Uberman\'s Sleep Schedule
 

http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=892542
http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2002/4/15/103358/720

Anybody ever try this? I seem to remember someone in OOT saying they were going to test it out.

I'm think I may make a go of it myself after my exams. The prospect of having 22 hours in a day is very appealing for me. There's so many things I want to do and there's no way I'll be able to do them all when I go to uni in September without being anti-social and locking myself in a room all day.

I'm not sure if I'd want to do it long term though, especially since I have no idea how it might affect my health. It'd work out as an extra week of time awake every month though...

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It's always sounded appealing, but:

Not sure when I could set away the time to practice for it.

I don't think I have the discipline to do it. 20 minutes a pop, 6 times a day right?

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Yep, every 4 hours. I'd never be able to do it at school, but when I go to university my day won't be as rigid.

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You'd better not tell lolo about this.

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I read the article, and started thinking about trying his schedule. I then realised this would never work with my current drinking habit. Waking up hung over is bad enough, being awake and gradualy getting hung over would be even worse.

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I did this for about 5 months last year. Most of the time I felt great. Any other questions?

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How would this work with a fulltime job?

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this cannot possibly be good for you.

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How would this work with a fulltime job?

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I have no idea. I was a college student then. It didn't interfere with my drinking, though. When I wanted to drink, I would wake up from a nap, have some whiskey, and then sober up a bit before the next naptime, so I could sleep restfully.

Drinking in college was kind of like a full-time job, so I feel I have answered your question.

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How come you stopped? Did your daily schedule require it?

I'd be afraid of doing it for longer than 6-8 months, purely because I don't know what would happen after that in regards to health.

What about exercising - did you do any strenuous exercise and did your body function normally?

Oh yeah, and how long did it take for you to adjust?

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I stopped because the semester ended and I didn't need 22 waking hours per day anymore.

I did lots of rock climbing and most of the time it was fine. I was occasionally a bit weak but only when I had not slept well during the previous nap for some reason.

I adjusted in a little under a week. The first 5 days are HELL, though. After that, smooth sailing.

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The biggest problem is that you have to do this when you actually, you know, have something to do. 22 hours of being awake sounds really nice until you realize you're bored, and you're wondering why you're trying to do this (for the first week or two).

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Does caffeine affect this at all?

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http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b1...ion-cap465.jpg

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I see an old post by Popinjay who said he might try it out, but I couldn't find a followup.

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This was discussed in The Game, and I think they failed at it. Pretty random and hilarious.

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It'll be rather freaky not having different days divided up by 8 hours of sleep. It'll just be one big continium of being awake with the occasional break to recharge.

Going out at night must be kinda hard too seeing as every 3.5 hours you need to take a nap. How flexible was the schedule Anders? I hear from some people that as soon as nap time came they HAD to sleep, whereas others say they could push to maybe 6 hours between cycles.

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That's exactly what I was wondering. Are you unable to leave the house at like 6pm and go to a movie because you have to nap at 8? Do you get your mate to cover you while you nap for 20 minutes in Starbucks?

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How about a hybrid of this system??? 30 minute naps and then between one of the 4 hour periods you just sleep straight through???

This would mean you are sleeping about 6 hours

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I wish somebody would do some research on the long term effects. If it turned out completely safe and word got out, I wonder how many people would switch.

Anyway, here's a blog detailing someone's transition to the USS: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/200...yphasic-sleep/

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[ QUOTE ]
I wish somebody would do some research on the long term effects. If it turned out completely safe and word got out, I wonder how many people would switch.

Anyway, here's a blog detailing someone's transition to the USS: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/200...yphasic-sleep/

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So did you ever try this?

I'm interested in this too now, I had looked at it before but I think when I get some time I'm going to research this a lot and consider trying it.

In wikipedia it says Nasa and the military are very interested in this, surely they have done some research on this? Wonder if any is public, if it has been done.

If I try this I will definitly log it and let anyone know how it goes who cares to.

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I see an old post by Popinjay who said he might try it out, but I couldn't find a followup.

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I tried it for 2 days and realized I'd never be able to get through. It's really really f'ing hard and back then I really didn't have any useful things to do with my time; thus when boredom + sleepiness set in... I couldn't do it.

