Insomnia after late-night workouts

I wouldn't call myself a light sleeper normally, but whenever I hit the gym late—say, after 7 PM—it’s game over. My brain just starts racing at a hundred miles an hour.
Does anyone else deal with this? Have you found anything that actually works? A lot of people I talk to struggle with the exact same thing.
I even tried some Daisy tea, which is supposed to be a natural sedative, but no luck. I'm sitting here wide awake until 4 AM.🙂

And please, don't give me those "just don't work out at night" responses. That's not what I'm looking for.🙂.

What would you guys want to hear about?
Let me just get straight to the point here. 😁

-Joe

Jacob Lee11 said:Look, I’ve never been a fast sleeper anyway, but when I hit the gym late, say after 7 PM, it’s a struggle. My brain just stays wired at 300 mph...
Anyone else deal with this? Found anything that actually helps? A lot of people I talk to have the same issue.
I even tried some Daisy tea, which is supposed to be a natural sedative, but nothing works. I'm staring at the ceiling until 4 AM...🙂

And please, don't give me those "just don't work out at night" replies. That’s not what I’m looking for🙂.

You asked for solutions, so don't tell me what you don't want to hear🙂. I had the exact same thing happen, and I solved it by moving my workouts to the morning. I'm not exactly a morning person, so I thought it would be harder, but even with an earlier wake-up call, I sleep way better than I do when I train at night and can't shut down...

Try to eat a meal high in carbohydrates right after you finish your workout.

Since I started doing that, I haven't had any issues getting to sleep at night.

Well, I hit some training sessions that just don't work with my morning schedule, and they’re actually worth it. The crew and coaches are great. If I skip them, I usually just knock out a session of Madness instead...
I'm going to give this UH thing a shot, though I'm still a bit puzzled about how it's supposed to help. I'll also try two cups of mint tea, a glass of milk—basically, I'm down to try everything.😉

For tea, maybe try some Daisy instead of mint. Warm milk works too—you could even toss in some turkey as a PWM if you really want to go for it. I know whether tryptophan actually helps with insomnia is debatable, but hey, might as well try everything... 😉

Or, since you're already doing Madness, just swap out his stretching routine for some yoga at the end. His version is pretty useless anyway. A solid, slow session would help you sleep like a baby and give you a decent stretch while cutting down on injury risks during Madness.

Or just kick off a whole new thread on some forum.
It looks like you were totally knocked out in like fifteen minutes yesterday, I guess.

-Joe

Susan Jackson12 said:For tea, maybe try some Daisy instead of mint. Warm milk works too, and you could even add turkey for some tryptophan. Though whether tryptophan actually helps with insomnia is debatable, you might as well try everything. 😉

Also, since you're already doing Madness, just swap his stretching at the end for some yoga. His routine is pretty mediocre anyway. A decent, long, gentle session will help you sleep like a baby while giving you a proper stretch and lowering your injury risk during Madness.

I've tried drinking Daisy before. And I got some tryptophan from the cottage cheese I had earlier.🤷 What don't you like about the Madness stretching? It feels too short to me (I prefer holding a stretch for at least 25 seconds per muscle). It also seems like most of the stretches in Madness involve tensing up way more muscles than you're actually stretching... personally, I think easier stretches work better.

briskjackal5 said:Or just start a thread on a forum.
It looks like it knocked you out in 15 minutes yesterday.

-Joe

I wish. I was tossing and turning for ages.🤷 Maybe I'll stop using the internet after 9 PM. I think it keeps my brain too active.

So, how much does stretching actually matter? To be honest, I always seem to skip that entire part of my routine, and now I'm starting to wonder if I'm making a massive mistake...

Give this a read. Then you can decide if you're actually making mistakes.

Jacob Lee11 said:... I'll give everything a shot😉

Light up a joint...
It works for me every single time.☕

Larry Peterson30 said:light up a joint...
it hits me every single time ☕

I rarely feel much from a joint🤷. But then again, what do I know? Maybe it'll work once I'm totally wiped out after a workout🙂

I think I saw someone mention somewhere—some random online forum, I can't recall which one—that this all stems from a magnesium deficiency.

The general advice was to take some CA+Mg+Zn supplements right before hitting the gym.

Just a heads-up though: if you load up on magnesium, expect your dreams to turn into absolute nightmares.

Working out hits your central nervous system hard, cranks up your body temp, and basically jolts your entire system awake. It’s pretty standard to find yourself wide awake a few hours after a session, especially if you're someone who relies on pre-workout stimulants to get moving; though, I suppose there are always exceptions... Check out this link.

Post-workout hunger hits me like a freight train. If I don't eat enough, I start questioning why I even bother hitting the gym in the first place. What’s the move here if I want to keep it moderate? Carbs or protein? Honestly, I could probably inhale an entire Hershey's bar in ten seconds flat—it's becoming a bit of a problem.

Post-workout, you really want to aim for a mix of protein and carbs to recover properly. If you struggle with keeping your hands off the snacks, try sticking to high-volume, low-calorie foods to stay full... Of course, if you have the discipline to track everything, you can always go for a massive, heavy meal as long as it actually fits within your daily calorie budget.

Thanks for the advice. So, a bowl of salad, LOL

Kimberly Barnes36 said:Thanks for the tip. So, just a bowl of salad, LOL

Try some cheese and a bowl of salad; I doubt that craving to overeat (omg 🤣) will last very long 😁
...

Take some magnesium before bed—just don't touch it right before a workout. If you're using effervescent tablets, take two or three at once; magnesium carbonate is notoriously difficult for the body to absorb efficiently. It helps relax your muscles, making you feel more rested in the morning even if you didn't get enough sleep. Once you get past the first night, you'll find you function much better. Personally, I take three tablets, but I don't do it every single night. I save it for when I actually need it, depending on my training schedule. If I have a grueling session planned for the next day, or if I just finished an intense workout, that’s when I reach for the magnesium before hitting the hay.
Furthermore, keeping up your mineral intake through your diet throughout the day is absolutely critical...................

Two or three pills at once? Man, you trying to give yourself food poisoning or something?