Feeling exhausted after workouts?

Race cars & people need fue l to run, so eat right before & after swimming.

Sometimes after our workouts I feel completely wiped. (I refer to this as "blowing a gasket"). It's all I can do to drag myself to the car and drive home, which is luckily not very far. When I first started training in January of this year I was the same way, completely wiped out after every. Just comatose. Now after training pretty hard for 7 months I'm not nearly as wiped out unless I really push myself in terms of distance, speed or both. I try to time my swim workouts later in the day so if I need to I can just go to bed earlier and I sleep REALLY well. Also I've been doing more cross-training, working on my cardio-aerobic endurance - running, biking - and that seems to have helped. But face it, swimming is a full body exercise -- it's work! Enjoy! Rob

Today, I did about 1700 LCM, give or thake 200, but no sprinting, and not feeling sleepy. It's only my third day in the water after a three year break. I did Thu and Fri last week, then sat and sun off, today on. Half the water the weather was cool and cloudy, then the sun broke out and it got warm. I had a fish taco and half a choc. chip cookie about an hour before the workout. ....Now I'm thinking it's the sprints. We'll see what happens tommorrow.

Glad to hear progress from everyone.

I'm now assuming quick oats. As last night turned into a mess with the standard oats. Don't get me wrong - they're still tasty - just not solid! :rofl: I'm going to be stupid on this one so I don't screw it up...do you cook the oatmeal first or just mix it together?

Define exhausted. 1. Are you primarily sleepy, like you feel this overwhelming need to go back to sleep after a sprint practice? Take this reliable test to see your sleepiness level: www.stanford.edu/.../epworth.html (brought to my attention by masters swimmer, Mayo internist, and all around great guy, Jaegermeister) 2. Are you primarily shakey, trembly, feeling almost faint, all of the above topped off with hunger pangs and fantasies of Snickers bars? Then you might well have hypoglycemia of exercise. My recommendation: a packet of Gu Chomps before practice, and a glass of chocolate milk afterwards. 3. Are you just physically worn out, almost like you have been weight lifting to the point of failure, your muscles just can't function anymore? It sounds like you might have a bit of all three, which are distinct variations on "exhausted" though many people tend to describe them all with the same words, like "tired" "spent" or "worn out." My guess is it's predominantly #3, which should improve as your body adapts to sprinting stress. There are probably overtones of #2, especially given that you are sprinting after fasting since your previous meal the night before. You may also be getting up too early -- or not going to bed early enough -- and maybe even not sleeping great the nights before the sprint practice ordeal! Sleep, eat, rest. It sounds like the first draft title for a novel. Report back with your Epworth Score!

around 1900 LCM today... not sleepy, but fatigued. Odd, because I was feeling really good yesterday, and felt like I didn't get a good enough workout in. Today, poop, very fatigued poop. I couldn't even get going hard enough to get into anaerobic range. Had couple dizzy moments during the workout (thyroid issues related). I think if I had enough energy for couple sprints today, I'd be needing a nap now.

Define exhausted. 1. Are you primarily sleepy, like you feel this overwhelming need to go back to sleep after a sprint practice? Take this reliable test to see your sleepiness level: www.stanford.edu/.../epworth.html (brought to my attention by masters swimmer, Mayo internist, and all around great guy, Jaegermeister) Yes, that. My Epworth score is about a 21 out of 24. Seriously. I really want to sleep after a hard sprint workout. The only one of those events that doesn't have a high chance of dozing for me is sitting and talking to someone. (I've never fallen asleep while talking to someone!). My job, on the other hand, involves a lot of sitting and reading/writing. *snooze* 2. Are you primarily shakey, trembly, feeling almost faint, all of the above topped off with hunger pangs and fantasies of Snickers bars? Then you might well have hypoglycemia of exercise. My recommendation: a packet of Gu Chomps before practice, and a glass of chocolate milk afterwards. Shakey, trembly, faint... yes. Hungry... not noticeably. But those symptoms do all pass after I eat something. The chocolate milk does help. 3. Are you just physically worn out, almost like you have been weight lifting to the point of failure, your muscles just can't function anymore? Not really. I think I have more "muscles" than "air" (perhaps related to the fact that I have asthma). It sounds like you might have a bit of all three, which are distinct variations on "exhausted" though many people tend to describe them all with the same words, like "tired" "spent" or "worn out." My guess is it's predominantly #3, which should improve as your body adapts to sprinting stress. There are probably overtones of #2, especially given that you are sprinting after fasting since your previous meal the night before. You may also be getting up too early -- or not going to bed early enough -- and maybe even not sleeping great the nights before the sprint practice ordeal! Nope, I'd say it's predominantly #1 with a bit of #2. And that just makes it hard for me to get anything done the rest of the day, which is a problem. I should mention that I am eating breakfast between 7-8 am, working out at 11, and then having lunch. Exhausted the rest of the day. So, not working out on a totally empty stomach, just empty-ish. I've figured out that 3 hrs is the min. amount for me to eat a meal and be able to swim afterward, though as I noted above I'm experimenting with doing more sit-ups and eating a banana 1 hour before workout. I sleep about 7-8 hrs a night. Thanks for the clarifications, by the way. I hadn't thought about the different ways that one can be exhausted. So, what's to be done about #1?? I should mention that I am not generally inclined to nap like that... just after a hard sprint workout. So, I don't think it's a lack of sleep, at least not primarily.

Connie, I'm confused... are you saying you are very sleepy after a hard workout, but that you can't nap? I am very sleepy after a hard workout, and I have to fight not to nap. (A fight I often lose).

Yes, that. My Epworth score is about a 21 out of 24. Seriously. So, what's to be done about #1?? I should mention that I am not generally inclined to nap like that... just after a hard sprint workout. So, I don't think it's a lack of sleep, at least not primarily. Interesting case. You might want to consider a sleep study if your Epworth score is consistently this high. I suffered from extreme grogginess for years. It would ebb and flow, but I must say I felt sleepier -- though not more fatigued -- than most of the people I know. My blog entry describes the problem (and my self cure attempts) in perhaps melodramatic overkill: forums.usms.org/blog.php The distinction reached something of an extreme when I broke 1:55 for the first time in my life in the 200 free (at age 57), and wasn't particularly tired physically, but had to chant "eyes open, eyes open" the whole race. I'd failed to do this in the 100 free and drifted into the lane line. Jaegermeister, who told me about the Epworth, recommended a sleep study. I got one done, and despite not being overweight or a loud snorer, I was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, which has been fragmenting my sleep. You might have some other sleep disorder that you don't know about. Then again, if the problem is truly only post-sprints, it's probably normal and should get better with time. In my own case, a sprint workout tends to wake me up. But everybody is different.