Why am I always tired?

[MuleDeerMike]

2 coffees per day. One is first thing in the morning, and the other is mid afternoon. Just black coffee. Rarely drink alcohol. No nicotine at all or other stimulants.

Try delaying your first caffeine intake of the day until 90 to 120 minutes after you wake up. Your afternoon naps might just disappear, mine did. If you can't go straight to 90 minutes just work your way up in 15 minute increments over a week or so. Look up the Huberman Lab podcast episode on caffeine, very informative.

 

[Reburn]

Tagging back in.
Like a newb I didnt read any replies including the OP's
Did we determine that its "loving" based or "caffine" based.
I still argure some oreos would cure the issue.

 

[Lil-Rokslider]

Tagging back in.
Like a newb I didnt read any replies including the OP's
Did we determine that its "loving" based or "caffine" based.
I still argure some oreos would cure the issue.

As a matter of fact, I went to the doctor and my blood work confirmed it. "Oreo deficiency"

 

[Reburn]

As a matter of fact, I went to the doctor and my blood work confirmed it. "Oreo deficiency"

I knew it

Million dollar question is it double stuft, mint or birthday cake that will right the ship.

 

[CMF]

I take a generic brand 24 hr allergy pill, and keep Flonase and eye drops handy.

I'd try and lay off the allergy pill for a week or two and see. When I take Zyrtec I'll have times throughout the day like you and others mentioned, that if I sat down and closed my eyes, I'd be out.

 

[Rob960]

I'm 35, pretty decent shape, not super overweight, pretty active, diet is pretty good, but always tired. Just did a sleep test this week and was diagnosed with sleep apnea. Had 59 occurrences in a 6 hour period where I stopped breathing for at least 20 seconds. Longest was 51 seconds. 200 something other occurrences of partial obstruction. I think it's worth checking into.

My AHI score was 87 during my sleep study. Within the first hour my O2 saturation dropped to 70%. Scared the fecal matter out of the Sonographer. She called the Doc who told her to me on a CPAP for the rest of the study. Best four hours of sleep that night in years. My AHI score ow is 0.2.

 

[bowhiker88]

What do you do for a living? Do you have an office based profession and use a computer/phone on a desk?

Try a standing desk. Don’t sit at all. Get a posture or core strengthening pad and standing on it while you work.

Espresso isn’t a terrible way to see immediate results either

 

[bigv]

I bet sleep apnea. Many think they are sleeping well at night but actually aren’t. A friend was same way. Could fall asleep standing up in afternoons. Thought he slept fine but did test and found he wasn’t. Got machine and feels like a new man.

 

[5MilesBack]

As a matter of fact, I went to the doctor and my blood work confirmed it. "Oreo deficiency"

Man, I wouldn't want to get those results......because I hate Oreo's. A "bacon deficiency" result would be OK though, even though I already eat a lot of bacon.

 

[WoodBow]

For the guys talking about sleep apnea. Outside of being fat, i want to say the issue comes from the collapse of the soft tissue, which obstructs your airway and also causes snoring. I think i have heard people on podcasts talking about this being able to be improved/corrected by doing some kind of tongue exercise against the roof of your mouth. And maybe even using those dumb jawsercize things you bite on to strengthen the muscles in your face. I can't remember. But sleeping with a contraption strapped to your face does not seem like an acceptable solution to me. I would be willing to try a lot before it got to that. Apparently lack of jaw exercise is why we now commonly don't have room for our wisdom teeth. We don't chew tough food any more and our mandibles and maxillas are shrinking as a result. I don't think any wildlife have the dental crowding issues that humans commonly have.

 

[ihookem]

There is a good chance that you are low on a vitamin.. I am 60 and get tired easier. My biggest problem is being sore all the time. My mom, the 85 yr. olf health nut , gave me s bottle of Zink and magnesium . Suprizingly , it helps a lot . Helps s much that I forget to take them once a day, till I start getting sore again. It could easily be something as simple as iron...

 

[Silver Wings]

Had a similar feeling at 36: no kids but exhausted all the time. Working out made it worse…. Went to 3 family doctors to figure it out, all checked blood work but just a basic panel, no results. I highly recommend a men’s clinic or go straight to Lab Corp. You can order your own full work up on the Lab Corp site ($200 cash - no insurance) and see where your stats fall. The TRT shots changed my life, feel 25 again.

I stopped reading all the responses here ^^^
Most PCPs are more or less worthless, other than referring you to someone who knows what they’re doing. Keep in mind when dealing with anything healthcare that all the incentives are not in your best interest.
You obviously care about your health and you work at staying strong…take another step and get a better understanding of nutrition and reading lab results. If you can talk a PCP into ordering you the hallelujah package, great, go with it. If not I’d do what was suggested above…go to Labcorp’s page and buy a comprehensive “men’s” package, to start a baseline understanding of your metabolic health.
Bottom line is that if you don’t put some time into understanding your own body and health you’ve got to leave it in the hands of somebody who probably ain’t that good and who’s incentives don’t align with yours.
Good luck figuring this out.

