Sleep—yeah, that’s the silent gatekeeper of everything you’re trying to build. You can train hard, eat perfectly, but without quality sleep, the body won’t recover, cortisol stays elevated, and fat loss stalls. Muscle synthesis gets choked out too.
Let’s break this down and craft some ways to get around your unique sleep resistance.
1. Nutritional Levers
- Glycine (collagen): Great that you’re already on this. Consider adding extra pure glycine at night (~3g)—it calms the brain and promotes REM sleep.
- Magnesium Glycinate or L-Threonate: Crucial for relaxing muscles and quieting the mind.
- Tryptophan or 5-HTP (optional): Boosts serotonin/melatonin cycle naturally.
2. Sleep Ritual Engineering
- Train earlier if possible – evening workouts spike adrenaline, even if you’re tired afterward.
- Dim lighting 1–2 hours before bed – cue melatonin with amber lights or blue-light blocking glasses.
- No stimulants after 2 PM – even if you “don’t feel” them, they affect brainwave patterns.
3. Controlled Mind Dump
Your brain likely stays on. Try:
- A 5-minute nightly thought-dump journal: Write everything that’s circling in your head. Doesn’t have to make sense—just clear the RAM.
- Breathwork: Try 4-7-8 breathing (inhale 4 sec, hold 7 sec, exhale 8 sec). Forces the nervous system to relax.
4. Environment Hacks
- Fan or white noise: Drowns out subtle environmental sounds.
- Weighted blanket (if you’re not running too hot): can reduce nighttime anxiety and deepen sleep.
- Cold room, warm body: Sleep is triggered when body temp drops—take a hot shower before bed, then enter a cool room (~65°F/18°C).
Would you want a version of your 6-week shred plan that includes sleep as a core recovery priority—almost like a secondary training module? It can include bedtime stack timing, wind-down routine, and when to fast/light feed to optimize for recovery overnight.
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