Okay, I have a few test coming up..papers due and a career change coming very soon. Anyway, i'm a bit stressed.
Sometimes when I try to sleep I can't help but think about everything I need to do. I can't stop. ...it's a cycle, when I swim, i'm less stressed, but when it does creeps up on me I don't swim in he morning because i'm too tired in the morning to go, and I need to be rested for work which just makes me antsy the next day and so on. Well, I end up skipping days and days at the pool. Frustrating.
Swimming in the morning is usually the only time to go to be sure I can get a spot. How can I get myself to go in the morning, how can I sleep better at night? Have any of you come up with any strategies for this?
Cheers, :coffee:
Eric
Parents
Former Member
I FINALLY remembered an old trick I used to use on myself the night before a big swim if I couldn't sleep. I went and got my walkman (yes, I still have a Walkman) and I found some talk show to listen to in bed. It was a somewhat boring show playing at a very low level but it allowed my mind to get off of the anxious cycle. Took half an hour or so, but I finally fell asleep. Then, once I've slept awhile I wake up and take off the walkman and am relaxed enough to sleep normally.
Yea, talking is way different than music, it may works for me because when i'm in class being lectured at I seem to get very sleepy. I'll try to download some really boring podcast or something.
i wonder if it's a maslows heirchy of needs thing. you can't focus on anything else until your physical needs are met.
Ha! Maslow, nice! I think it definitely fits though. My anxiety is coming from the safety (finance) and esteem (tests etc...) tiers, which is bad because they're pretty basic needs .. ugh. As the Wicked Witch said: "Oh What a world, what a world!"
IAs to getting up in the morning, I totally rely on the sweet drug of double espresso. My rule of thumb, though, for skipping AM workouts is if I'm getting less than 5 hours of sleep. I've done workouts on 3 and 4 hours of sleep and the result is a crappy workout, a crappy day and a crappy mood.
Yes ... I set that 5 hr rule as well, but I cheat. I really like sleep, and in the morning i'm so weak willed. Tonight i'll fight the crowd and swim, tomorrow morning I'll make my best effort to go swim, that will probably help the most. Ha, and I do love my espresso in the morning also! First thing I do in the morning is crawl over to the machine and start it up.
I FINALLY remembered an old trick I used to use on myself the night before a big swim if I couldn't sleep. I went and got my walkman (yes, I still have a Walkman) and I found some talk show to listen to in bed. It was a somewhat boring show playing at a very low level but it allowed my mind to get off of the anxious cycle. Took half an hour or so, but I finally fell asleep. Then, once I've slept awhile I wake up and take off the walkman and am relaxed enough to sleep normally.
Yea, talking is way different than music, it may works for me because when i'm in class being lectured at I seem to get very sleepy. I'll try to download some really boring podcast or something.
i wonder if it's a maslows heirchy of needs thing. you can't focus on anything else until your physical needs are met.
Ha! Maslow, nice! I think it definitely fits though. My anxiety is coming from the safety (finance) and esteem (tests etc...) tiers, which is bad because they're pretty basic needs .. ugh. As the Wicked Witch said: "Oh What a world, what a world!"
IAs to getting up in the morning, I totally rely on the sweet drug of double espresso. My rule of thumb, though, for skipping AM workouts is if I'm getting less than 5 hours of sleep. I've done workouts on 3 and 4 hours of sleep and the result is a crappy workout, a crappy day and a crappy mood.
Yes ... I set that 5 hr rule as well, but I cheat. I really like sleep, and in the morning i'm so weak willed. Tonight i'll fight the crowd and swim, tomorrow morning I'll make my best effort to go swim, that will probably help the most. Ha, and I do love my espresso in the morning also! First thing I do in the morning is crawl over to the machine and start it up.