 

[Mcribs]

There are some obvious reasons. I've got 5 kids under 8. I'm a farrier. I crossfit at 6 AM most days. And I understand that those are generally good reasons for a person to be tired. However, I need a better answer.

I'm 36 years old. I eat healthy and balanced meals. I usually get 7-8 hours of good sleep per night. I drink tons of water. I'm happy and satisfied with life and marriage (not depression). But I'm exhausted every dang day. Even on a Saturday, when I sleep in and don't workout, I'm ready for a nap by 11 AM. And if I do nap, which is rare, I can sleep for like 2 hours, and then be ready for bed by 8:30 that night.

I've had people tell me that it's just part of getting older, or part of raising kids. But I want a better answer. I have lots of friends in the same stage of life, with a similar lifestyle, that aren't as tired as me.

Anybody else out there that's extra sleepy? Better yet, anybody that used to be and has discovered some solutions or lifestyle changes that helped?

Late to the discussion but a few things that I’ve learned as I’ve aged. I’ve done 14hrs plus/week of coached training in my 40s. 1. Make sure you include rest days. 2. Most workouts for me are low intensity cardio days. Keep intensity days only on intensity days. It’s all about recovering for the next session. 3. Carbs get a bad rap from some but I have to fuel the workouts with carbs. If I don’t, I pay the price in fatigue and/or performance. Just my two cents.

 

[Rob960]

Do you happen to experience restless legs?

 

[Lil-Rokslider]

What do you do for a living? Do you have an office based profession and use a computer/phone on a desk?

Try a standing desk. Don’t sit at all. Get a posture or core strengthening pad and standing on it while you work.

Espresso isn’t a terrible way to see immediate results either

I'm a farrier. The standing desk thing might be tough.

 

[Lil-Rokslider]

Do you happen to experience restless legs?

I don't think so

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Lots of things can contribute. But, it sounds like you are simply wore out. A father of 5 that does cross fit early, then works, then comes home and works, is going to be tired.

Stop the CrossFit for a month. Your illustration points to what fighters call over training.

I watched a special on mixed martial arts fighters several years ago. It addressed how fighters would get hyped up chasing the belt and, inadvertently over train. For years. It took a toll on their durability and stamina.

I think men start noticing a decline in physical performance around our mid to late 30’s. You have to be active to notice the subtle differences. But, in my experience, that’s when it starts with everyone.

Add in the physical stress of 5 children and, a busy routine and you got yourself a tired homie.

Take a month off of CrossFit. Seriously. Stick with your clean diet. Don’t change anything. Just rest and let your body heal. Then evaluate where you are at.

FWIW, I’d be very careful about hormone supplements unless I found an underlying health issue causing low levels of nutrients. Then address it. But, simply going on a T regimen to feel like you were 30 again is not the answer. If it were for a 40 year old man to have 20 year old testosterone levels, that would be the norm. It isn’t for a reason. Think about that before you take that jab.

History on T therapy is new. It’s a recent phenomenon. Maybe it’s not a bad thing. But, I did it and it certainly wasn’t good thing. I think it was due to my doctor. So, if you go T therapy, get a specialists. Standard MD docs know zilch about hormone therapy.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Late to the discussion but a few things that I’ve learned as I’ve aged. I’ve done 14hrs plus/week of coached training in my 40s. 1. Make sure you include rest days. 2. Most workouts for me are low intensity cardio days. Keep intensity days only on intensity days. It’s all about recovering for the next session. 3. Carbs get a bad rap from some but I have to fuel the workouts with carbs. If I don’t, I pay the price in fatigue and/or performance. Just my two cents.

This^^^^.

The carb debate is one that many seem to brush over because protein is the cure all in today’s philosophy. But, carbs are important. Extremely important. Under consuming carbs with an active lifestyle is a 100% road to injury and lack luster physical well being. It also is a guarantee to gain weight if you stray. Don’t do this.

Carbs are essential. And lots of them if you are active. I don’t know why it’s become so popular to diet like a body builder. Body builders aren’t living an athletic life.

Eat carbs. Eat seas salt. Get your nutrients from your food. Not supplements

Oats, potatoes, carrots, beans, greens, turnips, beets, squash, peas, etc.. should be the driving force for your carbs. Eat all you want if you stay busy. This is required if paramount health is your goal.

I imagine with your diet choices you already know that when you clean your diet up and are active, you eat a lot more. A lot more. Don’t withhold that from your body. Give it what it craves and needs. Like I said, you likely already know this but, we sometimes miss our obvious problems when we are involved in the problem.

