Sleeping 5 hours a night is...healthy?

[Kaido]

What the heck?

http://www.bulletproofexec.com/slee...ng-5-hours-is-healther-than-sleeping-8-hours/

It's taken me years to figure out my optimal sleeping pattern (not that I follow it :biggrin. I need to go to bed at 8:30pm & sleep for 7 hours to feel the best. Although I did the fruitarian diet for 6 weeks recently and I needed at least 10 hours to feel good (which is a known factor in the fruit diet). I have no idea how you would feel good or feel awake on only 5 hours of sleep. For me, the bulk of my energy is tied to how early I go to bed...if I stay up late, I'm more groggy & sluggish in the morning & the next day. I also typically need to sleep more hours if I stay up later at night.

 

[postmortemIA]

usually I sleep between 5.5 and 6.5 hrs per night plus one short nap after work at evening. I rarely feel tired... Most of time I can't sleep more that 6.5 hrs anyway. I mostly wake up before alarm clock.

 

[Kaido]

usually I sleep between 5.5 and 6.5 hrs per night plus one short nap after work at evening. I rarely feel tired... Most of time I can't sleep more that 6.5 hrs anyway. I mostly wake up before alarm clock.

The best I've been able to find is that I have some form of circadian rhythm disorder:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm_sleep_disorder

People with circadian rhythm sleep disorders are unable to sleep and wake at the times required for normal work, school, and social needs. They are generally able to get enough sleep if allowed to sleep and wake at the times dictated by their body clocks. Unless they also have another sleep disorder, the quality of their sleep is usually normal.

I spent some time tracking when my body signals me to go to sleep...the first one is around 8:30pm and the second one is around 2:00am, although I can fall asleep around 11:00pm without much effort - but if I go to bed early, I only need about 7 hours of sleep, wake up around 3:30-4:00am, and feel awesome - I pop out of bed, hit my home gym, and feel great all day. But I have a really hard time disciplining myself to go to bed early, since the evening is my only free time all day after work, family, etc.

 

[z1ggy]

I'm going to get a sleep study done on me soon due to fatigue issues. I guess I'll find out then what my sleep patterns are.

 

[SP33Demon]

If you're on a heavy training schedule, I wouldn't get less than 7 hours of sleep. Of course everyone is different and there probably are some freaks out there who can pull off CNS recovery with 5 hours. I need around 8-9 hours to feel fully rested from benching and squatting twice a week.

 

[NAC]

If I get enough physical & mental exercise, then I need to sleep quite a bit. I seem to like 8 hours a night, but occasionally more. And I can do fine for a day or two with less. Sometimes I'll have a great day mentally if I don't sleep a lot, but to have a good workout I need my 8 hours or so.

If I don't get enough physical or mental exercise, then I can't sleep 8 hours, I tend to settle on a bit over 6.

 

[Kaido]

I'm going to get a sleep study done on me soon due to fatigue issues. I guess I'll find out then what my sleep patterns are.

I think it's really important to figure out your body's rules, since everyone is different. I know mine, I just don't follow them too well :biggrin: For optimum results, I need to go to bed at 8:30pm and be careful to avoid foods I am allergic to. It's really, really difficult to go to bed that early, haha.

 

[magomago]

My best sleep is when I sleep no later than 10PM, and I wake up naturally, typically around 6:30-7AM. If find if I sleep later, I'll find myself overall sleeping longer and not as perfectly refreshed.

I can't imagine forcing myself to operate on an alarm clock and up after 5 hours. I could sustain it for 3 days or so, but after that I'll start to feel like a zombie and I won't be thinking as crystal clear.

 

[Whisper]

I spent some time tracking when my body signals me to go to sleep...the first one is around 8:30pm and the second one is around 2:00am, although I can fall asleep around 11:00pm without much effort - but if I go to bed early, I only need about 7 hours of sleep, wake up around 3:30-4:00am, and feel awesome - I pop out of bed, hit my home gym, and feel great all day. But I have a really hard time disciplining myself to go to bed early, since the evening is my only free time all day after work, family, etc.

Those times (especially the 2am bit) actually aren't all that abnormal when compared with most people in the absence of artificial schedule constraints.

As for duration, there's a HUGE amount of variability from person to person. Some people (I like to call them "lucky bastards") are fine with 4 or 5 hours, while others might need 9 or 10 to feel fully rested.

Coincidentally, my current sleep schedule is very close to the one you've identified as your ideal--for the past 7-8 months, I've generally been zonked out by between 8 and 9 and will get up between 3 and 4, depending on whether or not I need to go to the gym.

I figured out probably 5 years ago that I do much better when I have at least a couple hours before work to just putter around, relax, plan out my day, and get done whatever I want to get done before starting to get ready than if I wake up 30 minutes before I need to be out the door. And I've realized over the past half-year just how great it can actually be to get your workout finished early when you're still fresh rather than having to think about it throughout the day. But that's just me.

 

[MongGrel]

Probably not, but about what I usually do I imagine.

Take a nap sometimes when I get home from work now and then too before the with gets home for about an hour and a half sometimes though I guess.

 

[Kaido]

Those times (especially the 2am bit) actually aren't all that abnormal when compared with most people in the absence of artificial schedule constraints.

As for duration, there's a HUGE amount of variability from person to person. Some people (I like to call them "lucky bastards") are fine with 4 or 5 hours, while others might need 9 or 10 to feel fully rested.

Coincidentally, my current sleep schedule is very close to the one you've identified as your ideal--for the past 7-8 months, I've generally been zonked out by between 8 and 9 and will get up between 3 and 4, depending on whether or not I need to go to the gym.

I figured out probably 5 years ago that I do much better when I have at least a couple hours before work to just putter around, relax, plan out my day, and get done whatever I want to get done before starting to get ready than if I wake up 30 minutes before I need to be out the door. And I've realized over the past half-year just how great it can actually be to get your workout finished early when you're still fresh rather than having to think about it throughout the day. But that's just me.

Nailing those three hours before midnight is like magic...I feel frickin' amazing the next day when I go to sleep early the night before. Exercise is fun instead of an obligation. But despite the benefits, I still have such a hard time going to bed early, especially lately - it's been like 11pm, then I feel meh all day the next day.

 

[SpacemanSpiff46]

I feel like 6-8 is that magic number. But everyone is different.

Id I could get to bed earlier maybe I could hit those numbers all the time. Naps during the day are awesome though.

 

[JBT]

I get very sleepy between 8 - 9 at night, a few hours after dinner when I'm putting my kids to bed. About 95% of the time I blow through it, and then I'm up until 11-12 or so. Now that I exercise often its usually no issue to fall asleep at that time. When I didn't exercise I would be up until 2 AM no problem.

 

[ThatsABigOne]

Largely depends on season. Last summer I ran on 3 hours of sleep in 2 months. I felt more or less fine. Exams were taken with good-excellent proficiency. But when the fall semester had started at the end of August, my system virtually collapsed. I had to get 9 or 10 hours of sleep in order to feel rested and having discipline to go to bed on time was a big challenge.

Lately I am running on 4-5 hours of sleep and I will be taking steps on getting my average sleep to 8 hours per session.