A little update

Just something interesting that's been happening lately. For some reason, I've been getting tired sometimes as early at 10pm. I can't ever remember conistently going to bed before 11pm, but the past few nights have had me in bed early and up well before 6am. This is exceptionally good news for my anxiety of sleeping through work. It may be that I'm getting up earlier and thus simply getting tired earlier. I'll try my best to keep it this way, as it's currently ideal. I do miss naps, though...

Update

Well, it has been quite some time. I, unfortunately, have stopped being biphasic altogether. Occasionally I will take a quick nap right when I get home, but this lasts for possibly 20 minutes. While I know I have constantly said "sleep in cycles", subsequent research has lead me to believe that the body can rest for the first 2 stages and receive the benefits without feeling groggy upon waking. It doesn't touch the REM stage, so I can see how that would be effective. I've missed the naps and the extra time biphasic sleep gave me, but I haven't stopped researching and experimenting with my body.

For one, I've found some vital information. I don't know if this is the result of biphasic sleep (some have reported that biphasic sleep has shortened their cycle), but my cycle seems to be about 82 minutes, almost 10 minutes less than the standard 90 minute cycle. While this may not seem that substantial, over the course of 6 hours of sleep (4 cycles), this is a difference of about 35 minutes. That time could put one just over 4 cycles or just under 5 cycles, possibly breaking into the REM stage... exactly what we don't want to do. I used to give myself a little extra time to fall asleep, too. It's no wonder I wasn't feeling as well rested toward the end of my experimentation.

I've settled on a 4 cycle monophasic sleep schedule, with the occasional powernap (I say 4 cycles instead of just 6 hours since my cycle is a bit shorter than average). Sometimes I give myself only 3 cycles and I can do well on it, provided I don't have an excessive physically active day. I still have some problems staying asleep on night before I have work, but I'm trying to force myself to stay in bed and realize that all 3 of my alarms are functioning well and they will wake me up on time. However, I've been consistenty waking right before my alarm clock for the last few weekdays, showing me that my adjusted sleep length accurately fits my cycle length. I'll continue to monitor it.

I also noticed that I've had dreams lately. I didn't realize this before, but the last hectic weeks my my experiment, I didn't dream that often. Most likely because of interrupted REM cycles. It's good to dream again.

I'll update again eventually. Thanks for reading!



Note: I'm once again importing these to my facebook account, as they won't be a daily ritual now.

Biphasic: Day 42 and on

I'm going to take a break from the blogging scene. I am going to use this week to not focus on my sleep, but just let it happen naturally. Yes, I'll try to continue with the biphasic sleep, but I think the constant reminder that I am doing something different is making it less natural. And less natural really is not acceptable with sleep. So if it works, then that will be great. I'll update every so often about a biphasic life. But if it doesn't work, then it simply isn't something my body wants or needs.

So thank you to any people that have been following this. It isn't over, I'm just a bit tired of talking about something to the point that it has all become what I say instead of what I'm actually experiencing.

Give new things a try. New situations, ideas and experiences are wonderful when they lead to success, but often just as wonderful if they don't.

Biphasic: Day 41

I couldn't sleep again. I imagine that I should be far more exhausted than I am, but my body has been in a strange place for awhile now. I am almost certain my inability to sleep stems from the nervousness of not waking up for work. Tomorrow I will be able to get up without fear of missing work, but I am going back to only two cycles a night. This time, it's all or nothing. If I can't keep up with it, then I'll try something new. Also, I'm moving the alarm clock so I can't see the time at night. Those red LEDs taunted me all last night. I've had so many little slips lately that it's completely taken me out of the routine and thrown me in a sleep limbo of sorts. I'll get it back soon enough.

Biphasic: Day 40

There always must be some complication, I suppose. Curse you, Murphy.

While giving myself that extra cycle of sleep a night seems helpful in concept, the reality is that I forgot how my body works. Actually getting to sleep at 12:30am is incredibly difficult for me. I don't know if anyone else experiences this, but sometimes when I go to sleep (mostly every time I try to get to bed in the first few a.m. hours), I instinctively know that I won't sleep. I can toss and turn to find the optimal position, but I end up looking at the clock at least once an hour. I do sleep, but that sleep is interrupted and spread thinly between frustrated waking periods. It's ironic, but any time I try to get to sleep early to prepare myself for an event or such the next day, I inevitably fail to sleep soundly at all. If I were to add the additional cycle after my scheduled sleep times, all would be fine, but I have work at 6am on the weekends

So I'm not sure what I'll do. I think I'll try once more to get to sleep early. Perhaps I'll wind down with some relaxing tea and better prepare myself for sleep mentally. The moment I lie down, I'll know if I'll stay awake or not. If that is the case, I'll get right back up and engage in non-alarming activity till 2am. Sleep seems so simple when you just let it be. But I'm just not satisfied with misunderstanding something for simplicity's sake.

Biphasic: Day 38-39 or not

So this is a strange. The last two nights I decided to give myself more sleep than usual to prepare for and recover from the big luau. While I did feel well rested and energetic yesterday evening despite not having my nap, I considerably overslept this morning, causing me to be late for work. I've noticed the only time I oversleep or something bad happens with my sleep pattern is when I change it, even when it seems like a good change that would make me feel more well rested. So I am going to continue the biphasic pattern, but no more leeway. I will give myself one more week of 3 nightly cycles, but after that I will return to 2 nightly cycles and it will stay that way. I will wake up every single day at 5:15am like I did before. The consistency will make my sleep pattern routine once again, and I'll be back in the game.

Biphasic: Day 37

I must have done something correct last night because this morning was much better. I even jumped on the rebounder a little. My cognitive functioning seemed more than adequate (Chemistry makes sense to me? Wow.), and my energy levels were high as well.

Tomorrow is the rest test, though. Classes and meetings from 9:30am to 3:30pm, then preparations and a party till at least 9pm. I'll be missing another nap, hopefully without consequence. I don't know yet if I'll add my nap to my core sleep and add my addition cycle, as that would bring me to a full 6 hours of sleep, but we'll see what tomorrow brings. Many have mentioned that 20-30 minute powernaps are wonderfully helpful, but considering a full cycle is about 90 minutes, I'm skeptical. It would be nice to have a short nap. Sleep is a very strange thing and the more I research, the more it seems that we don't have all the answers. So it is a possibility that there are different kinds or levels of sleep. Any thoughts?

Biphasic: Day 36.2

I took an extra 90 minute nap this morning at about 7am and felt entirely better. To be safe, I'll change my core sleep for the week to 4.5 hours, starting at 12:30am. This is very early by my standards, but it is just for the week. I felt fine today, though right now it is just about my nap time and I have a slight headache. I did contact one of my professors about running some tests on my body, and it looks like I'll be able to get some feedback on a deeper level than just observance soon. But for now, I nap. Good evening.

