June is drawing to a close, and that means two things: it’s time to join Marcia for runfessions, AND we’re almost halfway through the year. Halfway Day is July 2nd, so it’s a perfect time to assess the year so far and see how we’re doing.
My word for 2023 was “nourish.” So far, so good with that… for the most part. One of my main projects for 2023 was to increase my protein intake, and I do well with it on most days. On the days I go to the gym, I drink a protein shake, and other days I’ll add protein powder to my oatmeal or a smoothie. On days where I previously was “too busy” to eat lunch, I now eat a peanut butter sandwich on Ezekial bread (20 grams of protein, as opposed to zero.) On the days I don’t add protein powder to my oatmeal, I’ll make it with soymilk instead of water. Little changes like that definitely add up.
Dinners have been protein-packed around here, thanks to my son. He’s been working out and tracking his protein intake. He manages an incredible 150 grams a day ON A VEGAN DIET. I don’t come anywhere near that- but I don’t weigh as much as he does, and I’m not a body builder.
So that’s going well! I’ve also been reading some incredible books, and am on track to read 50 books this year- although I’m usually on track with that until November-December, when life gets crazy, and I inevitably come up short. This could be the year, though!
Great! So I’m nourishing my body with healthy food and my mind with great books. How about sleep?
Sigh.
My sleep isn’t terrible, but I’m definitely not getting enough. I’ve fallen into my old habit of getting in bed seven hours before my alarm goes off. So if I fall asleep instantaneously and sleep soundly for the entire night, I would be getting seven hours. But that’s obviously not happening. I’m probably getting more like six hours a night, and it’s not enough.
I don’t know why this is so hard for me! There are always so many things to do at night- but specifically, I love reading after everyone else has gone to bed.
The other day my son said he thinks the biggest component to building muscle- other than going to the gym, of course- is sleep. GREAT. It’s always the one thing you’re not doing, right?
For the second half of the year, I HAVE TO get more sleep. Let’s call this my “runfession” and a demerit. The whole point of giving yourself a demerit is to identify the problem and plan to do better, right? For the second half of 2023, I resolve to get better sleep. My Garmin tracks my sleep, but I’m always afraid to look at the data- which makes absolutely no sense. I resolve to LOOK at the data my Garmin is giving me, and track it in my planner.
I’ll report back- and feel free to mock and ridicule me if I don’t improve. Thanks for listening to my “runfession!”
Do you observe “Halfway Day”? Do you like to reassess your progress for the year?
Do you think you get enough sleep?
47 Responses
I’m relatively good about sleep hygiene but obviously there are times recently when I didn’t get enough — all due to things outside my control. I read before bed, but I mostly keep an eye on the time and keep to my bedtime. And 95% of the time I fall asleep pretty quickly. Seriously, I don’t do well on less sleep — some people do, it’s an individual thing.
I’ve always read that if you want to change your bedtime, do it slowly. Like at first go to bed five minutes earlier. And so on. Good luck! You’re doing a great job on the protein.
Thanks Judy! You’re probably right, I need to make incremental changes. The thing is, I do okay on less sleep, so I’m not motivated enough to change- but I know I would be doing better if I slept more.
It looks like you are doing well with the protein–it has to be hard on a vegan diet. I struggle with it and I eat meat!
Sleep was a problem for me when I was going through menopause, but for the most part, I sleep pretty well now. My big complaint is that I wake up so early. Old people problems, I guess…
I think if you’re going to be vegan and eat a lot of protein, you have to give it some focus. It probably won’t happen automatically. But if you just try, it’s definitely possible.
Love halfway day and almost forgot about it!! Thanks for the reminder. PB on Ezekiel bread is a GREAT lunch idea— I am going to start working that in as well because I, too, need more protein and especially protein that isn’t just cheese LOL. Sleep is such a good thing to focus on with a framework on “nourish.” Sounds great so far 🙂
Yes, PB on Ezekial is quick, easy and delicious! I know I won’t do it if it’s not quick and easy.
I’ve got a freebie for you for sleep. My therapist pointed me to the Insight Timer app which has a bunch of meditations on it. It has a ton of sleep meditations on it. In the past I’ve used meditations here and there when I have trouble sleeping, but I only had a few programs so if I used them too often they got stale and didn’t work. The app has approximately one zillion meditations of varying length, so I’ll never run out. I’ve been using the meditations every night for the past week and they definitely help.
Hmm! Okay, I’ll try it! Thanks.
Way to go on the protein intake. That’s not easy especially on a vegan diet. I find that my sleep correlates with my vitamin D levels. When D is low, my sleep is crap. Lately my sleep has been amazing and I’m thrilled about that! Your son is right about sleep. It’s so often overlooked but it’s when all the recovery and repair take place.