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I was on this schedule for about 1 month last year. The first week was rough but then it got easier. I gave up eventually because I messed it up by trying to skip naps whenever i didn't feel tired. The thing that i missed most on it was the feeling you get right before you go to sleep for a really long time. It's not that i was tired but I just missed that feeling of having nothing to worry about in my forseeable future.

On the other hand, those 25 min naps def felt much longer. I would constantly wake up fearing that I had overslept only to find I still had like 3 min left. Also having 4 hour chunks of time helps you manage time better. I think i have also gotten better at falling asleep quickly since this experiment as well.

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I do this quite regulaly but go in and out of periods of it- ill occasionaly go a week on this system then go back to normal sleeping- Im a student so ym day isnt rigid but I also work freelance doing photoshop stuffs. Sometimes if i havnt got much on in college I will take on a lot of work and do the 20 minutes system. The first few times I did it I thouhgt it sucked because I found it difficult to adjust but after about the third go I can rotate between the 20 min system and my normal 5 hours a night in one go with ease.
Some things to note though- caffine is a bad idea, you dont want to be doing anything either that would effect your 20 mins, also Iv found if i drink i find it difficult to get up after 20 mins throwing the whole schedule out the window
After the first day (which is always a bit nasty but nothing like it used to be) I can do pretty much any activity I would be able to do anyway- I usualy try to keep difficult physical stuff within the first 3 hours because i find it difficult to sleep straight after exersize.
For people who asked about boredom I was usualy find because I could split my day up very well, in a standerd day in the summer (which was when I went just under 4 weeks on the 20 min system) i would have time to do things that I would never normaly do- one of my favourite things was going out for a run at 3am, everything is very quiet where I live with literaly nobody about at that time
Another thing to note is I didnt eat as much at meal times becuase i would snack during the night- apparantly eating more smaller meals is healthier than eating 3 big ones.

Any questions Id be happy to answer

And if your wondering why I went off it, it was harming my social life- I found going out drinking impossible because if i went off the schedule of sleeping every 4 hours I would be very tired and it would throw me off for the next few days.

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How do you get off of the schedule? And how long does it take to integrate back into the usual 8 hours/day?

Once you're off the schedule, is it easier to get back onto it a second time?

In those rough first few days, what do you to pass the time without falling asleep?

What happens if your 20 minutes of sleep is interrupted?

Does the nap have to be in a fairly quiet environment? I.e. is it not advisable to do it in a noisy place.

Suppose you spend some time with kids that keep you up and about for 12-16 hours a day, but you still manage to take your naps. How will the constant high energy expenditure affect you?

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Did you find you were less sharp in any way?

Memory Reduced?

Creativity?

Learning speed?

I absolutley don't understand anyone who says they would be bored. I never think to myself "Better go to sleep, nothing else to do today, this is boring." I am thinking of starting this as I always want more time to socialize, focus on poker, do school or other work, play video games, etc. etc.

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I absolutley don't understand anyone who says they would be bored. I never think to myself "Better go to sleep, nothing else to do today, this is boring." I am thinking of starting this as I always want more time to socialize, focus on poker, do school or other work, play video games, etc. etc.

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Amen, brother. I just have to decide whether I'll try this in December after exams, or in May after school.

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I'm going to research this a lot then come up with a choice, starting it or not, and then a schedule and plan of action if I decide to.

I think I will try to find the small amount of scientific literature there is on this, by a dude name Claudio Stampi, and read what he has to say, and all the online pages and blogs up after I finish my exams on the 1st.

So far my chief concern is that there is no long term research into this health-wise. However, if you are getting an extra week per month, then from 20-30, let's say, you're getting another 2.5 years of life there alone. And that's of good years, not oops I craped my pants, feeble years.

So the risk of it taking years off your life, even if it exists, is diffused with that arguably.

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Cosmos Kramer did the same thing, last I remember, he ended up in a tied up bag dumped in the ocean.

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Try and answer some of these questions.

How do you get off of the schedule? And how long does it take to integrate back into the usual 8 hours/day?
I dont sleep 8 hours a day anyway, since I was about 13 Iv slept about 5 hours a night and been fine; getting back onto this schedule is pretty easy and Im fine the next morning- What I will do is intend to go to bed about 12 and take a few hours more than I usualy would sleep in a normal night- If i miss the last 2 20 min 'power naps' I can usualy drop off at 12 very easily- most of the time though I automaticly wake after 20 mins and have to go back to sleep again, this isnt a problem for me. If i sleep till around 8 o clock the next morning I feel pretty much normal and can get back into my normal sleep pattern right away.

