Diet and Sleep

So for the past two days I've found it to be a monumental challenge to wake up in the morning. This morning was the worst I've felt since adopting a polyphasic sleep schedule. I was unsure as to why I felt so terrible at first. I was able to get my checklist completed for the morning, but my mental clarity was atrocious and my allergies were even worse. I had a headache, and even after taking ibuprofen, it didn't subside. I almost fell asleep driving to work this morning too!

So after reviewing what could be causing these symptoms, I've found that for both days, I've eaten a heavy dinner (last night was sweet and sour chicken from a local chinese joint). It makes sense, because my body needs more rest to digest heavy food like meat and processed foods. When I was still in the navy, I went raw vegan for 13 days just to see if I could (I love meat by the way). I lost 10 pounds without even exercising and my mental clarity was the best I could ever remember. However, the mental challenge was extremely difficult. I would have continued, but I just loved hamburgers too much.

So here's my plan. I want to continue with my sleeping schedule, but to do that, I need to adopt a new, lighter, diet. I really need to lose a few pounds anyway, and since I'm familiar with raw veganism (at least somewhat), I'm aiming for that. What I need to make me stick to it though is a cheat meal every now and then. I'm unsure how to schedule a cheat meal without suffering for it, but I would imagine it to be sometime in the morning or afternoon. Absolutely not at night!

I'm really excited to see what my new diet will do for my waking up abilities, but with two completely new lifestyle changes, it's going to be quite the challenge.