[Mortalwombat7]

I am nearing the end of my base building phase of one of the mountaineering plans. Around the time I started training, I have begun having unusual trouble sleeping. I’ve always been able to fall asleep very quickly. I would generally stay asleep well and if I am woken I fall back asleep quickly. Now, however, I find it often takes me longer to fall asleep, I may wake up in the early morning and I tend to have trouble falling back asleep.

This is my first time training and I’m 41 years old. I don’t know if this means anything about nutrition or over training or something. I don’t feel like I’m over training and I have skipped a couple workouts because I felt tired. This could also just be corelative but not necessarily caused by the training but I don’t know.

Topic

[Jane Mackay]

Jane Mackay on March 14, 2023 at 3:21 am #76322

Mortalwombat7, trouble sleeping can be an indication that you are not necessarily overtrained (which is a very serious condition) but under-recovered. And of course, trouble sleeping makes it harder for the body to recover from the training. Have you tried taking 2-3 days in a row off or even a very light week, to see if that improves your sleep? Light activity is good, to keep the body moving, but really listen to your body.

Nutrition can also be a factor, because good & adequate nutrition helps your body recover. I follow UA dietician Rebecca Dent’s mantra: Fuel your training! Sufficient hydration is also crucial. For people engaging in athletic activity, the baseline recommendation is 2ml per kg of body weight every 15-20 minutes — you can drink the equivalent quantity every half hour or hour, but more frequent intake is recommended, if possible. That is in addition to min. 2.5L in the first 10 hours after waking. (From the 6 March 2023 Huberman Lab podcast on water.)