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Real Men Go to Sleep

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Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#131

Post by xpop2027 »

nlh wrote: post #118
enraged_camel wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you're getting sufficient amounts of quality sleep at night, there is no reason why you should need 20-minute "power naps" in the middle of the day. (There may be exceptions, such as extremely demanding manual labor, but I think we're talking about white collar jobs in this context.)

Not for me. I can get 10 hours of sleep at night but I'll still hit an afternoon lull post-lunch. I'm sure if I really worked at it I could figure out why (too big a lunch? blood sugar spike?) but regardless, I'm good to go for 6+ more hours w/ a 20-minute nap. Meanwhile everyone else sits and forces their eyelids open, stares at YouTube videos, and downs espresso shots...

6+ hours of productivity based on a 20 minute nap is a good ROI in my book.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#132

Post by acconrad »

nlh wrote: post #118
enraged_camel wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you're getting sufficient amounts of quality sleep at night, there is no reason why you should need 20-minute "power naps" in the middle of the day. (There may be exceptions, such as extremely demanding manual labor, but I think we're talking about white collar jobs in this context.)

Not for me. I can get 10 hours of sleep at night but I'll still hit an afternoon lull post-lunch. I'm sure if I really worked at it I could figure out why (too big a lunch? blood sugar spike?) but regardless, I'm good to go for 6+ more hours w/ a 20-minute nap. Meanwhile everyone else sits and forces their eyelids open, stares at YouTube videos, and downs espresso shots...

Yeah this is due to high GI, fast-acting carbs. I've experimented with this heavily with my lunches - it's always anything that is high GI (potato chips, cookies, any sort of sugary food) will cause that "crash" after lunch. That's why I save carbs for post-workout after my evening workout.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#133

Post by mtrimpe »

rfnslyr wrote: post #97
nlh wrote: post #93

The culture of "napping = weakness / laziness" is still so prevalent in the US workforce. It's frustrating - because it's not logical, it's just pretty deeply ingrained. I set up a (rather nice) nap room at my company's office and I'm the only person who EVER uses it. It turned into a storage room. I sent articles about the virtues of napping - the studies - the benefits - the facts - to all of my employees, and nobo…

Could you link some? I want to read more about sleep in general. Why 20 minutes? Why not 30, or 40? I keep seeing the magical 20 everywhere.

It's more about not going into deep sleep, which would start around half an hour for most people.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#134

Post by pekk »

graeme wrote: post #126
nlh wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not for me. I can get 10 hours of sleep at night but I'll still hit an afternoon lull post-lunch. I'm sure if I really worked at it I could figure out why (too big a lunch? blood sugar spike?) but regardless, I'm good to go for 6+ more hours w/ a 20-minute nap. Meanwhile everyone else sits and forces their eyelids open, stares at YouTube videos, and downs espresso shots...

This lull disappeared for me after I stopped eating wheat. Not saying you'd get the same effect from quitting wheat. But there's decent odds it's something you eat.

Do you have Celiac disease, or did you just decide on your own that wheat is unclean?

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#135

Post by ggchappell »

jwcrux wrote: post #127
nlh wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not for me. I can get 10 hours of sleep at night but I'll still hit an afternoon lull post-lunch. I'm sure if I really worked at it I could figure out why (too big a lunch? blood sugar spike?) but regardless, I'm good to go for 6+ more hours w/ a 20-minute nap. Meanwhile everyone else sits and forces their eyelids open, stares at YouTube videos, and downs espresso shots...

It was eating wheat for me as well. Once I started eating according to the ketogenic diet, I no longer needed naps during the day.

I'm another one of these: stopped eating wheat, immediately needed less sleep.

Does anyone know of any research on this phenomenon? There are obviously lots of anecdotes, but I can't find any studies.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#136

Post by hrkristian »

ggchappell wrote: post #135
jwcrux wrote: post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It was eating wheat for me as well. Once I started eating according to the ketogenic diet, I no longer needed naps during the day.

I'm another one of these: stopped eating wheat, immediately needed less sleep. Does anyone know of any research on this phenomenon? There are obviously lots of anecdotes, but I can't find any studies.

Research on this very subject was cited on a Norwegian show called Pulse, but it's too long since I saw it that I'd be able to find it again. There apparently is a correlation between wheat and sleepiness, for some.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#137

Post by DrStalker »

pekk wrote: post #134
graeme wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This lull disappeared for me after I stopped eating wheat. Not saying you'd get the same effect from quitting wheat. But there's decent odds it's something you eat.

Do you have Celiac disease, or did you just decide on your own that wheat is unclean?

There are a few things other than Celiac disease that cause problems with wheat; I've never been able to get a solid diagnosis other than ruling out Celiacs but I know if I have too much wheat, especially in the form of light fluffy baked goods, I get very tired and cranky as well as having digestive issues.

It could be an additive used in commercial baking because I seem to be fine with no-wheat gluten and some forms of wheat,but pragmatically avoiding wheat helps me.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#138

Post by pavel_lishin »

Aloisius wrote: post #116
nlh wrote: post #93

The culture of "napping = weakness / laziness" is still so prevalent in the US workforce. It's frustrating - because it's not logical, it's just pretty deeply ingrained. I set up a (rather nice) nap room at my company's office and I'm the only person who EVER uses it. It turned into a storage room. I sent articles about the virtues of napping - the studies - the benefits - the facts - to all of my employees, and nobo…

Well some of us can't nap. I just lay there with my eyes closed for 20, 30 or even 40 minutes never coming remotely near unconsciousness.

It's worse for me. I fall asleep, then wake up groggy, often times with a headache.

Every once in awhile I achieve the perfect nap - and that's usually in a noisy place, very well lit - and after it, I barely feel like I was really "asleep" - not the same way that I feel after I sleep in a dark room under a blanket.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#139

Post by mcb3k »

luckyno13 wrote: post #115
nlh wrote: post #93

The culture of "napping = weakness / laziness" is still so prevalent in the US workforce. It's frustrating - because it's not logical, it's just pretty deeply ingrained. I set up a (rather nice) nap room at my company's office and I'm the only person who EVER uses it. It turned into a storage room. I sent articles about the virtues of napping - the studies - the benefits - the facts - to all of my employees, and nobo…

I think its worth noting that this isn't just prevalent in the workforce, but before many individuals get to the workforce, the cram and jam lifestyle of college student start carving this rut long before they are employed. I have to assume after anywhere between 4-8 years (sometimes more) of late night, caffeinated (sometimes worse substances) cram sessions this type of mentality and habitually terrible sleeping wou…

This rut actually begins much earlier in some areas of the United States. Many high school students face early school start times and late nights of homework and studying. Add in sports, music lessons, extra curricular activities, or any combination thereof, and you get a recipe for sleep deprivation. Do that for 4 years of high school, and then 4-8 years of undergraduate/post-graduate/doctoral schooling, and you end up with some seriously sleepy people who have a hard time maintaining a healthy sleep schedule.

Re: Real Men Go to Sleep

#140

Post by akinity »

larrys wrote: post #110
enraged_camel wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you're getting sufficient amounts of quality sleep at night, there is no reason why you should need 20-minute "power naps" in the middle of the day. (There may be exceptions, such as extremely demanding manual labor, but I think we're talking about white collar jobs in this context.)

"but if you're getting sufficient amounts of quality sleep at night" Ideally yes. But there are times that even with the best intentions that can't be done. Anxiety, sickness, some important schedule issue. Maybe a big lunch that you shouldn't have eaten. Naps work very well for rejuvenation.

Very few people are getting sufficient amounts of quality sleep at night, especially people with sedentary jobs.
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