I do supplement with vitamin D, but haven’t had my levels checked lately. That’s an interesting correlation!
Little changes make a huge difference in terms of protein intake. I also strive for about 125 grams a day. I do little things like add nuts to my salads and flax seeds etc. You definitely will not bulk up if you eat more protein! I agree sleep is so important to run recovery and training goals. You got this!
Thank you Deborah! Wow, 125 grams- you’re getting more than I am. I’m aiming for 80-90. Which is an increase- I think in the past I got around 50.
I runfess I don’t even remember my word for 2023. I’m sure it wasn’t cluster**** which is what so much of this year has been. 😉
It’s great that your son is so interested in cooking and eating well!
I runfess I’m lucky if I’m in bed 6 hours before my alarm goes off ….. Yes, I’m tired.
Hahahahaha…. yes, I’m pretty sure that wasn’t your word. I know, sometimes it’s laughable to look back on a word you THOUGHT would define your year. I also had to take a moment to remember what my word was.
I definitely do not get enough sleep; my average is about 6 hours and 45 minutes, and only 25% of that is “deep sleep.” My issue is that I get up early (3:45 am) and so if I wanted to get 8 hours of sleep, I would have to go to bed at 7:45 pm! I do “try” to go to bed at 8:00, but usually that ends up being 9:00 and sometimes even then, it is later than that! However, I plan to make up for it next week by doing a little backpacking; usually we go to bed when it gets dark and “sleep in” until 5! Woohoo, I may even get more than 8 a few times. (PS I know we can’t “make it up” but at least I will get more sleep).
Does your son use protein powder to get to that number? If not, what does he use? I should track mine for a while; I do take collagen, which has protein in it, and I eat meat, but I would say that when I was tracking, my normal protein is about 100 g (without protein powder/suppliments).
He does drink a protein shake- his current favorite is “Naked Pea” which is only pea protein, with nothing else in it. I think it tastes like dirt, ha ha.
Nicely done on the protein! I hear ya on the sleep. The issue with me is I don’t feel tired, and I’m going on usually 5-6 hours as well. I’m lucky to not feel tired, but I fear it’s going to catch up with me.
Yes, I can also function on around 6 hours (below that and I start to feel it.) I just know that I would be functioning BETTER on 8 hours.
Oh yes, definitely strength training, protein intake and sleep for muscle building! There’s a lot to learn and at least now you’re aware of it! (Although I know you’re not doing it for muscle building)
150 G protein on vegan food is impressive! Is he including protein powder in that? I managed 149 grams yesterday, apparently our dinner had a massive protein amount, at least roughly calculating the minced meat we had.
It’s hard to get sleep in order. I used to always go to bed too late because I always felt there was something I had to do. But actually, after finishing my graphic design course I could relax because I sort of had made a choice of how to create work, and then I felt there was no point staying up after 11pm unless we were doing anything special. To me it was all about stress that I needed to get out of the way.
Yep, he drinks a protein shake every day. He also eats a LOT of calories, which is helpful- it would be hard for me to get 150 grams of protein on the amount of calories I’m eating. But again, I’m not a body builder! I’m just trying to get stronger to stay healthy.
I’m such a poor sleeper. Ugh. I do my best but…
That’s a great word.
I don’t even remember mine. Lol. I’d better check.
My year started so poorly that I’m not keeping track. I do read about 2 books a week.
I think my life is on autopilot. Work run or workout eat sleep. Family and friends when they got.
Yes, I guess it would be hard to stay on track when you were so abruptly derailed in February. But I would say you’re going strong once again!
Sleep is something I really prioritize, especially because I know I feel my best if I get at least 8 hours! So on weekdays I’m in bed by 8 pm (so early lol) and asleep by 8:30-9 pm. I always do a meditation on the Headspace app right before bed and that usually helps me fall asleep fast. On weekends I often get 9-10 hours of sleep because I can sleep in until 7 or so! I do need to try to get up a bit earlier now that it’s so hot so I’m not running in 100 degree temps on the weekends though, but I’m not a morning person so it’s rough.
Sounds like you’re doing great with your protein intake! I’m also vegan, but I don’t really track my protein so I’m not sure if I’m getting enough but I eat a lot of tofu, edamame and beans. I also really like the No Cow protein bars, they’re low sugar and have 20 grams of protein so they’re nice for an afternoon snack when I’m at work!
Yes, I eat those No Cow bars! They are great. I think if you’re regularly eating tofu, beans and edamame, you’re probably getting enough protein. I now fall into that category of people who need more protein because they’re “older” (sigh.)
You get a LOT of sleep!!! I’m impressed. Getting in bed by 8 pm takes discipline.
