As was promised earlier, I will give a summary of the first ten days (transition period) of my sleep cycle. It goes as follows;
Before the experiment began I was nervous and excited. I had imagined that it would be difficult to stay up at first because I would be tired all the time. I had also thought that it would take longer than ten days to make the adjustment because I had been sleeping in eight hour blocks pretty much since I was born. I had many concerns going into the project; I wouldn't be able to follow through, I would be too tired, and many more. This however was not the case.
The first few mornings in I woke and got up right at 5:00 a.m. This surprised me as I thought that I would be too exhausted to wake up. I also went for runs almost immediately and I'm sure they helped prepare my body for the day. There were some other surprises for me; ones that I had just been too busy to notice. One was how cool it is in the morning. I have never gotten up this early in all my summers and due to this schedule I have discovered that mornings are awesome even just for their coolness. I normally dislike the heat and in the morning there usually isn't any. Another observation was that I had to eat more and constantly be eating. I didn't gain any weight, fortunately and I haven't been eating any better. The last thing was that I had so much time in the morning. Usually on the weekends I would sleep in to 8:00 or 9:00 a.m. and would eat and shower taking me to 10:00 or later. Then I would do some pointless things (reading, TV) and I wouldn't start doing homework or yard work until the afternoon. Now I can be lazy for a couple hours and it will still be 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning; I still have the entire day open. This was a huge revelation.
As the transition period wore on I became more lazy in the morning. I would wake up at the alarm but then sleep in to 7:00 or 8:00. This was easily fixed by using the snooze button but it's still worth noting that my body was less comfortable with the schedule as the trial wore on.
For my afternoon rest periods, I got used to them almost immediately. I didn't find working my way into these challenging at all, and if you've been keeping up with the blog, you'll remember that I was able to freely change the periods from 2:00 to 1:00 to 4:00. This is an important aspect for those of us needing a flexible schedule.
I was never able to grasp the nightly sleep periods. Once in bed I was almost at once asleep however the most challenging task of this project was to stay awake until 1:00 p.m. Now I know that this doesn't sound hard but for me it was. I had trained my body to fall asleep around 10:30 and to push this back two and a half hours was very foreign to my body. I'm not sure if I'll be able to combat late night sleepiness better in the future but this is something that I will still keep an eye on.
As far as the miscellaneous stuff goes there wasn't too much to note. It felt weird sleeping in someone else's home but everyone was understanding. It did not feel strange to sleep in the afternoon even though I had never done this before. These periods just felt like naps and I never took the risk and tried to power through a day without my afternoon nap (soon, maybe). As mentioned before, I usually always want to sleep longer in the morning when thinking about it the night before. I rarely want to sleep in once I wake up though. I also always want to go to bed earlier and it feels like nonsense when I HAVE to stay up. That's about it for there though.
My last point that I would like to make is about productivity. I had envisioned myself being more creative and more productive and able to handle more. The truth about this is that you have to be productive yourself. You have to do it. You can't depend on parents or sleep cycles or agendas to make you more productive. You get what you put in. I would like to end this post with a quote from Yoda, "Do or do not, there is no try."
This is what you can expect tomorrow; tips and advice for when you start your own cycle. I'm personally excited as the survey shows that most people are looking to do something like this. After that post I will also be explaining the next step with this blog. You'll want to read it.
Friday, July 6, 2012
Three Birds With One Post
8:21 a.m.
I know that I only had one update yesterday so I’ll have to summarize three posts in this one. Starting with the afternoon rest period. I went to sleep at 2:00 and oddly woke up at 2:45 before my alarm went off. I don’t know why this was the case but either way I’m not too worried about it.
Then there was late last night, I stayed up until 12:50 because I was so tired that I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I haven’t been able to get rid of this tiredness at night although it does help to keep your mind active (reading, painting, work). If you watch TV you will fall asleep early.
Then lastly there was this morning. I slept in and I’m aware that this is a bad ending to the transition period but it makes it more difficult that it’s the summer time and I don’t have a schedule that I need to abide by.
For all three of them there was something slightly off but I’m not concerned about any of them. I think that it’s still going well and the transition period has been relatively successful. Today I will have only one more post. That update will be the summarization of the transition period. That means I will briefly describe the transition period and how my mind and body felt. I will also have another special post tomorrow and the day after that so keep informed. I’ll see you again very soon.
