Usually sleep badly on fast days… anyone else?

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Usually sleep badly on fast days… anyone else?

This topic contains 10 replies, has 11 voices, and was last updated by  Luminess 2 years, 7 months ago.

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  • I’ve been on the 5:2 for a couple of years now, and feel great. But I’ve come to notice that I usually sleep badly on a fast day – can’t get to sleep for hours, lots of toilet calls. Has anyone else had this experience? Any solution?

    Are you fasting (as in no food) or are you just eating less on your “fast days”? If eating try eating your meal late in the evening. Im assuming you are no longer overweight? Frequent urination is a indication that you are running on ketones. Urination is a means of keeping you from going into keto acidosis.

    Many thanks for your reply. On fast days I take a very light meal around seven or eight p.m. No longer overweight, haven’t been for two years. Very interesting about ketones, I’d never heard about them before. I’m not diabetic so there appears to be no problem with ketoacidosis.

    Do you take any supplements? I’ve heard that a magnesium supplement before bed can help with sleep, I’ve never tried it personally though.

    Interesting about Mg. I know it’s prescribed for cramp, but never heard it helped with sleep (except sleep disturbed by cramp)…

    yes. Really struggling to get to sleep and last night woke up w leg cramps. Am going to try magnesium supplement today. I suspect its because I’m not crashing for sugar/carbs. I don’t feel tired despite crappy sleep……..

    Just started 5 2…. always slept well, rarely up in the night.

    The two fasting days were both followed by disrupted sleep, first one 3 or 4 times up to bathroom, second just took ages to get to sleep, plus bathroom visits.

    Having said that drinking more water on fasting days ….. but the benefit, lost 5lb in the week!

    Also heard about melatonin, never tried it personally but for some acquaintances it does work. The lower dose, the better, I heard.

    I’ve tried this – taking magnesium that is – and it’s never helped me. Wish it would!

    OP, I’m not sure if you drink, but I’ve found that saving a few calories for a glass of wine in the evenings has helped me sleep quite well on fasting days. Dry, red wines have especially been useful in helping me drift off. I’d stay away from the sweeter stuff (i.e. moscatos, sweet reds, viogniers), as I’ve found they make me feel hungry or snacky. Could just be me, though!

    Booze doesn’t seem to help me sleep on fast days (although I shouldn’t do it in any case…)

    I’ve found since my earlier post that eating habit has changed, eat very little until a main meal after 6pm, but last thing have a glass of milk, seems to help me.

    Don’t think booze would help you sleep. If anything, it would just keep you up longer.

    @mukica – Different bodies certainly process things differently. For me (as well as my husband), a small glass of wine has helped considerably with falling asleep. If it doesn’t work for you, then certainly give melatonin a try!

    still sleep badly , especially on second fast night where I hardly sleep

    i’ve stopped and restarted 5:2 because of this, I am wide awake and sleep so light on fast days i’ve tried everything including magnesium and valerian root – it takes the edge off but still don’t sleep!

    That’s our primal brain shouting at us “Starving is imminent! Get ye out to hunt and gather you daft human”. Our primal brain doesn’t know there’s food everywhere these days and that we are actually not starving.

    Regarding extra toilet calls;
    Before starting to burn fat the body empties it’s glycogen stores (stored carbs). Every gram of glycogen holds approx 3 grams of water. So yeah… need to get that out somehow. 😁

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