Day 15: Half Way Day [22 Mar 2006|11:14pm] WELL It's been 15 days since I started this experiement. I have to tell you, I've cheated a lot and I'm not too proud of that. I dropped my juice fast to 24 hours (which was brutal enough!). I've had a couple of sodas here and there. I smoked a few cigarrettes at work. But the biggest one is my sleep schedule. I did it without cheating for one week-7 days straight. It is so difficult to maintain the energy needed to work a job, go to school full time, and get homework and just day to day chores done. I've continued the best I could, with an adjustment: during the 3am to 7am waking period, I sleep straight through. That is more manageable. I can see why some people like the uberman schedule, but I just can't go through with it. I am used to sleeping about 8-10 hours a night (or more, god I am so unbelievably lazy). I will say that I can fall asleep now within ten minutes. I have trained my body to know that sleep time is "non-negotiable." When I say sleep, my body just goes to sleep! It's great. Anyone who is an insomniac should just sleep polyphasically for a month. Starting tomorrow, for the next half of the month, I'm going to try something different. I want to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. To accommodate my late night work schedule, my new sleeping time will be 1am-8am. That is 7 hours, which should be plenty. So how many of you think I'm a loser? Well how about this: I've done yoga for a minimum of 30 minutes every day (some days more, up to two hours a couple of times) I haven't had a single cup of caffeinated coffee I have only smoked cigarrettes at work (2 days a week, one or two per shift) Have you ever changed that much in 15 days? -Sarah Oh, and by the way, to replace coffee, I've been drinking Teechino, which is a brand of grain coffee. It's actually not bad at all, my mom even likes it and she's addicted to coffee. (Grain coffee is to coffee as herbal tea is to tea) There are seven flavors. The best one I've had is the mocha, suprisingly. I'll do a full review later. 1 comment|post comment

Self Discipline [16 Mar 2006|01:43pm] I have realized something monumental and it is this: I have no self-discipline. Well, I have a little. I can hold my breath if I want to. I can make myself update this blog and tell you guys these things, even though it's difficult to admit. But when it really comes down to it, I don't have a lot of self-discipline. I was reading at article that Steve Pavlina wrote about it, and I'm going about this all wrong. There are five parts to self-discipline: Acceptance, Willpower, Hard Work, Industry, and Persistence. The first one is acceptance: acceptance of reality. Which I don't have a total grasp on. This is a survey from Steve's site: Do you shower/bathe every day? no, every other day Do you get up at the same time every morning? Including weekends? no Are you overweight? yes, about 15 pounds Do you have any addictions (caffeine, nicotine, sugar, etc.) you’d like to break but haven’t? yes, all three Is your email inbox empty right now? no Is your office neat and well organized? studio, no Is your home neat and well organized? no How much time do you waste in a typical day? On a weekend? honestly, a lot If you make a promise to someone, what’s the percentage chance you’ll keep it? 100% If you make a promise to yourself, what’s the percentage chance you’ll keep it? 50% Could you fast for one day? yes How well organized is your computer’s hard drive? not at all How often do you exercise? never, unless you count work What’s the greatest physical challenge you’ve ever faced, and how long ago was it? probably high school, where I played soccer & weight trained every day How many hours of focused work do you complete in a typical workday? two or three How many items on your to do list are older than 90 days? most of them Do you have clear, written goals? Do you have written plans to achieve them? I have written goals that now seem unrealistic If you lost your job, how much time would you spend each day looking for a new one, and how long would you maintain that level of effort? last time, it took me three months to find a new job How much TV do you currently watch? Could you give up TV for 30 days? really only one show. yes, easily. How do you look right now? What does your appearance say about your level of discipline (clothes, grooming, etc)? I don't take care of myself. Do you primarily select foods to eat based on health considerations or on taste/satiety? half and half When was the last time you consciously adopted a positive new habit? Discontinued a bad habit? I'm trying to do both right now Are you in debt? Do you consider this debt an investment or a mistake? I have no debt Did you decide in advance to be reading this blog right now, or did it just happen? I decided in advance Can you tell me what you’ll be doing tomorrow? Next weekend? yes, mostly On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your overall level of self-discipline? 2 What more could you accomplish if you could answer that last question with a 9 or 10? I don't even know 9 comments|post comment