I know that I only had one update yesterday so I’ll have to summarize three posts in this one. Starting with the afternoon rest period. I went to sleep at 2:00 and oddly woke up at 2:45 before my alarm went off. I don’t know why this was the case but either way I’m not too worried about it.
Then there was late last night, I stayed up until 12:50 because I was so tired that I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I haven’t been able to get rid of this tiredness at night although it does help to keep your mind active (reading, painting, work). If you watch TV you will fall asleep early.
Then lastly there was this morning. I slept in and I’m aware that this is a bad ending to the transition period but it makes it more difficult that it’s the summer time and I don’t have a schedule that I need to abide by.
For all three of them there was something slightly off but I’m not concerned about any of them. I think that it’s still going well and the transition period has been relatively successful. Today I will have only one more post. That update will be the summarization of the transition period. That means I will briefly describe the transition period and how my mind and body felt. I will also have another special post tomorrow and the day after that so keep informed. I’ll see you again very soon.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Thank You!
As of right now I have reached 1,000 views of this blog and I'd just like to take the time to thank everyone who has stopped by and helped this thing keep going. I didn't expect it to get very big and this surpassed my expectations. The following list is the top ten countries that are following my blog;
1. USA
2. Canada
3. Hungary
4. United Kingdom
5. Sweden
6. Germany
7. Ireland
8. Australia
9. Denmark
10. Argentina
If one of your countries isn't up there that's okay; you'll just have to spread the word. I truly appreciate each of you guys and I'm glad to keep doing this for you. Since tomorrow is the last day of the transition phase, I will be giving a brief summary and update of how that went and what you guys can expect in the future. Again, thank you!
1. USA
2. Canada
3. Hungary
4. United Kingdom
5. Sweden
6. Germany
7. Ireland
8. Australia
9. Denmark
10. Argentina
If one of your countries isn't up there that's okay; you'll just have to spread the word. I truly appreciate each of you guys and I'm glad to keep doing this for you. Since tomorrow is the last day of the transition phase, I will be giving a brief summary and update of how that went and what you guys can expect in the future. Again, thank you!
Skipping The Run
6:45 a.m.
I went to bed and got up right on time again; I’m really getting the hang of it. I did not go for a morning run though. I got up in time to go on the run and I was ready, then I remembered that me and my quarterback are going to throw the football around after we work out. That’s why I decided to skip the run so that I would be better prepared for our practice tonight. What did I do instead of go on my run? I continued to read this book:
I have a few desires. One is right before I go to bed. At this time I wish that I could forget the alarm and at least sleep in to seven or eight. I did however notice once I woke up that I felt completely rested and to sleep in would have been a waste of time.
The other thing that I constantly wish for is to have a normal bed time. I’m not saying that I wish I used the monophasic sleep cycle like everyone else; I just wish that I went to bed at eleven or twelve. Thinking about it now though, this could be a viable option. It would just mean that I would have to wake up at four o’clock in the morning when it’s still very dark. I would then need to change my schedule too. It’s something to think about.
I went to bed and got up right on time again; I’m really getting the hang of it. I did not go for a morning run though. I got up in time to go on the run and I was ready, then I remembered that me and my quarterback are going to throw the football around after we work out. That’s why I decided to skip the run so that I would be better prepared for our practice tonight. What did I do instead of go on my run? I continued to read this book:
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| It may be long and boring, but it sure is long and boring |
The other thing that I constantly wish for is to have a normal bed time. I’m not saying that I wish I used the monophasic sleep cycle like everyone else; I just wish that I went to bed at eleven or twelve. Thinking about it now though, this could be a viable option. It would just mean that I would have to wake up at four o’clock in the morning when it’s still very dark. I would then need to change my schedule too. It’s something to think about.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Quick Update Before Bedtime
12:19 a.m.
This has been my first night update in a while. I promise I’ll try to make the most of it. I think that no matter how many times in a row I stay up this late I will still be tired. I haven’t been able to remain alert past 11:30 once through out this entire experiment. I’m not too frustrated by this although it is a little disappointing.
