Streaking in my Sleep, a.k.a. Insomnia

During the last meditation retreat, in response to my comment that I never get enough sleep, Mark said the only way I'd get to sleep would be to make it into a project with spreadsheets and blog about it. Well, I'm not ready to go that far. But I will devote 1 post to the subject of sleep because it's so important to good athletic performance, and it's one thing that continues to elude me.

I took a chance a few weeks ago and purchased Steven Gurgevich's "Sleepytime Hypnosis" CD. Combined with a Radio Shack pillow speaker, it works great once I'm in bed ready to fall asleep. Gurgevich's soothing drone knocks me out in about 5 minutes. I still haven't found out what's on the rest of the CD.

But my biggest problem is getting to bed in the first place (where the hypnosis CD and pillow speaker can do their job.) Going to bed feels like giving up another day of my life. Not that I was doing anything all that important with it at 2a.m. (unless you consider Spider Solitaire and episodes of "30 Rock" important.) Still, it's hard to let it go.

Sleeping pills help get me to bed, but they leave me groggy and unmotivated the next day. And alcohol? Forget it! I might fall asleep, but then wake up 2 hours later tossing and turning and worrying about my next run.

Which is what happened last night. Restless legs. Churning stomach. How am I going to beat my 5K PR next Sunday? How am I going to to make it up the Hayes Street Hill in May? Got to get to the front of the line! Can't be late! Got to plan my strategy! And what's wrong with these freaking covers twisted around my legs like Octopus tentacles?!?!? Aaaaahhhhhh!!!!!

All I have to do is one mile today (yesterday I completed Week 2 of my Running Streak, by the way) and all I want to do is go back to bed. Why is it so much easier to sleep during the day? (Is it because when I wake up it'll still be the same day? Is it because during the day everyone else is up making sure the earth spins on its axis so I don't have to? Is it some kind of teenage-rebellion driving me to do the opposite of what I'm supposed to?)

Maybe I'll add a column on my training log to keep track of sleep. Or maybe I'll just add it to my list of worries to keep me up tonight.