Once you're off the schedule, is it easier to get back onto it a second time?
Yes, much much easier, the first time tried the schedule the first 3 days were awful and I only began to feel good after day 5 or 6. The second time I tried it I was fine by day 4- now (After around 9-10 times) after the first day I am perfectly fine and the first day isnt really that bad.

In those rough first few days, what do you to pass the time without falling asleep?
I mentioned in my previous post that I do photoshop stuffs and enjoy late night runs- Im always busy or doing somthing so Im never sitting around.

What happens if your 20 minutes of sleep is interrupted?
It sucks a lot, this is the worse thing that can happen- if for some reason you cant get to sleep right away (this is usualy not a problem at all) for some reason (eg drinking caffene or neighbors are playing loud music etc.) or you are interupted during the sleep it will interupt your whole schedule and send you into a downward spiral of tiredness- you would be amazed how much difference the jump between 15-20 minutes makes. What I usualy do if my sleep is interupted during the 20 mins is wait an hour or 2 then take the 20 mins again, this is usualy fine.

Does the nap have to be in a fairly quiet environment? I.e. is it not advisable to do it in a noisy place.

I can now sleep anywhere as long as its not light or noisy- both those things will interupt my sleep giving me 20 minutes of [censored] sleep- you need good sleep if your doing this. When I started I could only sleep in my bed, now i can sleep on chairs, tables, floors- Im not fussy.

Suppose you spend some time with kids that keep you up and about for 12-16 hours a day, but you still manage to take your naps. How will the constant high energy expenditure affect you?
I have found it more difficult to sleep if I am using high amounts of energy within around 30 minutes before I am supposed to sleep, other than that I dont find my energy level being lower than normal after the sleep. I often went to the gym, went for runs or lifted weights and found no reduction in my performance. Possibly if you were with children all day (which is not just physical but mental strain) Im not sure how I would cope- I dont really have somthing thats similar to compare this to.

Memory Reduced?
Not that I am aware of- possibly the best thing to mention here is my win rate in poker is pretty consistant with my 'normal' winrate- this was actualy part of my test, I fully expected it to be lower, but it was actualy higher over a pretty decent sample size (although I would put this down to varience as I would say I was playing better or tilting less)

Creativity?
Id say this stayed pretty even, its hard to tell tho

Learning speed?
I read TOP for the second time and NLHTAP I feel I took a lot out of both of these books during my wierd sleep schedule.

Hope this helps
Anymore questions post em along, I havnt proof read this becuase I gota go out now so i hope it makes sence!

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no worries about proof reading, thanks so much for taking the time to write, and thanks in advance in the event that you answer more q's.

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I'm really intrigued by this, and will probably start in the next couple days. I'm a college student, so I can pretty much do as I please. Possible trip report to follow.

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http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b1...ion-cap465.jpg

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http://img431.imageshack.us/img431/5462/kramermn9.jpg

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do you have a significant other and, if so, did it affect your relationship to be on this schedule?

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I've always wanted to do this and have a few questions:

1/ How do you deal with trying to keep a social life? Seems like it would be difficult to ever do something like go to a move or sporting event, or go out to a bar, etc.

2. How do you start? Do you sleep through a night then start taking naps the next day, or try to stay up through a night?

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Cincy, nice avatar, Television is great.

What is that picture people from ABC?