I really really really prioritize sleep because I have such high sleep needs and if I don’t sleep well, my RA tends to act up. I have had to come to terms with the fact that I’m not operating on a level playing field so I have to prioritize sleep or I will run myself into the group. So I go up to bed at 8:30, read for an hour, and turn off my kindle by 9:30 most nights. My alarm goes off at 5:50. So I am in bed for over 8 hours, but I probably get closer to 7.5 hours of sleep, especially lately when Paul has been up during the night because he had an accident or his pj bottoms are inside out after having an accident or he’s “tired of sleeping.” And then i rarely fall back asleep as he often wakes me at 4:30 or 5 or something like that.
The first half of the year was not my favorite… I’m not sad it’s over? Is that bad to say? I’m not wishing time away but I had such a stupid hard period of work. It’s not like June is going any better, though, with all the transitions the kids are going through (see yesterday’s post). But I’m telling myself the 2nd half of the year surely has to be better than the first!
My runfess: I canceled my peloton membership yesterday because my free trial was coming to an end and I wasn’t using it enough to justify the cost. I had to select a reason for canceling from the list. The best fit of the list was “I’m not exercising much in general these days” and boy did I feel SHAME when I had to select that from the list. 🙁 Nothing like a stupid drop down list of reasons for canceling putting you in a shame spiral. I had to give myself a pep talk and remind myself this is a season of life and some day my kids will need me less and I can go for a run w/out them needing constant supervision or I can workout in the basement and they will leave me alone.
Oh boy- yes, that would be a little depressing. I will just say that, you’re doing great CONSIDERING EVERYTHING. And, screw Peloton! You don’t need them anyway. There’s plenty of free workouts on Youtube, and you can do them when you have the time.
Have you heard of the term “revenge sleep procrastinator”? This is something I read about a few years ago and it sounds exactly like what my husband does — he is so busy during the day that he delays going to sleep just to have a few hours to himself. While it sounds like you are still getting a good amount of sleep, I wonder if you are doing the same thing? Not sure if any of the strategies for getting past it might help you, but here is one article on the topic: https://www.npr.org/2022/06/14/1105122521/stop-revenge-bedtime-procrastination-get-better-sleep
This post is a good reminder to me to check in with my motivating word of the year. I have fallen off track. Whoops! No time like now to get back into the swing of things though!
I am amazed that your son can get 150 grams of protein per day! Especially on a vegan diet! That is very impressive! I was doing GREAT with getting in around 100 grams a day until I stopped eating dairy. But I’m not ready to figure out a new plan yet.
Ha ha, no, I’ve never heard of that term. But it’s definitely a thing! I’m definitely guilty of that- I think it started when the kids were little. i just “needed” some time to myself after they went to bed… it’s not quite as bad now, but yes- I’m staying up too late to have time for myself. I’ll check out that article!
I have to do a check-in with my quarterly goals in early July and hopefully that will give me an idea of how well the year is going. I’ll tell you right now that I have not done any cleaning of the totes under the beds and Hannah’s training is severely lacking these days, but maybe things are going well in other areas? It sounds like you’ve been very intentional about your nourish goal and I’m impressed with your improvement in getting protein.
In general, I think I get enough sleep. It’s maybe not quite as much as I’d like, but I like to be in bed reading by 10:15 and have lights out by 11 at the latest. Most days I’m turning the lights out long before then, but sometimes I just need more reading time. I’m usually up by 6:15-6:30. This schedule works for us, but I know that I should probably be trying to get to bed an hour earlier so I could get a full eight hours. Oh, well. It is what it is!
If you’re sleeping pretty soundly for those hours, I would say you’re doing well. I have heard that if you get up to use the bathroom, but then fall back asleep pretty quickly, you don’t have to subtract that time from your total. So you’re probably getting about 7.5 hours, which is pretty good!
Both my sleep and my protein intake could probably use some work 🙂 I feel like I should quantify the latter at some point. Though I did just eat a delicious lunch which contained quinoa and was feeling virtuous about that, ha!
I get up very early to run (4:30-4:45 most days) and I also tend to be “7 hours in bed” which is probably not 7 hrs sleep – but it’s close, I fall asleep FAST!
To be honest, I never worried about my protein intake until recently. i learned that post menopausal women actually need more protein than pregnant women (WHAT???) I think these things get more dire as we get older… so what you’re doing is probably fine right now.
Great job on your protein intake! I’ve been working on mine too – some days are definitely better than others.
I’m with you on making sleep a priority for the second half of the year. My sleep has been terrible despite my best efforts – I can get to sleep, but staying asleep is a whole different ballgame.
Okay, we’ll check in with each other in January and see how we did for the second half of 2023! Hopefully we’ll both see some improvement.
