Can't fall asleep

[xagent]

I have trouble sleeping. I workout in the evening or night, 2 hours at a time, anytime in the time frame between 6 PM till 9 PM. That usually gets my heartrate up and pumping. I also take pre-workout supplements, 30 min before my workout, so that could also be a factor.

Can't fall asleep and toss and turn. This is after downing a huge post-workout meal... usually consisting of a half pound steak, a full can of beans or lentils or chili, and a protein shake w/ 16 oz. of whole milk... quite a heavy 1200+ calorie meal. This is on top of taking melatonin too...

For example today I took 2 scoops of Jack3d at 5 PM. Lifted from 5:30 - 7:45 PM. PR'd in squats and deadlifts, and also did bench, 3 sets of pullups to failure, and 3 sets of curls. Overall an intense workout. Its now midnight and I feel "normal" (neither wired nor fatigued).

To top it off, I woke up today at 8 AM... not like I slept in. I should be tired, wtf is going on? How do you guys go to bed?

i am thinking of smoking some of my roommates medicinal pot or drinking several beers, but that's probably not the best solution for recovery...

[mstrofbass]

You took something that includes large amounts of caffeine, and now you're wondering why the fuck you're not tired?

[xagent]

But that was 7 and a half hours ago, and I did an intense 2 hour workout, and ate an enormous, fatty meal.

As I stated in my post, the elevated heartrate and metabolism from the workout + the stimulants I took could play a part, but it's not like I just took the caffeine and came home from the gym.

What do people that do lift at night/evening do to help go to bed early? Not take any caffeine? Or if they do, how do you do it?

[Valhall]

Dont take power naps.

[savage]

Sit in the dark at your desk reading stupid shit on the WWW. If you're uncomfortable, you'll be tensed up and you'll probably expend some energy in that position. After a while, you'll just feel crappy and the sleep will come more naturally. Takes about an hour, though.

Perhaps you should also rub one out.

[DutchPancakes]

But that was 7 and a half hours ago

Supposedly caffeine stays in your system up to 8 hours.

[Joseph Reyes]

Dude ditch the caffeine, get off the internet, sleep in a cool dark room, and take some magnesium and zinc.

[Corrie]

2 things that have done wonders for me.

1. a program called f.lux. If you use the PC before bed this is a must.

2. Melatonin - I was skeptical about whether or not it would work but it seems like every time I take 5 or 10mg I fall asleep much faster and wake up less through the night.

[scotts]

I have trouble sleeping. I workout in the evening or night... between 6 PM till 9 PM... I also take pre-workout supplements... This is after downing a huge post-workout meal, usually consisting of a half pound steak, a full can of beans or lentils or chili, and a protein shake w/ 16 oz. of whole milk... quite a heavy 1200+ calorie meal.

This is quite the mystery, isn't it? You're obviously doing everything right: working out close to the time you want to sleep, taking stimulants, getting your heart rate and metabolism up and eating a large meal before bed. Yeah, all this is a surefire recipe for a restful night's sleep. Why oh why aren't you sleeping?

I'm just going to throw some things out there, and remember I'm just thinking out loud here: how's about you try not working out in the evening? How's about you try not taking stimulants close to bedtime? How's about you try not eating a large protein/fat based meal before going to bed?

Nah, fuck all that and just smoke the pot.

[msingh]

I use an app similar to flux called Redshift (cos i have multiple screens and flux only works on the first one). It really does work.

Also, OP eating a big meal inhibits sleep, so may wanna eat it earlier or something, or just have a smaller dinner.

And lay off the stims too, probably.