A Note on Why I Started Consuming More Calories And Started Sleeping So Much Better.

On Thursday, August 19, I consumed an estimated 2258 calories and then slept for about 7 hours. The next day, I felt more energetic and I probably possessed more mental clarity than I had in the recent past. I experienced brief waves of euphoria throughout the day.

On Friday, August 20, I consumed approximately 2,380 calories and slept for about 8 hours.

On Saturday, August 21, I consumed approximately 3,000 calories and slept for slightly more than 8 hours.

On each of those three evenings, I did not get up even once during the night. Suppression of the urge to urinate is characteristic of deep, efficient end productive sleep.

Maybe I should keep a sleep log as well as a food log and weight log. I am aware that premature waking is associated with both low calorie and low carbohydrate diets. It had gotten much worse than expected after starting The Last Weight Loss Diet. 

Please note that I discontinued a high protein diet in 2020 because I was waking up at 4 AM and could not always get back to sleep.

We are all familiar with the short-term symptoms of hunger:

1. Feeling of emptiness in stomach

2. Stomach growling or gurgling. 

3. Dizziness, faintness or light-headedness

4. Headache.

5. Irritability, agitation.

6. Lack of concentration.

7. In some people, nausea.

The short term-term symptoms (I hope that's not too strong of a description but if you are really hungry, it's a symptom, man, you got a problem with that!) are easy to avoid. Practicioners of OMAD, intermittent fasting and prolonged fasting learn techniques to sidestep these discomforts. Deep hunger is a different matter.

Deep hunger comes from prolonged caloric restriction. How prolonged? Maybe after a few days. For others, maybe a few weeks. 

What are the symptoms?

1 Insomnia usually characterized by frequent waking or the inability to fall back to sleep upon premature waking.

2. Fatigue or slightly less than normal energy.

3. Dulling of mood or even depression.

Good health has its price. It might be hard to accept that our bodies are programmed for weight gain and anything that disrupts weight gain, results in discomfort. Call it the price we pay for our ancestors surviving The Ice Age.

The challenges I face at this time: 

1 Restore or replenish my vigor and overall good feeling.

2 Try to either lose weight or maintain my weight during this temporary calorie increase.

3. To recommit to the weight loss, sooner rather than later.

Deep hunger