Biphasic: Day 36.1

I was very tired last night. It was the first time I had difficulties staying up to 2am in a very long time. And yet, I couldn't get immediately to sleep either. I gave myself plenty of extra time to fall asleep, but I fear that I may have gotten up i the middle of a cycle... I feel extremely tired and thoroughly exhausted this morning. I'm debating sleeping for another cycle, or adding another cycle to my core temporarily. I'm not sure what to do. If I do give myself an extra cycle and find that it wasn't a 4th daily cycle I needed but to fully complete my 3rd cycle, I would have changed the experiment in vain. And it might be difficult to switch back if needed. I'll be keeping track of today more closely than I normally would.

I was hoping this kind of exhaustion and tiredness wouldn't happen. Biphasic sleep would be such a wonderful thing if it would work with my life, but I won't force anything on my body that I know is detrimental.

Biphasic: Day 35

I woke up with a slight headache this morning, though I'm unsure if it was sleep related or not. I felt well rested all day, an actually very energetic. Despite only 3 hours of sleep and getting up at 5am, I didn't doze off in my 2 hour chemistry class or feel too exhausted for an hour long workout in my dance class. It is possible that the excitement from the semester beginning kept me going through the day, but I will keep note of my energy and productivity levels throughout the semester.

From my point of view, I had an 11 1/2 hour day filled with school and socializing, and now I have an 8 hour night to do whatever I want or need to do. Biphasic sleep is grand.

Biphasic: Day 34

I slept well last night and felt rested all day. It's very strange to go in to work for 6 hours, come back home and realize that usually I would still be sleeping in till this time during the summer. After work I mowed part of the lawn and practiced spinning. I definitely have no problems with energy levels, and my mornings are beginning to pick up in gusto as well.

The nap today was a bit rough. My dog barked every so often and I tried to sleep for about an hour. I moved to a more quiet room and turned a fan on high and eventually got to sleep around 6. Tonight's sleep is important: tomorrow is the beginning of the new semester and the real beginning to this experiment.

Biphasic: Day 33

Woke up just before my alarm this morning, feeling great. My body (and mind to an extent) feel a bit exhausted, but otherwise I feel fine. Sleep has been difficult to get into lately, I think because of the pressure. "I need to get to bed at this time and wake up at this time." I usually get to sleep fine eventually, but the problem is that if I wait in bed to fall asleep for 15 minutes, I need to adjust my alarm or have had the foresight to adjust my alarm earlier. I do give myself 15 minutes to get to sleep each night before starting my cycle countdown, but occasionally that isn't enough time. If I can keep waking up before my alarm consistently, I think that pressure will significantly die down.

The show last night went well... though I smell of kerosene.

Biphasic: Day 32.2

I felt fine all this morning. Usually I would feel a little sleepy during the early hours of a 6am shift, but there was quite a lot going on to keep me actively conversational. When 3:30pm hit, I felt a sudden wave of tiredness take over me. I pulled through it, though, and took my nap closer to 5pm. Now I am getting ready for a fire spinning gig. This is a prime time for me to see if biphasic sleep can really work for me. Not only is it a very busy time and taking considerably more energy than previous weeks, but I'm also physically exerting myself. I can see tonight's core sleep being exceptionally needed... and probably tomorrow morning as being exceptionally unwanted.

Biphasic: Day 31 and 32.1

I thought for sure that I posted yesterday, although there really wasn't much to say on the sleep front.

Today is a bit different. I went to bed around my normally scheduled time and woke to find myself well awake. I started my work schedule for the semester today (6am - 12noon), so within the week, I'll be able to tell if my body is getting enough rest on this biphasic schedule to sustain me through the entire semester. So far, it seems to be working fine, but like always, I will keep you all updated.

Biphasic: Day 30.2

The irony that I would be talking about how flexible my nap schedule is this morning and then succumbing to sleep this evening kind of makes me laugh.

Yes, I did sleep in (4:30pm - 7:30pm), but it isn't exactly my fault. My mother offered to let me sleep in her bed while she worked in the basement (I live in a section of the basement and didn't want to interfere with her work) and I accepted. The problem is that her bed is a double pillow-top goddess of sleep and was probably crafted by Nyx herself. That being said, I remember my alarm going off and I remember grabbing my phone, but then I immediately fell victim to the bed. Luckily, my sister woke me at 7:30pm, right when my second cycle ended. I actually think I woke naturally just before, but it's hard to tell when under a spell.

I'll not succumb to the bed anymore and let you fine people down.

Biphasic: Day 30.1

Felt much better this morning... awake, alert and hungry. It seems like I eat so much more now that I'm awake for 19.5 hours of the day. I imagine my daily basal energy rate is higher to keep up. I did move my nap yesterday to 3:00pm - 4:30pm and it worked without any negative consequences. I imagine my nap time is much more flexible than my core.

Biphasic: Day 29

Not feeling as rested yet again. My body prefers the 3am-6am schedule, I think. I may be able to manage 2:30am-5:30am, given that I rush to work by 5:55am. I'll return to the extra 15 minutes per cycle for now. I think just a bit too much sleep would be better than just too little in terms of feeling well rested. Overcoming the tiredness this morning was aided by some rebounding and light stretching, then a nice hot shower. A wave of tiredness is currently hitting me, so I'll get up and stretch a little.

I've honestly forgotten how beautiful early mornings are, I'll admit. Maybe one day I'll take a look at the sunrise.

Biphasic: Day 28

I didn't feel as rested as usual this morning and for some reason yesterday's nap left me feeling horrible. I thought I slept rather well, but perhaps not. All is back to normal now, and we'll see how today's nap goes. I need to remember to energize myself in the mornings. It's all about creating routines and letting muscle memory do the rest. But first I need to actively stick to those routines...

Biphasic: Day 27.2

A word of caution: be careful googling anything about sleep. I'll just leave it at that.

I mention this because I did some googling myself earlier trying to figure something out. I happened to lie down and fall asleep for 11 minutes. Not a part of my sleep schedule, I know, but the results were very interesting. In those 11 minutes I had a dream, a very vivid dream. This confuses me because the REM stage comes last, and yet I clearly had a dream. (I was in a wheelchair for a bad sprained ankle. And then I was rock climbing.) I had this little nap about 5 hours after waking, so I can't imagine it being an extension of my last REM period. I'm not exactly sure what to think. I couldn't readily find any reliable information on the subject, but I'll keep digging. Anyone have some insights?