FWIW, incorporate a quart of tomatoes juice into your diet daily. You’ll see the results in energy and the way you feel within a week. Potassium and magnesium are followers of your sodium levels in active people. If you sweat a lot, I guarantee you the tomato juice will improve your energy levels.

Drink a quart with your mixing bowl of veggie salad with supper. You’ll sleep better. You’ll feel better. And, you’ll physically perform much better.

 

[Legend]

There are some obvious reasons. I've got 5 kids under 8. I'm a farrier. I crossfit at 6 AM most days. And I understand that those are generally good reasons for a person to be tired. However, I need a better answer.

I'm 36 years old. I eat healthy and balanced meals. I usually get 7-8 hours of good sleep per night. I drink tons of water. I'm happy and satisfied with life and marriage (not depression). But I'm exhausted every dang day. Even on a Saturday, when I sleep in and don't workout, I'm ready for a nap by 11 AM. And if I do nap, which is rare, I can sleep for like 2 hours, and then be ready for bed by 8:30 that night.

I've had people tell me that it's just part of getting older, or part of raising kids. But I want a better answer. I have lots of friends in the same stage of life, with a similar lifestyle, that aren't as tired as me.

Anybody else out there that's extra sleepy? Better yet, anybody that used to be and has discovered some solutions or lifestyle changes that helped?

Have yourself tested for mono. It is hard one to diagnose as the symptoms can be all over but fatigue is definitely one.

 

[Marbles]

Lots of things can contribute. But, it sounds like you are simply wore out. A father of 5 that does cross fit early, then works, then comes home and works, is going to be tired.

Stop the CrossFit for a month. Your illustration points to what fighters call over training.

I watched a special on mixed martial arts fighters several years ago. It addressed how fighters would get hyped up chasing the belt and, inadvertently over train. For years. It took a toll on their durability and stamina.

Been there, done that on over training. That is a great point that I did not think of.

I think men start noticing a decline in physical performance around our mid to late 30’s. You have to be active to notice the subtle differences. But, in my experience, that’s when it starts with everyone.

Add in the physical stress of 5 children and, a busy routine and you got yourself a tired homie.

Take a month off of CrossFit. Seriously. Stick with your clean diet. Don’t change anything. Just rest and let your body heal. Then evaluate where you are at.

FWIW, I’d be very careful about hormone supplements unless I found an underlying health issue causing low levels of nutrients. Then address it. But, simply going on a T regimen to feel like you were 30 again is not the answer. If it were for a 40 year old man to have 20 year old testosterone levels, that would be the norm. It isn’t for a reason. Think about that before you take that jab.

History on T therapy is new. It’s a recent phenomenon. Maybe it’s not a bad thing. But, I did it and it certainly wasn’t good thing. I think it was due to my doctor. So, if you go T therapy, get a specialists. Standard MD docs know zilch about hormone therapy.

Agree, completely. Most people I see on T are taking way more than a correction dose. Holding within the normal range with supplementation is not associated with harm (I've not dug into that, I still think for most people changing lifestyle is the better choice), however high levels are associated with harm to include increased heart attacks. The other issue is supplementing testosterone suppresses native production, so once started people have a hard road if they ever want/need to stop it.

For the guys talking about sleep apnea. Outside of being fat, i want to say the issue comes from the collapse of the soft tissue, which obstructs your airway and also causes snoring. I think i have heard people on podcasts talking about this being able to be improved/corrected by doing some kind of tongue exercise against the roof of your mouth. And maybe even using those dumb jawsercize things you bite on to strengthen the muscles in your face. I can't remember. But sleeping with a contraption strapped to your face does not seem like an acceptable solution to me. I would be willing to try a lot before it got to that. Apparently lack of jaw exercise is why we now commonly don't have room for our wisdom teeth. We don't chew tough food any more and our mandibles and maxillas are shrinking as a result. I don't think any wildlife have the dental crowding issues that humans commonly have.

It really depends on the severity of the sleep apnea and if it is obstructive or central. Sleep apnea causes lots of severe health problems in the long term (heart failure, heart attack, stroke, pulmonary hypertension) and it is under screened for. Many people, because they feel so much better when they use it, quickly get over issues with having something on their face. Some people do not.

In general, signs of sleep apnea (beyond fatigue)
-Being told you snore
-Being told you stop breathing in your sleep
-Waking up at night to use the restroom (due to the catecholamine dump and increased cardiac output that goes with apneic episodes)
-Waking up with a splitting headache
-High blood pressure
-Being tired no matter how long you sleep for

The STOP BANG score is a commonly used screening tool, it does not capture everything, but does point to when further testing is indicated. https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/3992/stop-bang-score-obstructive-sleep-apnea.