4 ms·

That's very interesting, I'd never thought of that. I guess it could make sense, as there is definitely an ultradian rhythm within the circadian rhythm (https:/

That's very interesting, I'd never thought of that. I guess it could make sense, as there is definitely an ultradian rhythm within the circadian rhythm (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultradian_rhythm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultradian_rhythm), and it's about 90-120 minutes long. I guess it could be that waking at the peak of the ultradian rhythm is better than waking at the nadir, even if the nadir is 45-60 minutes later. Especially if the resulting sleep pressure leads to becoming tired earlier, as seems to have happened to you. What method did you use to find your optimal waking time? Any sort of sleep measuring tool (phone app, fitbit) or just trial and error? If trial and error, any particular method that worked well?

KohgnaK 8y ago
I wanted to take the measurement approach (with a fitbit) but I quickly discovered that it was mostly metrics difficult to measure (how sluggish did I feel that day? was my weekend spend in bed? ...) so I kept a journal and resorted to trial and error. Initial plan was to wake up ealier by 30min deltas every other day but well it's not a sleep study: I had a daily job to attend so I was a bit limited there. Also I was on the search for a permanent solution, so I preferred testing a wake up time at least 2 weeks before seeing if it fits or not. From then on, I knew already that 6.30am was hell and we had 2 weeks where I needed to be early at work so I shifted my wake to 6am. I noticed it was quite a lot easier to get out of bed; mind you not a celebration or anything but noticeably easier. For the second part, it was more a shot in the dark as I basically took the difference between a good wake up time (8.30am) and a bad one (6.30am) which led me to believe that the next good slot was around 4.30am. Which was verified again over 3 weeks. I tried intermediary times and they all proved to be worse than those "sweet spots". One thing though I tried to smooth whole wake-up process so I prepare now everything the day before (clothes, mug, laptop, ...), I have this light box in the bathroom that's like a little sun, I bought a "real" coffee machine, ... and I go to bed as soon as I yawn a bit too much (~10pm as said earlier). Hope it helps!
- Haitischmock 8y ago
  How do you know how long it takes you to fall asleep ? I try to base my alarm on 1.5 hour sleep cycles (4.5, 6 or 7.5 hours) but sometimes I'm lying awake in bed for two hours, so I don't know how to set the alarm.
  - KohgnaK 8y ago
    fitbit + the last time I check my alarm clock before doozing off. usually both are 10min-ish appart somehow even if i fall asleep at 11pm, the 6am slot does not move (force of the habit?) - so maybe something to check?
cimmanom 8y ago
Sleep in particular occurs in cycles between deeper and lighter sleep, with different types of brainwaves at different points. For most people, these cycles last roughly 90 minutes. If you wake in the middle of a cycle, you’ll feel groggy. Waking at the end of a cycle is easy, and allows you to feel alert even if you haven't had enough sleep yet to feel refreshed.

KohgnaK 8y ago

I wanted to take the measurement approach (with a fitbit) but I quickly discovered that it was mostly metrics difficult to measure (how sluggish did I feel that day? was my weekend spend in bed? ...) so I kept a journal and resorted to trial and error. Initial plan was to wake up ealier by 30min deltas every other day but well it's not a sleep study: I had a daily job to attend so I was a bit limited there. Also I was on the search for a permanent solution, so I preferred testing a wake up time at least 2 weeks before seeing if it fits or not. From then on, I knew already that 6.30am was hell and we had 2 weeks where I needed to be early at work so I shifted my wake to 6am. I noticed it was quite a lot easier to get out of bed; mind you not a celebration or anything but noticeably easier. For the second part, it was more a shot in the dark as I basically took the difference between a good wake up time (8.30am) and a bad one (6.30am) which led me to believe that the next good slot was around 4.30am. Which was verified again over 3 weeks. I tried intermediary times and they all proved to be worse than those "sweet spots". One thing though I tried to smooth whole wake-up process so I prepare now everything the day before (clothes, mug, laptop, ...), I have this light box in the bathroom that's like a little sun, I bought a "real" coffee machine, ... and I go to bed as soon as I yawn a bit too much (~10pm as said earlier). Hope it helps!

Haitischmock 8y ago
How do you know how long it takes you to fall asleep ? I try to base my alarm on 1.5 hour sleep cycles (4.5, 6 or 7.5 hours) but sometimes I'm lying awake in bed for two hours, so I don't know how to set the alarm.
- KohgnaK 8y ago
  fitbit + the last time I check my alarm clock before doozing off. usually both are 10min-ish appart somehow even if i fall asleep at 11pm, the 6am slot does not move (force of the habit?) - so maybe something to check?

cimmanom 8y ago

Sleep in particular occurs in cycles between deeper and lighter sleep, with different types of brainwaves at different points. For most people, these cycles last roughly 90 minutes. If you wake in the middle of a cycle, you’ll feel groggy. Waking at the end of a cycle is easy, and allows you to feel alert even if you haven't had enough sleep yet to feel refreshed.