Biphasic: Day 27.1

I need to revamp my thought processes on getting to bed. It seems like every night I have the intention on getting to bed on time, then as my sleep time approaches I end up losing track of time doing something. It isn't exactly detrimental, as I just give myself a later wake up time, but that won't be possible during the semester. The culprit is usually my computer or me putting off writing until the end of the day. I simply need to accomplish things earlier, wind down quicker and stop getting involved in things late at night (that also makes it difficult to sleep sometimes... too much information whirling around keeps slumber distant).

I feel quite good today. I don't want to seem naively optimistic, but I think I have already re-adapted to the biphasic pattern successfully. I get tired around my nap time and usually my core time, and I feel well rested throughout the day. A few instances yesterday I lied on my bed and closed my eyes, never actually falling to sleep like I slightly feared, so it seems my body is well rested.

The coming weeks will really put my sleep schedule to the test.

Biphasic: Day 26.2

It is close to 3pm and I've felt great all day. I didn't feel sleepy after I started to get my mind active and I even felt energized enough to use the weedeater and practice spinning in the hot sun. It felt great. It looks like I'll be back into the biphasic pattern in no time, which is great news for future reference in case my lifestyle won't allow for it for a time.

And something is fishy about that sheep test... I consistently get 0.222 exactly. That doesn't seem very accurate for human reflexes.

Biphasic: Day 26.1

By noon of yesterday, I started to get very tired. It was difficult, but I pushed myself to 4:30pm. Luckily, the evening felt great and I sped through it to 2am. I actually almost stayed up too late. Gave myself an extra 10 minutes to get to sleep last night and my body naturally woke up about 5-10 minutes before the alarm went off! I feel pretty good, too. Again, I could go to sleep, but this apple is helping to keep me awake. I may play a game to keep my mind active. I would try to work out a little, but we have guests sleeping upstairs and my exercising is a bit noisy.

It feels good to be back into the biphasic routine.



Photo: As you can see, I'm a Bobbing Bobcat this morning. Still haven't been able to get any higher rankings... But I find it strange that my times are almost all exactly the same, to the same thousandths of a second. It seems a bit too mechanical to be so accurate.

And with the mention of coffee, I am off to make some organic green tea.

Return to Biphasic (Biphasic: Day 25)

Got to sleep last night at 2am and woke up at 5am. I'm definitely exhausted, but not exactly tired. I woke to find myself oddly alert, not groggy whatsoever. I still feel alert and awake, but I would definitely fall asleep if I jumped in bed and put my head to rest. My nap can't come soon enough. I imagine it will take two days or so to get back into the Biphasic routine, but I have 10 days to work with before the semester begins and things start getting a little crazy.

Thanks to all who have been keeping watch on my progress! Please comment and let me know your thoughts.

Experimental Reverting Day 2

Well I slept in this morning. From about 1am to 11:30am. Those times are rough, and I did wake up a few times then go immediately back to sleep, but that does coincide with a 90 minute cycle. I won't lie and say I didn't enjoy the gross amount of extra sleep. I slept about two cores and three naps worth already. Though I do feel well rested, I don't honestly feel "better" than I did while biphasic. Yes, it was nice to be lazy, but it felt entirely lazy and only slightly restorative. This time during a biphasic pattern, I'd feel awake and alert. I wonder how tired I'll be later on after not getting my nap.

But this is not the end of my experiment. I didn't quit, I haven't given up. Quite the contrary, this is going to be my last monophasic day in quite some time. My new schedule starting tomorrow will be 2:00am-5:00am core, and 4:30pm-6:00pm nap. I will most likely fine tune this during the semester. It was rather difficult to get into biphasic sleep, but I'm confident that my jump back into it will be much easier. I'll take my nap to prepare my mind and body for the biphasic schedule, then start biphasic day 25 at 2am tonight.

Also, I've been sending these posts to facebook and getting many comments there. However, I am going to stop sending them to facebook, at I'd rather have the comments on this blog and readily available for all to see. This way if a commenter has something interesting to say, all will be able to read it, not just those who have access to my facebook notes. So please, if you have been keeping track of my biphasic experiment via facebook, bookmark reggiegoesbiphasic.blogspot.com and follow me here!

Biphasic: Day 25 (Reverting)

I decided to try something. I woke up with my alarm at 6:30am (I had been giving myself an extra 15 minutes per cycle the last few days), and deiced to see what would happen if I fell back asleep like I normally would on a lazy summer day after waking naturally. I dozed off and on until a little before 9am, and honestly, it felt great to sleep. I thought I'd feel much better, which would have caused me to rethink the biphasic experiment. But then I got up.

Try to stay with me... I felt a little more rested, but entirely more tired and exhausted. I don't know how else to explain it. My body regained a feeling that I used to associate with well restedness, and yet I had a slight headache (a pressure that is worst in the base of my skull and behind my eyes) and I keep stumbling. I feel like a drunk without the mental incapacitation (though I actually haven't tested my mental acuity, I think it's about on par with biphasic). I think this must be the effect of a broken cycle, and I genuinely think that I've felt this way most days through my monophasic summer, sans the headache. I don't at all feel alert like I have for the last few weeks, but that might be because I haven't been very active yet. I can see myself in this state staring blankly at a carpet, wanting to go back to sleep constantly and not being very productive at all. I have only been "Broken Cycle Reggie" for about 20 minutes, but I get the feeling that this feeling isn't fleeting.

I'm going to experiment more. Today, I'll do the same I did this morning. I'll let the alarm wake me, but then I'll stay in bed and see what happens skip my nap. As for tomorrow, I'm going to go to bed when I normally would, but not set my alarm. This will help me determine two things:
-first, will I wake up naturally around the end of two cycles, or will my body take more now that they are available?
-and second, given that I wake up naturally, I'll be able to roughly calculate my cycle length.
In addition, I will also give myself a natural, non-alarmed evening nap.

Stay tuned. I'm going through weird sleep things so you can find out what's best in the sleep routine world without sleep deprivation. That sounds like a deal to me.

Edit: I tried the Sheep dash game... three games gave me a Bobbing Bobcat (rank 3) and two Ambling Armadillo (rank 4). At least I'm not a Sluggish Snail...

Biphasic: Day 24

I found a website from BBC that contains a few tests for testing alertness.

One is a reaction/speed test:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/sleep/sheep/

And the other is a face recognition test, for memory:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/sleep/tmt/

I can't seem to get past Bobbing Bobcat, and my reaction times and HEC are rather well developed... I might have to blame it on my laptop. My Recognition score was 95%, but my Temporal memory score was %73. I also had 4 false positives, meaning that I thought I recognized a face when I hadn't seen it before. That would make for an awkward encounter in real life.

