changes in sleep cycle

damian · Post by **damian** » Sun 20 Apr 2008 11:10

I'm on day 3 of the Wai diet and am noticing some dramatic changes in my sleep cycle, both good and bad.

I used to go to bed between around 12am and 2am and get up between around 10am and 12pm. Now that I'm on the diet, I am falling asleep around 9pm or 10pm and getting up around 7am or 8am. This feels very good. I assume that reduced salt intake probably has something to do with this, yes?

Now for the bad: I used to sleep pretty much through the night, perhaps waking up once and falling asleep pretty quickly. Now I'm waking up 3, 4, 5 times a night and not falling asleep quickly after I wake up. In fact, I find myself feeling hungry and thirsty each time I wake up and feeling a strong desire for orange juice (with 4T olive oil/L, of course), which I then drink a bit of. (Actually, right now I'm craving bacon, so perhaps I'm experiencing withdrawal symptoms to some extent.)

I would like to sleep through the night, if possible. Any suggestions? Would I be better off eating whole fruit (with olive oil) than drinking orange juice (with olive oil) before bed so as to keep my blood sugar levels more steady throughout the night (due to the fiber)? Thanks.

claireelis · Post by **claireelis** » Mon 21 Apr 2008 17:58

hi damian, i am on my second day of strict wai again (have tried before). i have the exact same drastic change in sleep cycle - i get all out of wack if i eat grains, but then after one day of wai i go to bed early and get up early the next day. i am able to fall asleep again after waking up in the middle of the night (happens about 3 times), but at 6 a.m. when i was still really tired i couldn't get back to sleep.... i don't know the mechanism - maybe someone can fill us in?

clementine · Post by **clementine** » Fri 25 Apr 2008 19:16

I also wake up constantly throughout the night, and get up really early and I have never been a morning person before! I dont understand it either, but I think it has to do with having a very efficient digestive system now (since we are not consuming unhealthy foods). Unless you have a lack of energy during the day (due to poor sleeping) I don't think it's a problem. I personally have way more energy when I eat this way.

damian · Post by **damian** » Fri 25 Apr 2008 19:33

I just found the following at http://www.freeacnebook.com/constipation.htm

I like to eat something sweet before I go to bed. Is that a problem?

Not at all; eating a piece of fruit or something else sweet just before you go to bed can even help promote sleep. This only contains sufficient energy to last for half an hour, and the utilization of body-fat will not begin until later. If you wake up in the middle of the night, some combination of fat and sugar will very probably help you to fall asleep again.

Helps at least in part to answer my question.

Angie · Post by **Angie** » Wed 30 Apr 2008 02:24

Hi, eating a banana a while before bed helps... it has potassium, and seems to be both filling and calming. I used to eat a banana and one St. John's wort/melatonin if I couldn't sleep, though I can't officially recommend that part of it. Get lots of fresh air and outdoor exercise, long walks are great. Maybe eat more nuts. I found that switching to the wai diet after a while I just needed a little less sleep, and woke up early. It's not as hard work to digest this food, normally the body will sleep all night trying to digest a heavy meal. Also, I eat most of my food earlier in the day. I am not 100% wai so I can't say more than that. Good luck

Post by **Oscar** » Thu 01 May 2008 12:34

Make sure not to be hungry when going to bed. I think it's a temporary thing because your body is going through changes.

MariaLinn · Post by **MariaLinn** » Sat 03 May 2008 21:11

Hey damien, It was the same for me for a long time as I used to have lika an apple or something fruity before bed bud then I started to experiment and found that eating an avocado right before bed is AMAZING for my sleep! Both the falling asleep-part and the staying asleep. Used to wake upp atleast 2-4 times at night before and now I dont even wake up to turn (wich oftentimes results in my arms falling asleep if i lay in a twisted angle and then trying to shut up the clock in the morning becomes a pretty funny sceen for anybody watching, lol)

Avocado is the best sleepingpill there is! (well except for the obvious: sex

)

YouTube · Post by **RRM** » Wed 14 May 2008 12:48

Angie wrote:Hi, eating a banana a while before bed helps... it has potassium

virtually everything has potassium. (and avocado contains more potassium than banana, for example)
Like avocado, banana does supply you with energy though, that is steadily released, and therefore may give just that what you need to fall asleep. Really, its hard to fall asleep on low blood-sugar.

Angie · Post by **Angie** » Sat 17 May 2008 03:30

That's cool... I didn't know about the avacado, potassium and steady energy of a banana.

Thanks