The Sleepy Disconnect Between Your Brain and Body

I learned a valuable lesson the other day: if you're going to go for a run at night, don't plan to do it too close to your bed time. Oh, you can try other fitness related activities before sleepy time: do a few pushups, take some HCG for weight loss, or lift some weights. But as much as you think a brisk run is going to tire you out, you are very, very wrong.

If you think about it, it's fairly simple body dynamics: if you do any type of strenuous exercise before bed you're going to raise your heart beat level. Because of this, your body is going to release some endorphins. This is going to perk you up, even if your body is tired and ready for bed.

I unfortunately learned this the hard way. When I got back from my run at around 8:30pm my body felt like it wanted to just fall into a pile and just fall asleep right there in the entry way. After some effort I finally lugged myself upstairs, changed into my pajamas, got into bed and set my head down for a nights rest.
Then… bam: wide awake. I couldn't have fallen asleep if you hit me on the head with a mallet (actually, don't try that). Even though my body felt tired enough to sleep my mind was racing. I ended up tossing and turning for about two hours before I was finally able to sleep.

When talking with my friends I discovered that this is fairly common. Your brain often has a much different agenda then your body. It can feel that your body wants to rest, but it still has some stuff to get done on its own. When I asked my friends what they did to fight this they gave me a good two part answer:

1)Plan your run an hour earlier than usual. This will give your brain more of a chance to slow down before bed time. And…
2)Take a shower. A nice warm shower will not only help sooth your aching muscles, but also calm your mind.

This two part plan actually worked. I tried it after my next run and I found that by the time I was in bed my mind was finally restful. It's amazing how your body works, how you have to coax different parts of it in different ways. So next time you're tossing and turning after a night of exercise take a shower. It might help your plight, and make you smell a little better in the process.

Author Kimberly Green is impressed with the results she's seen from HCG for weight loss.