Biphasic: Day 23

I began reading last night around 1am. Normally I can read all the way up to my sleep time, but last night I started to feel my eyes weigh down even before 2am. So I decided to go to bed a little early and see what would happen, my logic being that I've already established this pattern, so I should now start listening to my body. I was in bed and ready for sleep a little after 2am, and I probably fell asleep anywhere from 2:15-2:30am. Upon awaking this morning, I felt amazing. My alarm went off and I stood up, stretched a moment, then took my puppy outside. I just felt awake and "there". I felt connected to my body, which sometimes is not the case in the early morning.

This morning's good feeling could have come from a variety of explanations. I'll present two of my ideas. One, it is possible -though I'm not sure how probable- that hunger is what kept me awake. I went to bed rather hungry last night, not wanting to eat before I slept and put strain on my body during rest. That hunger was deep set by the time I woke up, and perhaps the drive to eat was stronger than the drive to sleep. The other and probably more accurate explanation is that my cycle is not 90 minutes like I anticipated. If, for example, I gained an extra half hour of sleep last night at two cycles, that could mean my cycle is instead 105 minutes. If my cycle were longer, then attempting to sleep in 90 minutes cycles would consistently have me waking in the middle of my REM stage. That is not what I want to be doing.

I'll experiment with sleep lengths and see if adding an extra 15 minutes seems to provide consistent results in terms of wakefulness. I should have figured out my cycle prior to beginning the biphasic experiment, but I honestly was not aware of the cycle theory. Though it may cause another hiccup in my progress, I may fall asleep without an alarm and try to calculate my cycle length from natural awakening. The problem is, however, that I don't think my body will be waking anywhere around 6am if not forced to...

Biphasic: Day 22

I woke up and decided to stretch to wake myself up, which turned into rebounding. While it did wonders for my energy, after my shower I found myself tired again, most likely because I wasn't keeping myself preoccupied.

These blog posts are automatically sent to facebook, and I've had a few people comment on that side. One commenter, a fellow polyphasic experimenter, gave me an idea that I think would make for a great experiment. During the upcoming semester I will stay biphasic for a month or so. Given that it would be plausible to change my pattern without devastating repercussions (I'd rather not fail a class for experimentation and curiosity....but curiosity is a powerful thing), I may attempt to switch back to monophasic, but keeping the 4.5 hours of sleep daily. It would be interesting to see how my body un-adapts out of biphasic, and if my energy/sleepiness/stamina and other various levels change. Further down the line, it would be interesting to see how difficult it would be to go back into biphasic again. Just some thoughts that could provide answers to biphasic sleep.

Another odd thought... Wouldn't it be interesting to see an entire town adjusted to biphasic sleep? I wonder how the job system and social system would change. Or the levels of productivity in said jobs. Just some of the many, many ideas running through my mind. At least biphasic sleep doesn't deprive me of analytical thought.

EDIT: I forgot entirely about siesta and the Spanish tradition of doing just the aforementioned. I wonder how much sleep is average in places that take a siesta. The modern siesta is only about 10-20 minutes of actual sleep, though, not nearly enough to complete a cycle. Questions, questions, questions...

Biphasic: Day 21

My last few sleep patterns were the correct duration, but about half an hour behind each. I'm feeling a little exhausted today, but as long as I push through to my evening nap, I'll be fine. Not much else to say on the sleep front. Nothing new, in any case, other than very vivid dreams. But I'll remain diligent in posting, just in case some sleep related phenomenon does occur.

Biphasic: Day 20

I think the times attached to these blog posts is incorrect, so I apologize if the date doesn't coincide with the day number.

Missing out on naps really wrecks one for a few days. I'm getting my sleep like I usually do, but the last two days I've been exceptionally tired in the mornings. It will get back to normal, though. Well, relative biphasic normal.

I've come across some who have been following this blog and mentioned their sleep patterns. Some sleep as much as I do now, only monophasically, and continue to do so throughout the semester. My experimental mind wants to convince said persons to try biphasic sleep and compare the two, since the monophasic baseline of about 4.5 hours of sleep wouldn't factor into tiredness if one switched to biphasic. I think that given the same amount of hours, the biphasic pattern would provide more energy and alertness. However, it isn't always socially plausible, as I've found...

I'll be taking a trip to get bubble tea today with some friends. We will be returning before 4:30pm, but I may end up napping while they are over at my house, possibly playing games or watching shows. A biphasic lifestyle creates some odd moments. And makes me a terrible host.

Biphasic: Day 19

Yesterday was quite a tiring day. Left for Pittsburgh at 8:30am, then returned around 1am. Unfortunately for my sleep pattern, I was unable to take a nap. I tried to sleep in the car, and though I did get time to rest and relax, it wasn't of the slumbering kind. I wanted to sleep for hours upon hours last night, but I only gave myself the core sleep plus the nap sleep (4.5 hours, from 2:30am to 7:00am). So it may be rather obvious, but I am very tired. I won't give myself more hours of sleep unless my body absolutely needs it. Even then, I need to try and push through. As much as I enjoy this biphasic sleep pattern and it seems relatively easy to maintain, it doesn't really seem to have "clicked" just yet. And these little hiccups don't help. But, in order for this biphasic pattern to function, I'll have to be able to master the successful nap transfer.

Biphasic: Day 18

I had trouble sleeping again last night, so I set the alarm half an hour later. This isn't a good sign... I thought the reason I had difficulties sleeping was that my puppy was keeping me awake by scratching and such, but she slept upstairs last night. I simply couldn't fall asleep. If I am having consistent difficulties getting to sleep at 3am now, then when I change my core sleep to 2am - 5am, things may be much worse. I'll try to pinpoint exactly what is keeping me awake if possible in the coming nights. Also, I'll switch over to the 2am - 5am schedule two weeks before classes begin.

Today will be another test. It is now 7:44am, and soon I'll be leaving with a few friends for Pittsburgh. We'll be spending the day at the zoo, eating at fine restaurants, and possibly going to a show tonight. I don't know if I'll be able to nap, though I'll aim to sleep in the car. Hopefully this won't send me into a biphasic zombie state.

Biphasic: Day 17

I had difficulties actually getting to sleep last night for about an hour (it baffles me that I sleep only 4.5 hours a day, yet my body apparently doesn't seem very deprived...), so I woke up at 7:00am instead to give me 3 hours. However, I did wake up to change the clock, so I wonder if it ruined my cycle. I actually don't know if the cycle stops completely if one wakes up, or if there is a small time period that you can go back to sleep and return to the cycle.

