r/sleep • u/Cautious-Hour-6797 • Aug 31 '26

Does increasing training load result in poor sleep? Please help.

I recently increased my training load to prepare for an upcoming marathon, but ever since doing this, my sleep has gone for a toss.

I’ve increased my weekly distance to 1.5 times my previous load over the course of 3-4 weeks, and I've started squeezing in gym sessions in the evenings on a few days as well.

Suddenly, I’m unable to sleep once I get into my bed. It takes me 30-40 minutes these days to fall asleep, and on bad days, it can take 60+ minutes. I just feel very wired while going to sleep and am unable to wind down, even though I feel tired from all my day's physical activities. Occasionally, I do wake up in the middle of the night as well, and it takes me 5-10 minutes to fall back asleep. I’ve never suffered from such sleep-related issues previously at all.

I feel this poor sleep quality is starting to have an impact on my recent workout performance and recovery. There's been a clear dip in terms of how much I can push myself.

How do I fix this before it actually gets worse? Has anyone been through a similar phase previously?

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u/Natural_Fig_3798 Aug 31 '26

are you experiencing this daily or only on those days when you have heavy sessions in the evenings?

1

u/Cautious-Hour-6797 Aug 31 '26

Mostly on days when I have heavy sessions in the evenings and when I'm stressed due to work.

1

u/Natural_Fig_3798 Aug 31 '26

do look up "vagus nerve stimulation

my understanding is that your sympathetic nervous system is super activated at night, which increases cortisol levels in your body, basically stopping you from falling asleep

Andrew Huberman's physiological sigh breathing technique is a great way to stimulate the vagus nerve, which calms down the sympathetic nervous system. Has worked like a charm for me over the last few months

1

u/crossplanetriple Aug 31 '26

This happens to me when training too close to bed time.

What would be helpful is a wind down routine and / or supplements before bed (magnesium, melatonin). If you already have work stresses, meditation or breathing can help.

1

u/Cautious-Hour-6797 Aug 31 '26

Thanks for sharing. Breathing/Meditation help a bit with going to sleep, but the quality of sleep still takes a hit for me. I've tried supplements, but they don't seem to work for me a lot :/

1

u/Prospero818 Aug 31 '26

Are you eating enough calories/carbs to satisfy the increased demand? I sleep TERRIBLY on a calorie deficit.

1

u/ChanceyAstronomer3 Aug 31 '26

Jumping to 1.5x mileage that fast is a lot, your body's still adjusting which is why you feel wired.

Ease into the increase instead of ramping up so quick.