LittleTurtle: Get Some Sleep

[LittleTurtle]

After participating in nine challenges, the one thing that I've struggled with the most for a very long time is getting enough sleep on work nights. I have to be up at 5:30 a.m. (at the latest) Monday – Friday, but I’m more of a night owl who perks up the minute the sun goes down. Well, that or I end up falling sound asleep on the couch because I’m too tired to move and end up having to wake up in the middle of the night to get ready to go back to bed.

MAIN QUEST

Sleep Routine on Work Nights

- No internet after 9:00 p.m.

- No falling asleep on the couch on work nights.

- In bed and lights out starting at 11:00 p.m. working towards a consistent bedtime of 10:00 p.m.

_______________________________________________________________________________

I recently accomplished a major long term goal during the last challenge. After working on it for almost a year, I finally ran a mile in under 9 minutes and a 5k in under 30 minutes. That being said; I think the smartest (and safest) move for me at this point is to work on maintaining that speed before I push myself to accomplish new running goals.

SIDE QUEST

Running Maintenance

- Run at least twice per week.

- Run at least three 5k(s) throughout the next six weeks (preferably one every other week).

- Focus on maintaining current stats for now.

Current Running Stats (as of 9/10/14)

Comfort Pace = 10’00”

Fastest Mile = 8’58”

Fastest 5k = 29’27”

[Jittersthe.Clown]

Looking forward to reading about you crushing this goal.  

A big problem I face is my wife is much like you where she wakes up around sundown and I'm the kind of person who likes to be up between 4 and 5 am to work out and get my day started.  There are a lot of nights where I just don't get the sleep I need.  Good luck to you, Turtle!

 

[Eirlys]

More sleep is a valiant and noble goal!  I long resented my husband for insisting on a 'ridiculously early' (10.30pm) bedtime (was used to 2am) but I have to say, it's made all the difference in the world!

 

It will hopefully have a side-effect of helping your running too! (less tired = more energy = easier run!)

 

Jitters, that animated turtle is soooooo cute!!

[Heidi]

Hi, LT! Love the new avatar!

Also, I'm with you on structuring the home schedule around the sleep schedule. 
We are having to get up and be ready and happy and positive for school and work, balancing four routines, so this challenge I'm doing the whole House Rules thing as well (in fact I was just about to put them in my challenge):

9:00 quiet hours and Vivian Bedtime

10:00 Kitchen is closed and internet, television and all electronics are off. OFF! For real!

11:00 lights out everywhere.

Yes, all of them.

No, this is not the time to decide to do laundry or take a shower.

Even if you can do it in the dark.

You're right, I *am* supermean.

[GypsyHeart]

Hi LittleTurtle!

Yes let's definitely go for the sleep goal together. Getting to bed on time is so difficult isn't it.

What kind of bedtime routine do you have, if any?

[Sunmage]

Welcome back!

 

Sleeoing is sooo important! Good goal choice

[Bekah]

I second everything everyone else said, I have a marriage sleep compatibility issue like Jitters, love the new avatar and now that we have a dog combined with the sleep compatibility issue, I NEVER get more than 7 hours of sleep, and have started to hate it! 

I hope you can get it to become routine and effortless by the end  

[LittleTurtle]

Hi LittleTurtle!

Yes let's definitely go for the sleep goal together. Getting to bed on time is so difficult isn't it.

What kind of bedtime routine do you have, if any?

At the moment, my current bedtime routine is doing nothing until I'm so tired I can't see straight.    And then by the time I've taken my contacts out, washed my face, and brushed my teeth - well, then I'm awake again.  I've come to discover that the minty freshness of the toothpaste seems to refresh me so much that I'm awake for quite some time after brushing.

 

That being said:  I want to begin my routine no later than 9:00 pm.  That way, I can start winding down by bedtime and should therefore have an easier time falling asleep when I should.

 

You?  

[LittleTurtle]

My challenge begins this evening.  I would like to share this spreadsheet I've created to help with accountability.  I'll be updating this to track my running, sleeping, and all other fitness activities I'll do throughout.  

 

I'm going to try to do the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle workout a couple times a week as well.  I've been doing quite a bit of heavy lifting at work lately, and I love how bad-ass it makes me feel to lift a giant box of textbooks and not need a guy do it for me.  It's very liberating.

 

I shared this little interaction that happened between my boyfriend and I a few weeks ago on the NF Women's Academy Facebook page, but I thought I'd add it here as a reminder why I want to to get strong:

 

 

The other night, I was in the bedroom standing in front of the mirror changing my shirt when I noticed a little muscle pop out on my arm. I was super excited and ran out to the living room to show my boyfriend and ask which muscle is was. The following is the conversation that took place:

ME: Look! I have a little muscle! *Flexes arm to show off*
BF: Wow, Turtle! Good job!
ME: Which muscle is this?
BF: Tricep.
ME: Oh, it's so pretty! I shall name it. *Leaves room to think of a name*

(A few minutes later)
ME: Okay. I thought of one. 
BF: Yeah?
ME: Ertops.
BF: Ertops?
ME: Yeah, Ertops. As in Tricep-ertops.
BF: *Shakes head and chuckles* Get out of here.