I usually jump on the rebounder for about 20 minutes (I recall learning that the first 20 minutes of exercise provides the best results as per the law of diminishing returns), switching up jump patterns and muscle focus. Afterward, I get a quick cool down by bouncing lightly, then on to yoga or Tai Chi (I've forgotten most of the Tai Chi Chuan 24 forms, unfortunately). I followed this routine this morning and found myself very energized during and after the workout. Though since my shower, I've been a bit tired. Usually this passes if I keep myself preoccupied and stimulated

I realize after about two and a half weeks that I haven't followed my initial plan of commenting on specific areas. It didn't seem to fit the way I anticipated. But things change and take shape how they will, and I think this format is more fitting.

Biphasic: Day 16

It feels strange to keep a log of this sleep schedule now that I'm so used to it. I've been consistently going to bed at 3:00am and getting up at 6:00 rather easily. My one problem is that I misjudge time and think that I have enough time to go to bed and fall asleep before 3:00am hits. I'm used to being up till 5:00am or later, so I have to force myself to stop doing things and go to sleep. Often times, it's 3:15 or so until I really get settled in bed. My puppy has been sleeping in my bed recently, and though she often wakes me up in the middle of the night, I don't wake up feeling groggy. Quite the contrary, I feel absolutely incredible. I have so much energy and I just feel motivated to do things. This may be a result of other factors in my life and not a direct byproduct of the biphasic sleep, but this sleep pattern is definitely not hindering me.

I'll return to an exercise regiment starting tomorrow morning. It will consist of stretching, rebounding, then maybe light yoga. I've found rebounding is my favorite aerobic exercise; it's very low impact and is excellent in stimulating the lymphatic system. I don't think I'll be dreams from "lack of sleep" and pushing myself with exercise. I actually think it will help me to wake up and put those morning hours to work.

I've been awake for 9 hours already. And it is almost 3pm. And after my 4:30pm - 6:00pm nap, I'll have another 9 hours of waking time. I don't know if it is apparent or not, but I am very pleased with this biphasic sleep experiment.

Biphasic: Day 15

So much went on yesterday, I didn't really have time to stop and post something. But being active has given me better insights into biphasic sleep. I had been staying rather sedentary, trying to make sure I wasn't tired from intense physical exhaustion, which might cause me to get sleepy and up my sleep schedule. I found the exact opposite to be true, though. I had plenty of energy when using the weed eater, and plenty left over afterward for some vague martial arts ("vague" because I know quite a bit, but not from formal training). Yet, though energy coursed through my body and I felt as alert and active as my monophasic days, after a quick shower, I fell right to sleep for my nap and slept soundly til 6pm. I'll continue to be more active, now that I know the sleep system really is mine and I have successfully finished the transition phase.

And I've decided that green tea is a welcome addition to my morning schedule. Still hard to get up in the morning, but on par with when I was monophasic. I'm very excited to start the semester with my new sleep system .

Biphasic: Day 13.2

I'm not sure what happened this evening, but some force of sabotage took over. I simply forgot to take my nap. It was about 6pm that I realized this, so I rushed to bed only to wake up at 8:30pm, with the alarm as quiet as it had been for the past two and a half hours. But all in all, though I went to sleep late and though the alarm didn't go off, I suppose things could have been worse. I could have gone to sleep at 4:30pm and then woke up at 8:30pm. I've been doing a rather good job of keeping my schedule intact, so I suppose a little slip up here and there isn't exactly detrimental to my progress.

Though I'm not completely used to this biphasic schedule, I can't really imagine sleeping monophasically anymore. It makes me tired thinking about it. But the ultimate challenge will be the start of the new semester. Luckily, I'll have almost a month and a half of experience to aid me.

Edit: I want to clarify that I didn't prolong my nap because I was tired. I didn't feel like I needed that sleep, and in fact had difficulty getting to sleep because I felt so energetic. I just can't get up naturally at this point in the process for my naps. At least not just yet.

Biphasic: Day 13.1

It's 7:30am and I feel hyper. Exhausted a bit in my muscles, a bit of pressure in my head, still a little tired, but my mind feels hyper and alert. Getting up is still difficult, but I can't recall how difficult it was to wake up during my early-rise semesters. I recall being tired often, but I can't compare me getting ready and rushing to classes with me waking up and getting on the computer with a bowl of cereal and green tea. I am currently on the 4.5 hour system, but if I need to switch up to the 6 hour system to curb tiredness during the semester, it won't be difficult at all. I'm actually very excited to see how well I combine biphasic sleep and the school schedule.

All of a sudden a wave of exhaustion and tiredness hit me. I suppose I spoke too fast about being all that energetic.

Biphasic: Day 12 (Good stuff...)

I decided to go ahead and move back into the 3 hours core sleep. I miss the extra time in the morning. Woke up this morning a listened to the radio for about a minute, then stretched all over to get myself "activated". Then I walked upstairs, made a bowl of cereal, took my dog outside, ate my cereal, returned the empty garbage bin and went back inside. Then I put away towels.Who does that in the first 15 minutes of waking up? The reason I say this is simply because I don't think I could have processed things enough to do all that when I was waking up at 5:45am in high school. I suppose you could say that I have adapted to this way of life, the biphasic dark side... It's something I can do without it being really too difficult, it fits well with my schedule, and it just feels good.

Sure, I am tired in the morning, but I was always exhausted in high school and the first few years of college when I constantly had 8am classes. But now I've decided to take that a step further. I have early morning classes for the Fall semester, at 8am and 9:30am (Mon-Thur), but I also work three times a week at a dorm from 6am-noon (Fri-Sun). That means that I have given myself a schedule in which I CANNOT sleep in. Ever. And it doesn't scare me like it probably should. In fact, I see it as a challenge that I already have almost accomplished. By the time the semester begins, I'll be so biphasic that I'll be converting others. Going to bed late, waking up early, being able to take a nap AND feel all round well rested? I never would have asked for all these things before because I didn't actually think it would be possible. Now I'm doing it and it doesn't seem like a big deal... it seems as obviously needed as eating or bathing. Since I am sticking to the schedule, perhaps I'll treat myself to some refreshing organic green tea for the morning...

I stumbled upon www.stevepavlina.com when I first tried polyphasic sleep in the Winter of 08. Now, my research again brought me to his website, especially a few forum threads all about those who were trying biphasic sleep. What I didn't realize is that I have it down already. From here on out is just getting used to the system. I never oversleep, I feel like I can function and participate in the world, and I actually like sleeping twice a day. So many people are having difficulties with biphasic sleep, I suppose I was blessed to have a system in place that allowed for a biphasic pattern to be subtly injected and enforced.