I promised an updated picture of the painting I’m working on and I delivered. I wasn’t able to completely finish it tonight but I did make a lot of headway. If you can’t figure it out by now, that’s a stream surrounded by trees during winter.
If my math is correct, this is the tenth day, (July 5th). That means that the transition period should be coming to a close and I guess I’ll have an official report later on how this has gone and my plans for the future. I still need to figure most of that out so hang with me.
This has been my first night update in a while. I promise I’ll try to make the most of it. I think that no matter how many times in a row I stay up this late I will still be tired. I haven’t been able to remain alert past 11:30 once through out this entire experiment. I’m not too frustrated by this although it is a little disappointing.
I promised an updated picture of the painting I’m working on and I delivered. I wasn’t able to completely finish it tonight but I did make a lot of headway. If you can’t figure it out by now, that’s a stream surrounded by trees during winter.
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| Almost done, hang in there |
Another North American Holiday
6:27 p.m.
I apologize that this one is going up so late but it’s the first time I’ve had some time with the computer. I was going to have a late afternoon rest period but I was tired around 1:30 so I went to sleep at 2:00. I had a little difficulty falling asleep but I think it went well. I was also tired in the morning around 9:00; I don’t know why. I’ll see tomorrow if I’m still tired in the morning.
A big shout out goes to my American friends to the South. It’s their Independence Day so I hope they enjoy their day of barbecues and fireworks. Up here in Canada it would be a perfect day for that so I hope the weather is good down there too.
Overall today has gone well. I worked most of the morning away and am about to head out to the gym. I’ll see if I can throw another post up late tonight with my finished art work attached.
I apologize that this one is going up so late but it’s the first time I’ve had some time with the computer. I was going to have a late afternoon rest period but I was tired around 1:30 so I went to sleep at 2:00. I had a little difficulty falling asleep but I think it went well. I was also tired in the morning around 9:00; I don’t know why. I’ll see tomorrow if I’m still tired in the morning.
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| It's America's Independence Day |
A big shout out goes to my American friends to the South. It’s their Independence Day so I hope they enjoy their day of barbecues and fireworks. Up here in Canada it would be a perfect day for that so I hope the weather is good down there too.
Overall today has gone well. I worked most of the morning away and am about to head out to the gym. I’ll see if I can throw another post up late tonight with my finished art work attached.
Early Bird Gets The Worm
6:08 a.m.
I woke up right on time this morning at 5:00 and was out the door half an hour later for my morning run. In case you were wondering, that’s three days in a row that I’ve been on time. This is exciting news for me; I’m finally starting to get the hang of it. The only problem is that I dozed off last night for maybe half an hour in front of the TV. This means two things; one is that if I am actually using my brain a little (painting, reading) I will be able to stay up much better than if I sit in front of the TV. The other thing it means is that the later afternoon nap didn’t help as much as I was hoping.
Nevertheless, I will have another late afternoon rest period today (third day in a row) just to see if it really doesn’t help at all. And I should be able to finish the painting I started and posted a couple days ago. That should keep me awake at night.
One last note is that when I meet people who know what I’m doing it always surprises them that I’m usually not tired at all and even during the transition phase, I wasn’t very tired at all. This shows that no matter where you are in your school or job, you can make he change at any time so long as you are committed and have a schedule flexible enough. If some of you guys decide to try this sleep cycle out or another one let us know in the comments!
I woke up right on time this morning at 5:00 and was out the door half an hour later for my morning run. In case you were wondering, that’s three days in a row that I’ve been on time. This is exciting news for me; I’m finally starting to get the hang of it. The only problem is that I dozed off last night for maybe half an hour in front of the TV. This means two things; one is that if I am actually using my brain a little (painting, reading) I will be able to stay up much better than if I sit in front of the TV. The other thing it means is that the later afternoon nap didn’t help as much as I was hoping.
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| These are the shoes that have carried me in all my runs |
One last note is that when I meet people who know what I’m doing it always surprises them that I’m usually not tired at all and even during the transition phase, I wasn’t very tired at all. This shows that no matter where you are in your school or job, you can make he change at any time so long as you are committed and have a schedule flexible enough. If some of you guys decide to try this sleep cycle out or another one let us know in the comments!
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