2022: Work-Out Thread - What you Lift Bro?

Can anyone explain to me the relationship between working out and sleep because I really don't get it? So, I've been pretty active with a walking routine and weight lifting where I try to do both each day (lift and skip the walk sometimes).

Normally, I am a 7 - 8 hours sleep guy when I'm not working out...meaning I need that amount of rest to feel refreshed. If I did 5 hours sleep normally, then I would be a walking zombie.

Now, being pretty active, I seem to only sleep 5 hours max. I have no problem falling asleep. I do the occassional toss and turn with a momentary wake. But, it's like my internal clock wakes me up after 5 hours. Apparently, 5 hours is all I need. But, if I stay in bed and lie there...maybe turn on the TV and watch a little...I can sometimes get myself to fall asleep again for another 2 -3 hours. But, usually, I'll just get up because my body is telling me to get up.

What I find strange about this is...given the amount of exertion...I would expect to sleep more to recover. If I do 5 miles of intense walking and weight lifting, then I'm pretty much physically tired at the end of the day. But, then sleep and like 5 hours later, I'm up. I've been reading studies that say you get better quality sleep and it says I would probably be sleeping longer...rather than shorter....as sleep is when your body recovers from the physical toll of being overly active. I dunno.

I can't say I feel tired with only 5 hours. I'm assuming I just get better quality, deeper sleep and my body is telling me I don't need more than the 5 hours. And, I have more energy to where I don't require as much sleep. But, I still find it very strange and I don't know if it is a good thing to be honest.

Is this normal? What's kind of funny is sometimes I will go lift a set, come back to my computer to browse the web, start to nod off in my chair, and then about 30 seconds later...I get up and go lift my next set. I can micro-nap during a weight lifting session.

 

That’s not a normal response, but have you tried tracking your sleep? If you weren’t tracking before it’s going to be impossible to compare, but just curious.

Usually working out doesn’t make me sleep longer but I do fall asleep earlier and tend to be completely out for longer than I would be without a workout

 

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For me personally the timing of workouts would affect my sleep. I tend to workout in the morning or four of five hours before I have to go to sleep. Here's an article snippet that goes into more detail, although they do later say for some people it doesn't affect them.

The Timing of Exercise May Matter
Some people may find that exercising close to bedtime seems to keep them up at night, says Gamaldo. How does working out affect the mind?

• Aerobic exercise causes the body to release endorphins. These chemicals can create a level of activity in the brain that keeps some people awake. These individuals should exercise at least 1 to 2 hours before going to bed, giving endorphin levels time to wash out and “the brain time to wind down,” she says.

• Exercise also raises your core body temperature. “The effect of exercise in some people is like taking a hot shower that wakes you up in the morning,” says Gamaldo. Elevation in core body temperature signals the body clock that it’s time to be awake. After about 30 to 90 minutes, the core body temperature starts to fall. The decline helps to facilitate sleepiness.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/exercising-for-better-sleep

 

It's good info and I certainly won't be able to sleep if I do it a few hours before bed because I'm jacked up at that time like it said. But, I'm really looking for any established correlation between working out and how much sleep you require a night. I assume there has to be a correlation between how much you work out and, thus, how much sleep you require. I'm thinking the sleep duration is shorter...but the quality of sleep is way higher. It seems probable that deeper REM sleep is occurring more often in that five hours, thus, requiring me to sleep less. Therefore, I'm drawing my own conclusion that this translates into the need for much less sleep due to a higher quality of sleep. But, I've never seen anything to corroborate this so can't be sure.

 

Gotcha, I believe they touched on that in that article as well. Your deep sleep will typically be increased depending your routine.

However, we do know that moderate aerobic exercise increases the amount of slow wave sleep you get. Slow wave sleep refers to deep sleep, where the brain and body have a chance to rejuvenate.

As for the sleep required, I would agree with the info below. The harder and more intense your workouts, it makes sense you'll need more sleep. Typically for athletes of those who work out a solid amount, they need 7-10 hours of recommended quality sleep to recover and heal your body. The article touches on other points and you can do independent research as well to draw your own conclusions.

In fact, people who exercise may need more sleep than their inactive counterparts — especially when they exercise at a high intensity. “Since the role of sleep is to restore the body's energy supply, it's intuitive that the more high-intensity [the exercise], the more sleep you require,” says Dr. Robert Graham, M.D., M.P.H., co-founder of FRESH Med at Physiologic NYC.

https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a23458087/sleep-effects-workout-exercise-performance/

 

Welp...I guess I'm outside the norm a bit here. I would expect the same thing but it seems I'm doing the opposite. Yes, the sleep quality seems to have improved but in lesser time than is needed for that to occur in my case. I'm cramming quality sleep. lol

 

It’s dependent on the person and a ton of individual factors. If you’re getting 5 hours and you feel good, then I wouldn’t worry about it.