Check out www.stevepavlina.com at your closest convenience. It has some great information on many facets of life, not just the non-normative sleep patterns of the borderline insane.

Biphasic: Day 11

My alarm was set to 8:30 from ye4sterday, so I actually slept quite a bit more than I should have... I'll sleep the extra 90 minutes tonight, then return to the 3 hour core sleep I had before. I spent most of the afternoon taking my puppy to the vet and taking care of some errands, so I lost track of time. After I came home, I started to feel very sleepy and thought it was strange, considering the extra extra sleep I stole earlier this morning. I lost track of time and didn't realize that it was about 4:00pm and my body wanted it's nap! I'm glad to see that my body is starting to internalize this new system and rely on the nap patterns. This gives me confidence in the whole process working in the long run. I'm off to get some sleep, then start my second half of the day. It's nice to think of the day in terms of two halves. In a way, it feels like I have twice as much time as I used to.

Biphasic: Day 10

The weekend may have impacted my sleeping more than I thought. It feels like my body can't get enough sleep, so I may be running on a battery that is not fully charged, only charging it a little during my sleep, but never to peak performance. So I am going to take this opportunity to adjust my sleep schedule and allow myself an extra 90 minutes of sleep during the core section. I will now be getting 6 hours of sleep (four full cycles), and sleeping from 1:30am - 6:00am and 4:30pm - 6:00pm. If this ends up being too much sleep once my body has recharged a bit more, then I'll later reduce it down to 4.5 hours a day. But I've been too exhuasted the last few days to really keep track of my body. Though I've already been up for almost an hour, I'll go ahead and give myself the extra 90 minutes of sleep, from 7:00am to 8:30am. I honestly need it very badly.


Edit: Someone brought it to my attention that 6 hours is essentially a normal monophasic core sleep and it somewhat defeats the purpose of doing a polyphasic schedule. I agree and disagree.

I wasn't very clear earlier (mostly because I was so exhausted), but I intend to switch back to 4.5 hours. The 6 hours of sleep is a bit counter to polyphasic advantages. It would make sense to take a day off, sleep as much as I'd like, then try again from the start, but I just can't bring myself to do that. So I'll instead give myself a little extra, then once I get back to that feelgood point I had late last week, I'll drop the extra 90 minute cycle.

I do, however, think there are advantages to biphasic 6 hours of sleep over monophasic 6 hours of sleep. For one, you aren't running an entire day on one charge, but instead get a moment in the day to rest. Think of the siesta. And another personal reason is the available time awake during the late night. I am really most awake in the first few hours of the new day (as in midnight), and if my core was a full 6 hours, I would need to be in bed by 11pm in order to get up at 5am. I honestly could not force myself to sleep at 11pm. I would just lie there, awake and active in my mind, likely for the entire night. With a biphasic system in place, I could go to bed at the later 12:30am, which would be early, but much more preferred. I suppose I see biphasic as advantageous over monophasic, regardless if time is saved or not.

Biphasic: Day 9.2

I was absolutely exhausted this morning. Tried reading around 2:00pm, but fighting off sleep was entirely too difficult to do. I feel so much better after my nap, but I am still exhausted and could easily fall back to sleep. I crave sleep, but I'm going to continue with the experiment. There are too many factors that fit too perfectly.

Biphasic: Day 8 - 9.1

The weekend has been hectic. Missing my nap on Saturday didn't seem too devastating on my body, but lack of sound sleep Saturday night left my Sunday morning one of the most difficult I've had thus far. While I went to bed on time (the "nap + core" time) and my sleeping space was comfortable, I don't do well sleeping in new places. Not to mention I was forcibly woken by cell phone messages a few times throughout the early morning. I took a long shower to help me wake up and feel refreshed, but it wasn't as effective as I hoped.

I felt rather energized for the actual wedding ceremony, but as soon as we entered the truck, I kept dozing off. By this point I was exhuasted in body and mind and just needed my evening nap, which thankfully came moments after I arrived home. It was a very deep sleep, but my body wanted more of it.

And it wants more this Monday morning, as well. Changing my schedule to fit the weekend wasn't the best of ideas, but the world is not biphasic or polyphasic, and so adjustments must be made. That may have pushed back my progress, but it was necessary. I don't believe there are any more time conflicts in the coming weeks. Ah, I'll update later when I'm consistently awake.

Biphasic: Day 7.2

(The following is being posted late, as I did not have an internet connection over the weekend. I will update tomorrow about today's events.)

It is now late into the night and technically day 8. I arrived at our cabin at about 4:00pm. I did try to sleep in the car, unaware if I could sleep later or not as per the day's activities. While the 4:30 to 6:00 time slot was open and I did try to take a quick nap, I don't think I actually fell asleep. This may be a good thing, as interrupted sleep might have made me more exausted. I can definitely say that the sleep experiment thus far has not had a severe negative impact on my physical exertion energy levels. I was invited to spin fire poi in front of a large crowd and while I was a bit fatigued afterwards, this is on par with how I normally would have felt after the same activity. Missing my nap did not seem to have a noticible affect on any level, but I am going to add the 90 minute cycle to my core sleep tonight, making my sleep period now 1:30am to 6:00am.

Biphasic: Day 7.1

I leave for a weekend outing soon, complete with bonfires, a wedding and maybe even fire poi. This will give me a good opportunity to push my activeness. I had a difficult time waking up this morning. I got up with the alarm, yes, but my mind still slumbered. Though I've been feeling much more energetic lately, today I feel rather lethargic. It is only 8:30am, however. I still have yet to start the day.

Biphasic: Day 6 (I think this is for me!)

Things are about the same as they've been the last few days. I'm starting to get a little tired when my scheduled times come, so that's a plus. Oddly, I sometimes still have trouble sleeping. I think too much about sleeping and then I don't get to sleep... My body much not be under considerable sleep deprivation if it can have sleep and not immediately take it.

It feels like I'm going through my days very fast. Each biphasic period feels like a whole day. I think this is where the real beauty of biphasic sleep lies. You don't force your body through a massive 16-18 hour day in one stretch. You trade that lump sum into two smaller days, feeling more rested. Not only this, but from a psychological standpoint, I can see myself getting into a habit of dividing my two "days" into a work day (6:00am - 4:30pm) and recreation/self day (6:00pm - 3:00am). This will actually be the case when classes start up, as all my classes and hours of work are between 6:00am and 4:30pm. It also is a bit relieving to think that I have a whole "day" for all recreation, which will better motivate me to perform well during my work "day", instead of trying to find a balance between productive work and enjoyment. Some things will go into both categories, but that will also help to fill in any time holes I may have. I am thinking very far into this only because I honestly think this will be how I spend the next semester at the very least. I just prefer this system, and it seems to fit my lifestyle and body.

