Can’t sleep after exercise?

Here’s exactly what your body’s trying to tell youand what to do about itaccording to experts.

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If that system is working better, usually your sleep is better.

woman sweating in the gym

primary care sports medicine physician atMemorial Hermann Medical Group

You need more sleep when you exercise more.

But to go to sleep, you need the oppositeyou need the parasympathetic nervous system to be ramping up.

And for most people, thats what happens.

Woman walking on a treadmill at the gym.

But in some cases, that flight-or-flight response could be sticking around for too longand messing up your sleep.

Or, it could be that youre just doing intenseexercise too close to bedtime.

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Full body female athlete in sportswear using rowing machine during fitness workout in gym.

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But when its a pattern, you want to examine your training and nutritional habits.

Happy woman dancing and listening to music near a green empty wall outdoor in the city.

primary care sports medicine physician atMemorial Hermann Medical Group

How to falland stayasleep after a hard workout

1.

That should allow your cortisol levels, body temperature and heart rate to return to normal.

Another reason to get your tough sessions done long before its time to hit the hay?

Healthy female training in the gym, performing a hip thrust.

Thats one of the biggest reasons people wake up in the middle of the night.

Use caffeine wisely

Some athletes use a lot of caffeine around exercise sessions, Norris says.

Maybe they realize it or maybe they dont, but its in a lot of sports nutrition products.

A young black woman doing post-run stretches in the park on the road amidst green grass and trees.

That can slow your heart rate and tell your parasympathetic nervous system to start working.

A sure sign you could use some more calories in your diet?

If youre waking up in the middle of the night because youre hungry, Norris says.

If thats the case, she recommends a pre-bed snack.

Log which workouts youre doing, how you slept that night, and how youre feeling, she says.

Take a look and see: Am I doing a lot of intense workouts and having some issues sleeping?

Maybe I need to drop my intensity down.

Do that for a couple of weeks, see how you respond, and make adjustments from there.

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