Cycling and insomnia

Today i will refer to a delicate matter. It is not exactly bicycle related but I noticed that cycling contributes to it in a positive way. 

Going to sleep was never an easy task for me. Someone would never describe me as a deep-sleeper, even now. On the other hand, I troubled a lot with sleeping for a long period of time. I would just lie there and watch the hours go by until it was time to get up. But getting to sleep wasn't my only problem, I was troubled during the sleep, too. Usually I would wake up with no reason during the night, more than once each night, or I would sleep very light and the slight noise would wake me up instead.

In my family I'm the only one who troubles with sleeping, so I couldn't get much help from there. I started to experiment with different things, to find the reason behind my insomnia. The first thing that I've read somewhere was that maybe I didn't get enough tired during the day. I couldn't understand how was that possible as I was always an active person, and I don't mean only mentally (with school at first, then my studies at the university, later my job, etc.), but physically as well. Before being a cyclist I was an avid walker. Where I cycle now, I used to walk at that time, I also lived into the city at that time and not in the suburbs so it was easy for me to just get out of the door and walk to places. Anyway, I considered this "not being enough tired" idea and doubled my efforts.

Want to know the result? 

I was not only unable to sleep but I felt awful, too. I was feeling tired constantly, and even after lying down I was too tired to sleep. I don't know if that ever happened to you, but I don't know how else to describe it. 

The second advise I followed was to avoid using a computer before sleep. I must say that this piece of advise is correct. During my studies at the university, we had a class about how the levels of the hormone melatonin were influenced by the color blue. Blue is an artificial color, it doesn't exist in the nature. Only the sky is blue and the sea, but both change color when it starts to get dark, so blue vanishes. Case studies show that blue color blocks the production of this particular hormone (melatonin) which leads to insomnia. Computer monitors emit mostly the color blue than any other color. One of the reasons I chose this particular color pattern for this blog was exactly that! People tend and like to sit on their computers and read something before going to bed, so I wanted something far away from blue. The opposite of blue is the orange, but because it is very bright I went with a cappuccino color instead. 

Reducing the use of the computer before bed had a positive outcome to my sleep quality, but not enough. What turned out to be really beneficial was cycling!

I do not know if it is the everyday and constant training you get when transporting by bicycle, that tires you enough but without getting you exhausted, or the fact that cycling itself keeps you outside, closer to nature where humans initially belong, which "balances" the body, but cycling surely helped a lot with my insomnia! I never took any drugs or stuff like that to get to sleep, most of the times I just lied there and watch the clock while the hours pasted. I believe taking medicine to sleep is far worse than the insomnia itself. 

I do notice though that after incorporating cycling into my everyday life, my sleeping troubles were much better. Okay, I am still a light-sleeper, I cannot change that, this is how I was made, but now I don't wake up during the night that often, and if I do it will only be once, and also I've noticed that the initial time for me to actually fall asleep is decreased. At first it would take 2-3 hours for me to get asleep, or I wouldn't sleep at all, but now only about thirty minutes to an hour! 

But exactly because I acknowledge that I have sleeping issues, I try and follow a sleeping routine, where I set a certain hour schedule and stick to it. I also have said goodbye to coffee, strong tea and chocolate drinks altogether. (This particular part was difficult for me, as I love all three of them! I will have them occasionally, but only in the morning and in small amounts.) And last but not least I keep pedaling to places, as this resulted to be the most beneficial!

Do you have any trouble with sleeping? Have you ever considered taking up cycling or some other physical activity? 

If you have insomnia, how do you handle it?

Health benefits - heart function, stamina, weight

A ghost bicycle made from beans! This is the best I managed to create...

After I started to ride my bicycle more consistently, I've noticed in myself some benefits that are related to health.

But before I begin to tell you about it, I must say that I was already a healthy person and that I'm young and a non-smoker. Additionally, before taking up cycling, I used to work out too. I did some cardiovascular exercises, a bit of pilates and some weight training. So I didn't expect to observe any differences to myself with cycling.

However, the first thing that I've realised that had changed after starting to ride my bicycle more regularly, was my stamina, it had increased. This realisation was a bit of a shock to me, as when I cycle I don't usually hurry doing it. I consider myself an average speed rider (although my traveling times are still getting better and better, even after one and a half year of cycling) and as I told above, I was already working out. 
I've also noticed that I had all this extra energy, that I got "lighter" feet and that I was more responsive to everyday tasks.

Additionally, in the beginning of Autumn 2013, I went to do a routine check up, just out of curiosity, on a local doctor here in Volos, who has a new diagnostic software called electrocardiorama, which, among other things, shows a 3D picture of both sides of the heart, and after doing an examination with the help of this diagnostic tool, the doctor is able to see any heart diseases or problems, before they even occur.

So after doing the examination, the doctor said I had a totally healthy heart, as I expected. 

But after two and a half months, when I went back to the same doctor to do again this particular examination, he said that I had now the heart of an athlete and that all this everyday bicycle riding was really beneficial for my heart function.

Last but not least, after taking up cycling, I noticed that my clothes started to fit differently. I didn't loose much weight, as 2-3 kilos weren't considered a significant amount of weight, but my body became tighter all over. And to think that I've stopped all the other cardiovascular exercises, I only kept cycling as my main cardio and my main way of transportation and occasionally I do some pilates and weight training. 

However, I should also note that by habit, I'm a healthy eater too. I random eat from outside (souvlaki, cheese and mushroom pizza, grilled fish or calamari) and I never eat junk food (not a fan of burgers, chips, etc.) I prefer to eat homemade food, as the variety is greater and the flavors are better! Furthermore I eat a fruit every morning and I consume a lot of veggies during lunch, as a side dish. We are a "cooking at home" family after all, and this is how my mother raised us from the start. Of course it helps that we live in a country that offers  such a big variety in organic and unprocessed food materials.

So these were the changes that I've observed in myself after incorporating cycling into my everyday life. I must admit, these weren't any significant changes, but keep in mind that I was already healthy, that is why I noted that in the beginning of the article. Take into account that everybody is different. Some might had greater changes that mine after starting to ride for transportation, and others might had smaller changes. What I say is that I'm happy with all these health benefits that this everyday bicycle riding did to me, and that is something pleasant, as when I started to transport by bike, these health benefits were not into my goals. 

These health benefits were just the cherry on top!

What differences did you observe to your general health after starting to commute by bicycle?