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do you have a significant other and, if so, did it affect your relationship to be on this schedule?
Yes I do, but I dont live with her so that makes things a lot easier. Im pretty prone to doing crazy/unusual things so I dont think it came as much of a surprise to her that I had decided to sleep 2 hours a day, because it wasnt a permenant thing we worked around it pretty well. We spend quite a bit of time together over the summer when I was in the routine (she was at mine pretty much permenantly one week of my 'big 3 weeker') and it wasnt too bad- some problems we had though:
Bed time, obviously for her- not for me. this is a bit wierd for both of us- it was pretty standerd young relationship routine, most nights we would eat, put a DVD on or chill out listning to music, we would then go to bed, usual pre sleep routine (work that one out for yourself) and she goes to sleep. I stay awake then go off and do somthing.
This caused a bit of 'unspoken' friction for the both of us (she never really mentioned it but it was pretty clear) Im not sure if it was the same for her as it was for me but I was a bit uneasy about the fact mt girlfriend was sleeping in my bed alone, Im a bit of a romantic and like sleeping in the same bed as my girlfriend- I duno if other people are like this but it was one of the more difficult things for me.
After a few days of working it out getting the 20 mins every 4 hours was pretty easy. It helped becuase by the time i was spending a decent amount of time with my girlfriend Id gotten pretty good at sleeping anywhere and because I didnt really need an alarm clock or anything I could just go off into another room and return 20 mins later, I actualy believe taking this small amount of time out from each other benefited the relationship (and she actually agreed) so that wasnt a problem


1/ How do you deal with trying to keep a social life? Seems like it would be difficult to ever do something like go to a move or sporting event, or go out to a bar, etc.
This is why I stopped doing it (well stopped long sessions of it), there were other reasons but this was by far the main one. going to a movie or sport event wasnt too bad, the 20 min sessions are at least a little bit flexible, it doesnt have to be dead on 4 hours but drinking and going to bars was near impossible. It is the drink that does it you I have never been able to wake up after 20 mins if I have been drinking (2 pints im just about OK, anything more its pointless trying) and Im a pretty social person- thsi is why I will only go into the pattern again if I know there isnt anything fun going on that I will miss if I need to sleep every 4 hours.

2. How do you start? Do you sleep through a night then start taking naps the next day, or try to stay up through a night?
Ill go through the day patter for starting becuase i think its the best way to explain it
Saterday morning, wake up normaly after my normal 5-6 hours sleep.
Saterday day, do normal stuff- no power naps
Saterday Midnight- take first 20 min nap -at thsi point Im feeling fine and can usualy get up very easily as long as I had a decent night sleep the day before
(its also worth nothing that I have found the 12 o clock sleep schedule works well for me because i can eat lunch an hour or so after getting up from noon, eat my main evening meal at round 6 which is in between 2 sleep schedules and have a nighttime snack about 2- usualy a nutrigrain bar- 1 o clock is a good starting time aswel)
Sunday morning ~2AM if the weather is OK go for a run, i find this helps me feel a lot better. Byt his point im usualy a bit hungry and will have a snack
Sunday morning 4 AM - take another nap, this is usualy OK and can get up eaily
Sunday morning ~ 7Am watch the sun rise (OK i dont actualy do this, I did it once or twice for novelty when i first started though)
Sunday morning 8AM go for another nap- this is probably the worst one, its usualy just getting light and its the hardest to get up from.
~9AM grab a light breakfast
~12 noon nap- this isnt as bad as 8 but still sucks to get up from
4PM nap- this is getting better, can usualy get up without an alarm now but I set it anyway
~6PM grab some food
8PM nap- not so bad, getting back into it
12midnight nap- this is usualy fine, and from here its usualy not too bad, once I get to the Monday day I can go in and out of the naps on autopilot.

Going to sleep !WTF! now be back to answer any more qestions tomorow UK afternoon

Oh i nearly forgot quick PS
The days set in my above schedule are always the days that I start on; so my [censored] day is Sunday and am OK by monday, however if anyone is trying this for the first time i suggest you should expect at least 3, more likely 5 days of pain and difficulty getting up (however after day 2 or 3 once your actualy awake you should be fine) Lso worth nothing this is all from my experience, I know of noone else to have done this so it may have completly different effects for different people.

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Thanks a lot for all your replies.

I only go to about half my classes, giving me (usually) a 5 day weekend. So I think I'll try it this coming Wednesday/Thursday. That way, if it fails, I can can get back on track before the next week of school, losing at most one weekend.

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People say that you recover from working out during sleep. I wonder if this will mess up muscle building and working out.

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Question: Will I need like 4 alarm clocks to make sure I wake up (at first)? Is there a chance I sleep right through just one alarm clock ringing in that tough period?

Also, do you have any suggestions for how to get out of bed on those first few days? I imagine the want to stay in bed and sleep some more will be very strong.