The FastDay Forum

I have real trouble sleeping on a fast day. Last night I was tossing and turning with hardly any sleep untill 5.30 am (I was up going toilet every hour as well which did not help). I was not hungry in the night but I got up and had a bowl of porridge then managed to fall asleep for a couple of hours. This has happened before a few times on fast days and I find my self in the early hours eating a banana or something just so I can sleep. Yesterday was my 8th fast over 5 weeks. I have done a couple of 6:1 due to illness. But have managed to loss 7lb which is great for me as I only want to loss no more than a stone. I also mainly am doing this woe for its health benefits as though I have no health issues yet I would like to stay as healthy as possible (as I work in a hospital I know how unhealthy life styles can lead to life altering disorders and all the problems that come with them). But I am not sure how long I can keep it up if I cant sleep. Any suggestions on how to improve my sleep would be fantastic!!!

Thanks

[carorees]

I think it will get better. In the meantime, either save some calories for a milky drink/snack before bed or increase your allowance slightly and then gradually reduce it as your sleep improves. I tend to sleep very poorly all the time, I now find that on fast days my sleep is no worse than before I started this diet but on non-fast nights my sleep is actually better than before. Others have reported improved sleep overall.

i have the same problem, im not hungry on a fast night but have real trouble staying asleep. i am a poor sleeper anyway but definitely worse on a fast night.

Yeh I sleep badly most the time, but its particularly worse on fast days . I didn't feel any more tired than I normally do which was good. Will try and eat a little snack before bed. If I go over the 500 cal slightly its not so bad as I am still losing weight.

Hi Tammygirl,

Have you seen an improvement?

I've just started 5:2 this week, and although I fall asleep easily on fast days I wake up a couple of hours later and have problems going back to sleep, then sleep fitfully until morning. Like you I don't feel hungry, I just can't sleep!

Generally I don't have any problems sleeping as I have two young children who take it in turns to wake me up, so when they let me sleep I sleep!

This has been my biggest "problem" so far too. I have only had 2 fast days so far, today is my third, and both nights I had a terrible time falling asleep and then was very restless all night. I was also not feeling typical hunger signs, nor was I thinking about food or wanting to eat while I wasn't sleeping well. I did read some where some one warning about it when they were giving tips for the 5:2 diet so part of me was wondering if it was in my head because I was told to expect it or watch out for it! I really hope it gets better because I hate laying awake a night unable to rest. It won't work for me long term. I am going to try to save 100 calories or so for tonight just before bed and see if that helps. I wish I had some almond milk because I cup of that is only 60 calories and that might do the trick!

I have only had one fast day and am going through the second one today.

Thankfully, I had absolutely no problems sleeping that first fast night. Not sure if it had anything to do with my constant state of sleep deprivation catching up with me?

Or alternately, me saving my entire daily allowance to a single meal in the evening to ensure I had a good dinner?

I had opted for a single larger meal for two main reasons
1] i know myself. Once i start eating, I am going to want more, so rather than multiple smaller meals during the day when I am not satiated, I opted for one larger meal in the evening so i do not run into the temptation issue
2] it fits my work day better as work get kinda crazy during the daytime

if anything, I had problems waking up on my following non fast day. not sure why?

HI - I'm often restless after a fast, but often I find nights where I can't sleep are nights where I am losing weight! So I don't complain!

Waves to Lucy and the other early risers, I have started waking early (4am ish) after a Fast day, not hungry but awake and alert and ready to go. I find this an inconvenience rather than a big problem but I know I will feel very tired tonight. I suppose you can;t have everything !

Well to date it hasn't been a problem, but I tried the 36 hr thing yesterday and I've been awake for nearly and hour now and up in the night twice (once is usual for me)...

Last night after a feast day I slept soundly, I definately sleep worse after a fast day.

Tomorrow is my third fast day, so I'll try eating all of my calories in one big evening meal and see if that helps...

Hi Tammy Girl and all other fast night insomniacs,

Difficulty in sleeping on fast nights is my only problem with this WOE, but it is getting me down a bit. I actually feel great during a fast day, loads of energy, little hunger and I have been managing a workout at the gym without feeling any ill effects.

I tend to have one meal of 500 cals in the evening, but last fast day, I saved 100 cals and had a small bowl of soup with some chicken in before bed. I hoped this would help. I went to bed at about 11pm and slept 'til 1.30am, when I woke up and then had a restless night until about 6am, when I went off to sleep for an hour or so. At least I felt calm this time - previously I have woken with heart pounding, sweating and feeling shaky. Having a drink of water seems to help that, but doesn't get me off to sleep. I have to say, I don't feel as tired the next day as I would expect with so little sleep, but I just would like to have a few more hours rest!

Usually, my sleep is a bit erratic as I am peri menopausal and often wake up, too hot - but I can generally go back to sleep OK. The fasting insomnia is different!

Any more ideas anyone? I'll maybe try a small carb snack before bed on Monday, next fast day.

How are you getting on Tammygirl?

Sleeptight!

Yesterday was my fourth fast day, and I slept much better than the previous 3 fast days. I hope that means it's getting better. I guess over time I will know. I had 120 cals for breakfast, a dinner around 4pm, and then around 6 I had a slimfast shake. I thought that might help me sleep, maybe it worked!

Hi all,

I'm having this problem too. This is only my second week on 5:2, but I'm definitely sleeping poorly on fast nights.

Today I'm trying to have a bit more protein, and to have most of my calories at dinner, and saving some for a snack just before bed.

Really hoping this is a temporary thing!