Day ??? [13 Mar 2006|04:14pm] Well, I didn't drop off the face of the earth, I just got my laptop back from Apple, with a brand new display. So now I can update more frequently and post all that research I'm working on. Let's see. Food I've been eating really well lately. Barely any processed foods--I've been cooking my own meal, and I have fresh homemade juice every day. I haven't had coffee since I started, whcih is just amazing. I already feel better. I don't feel physically exhausted anymore. And I don't feel like I need to sleep twelve hours a night. Sleep Which means that my sleep schedule is getting easier. I cheated for two days because I went home to visit my mom and my little sister. But I got back on it today, and the break doesn't seem like it hurt that much. This schedule is pretty socially awkward, though. I don't know how other people deal with that. For example, last night I was out with friends from 10pm to 4 in the morning. I missed two naps, because, well, there's nowhere to nap in a bar. I was talking to a friend earlier this week about sleep, and I told her my theory: it doesn't matter how much sleep you get, as long as it's consistent, seven days a week. If you are convinced that you need twelve hours a night, and you sleep twelve hours a night seven days a week, you'll feel like you're getting "the right amount." But if you say, ok, I really only need half of that, six hours, you could easily teach your body to adjust to the decrease by being consistent. I think after this 30 days, I am not going to continue this schedule. I would stop now, but it's only been a week, and you never know what can happen. Maybe by week three I'll absolutly love it. I think my next experiment will be to wake up at the same time every day, no matter what time I go to sleep. Sleep at midnight, wake up at 7am. Sleep at 4am, wake up at 7am. That would be interesting. Dreams Last nap I dreamt that me and this guy Chris were walking along the edge of a stream that was frozen with ice. The surface cracked under his feet and I pulled him up onto the shore. Then we were somewhere else, I can't remember where, but we just teleported somewhere, or the world changed around us. Dancing I went out to a bar last night with some friends and danced. It was so much fun, and I just felt really happy. I've never gone out to a club, and I always say that I hate to dance. But I had a really good time. This month, I want to really change. I want people to see a change in me. -Sarah 1 comment|post comment

Day Two or Three--My first lucid dream [09 Mar 2006|11:40pm] I'm starting to feel the effects of restarting my sleep schedule. I am currently not tired at all, but between naps at 3am and 7am, I am flat-out exhausted. It is so difficult to be awake during that period. I am starting to be able to fall asleep faster, within five to ten minutes of closing my eyes, which is amazing. And best of all, I've been dreaming, which means that my body is getting to REM sleep stage very quickly. This morning I dreamt that I was driving, and I stopped at a fast food place, and went through the drive-through. When the guy handed me a burger (not in a bag or anything, just wrapped up) I realized I was dreaming! It was amazing, I just had this second where I thought, hmm, I never eat fast food, let alone a burger... then I thought, oh, I must be dreaming. I opened the sandwich and examined it--bun, onion ring, chicken, burger, chicken, onion ring, bun. I know, right? The wierdest burger ever. I couldn't possibly be awake. Then I woke up. A lot of people have been telling me that I'm trying to do too much at the same time. Well, I haven't had a problem not smoking, and I haven't had coffee/tea/soda/caffeine in a few days, and this sleep thing is just going to take time. The one thing I am going to change is my juice fasting. I stopped fasting after 24 hours, because I felt like it was unhealthy to do at the same time as beginning such a drastically different sleep schedule. Maybe when my body is accustomed to sleeping polyphasically, I will do a week long juice fast. I will post some more research I have done soon. My laptop is being repaired, so I am restricted to computer labs on campus. I hope to hear comments from all of you, and I hope you tell your friends about the site. I've been promoting it because I want to have a group of readers to keep me motivated and so that I feel responsible for not disappointing everyone, including myself. -Sarah 2 comments|post comment

I had to check to see if it was still day one! [08 Mar 2006|10:07am] Polyphasic Sleep This morning I was very hungry right before my first nap (3am). I drank a big glass of water and went to bed. I didn't fall asleep fast enough though. I basically cuddled with my cat for 30 minutes. My alarm went off and I turned it off and stayed in bed for a minute, which turned out to be a mistake. I fell asleep and slept through my waking period! I woke up at my next alarm, 7am, the beginning of my second nap. I got up and showered and dressed then went to the grocery store. I spent about $40 on fruit and veggies. I guess I looked insane. Although I felt great compared to the guy buying five cases of Diet Cherry Coke and a bottle of bleach. Oh my god, maybe he was going to kill himself! Today I'm going to write a paper, revise my artist statement, go to a 6-hour class, study for my art history midterm and watch some TV with my friends. And probably a million other things, because I have more time than I know what to do with. I really actually feel great; I'm not that tired at all. Juice! When I was halfway through my first glass of juice, I found that I wasnt even that hungry. I eat so much more than I need to! #001: 2 oranges 1 grapefruit 5 chunks of honeydew melon (makes about 16oz.) Do you think that I can eat whole fruit on my fast? For example, I would blend a whole banana into juice, so why can't I just eat it? I'm going to say yes, until I have convincing evidence otherwise. Which I doubt anyone will be able to come up with. When I'm away from home (and my juicer & blender) I can eat raw fruit and veggies. I am also including bottled juices, as long as they are 100% juice and do not contain high fructose syrups, salt, or other nasty stuff. Nap Spots & Doctors To people who go to school with me: where are there couches on campus? In the next week or so, I'll make a post about good places to take naps at MICA. Also, for those concerned, I am going to have a physical exam in two weeks, unless I feel the need to have one earlier. I'm not anticipating any problems, but I want this to be a healthy month. I'll also talk to the doctor about my goals and get his opinion. That's it for now, I'm going to go work on my paper. Cheers, Sarah 6 comments|post comment

