two jobs

Sleep is the Cure

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For the past two weeks, I’ve been on a “normal” schedule.

And by normal, I mean I have not balanced two full-time jobs and graduate school simultaneously. I’ve worked just ONE full time job and attended my two graduate classes, which has allowed me to do something I hadn’t done in nearly a year:

SLEEP.

Not nap, but SLEEP. Full, deep, nightly sleep.

For two whole weeks, I’ve averaged no less than six hours of sleep per night. Last night, I got a solid eight hours. EIGHT HOURS!

compute

My mind doesn’t even know how to grasp the concept of “eight hours of sleep.”

Now that I’m well rested, I’ve found controlling my appetite to be substantially easier. Yes, I’m still working to get over the sugar cravings (seriously, I’d created a severe addiction the last nine months while working at the TV studio), but I can control my portions and stop after a few bites (versus the murdurous rampage I’d go in before, like a shark smelling blood in the water).

hate

Seriously, this was my life for the entirety of the last year balancing the two jobs. I had -100% will power.

I’ve also noticed my skin is nearly perfect again, no pimples or dark spots from lack of sleep and raging hormone fluctuations. Woohoo! I’m no longer the pubescent 30-year-old!

I’ve been hitting the gym 5-6x per week, not because I need to, but because I want to. I’m energetic and excited, so I feel even more motivated to exercise than I did before.

I have NOT been weighing myself (I’m trying to allow my body to get back into a healthy food/sleep cycle again before I tackle weight concerns), but I can feel my clothing getting back to its normal fit: loose where it should be, not as constrictive as it was just a few weeks ago.

Huh.

Funny.

Sleep truly was the cure to most of my problems.

Appetite control? In check now that I’m not a walking zombie.
Skin problems? All gone.
Lack of energy? Nope, not anymore. I’m high on life.
Cranky? Depressed? Amazingly, I feel like I’m happier now than I’ve been in years.

While I absolutely miss working at The Daily Buzz, I have to admit that I was sacrificing a lot –too much, honestly– and I finally feel like I’ve got my life back.

On that note… bon appetit, my friends!

~ Tori

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WHEW!

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OK. I’m four days in and I’m still breathing!

I wake up every day at 1:45am. I am at Job #1 (dream job) no later than 3am. I work – feverishly – from 3am until 7:30-8am.

Job #2 (love it, too, but #1 is definitely my passion) starts at 9am and goes until 6pm, sometimes as late as 9pm.

Two nights per week, I attend graduate school (from 6:45pm to 9:30pm).

Somewhere in the tiny bit of hours leftover I need to:

  • Sleep. Currently, I’m getting less than 3 hours/night. I’ve been having two diet Rockstars per day, plus the occasional cup of coffee to survive. I’m doing this proactively, though, as I’ve not yet experienced the feeling of exhaustion. I’m just so scared of it hitting me (and knocking me out) that I’m drinking the caffeinated beverages BEFORE the yawns start.
  • Spend time with family/friends. Not doing too well at this right now, but I did just start this new schedule…
  • Eat healthy. I am failing miserably at the moment. Not only am I eating more (I have breakfast around 2am, then again at 5am, then at 8am, etc), I’m also totally binging on sugar at night. I’ve always had a sweet tooth and a propensity to eat at night, but this has been BAD lately. I’m scared to get on the scale.
  • Work out. Surprisingly, I’m not doing too bad at this. I went for a 45 minute walk Monday night (not much, but I had class that night, so I was literally in motion for almost 20 straight hours). I also went Tuesday night (no class) and again today, as I didn’t have to go to Job #2 until 11am. It probably would have been a better idea to take a nap (I’m feeling tired now), but I opted for 75 minutes on the elliptical instead.

I have no idea what’s going on with my appetite. I’m ravenous. Seriously, I can’t stop. Even coworkers have been teasing me: someone called me the “bottomless pit” today after they saw me open my filing cabinet (aka, my pantry) to grab a third snack within the hour.

My only guess is that not sleeping has sent my metabolism into chaos: my body is seeking alternative energy sources, resulting in frenetic eating. Will power can’t even squeak out a word – I’m just inhaling food until I’m so stuffed, it hurts.

I’m off from Job #2 tomorrow, so my goal is to come home at 8am, take a much-needed nap, get in a TREMENDOUS workout (at least 2-3 hours at the gym, all muscle groups!), and spend a little time socializing.

It has been an INCREDIBLE week. I’m having so much fun. I’ve been too excited/happy to even notice the sleep deprivation; really, the only time I feel tired is when I sit down for too long. As long as I keep moving, I’m good.

Life is good, but I have a feeling I’m going to need to find a better balance if I’m going to keep this up for an extended period of time. But I’ll worry about that once I get a nap!

Bon appetit, my friends, and have a great evening!

~ Tori

 

P.S. Check out who I met today at Job #1:

Djimon Hounsou!

Djimon Hounsou! 🙂