 

And with that…I must sign off.  It's after 8:00 pm, and I want to get off the internet sooner rather than later.

 

Goodnight and good luck, Druids!

[GypsyHeart]

I'm still working on my bedtime routine too. At the moment I am trying to start it at 10pm. I wash my face, put serum on, brush and floss teeth, put PJs on. Then I want to add in some time for creative writing, or I will write my journal pages for the day if I haven't in the morning like I plan to! Then pray, into bed, read for a bit if I want, cuddle the cat and meditate right before I sleep.

I have been doing this for a few weeks fairly successfully for a few weeks, but I keep going on the internet on My iPad in bed and I really need to stop that as it messes with the whole thing. I need to just leave checking groups and reading comments until the next day but that is hard of course! All part of the challenge.

[katastrophenkatzchen]

 

This is all I could think about when reading your title....

[SnowWhite]

Yeah so, we're twinsies.... my sleep is the most fucked up thing ever, and running is my primary fitness goal! Teach me your ways! I SUCK at running and am really, really slow, but working on it! I'm doing C25K again this challenge. I love your goals! Good luck!

[jedi_mind]

Lt! Congrats on the run times. I think maintenance is called for after a milestone like that.

I still struggle with sleep myself. Might i suggest "sleep as android"? I bought that a long time ago and it helped me get into a routine

[I am Eve]

Here we go again LT, time for another one of those challenges: eh?!

Great goals, simple and attainable. Sleep is the fundament for everything. It sounds like you have it all figured out. What will you do to prevent yourself from falling asleep on the couch? Put something spiky on it ;-) ?

Try to wind down an hour before going to bed without internet etc. That can really help.

Maintaining the running I think is a great idea, and a way to keep it fun.

Will there be any grading?

Let's rock this challenge!

[LittleTurtle]

The TMNT Workout kicked my butt.  I can't wait to do it again!  My favorite part was the handstand practice.  

 

I'm still working on my bedtime routine too. At the moment I am trying to start it at 10pm. I wash my face, put serum on, brush and floss teeth, put PJs on. Then I want to add in some time for creative writing, or I will write my journal pages for the day if I haven't in the morning like I plan to! Then pray, into bed, read for a bit if I want, cuddle the cat and meditate right before I sleep.

I have been doing this for a few weeks fairly successfully for a few weeks, but I keep going on the internet on My iPad in bed and I really need to stop that as it messes with the whole thing. I need to just leave checking groups and reading comments until the next day but that is hard of course! All part of the challenge.

Yeah, the internet thing can be very hard.  The other night, I logged in to check on people's threads, but then I realized it was 9:10 pm, so I had to log off really quick and start my wind down process.  

PS - Cuddling the cat is a very important part of the wind down process!  

 

 

This is all I could think about when reading your title....

Loved it!  Thanks for sharing!

 

Yeah so, we're twinsies.... my sleep is the most fucked up thing ever, and running is my primary fitness goal! Teach me your ways! I SUCK at running and am really, really slow, but working on it! I'm doing C25K again this challenge. I love your goals! Good luck!

I used to suck at running REALLY bad too.  I just started super slow (like a 15 minute mile), but I just gradually added speed.  It took me around a year to build up.  You'll get there!  And I'll be here to cheer you on!  (I'll check out your thread shortly!)

 

Lt! Congrats on the run times. I think maintenance is called for after a milestone like that.
I still struggle with sleep myself. Might i suggest "sleep as android"? I bought that a long time ago and it helped me get into a routine

I have a FitBit Flex that I wear to bed.  It tracks some stuff…like how long it took me to fall asleep, how many times I woke up, how many times I was restless, etc.  I would love something a bit less archaic.  I read about the sleep as android after you mentioned it, but I don't have a Smartphone.  Do you need one to download that kind of app?

 

Here we go again LT, time for another one of those challenges: eh?!

Great goals, simple and attainable. Sleep is the fundament for everything. It sounds like you have it all figured out. What will you do to prevent yourself from falling asleep on the couch? Put something spiky on it ;-) ?
Try to wind down an hour before going to bed without internet etc. That can really help.

Maintaining the running I think is a great idea, and a way to keep it fun.

Will there be any grading?

Let's rock this challenge!

I'm thinking spikes on the couch for sure!     Luckily, my boyfriend is very supportive of my goals during these challenges, so he's pretty good at making sure I go to the bed before passing out on the couch.  For fact, one time (quite a while ago) he used a squirt gun to get me up.  Let me tell you - that was NOT a good way to be woken.  Effective…but not fun at all.  

 

Lately, once 9:00 pm hits.  I put the computer away and start my bedtime routine.  I think in the future, I will start my routine at 8:00 pm to get to bed even earlier.

 

As far as grading, I shared a spreadsheet that people can view that lays it all out in black and white.  I feel like the accountability of documenting everything for everyone to see will be more of a motivator than giving myself a "pass" or "fail" grade.  We'll see how it ends up working out for me though.

[jedi_mind]

I think you need a smartphone ya

[LittleTurtle]

I think you need a smartphone ya

I think you're right!  