How To Work Better [08 Mar 2006|01:07am] Peter Fischli and David Weiss "How to Work Better" 1991 post comment

Official Day One Post [08 Mar 2006|12:37am] Polyphasic Sleep Polyphasic sleep just means more than one sleep period per day. You guys are monophasic sleepers. AKA hibernators. Or, as Steve Pavlina calls you, bears. [EDIT: 3/8/06 2:14am My friend Chris just told me about his sleep cycle, which is biphasic. He sleeps between 4am and 8am, and then takes a nap from 3-4:30pm.] The specific type of polyphasic sleep I am attempting is called the Uberman schedule. I last slept yesterday afternoon. My first cycle of polyphasic sleep begins this morning at 3am. Therefore, my nap schedule will be as follows: 3am-3:30am 7am-7:30am 11am-11:30am 3pm-3:30pm 7pm-7:30pm 11pm-11:30pm This is the best way to do it, since most of my classes are 4-10pm. I have one 9am-3pm, so I'll take a nap a lunch and a nap when it ends. I usally finish work on Friday and Saturday nights around 12am midnight, so I'll push my nap back one hour on those days. We'll see how that goes. I've read that the first week you just feel extremely sleep deprived, but if you are very strict about the times and don't ever skip naps, your body will simply adjust to it. Here are some great articles about polyphasic sleep. Other people have written about it scientfically, so I don't really feel the need to do so. Uberman Sleep Experiment Blog Polyphasic Sleep @ Wikipedia Steve Pavlina Info on the Uberman sleep schedule Juice Fasting "Juice fasting is a type of fasting and detox diet in which the practitioner consumes only fruit and vegetable juices. Being only simple sugars, these foods are digested rapidly and expending little energy. They are normally consumed with the intent of detoxification for greater health. The reasoning behind this is disputed and controversial, that less energy is expended on digestion of foods, resulting in more energy for the rest of the body to expel "toxins" (unproven) as well as to recover and heal itself from the stresses digestion places upon it." (from Wikipedia) Juice fasting can include fresh juice, herbal teas, sweetened with honey, vegetable broth, Barley Green, wheatgrass juice, and supplements. I'm going to be taking a multivitamin, one vitamin C tablet, and one iron supplement a day for the week. General I'm pretty excited. I cleaned my whole apartment top to bottom. I organized my to do list, and with 21 hours in my day, I feel like I'm going to be able to do it all today. Cheers, Sarah post comment

Introduction [07 Mar 2006|09:24pm] My name is Sarah. I decided (pretty randomly) that I want to make some changes in my habits. I think blogging is a good way to keep track of my progress. The thirty day period will begin tomorrow, March 8th and end April 6th. I will post at least once a day, and sometimes more. These are my goals: 1. Quit Smoking I have been smoking off and on since my sophmore year of high school. It is a disgusting habit and I hate it, which is why it I keep it mostly secret. It reminds me of my dad, and it helps calm me down when I have a migraine or I'm stressed out. I have friends who would hate me if they found out, and I know my mom would be really disappointed if she knew. Well, now you guys know, but you also know this: I am going to stop. I don't smoke very much at all, less than a pack a week. The places I smoke the most are (in order): at work, in my car and at school. I will eliminate them in backwards order. So, starting tomorrow, I will no longer smoke at school. After a week, I will eliminate smoking in my car, then the hardest one, at work. 2. Stop eating sugar. I cannot do this all at once. I love sugar. I don't eat a lot of junk food, actually I eat pretty healthy food all the time. My one weakness is sugar--soda and candy mostly. I think that sugar is actually making me tired. I have a friend who had clinical exhaustion or whattever it's called, and she eliminated sugar and dairy from her diet and now she feels great. 3. Eliminate caffeine. This is a big one. I'm going to start out with soda, which I drink often. Well, not as much as my little sister, but still. After I kick soda (hopefully not more than one week) I'll stp drinking coffee. Which is a bigger problem. This is the same as my problem with sugar--I think it's making me tired and affecting my sleep cycle. which leads me to... 4. Polyphasic sleep. I want to try this for 30 days. Basically, I will sleep six times per day for 30 minutes at a time, reducing my sleep to three hours a day. This is so complicated, I'll make a whole other post about it later. 5. Yoga I used to do yoga almost every day. I want to do it again, once a day for 30 days, for one hour a day. 6. Juice fast. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to do a juice fast. I am only going to drink 100% juice or juice that I make myself. No food. It's supposed to completely detox your body. I'll write more on it in another post. That's it. My last goal is to blog everything. If you want to know how I'm doing, just add me as a friend or bookmark this page. Feel free to leave comments or send me an email, just don't be negative or too hard on me. Cheers, Sarah 7 comments|post comment

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