Night Shift
In the world of clean keto, we obsess over macros. We track grams of fat, we count grams of protein, and we ruthlessly eliminate grams of carbs. We treat our bodies like complex equations, believing that if we just get the inputs right, the output (health/weight loss) will be perfect.
But for a long time, I was ignoring a variable that was just as important as the steak on my plate.
I used to treat sleep like a nuisance—a "time tax" I had to pay between days of working, gaming, and stressing. I thought I could "hack" it with caffeine and willpower.
I was wrong.
I’ve learned that sleep is not a passive state of "doing nothing." It is an active, metabolically critical period where your body does its most important work. You can eat the cleanest, grass-fed, organic diet in the world, but if you are sleep-deprived, your body will function like it’s running on sugar and stress.
Sleep is the "Missing Macro." And here is the science of why it’s a non-negotiable part of my rulebook.
Part 1: The Glymphatic System (Taking Out the Trash)
I’ve talked about Autophagy—the cellular cleanup crew that my 22-hour fast triggers. Well, your brain has its own specialized cleanup crew, and it only works when you are asleep.
It’s called the Glymphatic System.
Think of your brain like a busy office building. All day long, your neurons are firing, processing data, and managing the "compliance" of your life. This activity creates waste products—cellular "trash" (like beta-amyloid proteins).
During the day, the office is full of people; the cleaners can't get in. But when you enter deep sleep, something incredible happens: your brain cells actually shrink by up to 60%.
This creates space between the cells, allowing cerebrospinal fluid to rush in and "power wash" the day's toxic waste out of your brain.
The Keto Connection: This connects perfectly with my diet.
Ketones are a "clean burning" fuel. They create less oxidative stress (less "trash") than glucose.
Sleep provides the "power wash" to remove what trash is there.
If I cut my sleep short, I am firing the janitorial staff before they’ve finished the job. I wake up with a brain full of toxic waste. That "brain fog" I used to fight? A huge part of it was simply a dirty engine.
Part 2: The Hormonal Wrecking Ball
If the brain cleaning wasn't enough, sleep deprivation destroys the hormonal balance I work so hard to maintain. Missing sleep mimics the metabolic state of a diabetic sugar-burner, even if you haven't touched a carb.
Here is the "Unholy Trinity" of sleep deprivation:
1. Cortisol (The Stress Spike)
When you are sleep-deprived, your body thinks it is under attack. It floods your system with cortisol.
The Keto Killer: Cortisol triggers your liver to dump stored glucose into your bloodstream (gluconeogenesis gone wrong). This spikes your blood sugar and insulin, potentially pausing fat burning, even if you are fasting.
2. Insulin Resistance (The Cardiac Risk)
Studies show that just one week of partial sleep deprivation can induce a pre-diabetic state of insulin resistance.
My Reality: As someone fighting to reverse insulin resistance for my heart health, skipping sleep is essentially undoing the benefits of my diet. It makes my cells "deaf" to insulin, promoting fat storage and inflammation.
3. Ghrelin & Leptin (The Hunger Games)
I talked about Leptin (the "I'm full" hormone) in a
Leptin Drops: Your brain doesn't hear the "full" signal.
Ghrelin Spikes: The "hunger" hormone goes through the roof.
The Result: You wake up ravenous, specifically craving high-energy carbohydrates. It’s not a lack of willpower; it’s a hormonal hijacking caused by a lack of sleep.
Part 3: My "Sleep Hygiene" Protocol
Because of this, I now treat sleep with the same discipline I apply to my diet. I don't just "go to bed"; I prepare for the "Night Shift."
The Magnesium Shield: I take my
Magnesium Glycinate The Caffeine Curfew: As a coffee lover, I still find this hard. But caffeine has a "half-life" of about 5-6 hours, even in someone with ADHD. If I drink coffee at 4:00 PM, half of it is still in my system at 10:00 PM. I am working towards having a hard cutoff around noon to ensure my brain can actually wind down. Stay tuned for tomorrow's post about ADHD and caffeine.
The "Blue Light" Battle: As a gamer and tech enthusiast, I live in front of screens. But blue light tells the brain it's noon, suppressing melatonin. I use "Night Shift" or "Night Light" modes on my devices and try to switch to "analog" sources (like reading actual books or TTRPG manuals) before bed.
Temperature Control: Your body needs to drop its core temperature to initiate sleep. I keep my apartment cool (easy to do in a Halifax winter!).
The Takeaway
We live in a culture that glorifies the "hustle." We wear sleep deprivation like a badge of honor.
I threw that badge away.
My clean keto lifestyle is about efficiency. And there is nothing efficient about a machine that never shuts down for maintenance. Sleep is not a luxury. It is the time when my body repairs my heart, cleans my brain, resets my insulin sensitivity, and builds the muscle I worked for during my calisthenics.
It is the most productive 8 hours of my day.
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