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Some people do weigh-lifting before sleep as it gets them tired to drift into a bliss easily, but others say if they do the exercise they cannot sleep at all an

Some people do weigh-lifting before sleep as it gets them tired to drift into a bliss easily, but others say if they do the exercise they cannot sleep at all and they actually prefer to do it after sleep. I wonder why such a drastic difference of experience between people?

trey-jones 5y ago
People are different, period
vidarh 5y ago
How you do your lifting can have drastic effects on how pumped up or relaxed you are afterwards. Lifting can be meditative and slow and systematic and leave you tired without being agitated, or you can do the full "Rocky" thing and get all pumped up and adrenaline flowing and grunting like the Hulk, and come out of it not just unable to sleep but unable to sit still. Could be other things as well, of course, but that strikes me as one factor that might well produce those different effects.
- sdwr 5y ago
  Yeah, exercise tires me out regardless, that's the core. The difference is whether I get amped up at the same time. Ive found the biggest difference is how much I've used my body in the past few days - working out for the first time in a while leaves me energized no matter what time it is.
Floegipoky 5y ago
There may be a small number of people for whom strenuous exercise right before sleep doesn't interfere, but a more likely explanation in my mind is broscience. The weightlifting community is especially susceptible to training methodologies which are suboptimal but fit the identity they're performing. Are these people really scientifically evaluating the affect of intense exercise close to bedtime, or are they working backwards from what _feels_ the most "manly"?
samatman 5y ago
Your mileage may vary. Personally, the ideal time for me to lift is my serum caffeine peak, and when I'm done, it takes a half hour to 45 minutes for my heart rate to return to baseline. I'll sweat another 500ml or so during the refractory period, and have no appetite to speak of. I can't even imagine sleeping during this time. After which my appetite returns with a vengeance, and I'm up for a big meal and a long nap if I can swing it. I sleep very well on lifting nights, which is a blessing because my sleep quality is unfortunately poor in general these days (you can skip the advice, I don't need or want it, thanks). Lifting weights starting about three hours before bedtime might work, actually, but hasn't really been compatible with gym scheduling for me. I'm about to join one with later hours and might try it, although rallying after supper strikes me as unlikely given my usual energy levels. Worth a shot though!

trey-jones 5y ago

People are different, period

vidarh 5y ago

How you do your lifting can have drastic effects on how pumped up or relaxed you are afterwards. Lifting can be meditative and slow and systematic and leave you tired without being agitated, or you can do the full "Rocky" thing and get all pumped up and adrenaline flowing and grunting like the Hulk, and come out of it not just unable to sleep but unable to sit still. Could be other things as well, of course, but that strikes me as one factor that might well produce those different effects.

sdwr 5y ago
Yeah, exercise tires me out regardless, that's the core. The difference is whether I get amped up at the same time. Ive found the biggest difference is how much I've used my body in the past few days - working out for the first time in a while leaves me energized no matter what time it is.

Floegipoky 5y ago

There may be a small number of people for whom strenuous exercise right before sleep doesn't interfere, but a more likely explanation in my mind is broscience. The weightlifting community is especially susceptible to training methodologies which are suboptimal but fit the identity they're performing. Are these people really scientifically evaluating the affect of intense exercise close to bedtime, or are they working backwards from what _feels_ the most "manly"?

samatman 5y ago

Your mileage may vary. Personally, the ideal time for me to lift is my serum caffeine peak, and when I'm done, it takes a half hour to 45 minutes for my heart rate to return to baseline. I'll sweat another 500ml or so during the refractory period, and have no appetite to speak of. I can't even imagine sleeping during this time. After which my appetite returns with a vengeance, and I'm up for a big meal and a long nap if I can swing it. I sleep very well on lifting nights, which is a blessing because my sleep quality is unfortunately poor in general these days (you can skip the advice, I don't need or want it, thanks). Lifting weights starting about three hours before bedtime might work, actually, but hasn't really been compatible with gym scheduling for me. I'm about to join one with later hours and might try it, although rallying after supper strikes me as unlikely given my usual energy levels. Worth a shot though!