Biphasic: Day 5

It's strange, but when I wake up from my evening nap, I often think it is 6 am. Not exactly a problem, but it confuses me when I look outside. Normally I don't think a nap would have this mind altering effect on me, but I sleep just as sound during my nap as I do during my core sleep, most likely due to getting a full cycle of rest. Every sleep period has been accompanied by a vivid dream. Even better, a few times I've woken up 5-15 minutes before my alarm. This might mean my cycle is shorter than the average 90 minutes, and while that would be nice, I'm not going to jump to any conclusions just yet. For now, I focus on making biphasic sleep mine. Then, I'll introduce more factors. It feels like that time is coming soon.

Though there is a light tiredness over me, I really feel great. I feel alert and fully capable of mental tasks. The most difficult time seems to be right after my core sleep, in the early morning. As long as I plow through that, the rest is actually starting to get rather easy.

Biphasic: Day 4.3

I find it odd that sleeping for 3 hours leaves me more tired than sleeping for only 90 minutes. I've always been a night person, often staying up till 5am in the summer months, so perhaps this biphasic schedule works especially well for my body. I'm only getting 90 minutes of sleep for when I would be most awake and getting a fuller 3 hours sleep for when I would be more lethargic. As odd as it sounds, when 3am rolls around, it's a little difficult to force myself to sleep. The difference between my alertness and exhaustion in this single day pretty much covers the gamut of sleepiness.

I'll be going out this weekend to a cabin and spending time with friends at a wedding. It will have been a week this Saturday since I began the experiment, and I think a prime time to try being more active in a social setting. There will be some physical exertion, so I'll also be able to see how my body deals with the use of energy beyond basal uses. I hope this is not the case, but I may have to skip a nap over the weekend and add it to the core sleep. We'll see what the weekend brings, though.

Biphasic: Day 4.2

While I may not have been tired earlier, I am now by far the most tired I've been in the last four days. I can't really process thoughts altogether too well... and understanding things takes me a minute of active concentration. Two hours until my next nap, and I could literally fall asleep sitting upright in this chair right now. Hopefully my nap will give me the energy to make it to tonight's core sleep. It's a good thing the Hot Topic thing isn't tonight. I don't think I'm in any shape to be driving anywhere, honestly. I just keep staring at the screen and the keyboard, so I think I'll stop typing now. The body does some strange things. I suppose we do strange things to our bodies, though.... like reconditioning sleep patterns to a biphasic system.

Biphasic: Day 4.1

If you don't think about the whole situation, if you just wake up and do something to forget that things are somehow different with your body, then it isn't difficult to adapt to a biphasic schedule. Of course, it is tiring, but keeping preoccupied seems to be the medicine for enduring sleep deprivation. No need for caffeine or other stimulants (I imagine those would really ruin the sleep part of the experience).

I'm less tired but more exhausted than yesterday. Not really much more to say at this point in the day. Though I am finding that it takes me longer to think things through. Hm.

Biphasic: Day 3.2

So this is a pleasant surprise. I woke from my nap naturally, just before my alarm went off. No throbbing chest from shooting up in alarm (really, the idea of an alarm clock is a pretty good idea, but who thought of that loathsome sound?). And I felt so great that I went upstairs and started cooking deer tenderloins... and I don't cook. I feel awake, alert and "here". There is a slight fatigue in my body (a little in the head, mostly in my shoulders), but honestly, it is not nearly as bad as what I anticipated.

Some thoughts:
While most say the biphasic sleep is easier to condition to than other polyphasic systems (like Uberman or Dymaxion), I'm not too sure. With the other systems you don't get to sleep the entire 5 stage cycle, so you never get into deep sleep. When I did it for a few days before, it wasn't that easy to get up because I never actually felt like I was sleeping. However, now that I'm getting a full cycle, it makes me want to stay in bed and get more of that deep sleep. Uberman was definitely "harder", but at least I wasn't constantly reminded of how wonderful deep sleep is... Just some thoughts I wanted to post about.

Biphasic: Day 3.1

I am once again incredibly tired, but I'll pull through. Woke up without the massive pulse spike that accompanied me yesterday, so that is a plus. And my reflexes are somehow sharp as ever... when I go to pour soy milk, I always shake it first. Well, I shook a bit hard, lost my grip and somewhat threw it to the ground. Instead of a loud noise and possible soy milk kitchen saturation, I found the soy milk swirling, but nestled safety in both my hands. Not sure how my hands could move so fast when my eyelids can barely stay open. That part is very difficult in the mornings, regardless of how awake the rest of my body seems to be. Very difficult. I'm considering some light exercise when I wake up to quickly rejuvenate me, but I worry that it might make me more tired.

On another note, dreams. I remember reading that polyphasic sleep allows for some unbelievably realistic dreams. I can declare the same is true for merely biphasic sleep. I remember feeling in my dream last night. I felt water, on the back of my left hand. Yes, there were unrealistic elements and the obvious signs that I was dreaming, but the vividness was almost uncanny. I find this very exciting (though if you were to look at me now, I look anything but excited...). Whether these dreams are a temporary byproduct of the sleep deprivation or something I can come to expect remains to be seen.

And one more note... I think I hear a bird snoring outside.

Advice for those who are interested in trying Biphasic sleep

I began this under the assumption that I have the average 90 minute cycle. However, it may not be the case. If you want to learn what your 5 stage sleep cycle is (usually between 70 to 110 minutes), try this: go to bed like normal, but remember at about what time you fell asleep. Once you naturally wake up (obviously, no alarm clock), calculate the time you were asleep and try to find a multiple of 70-110 that fits. Do this a few times to get a good idea of your cycle length. Then, you can customize your biphasic pattern in multiples of your cycle length. It seems that most people (myself included) follow the system of 2 cycles for nightly core sleep and 1 cycle for evening nap. Once I get adjusted to this schedule, I should be able to use the same method for calculating my cycle, but I don't think I should trust myself without a clock just yet...

Biphasic: Day 2.2

Well, it gets better. It took a few hours, but I was alert and functioning at levels just below normal. I played a few games online to test my reaction times, and I seemed to be fine. The strange thing I've noticed all day is that if for even a moment I think about sleep, lie down, or do anything that is too relaxing, I immediately phase into sleep mode. Even the few seconds that I may fall into this mode bring me a more intense head pressure when awaking. Merely closing my eyes makes my head weak. But strangely, I was able to sit down and read in silence with relative ease. It is a bit odd how that works out. Though I've had some troubles every so often with sleepy thoughts, it is less the staying awake and more the getting up that is truly difficult.