[LittleTurtle]

I'm taking a total rest day today.  There are muscles I didn't even know I had that are aching today.  It feels good, but my body is asking me to lay low tonight.  

 

Perhaps it will be a good evening to go to bed SUPER early!   (We'll see….)

[MaD MaLKaV]

I've come to discover that the minty freshness of the toothpaste seems to refresh me so much that I'm awake for quite some time after brushing.

 

Ooo, if the minty freshness is indeed so energizing to you, then perhaps if you brush before your run, you can run farther faster! You seem to be a fast turtle already. Or at least pack a York peppermint patty for the mid-distance hump.

I'm in the same situation as you with sleep, but reversed from most of the spouses it seems. I'm a night owl with a wife that lays down between 9 and 10. Being the ever dutiful husband, I tend to go to bed at the same time, but it's too early to sleep, so I have to bring a book or iPad and then wreck my back sitting up three or four hours and try to nap the next day after she wakes me up at 6 am. (That describes my day today perfect, since I finally turned everyone off, meditated and slept around 1 and then work up from her and the cat being up at 5:30).

I'ld be totally with you on fixing the sleep thing if I didn't have qualifying exams coming up. It was a goal I considered last time and put off, but I gotta take my studying where I can get it this challenge. I'll either join you after you fail this time and try again, or (hopefully more likely) be inspired by your awesome success!

[MaD MaLKaV]

I can't get the picture out of my head of a turtle wearing a cape and putting down the toothbrush and crying out "Mintberry Crunch!" (South Park reference, don't watch much TV, but I like having something enjoyable to pop on during grading and the like)

I suppose your avatar is really colored right that your affinity for mint should be no surprise.

[LittleTurtle]

I can't get the picture out of my head of a turtle wearing a cape and putting down the toothbrush and crying out "Mintberry Crunch!" (South Park reference, don't watch much TV, but I like having something enjoyable to pop on during grading and the like)

I suppose your avatar is really colored right that your affinity for mint should be no surprise.

I do enjoy me some South Park every now and again.  Now I can't get the picture of a turtle wearing a cape outta my head too!  

[The Swedish Ninja]

Sleep tight

[green eggs]

Then I want to add in some time for creative writing, or I will write my journal pages for the day if I haven't in the morning like I plan to!

 

I have been doing this for a few weeks fairly successfully for a few weeks, but I keep going on the internet on My iPad in bed and I really need to stop that as it messes with the whole thing.

 

Hey Gypsy,

 

I find that making time to do a gratefulness count in the evening (just write down three things you're grateful for - you probably know the drill already ) sometimes leads me into journalling or writing. It's a good prompt.

 

On the ipad front: what's that thing doing in your bed?!!! Put it over on the other side of the room!!!!

I recently - like, just this week - switched to putting my phone on the other side of the room instead of by the bed because it functions as my alarm clock and then I *have* to get out of bed when it goes off. Usually swearing, but who's counting? Another upshot of this of course is no "just quickly checking" mail in bed before lights out or first thing in the morning.

 

In fact, taking this further I have actually gone to the length of adding "switch on restrictions" to my evening routine. I switch of my access to Safari on my phone to make it hard on myself to access social media (I've deleted the facebook button and have to go via the website). Sure, I can switch the restriction off, but it does serve as a reminder of what I'm trying to accomplish.

[green eggs]

Sounds like things are running pretty well for you, Turtle. Good going!

 

(unintentional pun).

[I am Eve]

The TMNT Workout kicked my butt.  I can't wait to do it again!  My favorite part was the handstand practice.  

 

Yeah, the internet thing can be very hard.  The other night, I logged in to check on people's threads, but then I realized it was 9:10 pm, so I had to log off really quick and start my wind down process.  

PS - Cuddling the cat is a very important part of the wind down process!  

 

Loved it!  Thanks for sharing!

 

I used to suck at running REALLY bad too.  I just started super slow (like a 15 minute mile), but I just gradually added speed.  It took me around a year to build up.  You'll get there!  And I'll be here to cheer you on!  (I'll check out your thread shortly!)

 

I have a FitBit Flex that I wear to bed.  It tracks some stuff…like how long it took me to fall asleep, how many times I woke up, how many times I was restless, etc.  I would love something a bit less archaic.  I read about the sleep as android after you mentioned it, but I don't have a Smartphone.  Do you need one to download that kind of app?

 

I'm thinking spikes on the couch for sure!     Luckily, my boyfriend is very supportive of my goals during these challenges, so he's pretty good at making sure I go to the bed before passing out on the couch.  For fact, one time (quite a while ago) he used a squirt gun to get me up.  Let me tell you - that was NOT a good way to be woken.  Effective…but not fun at all.  

 

Lately, once 9:00 pm hits.  I put the computer away and start my bedtime routine.  I think in the future, I will start my routine at 8:00 pm to get to bed even earlier.

 

As far as grading, I shared a spreadsheet that people can view that lays it all out in black and white.  I feel like the accountability of documenting everything for everyone to see will be more of a motivator than giving myself a "pass" or "fail" grade.  We'll see how it ends up working out for me though.

 

Works for me! (spreadsheet, not squirtgun  )