The times you force yourself back to bed for another 2-3 hours, do you feel better on those days or worse?

 

Probably a little better but nothing significant. I think some of these studies are flawed. But, could be individual factors like you said.

 

Just put together the new home gym. I got a new bench, 300 lbs of weight and a deadlift octagon bar. Just did my 18th workout of the year but feeling whooped as snot because I've really concentrated on bodyweight and functional exercises for the last few years. I got down to 185lbs (probably like 10-12% body fat) at one point but it was a ton of cardio and I've never backed up my exercise with diet.

I've been backing it up this year though, eating tons of protein and as little sugar as possible. 17 workouts in January, I want to do 3 months of this push/pull/legs split I'm on.

Free weights are so much crazier. I did push today but I feel it all over.

 

A lot of the YouTube ladies are into this thing doing a treadmill workout where they go (walk) for 30 minutes / 12 degree incline / 3 mph. They try to go at least 5 times a week doing the same routine. They call it 30-12-3. Anyway, it would be interesting to see how some around here do on the first try. I expect a lot wouldn't finish the first 5 minutes if they weren't in any kind of shape. I'm already doing 80 minutes / 8 - 10 degree incline / 3 mph (80-8-3) before I came across 30-12-3. My 80-8-3 says I burned 900 cals and 290 fat cals for the duration of the workout. lol. I did the 12 degree incline for a lap during a workout. It would be horrible if you try it out of walking shape and many would stop first 5 minutes I bet. I could see how that can kick your butt fast. I know I can do it given where I'm at.

I dunno...I was researching walking at inclines and came across the 30-12-3. Some chick got 1.5 million views or something by posting her routine idea on YouTube. It's tough to put on weight when your doing that exercise 5 days a week I would imagine...so she says. It's funny that no men seem to be doing it as far as I can tell. I guess we men got to step up to 15 degree incline (30-15-3) and go up from there...like Drago in "Rocky IV". I'm going to try out 30-12-3 soon. I think my tread maxes at 15 degree incline so I want to go 30-15-3 after 30-12-3. Ouch.

I'm doing heavy incline walking instead of leg weightlifting. The exercise has excellent coverage from calves on up to the core. Anyway, using the incline makes the treadmill a beast I rarely took advantage of before. I understand they go up and down automatically per the routine. My NordicTrak is old school manual with no auto-incline / auto-speed workout programs. It's lasted a long time with zero maint. lol

 

30 minutes of inclined walking is beastly for sure. I wonder what level of incline would basically turn it into a stairmaster, which is also far more beast mode than one might think.

 

I did the 30 minute / 12 degree incline / 3 mph treadmill workout. I did a warm-up lap at 3 degree incline / 3 mph first.

I would say the first lap kind of sucked but, once I broke into the zone (you know...the place were it gets easier and comfortable after sucking initially), it wasn't so bad. I definitely sweated more. It felt so high up that grabbing and holding the lower treadmill rails at times wasn't a good experience and definitely felt counter-productive as you hunch over a little bit. I probably held the rail in small spurts about 20% of the time. Pretty good workout. Will do again but not daily. I like to change it up. Fun.

 

Ya'll post pics of when the bushy eyebrows and pancake makeup starts to come in.

 

I'll be starting this (off brand) in the next couple of weeks. Just waiting for it to come in. I've been working out, eating better, cut down on drinking, etc., etc. etc. But I've managed to gain weight and it's just about all in my belly. Went to see my doctor and he said nothing but good things about semaglutide. I'm pretty excited about getting started because I need to lose about 30-40 lbs. I have a family history of obesity and Type 2, so I want to do everything within my power to avoid the latter. I'm currently heavier than I've ever been. It's funny since I'm also stronger than I've ever been (yes, I understand the difference between fat and muscle weight) but it's now time to get a bit lighter.

 

That's awesome- how did you get the off-brand?

 

Doctor prescribed it to a local compounding pharmacy. It's the same as Ozempic/Wegovy/Rybelsus. My insurance won't cover Wegovy and I don't have Diabetes so I can't get coverage for the other 2. But going this route is relatively inexpensive. It's strange that there's no patent on semaglutide but that's the deal. My doctor said his salesman for the branded meds takes the off-brand because of the cost. Wegovy w/o insurance is roughly $1500/month. I'm going to pay $250 for 2 months.

 

You post a pic of you after 30 minutes on a stairmaster, I'll post a pic of me with makeup on

 

I don't do this anymore because it's super tough to maintain for years, but these types of exercises and the amount are the way to go to burn fat and gain muscle:





I only squat, overhead press, bench press, and rows/pull ups now. Don't do deadlifts.... too much of a risk for injury. I've banged the table on squats before..... but you should really squat.