I'm still hungry all the time. I've even having cravings for food. I never go to a fast food or sit down restaurant by myself, yet today I just had to go to Burger King and get a burger. A veggie burger, but still strange considering how I normally function. Hydration seems to be an important factor in lethargy, so I am constantly drinking water. I have yet to succumb and drink green tea, so that is a plus. My strength is significantly diminished, but I suppose that is to be expected. I played guitar again. Along with my body, my voice is also tired. I expect these symptoms to get better within the coming week, and I don't think that things will get much worse.

Biphasic: Day 2.1

I'll edit and add more later, but for now I just want to say that I am unbelievably tired. My eyes keep closing and want to stay there, my head leans all over the place in search of any place to rest. And it's taken me at least 5 minutes to write these few sentences. My cereal is already soggy... and it isn't behaving like the energy boost I had hoped for. If worse comes to worse, I may end up drinking green tea or something to keep me more awake, but I want to try my best to not use anything to help me. Not just for the principal of the matter, but also because it may interfere with the overall experiment if I rely too heavily on something like caffeine. I know this may sound strange, but it's almost as if I'm not here. I don't really feel... awake. I suppose that's what the whole zombie thing is, but I didn't expect to feel this the second day. I've gone 60 hours without sleep before and didn't feel like this. But my cereal is finished and I need to find some activity to keep me up.

Biphasic: Day 1

Last night's sleep was very interrupted and felt altogether insufficient, but I awoke this morning alert and energized as if I had slept like normal (which can sometimes be over 8 hours in the summer). I found myself getting hungrier than I usually am, a side affect I expected, but not so soon. I don't think there is a correlation just yet between the two, though. I played guitar for a few hours, surprised by my stamina for playing at length. This Wednesday I am supposed to do a small set with Nick Fairley a local Hot Topic, and while I'm preparing for it physically with practice, I don't know how the whole "sleep zombie" thing is going to interfere. I would say that less sleep doesn't seem to hinder me, but...

After napping from 5:00pm to 6:30pm, I am exhausted. I woke up with my heart beating wildly and the desire to just fall back into bed... but that would have most likely postponed this post by many hours. After being awake for a little under half an hour, I am getting to be more alert, but I have that exhausted feeling in my forehead... the one that pulls your head down when your eyes happen to close by themselves. I don't know if that makes sense to anyone, but it's somewhat like a weight.

It's strange that with so little sleep (and interrupted sleep, too) I felt fine, but after a solid ninety minutes of evening napping, I just want to go back to bed. I expect my body to do some very strange things in the next week, though. I'm still open to suggestions for everything, so please leave comments. Primarily, I'm looking for puzzles to test my mental clarity, creativity and such. The practicality side is already manifesting, though: I missed a call for dinner plans and felt so good earlier that I missed my initial 4:30pm to 6:00pm nap schedule and had to shoot for 5:00pm to 6:30pm.

I've set aside many games to play for this week, in hopes that having something to keep me active will keep me awake. Some games, guitar, and reading.... though I think I'll hold off on reading. I am trying to stay awake, after all.

An Introduction

Every night, humans wind down from a day filled with stimuli and activity to rest for a period of about six to eight hours. In this sleep, we recharge and rejuvenate ourselves for what the next demands. But this sleep is not the only method of resting known to man. Many other animals follow a polyphasic sleep schedule (sleeping many times throughout the day) as opposed to monophasic (prolonged sleeping, once a day), and some humans follow this schedule as well. Few research studies have been done on the effects of polyphasic sleep, but individuals that experiment and adapt to a polyphasic sleep pattern often report very positive side effects. Monophonic sleep, however, is practiced by the vast majority, and thus most all social conventions are based around a 6-8 hour sleep period and 16-18 waking period.

Is this prolonged, once daily sleep the most beneficial to human beings, or is it merely what we have become accustomed to?

That is the question I would like to have answered. Many animals are polyphasic sleepers, and I wonder if monophasic sleep is actually a natural trait of the human species or instead a social adaptation we are tied to. Oddly enough, we are all polyphasic for a time, when we are first brought into the world. Babies are naturally polyphasic beings, sleeping multiple periods throughout the day. Eventually, most come to rest on a biphasic sleep pattern (two sleep periods, composed of a core period and nap period). Many cultures have sleep patterns that m culture might find strange. And seafarers have known the stress of needing to constantly be awake, many adapting a polyphasic lifestyle out of neccessity.

I initially planned to do a polyphasic schedule following the Dymaxion or Uberman method. However, subsequent research has lead me to believe that while a polyphasic schedule is indeed possible, it may not have the benefits that are widely spoken of in the polyphasic forums and blogs. Furthermore, research is very scarce, leaving possible health concerns unanswered. I have decided to instead do a biphasic pattern of sleep, sleeping in multiples of 90 minute increments. The reason that the schedule is formed around 90 minute increments is in accordance with research that indicates humans usually take about 90 minutes to pass through the five stages of sleep (Stage I, II, III, IV, and REM), and other research that has found the interruption of this sleep cycle can be as exhausting on the body as not sleeping whatsoever.

The first week is known to be the most difficult for one attempting a biphasic sleep schedule, as this conditioning stage is essentially sleep deprivation, though less than that of established polyphasic cycles. I will attempt to follow the schedule of sleeping from 3:00am - 6:00am for core sleep and from 4:30pm - 6:00pm for nap sleep. I will keep track of the actual sleeping times. Though set times are in place, there may be instances in which I oversleep, get to sleep later, or am unable to sleep for social interaction, and such instances will be noted. If a nap is missed completely, I will add that time to my core sleep for that night. However, sleeping over will not result in a "sleep penalty" and deduct time from my next scheduled sleep period. This information will be made available to the public upon the conclusion of the initial experiment.

Given that the experiment is a success and proves beneficial to my health and personal interests, the biphasic sleep schedule experiment will continue until it proves too cumbersome due to social constraints. My 2009 Fall semester has been chosen on the assumption that the experiment is successful, allowing the polyphasic sleep pattern to go one through the semester.

Below is a list of topics I will keep updated daily. If anyone has suggestions of other areas to keep updated, please post your ideas in the comment section (of either blogger or facebook notes). Also, if you have ideas to help certain areas (for example, a puzzle generator online that would create puzzles of similar difficulty), any suggestions are much appriciated. The topics below are ideas and may or not remain with the daily blog.

Mental Clarity
Physical Exhaustion
Sleepiness
Alertness
Creativity
Exercise
Practicality

It is currently 5:10 am, so I am unable to start the experiment tonight. I will start it tomorrow night at 3:00am.