 15-20 min 'power nap', which is usually performed within a work environment as a way of recharging the batteries. Although the deeper sleep phases are not reached during this time, the nap is sufficient to regain a good percentage of mental alertness. A quick note on why this works: spending time awake gradually throws the body's sodium/potassium levels out. Sodium and potassium are involved in the transportation of chemicals into and out of your brain, and the less effective these are the more tired you feel. A bit of time in the Theta state (deep relaxation or meditation) resets these levels, leaving you feeling refreshed.

The second is a longer nap - 90 minutes or so. This is the type I personally favour (and having recently made the switch to biphasic sleeping I can clearly see the benefits), and includes all phases of sleep. From personal experience, this length of nap yields an almost complete return to mental alertness.

Winston Churchill clearly understood the power of this nap in the afternoon during WWII, writing in The Gathering Storm (the first of his six volume series 'The Second World War') :

Nature had not intended mankind to work from 8 in the morning until midnight without the refreshment of blessed oblivion which, even if it only lasts 20 minutes, is sufficient to renew all the vital forces.

overnight slumber

This is a more complete version of the second nap variety mentioned above. Once again the body is moved through all phases of sleep - long enough this time to redress various imbalances that have occurred throughout the day, as well as release several chemicals for routine maintenance and regular function.

Briefly, the major changes include the resetting (return to normal levels) of :

• ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)
• pH (potential of Hydrogen)
• Sodium and Potassium ratio

This is the 4th part of the article series 'Rest' - a collaboration with Run to Win's Blaine Moore.


Why we rest

Before diving into the subject of 'Fuel and Rest', lets take a look at the reasons for resting in the first place. It's all related.

Breaking this down, we have three basic periods of rest :

rest breaks between workout sets

These breaks serve to allow the body a return to a 'normal' (for that individual) range - particularly the heartrate. This slowing of heartrate is accompanied by a more regular breathing pattern.

Rest breaks also serve to replenish the body's stores of both ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) and CP (creatine phosphate) . A shorter break (say, less than 2 minutes) increases reliance on LA (lactic acid) in the following set. Lactic acid itself, elevated during periods of intense exercise, returns to normal levels after 30-60 minutes [2].

short naps

These fall into two categories. The first is a 15-20 min 'power nap', which is usually performed within a work environment as a way of recharging the batteries. Although the deeper sleep phases are not reached during this time, the nap is sufficient to regain a good percentage of mental alertness. A quick note on why this works: spending time awake gradually throws the body's sodium/potassium levels out. Sodium and potassium are involved in the transportation of chemicals into and out of your brain, and the less effective these are the more tired you feel. A bit of time in the Theta state (deep relaxation or meditation) resets these levels, leaving you feeling refreshed.

The second is a longer nap - 90 minutes or so. This is the type I personally favour (and having recently made the switch to biphasic sleeping I can clearly see the benefits), and includes all phases of sleep. From personal experience, this length of nap yields an almost complete return to mental alertness.

Winston Churchill clearly understood the power of this nap in the afternoon during WWII, writing in The Gathering Storm (the first of his six volume series 'The Second World War') :

Nature had not intended mankind to work from 8 in the morning until midnight without the refreshment of blessed oblivion which, even if it only lasts 20 minutes, is sufficient to renew all the vital forces.

overnight slumber

This is a more complete version of the second nap variety mentioned above. Once again the body is moved through all phases of sleep - long enough this time to redress various imbalances that have occurred throughout the day, as well as release several chemicals for routine maintenance and regular function.

Briefly, the major changes include the resetting (return to normal levels) of :

• ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)
• pH (potential of Hydrogen)
• Sodium and Potassium ratio