Getting enough sleep is hard… mostly because there are so many things I want to do at night that I push bed time (but then I do try to “catch up” a bit on the weekends – although I know you can’t really “catch up”). I think I am getting about 7 hrs on average though.
On a different note, what’s your favorite way to prepare tofu and can you recommend a brand? I am not a big fan of tofu (when I had it at a restaurant) but I’ve been told that there are ways to prepare it that are really tasty?? I am thinking of giving it another try.
If you can find “super firm” tofu, get that. It’s much more dense than regular tofu and doesn’t need to be pressed. I have several recipes that have you toss cubed tofu in oil, salt (or soy sauce) and corn starch, and then bake it. It comes out crispy and delicious! Then we add it to whatever we’re making- stir fry, etc. But I’ll also say we like just about any tofu- we’re not picky!
Thanks for the tips!
My sleep is hit-and-miss. I go through periods of getting 8 hours a night, but then will have stretches of insomnia where I have highly disturbed sleeps. Lunar cycles? Hormonal cycles?
I also often stay up too late to read. I mostly read at night once everyone is asleep, so I have a bad habit of reading well past my bedtime and then I can’t fall asleep and…sigh. Yup! This is me.
Yes, my daughter once asked me why I don’t read during the day instead. Gee, I can’t possibly think of ANY REASON, can you? Reading at night is much more, er, peaceful, but yes, the problem is that sometimes I don’t want to put the book down.
I always look at my Garmin to see what my sleep looks like. I get between 7 and 7:45 each night and more on weekends, generally. My Garmin has this great feature that is a Body Battery, and I am obsessed with it. I love seeing what makes my body battery increase or decrease. It’s really fascinating.
You’ve done great with your nourish goals, and now onto the next part of nourish – sleep!
Alright, your sleep example is my goal! 7- 7:45 hours a night would be great.
I go up and down on protein!! I am well aware of the need for it/ benefits and am known to be one who kind of touts this to others! But I still am not always “Great” about following my own advice. I basically just get lazy sometimes, or I fall into wanting to just eat what “sounds good” (which is often something like… cheese and crackers. Ha. I mean, that’s not zero protein, but it is not a big chicken breast, that’s for sure.) I can’t imagine trying to hit protein goals on a vegan diet. I guess lucky for me, I have no desire to go vegan, so it’s not an issue- but I feel like even eating animal proteins it is challenging to hit >100 grams! So I can only imagine how much more thought has to go into it when vegan! Way to go Jenny’s son!! 🙂
I also have been trying to prioritize sleep in the last few months. I agree with your son and think I have undervalued sleep in the past- partially by necessity (just literally not being able to fit more in, due to work/ family etc), but also sometimes just by choice. I LOVE my early morning alone time, but I have been stricter with myself lately where if for whatever reason I am up extra late, I force myself to set my alarm later and forgo my “morning time” in exchange for more sleep. I don’t love doing this, but I’ve been trying to treat it as a non-negotiable. Also trying to get to be ON TIME which feels complicated as my kids are older now. They just don’t go to bed that early themselves, and I think my husband and I got used to sort of waiting for them to go to bed before starting our “alone time” to watch a show or whatever. Well, this no longer works. They don’t go to bed super late, but it’s often 10-10:30 at least. Which is when I want to go to bed, too! I guess in fairness they are not really always doing stuff with us anyway, but for some reason it feels like I can’t relax/ settle in until they are in bed. I have to change my mindset on that one.
Yes, it actually is hard to go to bed when the kids are older and they want to stay up later than you! About the protein- I didn’t start worrying about it until recently, when I read that post-menopausal women need a LOT more, and I wasn’t even coming close. I think at your age, you’re probably doing fine. And yes- my son puts a lot of thought into getting those 150 grams. He’s also trying to GAIN weight, so he can eat a lot more calories- that helps.
I am also struggling with getting enough sleep! Why is it so hard?! I used to be so good at getting to bed at a decent time. I haven’t been keeping track of how much sleep I’m getting but I’m assuming it’s around 6 hours when I really need 8-9 hours. We can make the second half of 2023 the season where we finally get better at our sleep hygiene! I believe in us! 🙂
Okay, that was a good pep talk! I’ll keep trying.
I do try to get enough protein but think I do an okay job, since I do still eat dairy. I have not found reasonable non-dairy replacements for the yogurt and cottage cheese that I eat. That, plus tofu and beans and lentils, not to mention protein from other sources, gets me a pretty good daily dose. You sound like you’re doing a great job, imo.
Also – sleep. Sigh. If you figure out the trick, please let me know. I am similarly disinclined to look at my watch. Why?
Ha, I’ll definitely know if I find the sleep solution- so far no luck. And- there are all sorts of great dairy replacements nowadays, but one thing no one’s made is a vegan cottage cheese.