I've read through some of the old posts on people having issues being able to sleep while following zone diet, and I know anecdotally this is a really common issue.

I've just sort of tightened up my diet and routines and started experiencing the dreaded 2:30 AM wakeup (completely alert and have trouble falling back asleep). Based on recent research, I wonder if this is such a bad thing. I.e., people have posited that a normal human sleep schedule was to get sleep in two large blocks of time (and the idea of sleeping completely through the night is a relatively recent, industrial-age invention). On the other hand, waking up alert in the middle of the night is also associated with an overtraining syndrome in athletics, and I've experienced this myself (e.g., going on a xc ski trip and overdoing it.)

Lastly, I've found sometimes that if I do want to get a large block of solid sleep, the easiest way sometimes is to either skip dinner entirely or just eat some light carbohydrates without any protein, and go to sleep shortly after (i.e., ditch "zone" ideas). I wake up after that feeling very refreshed.

So, does "the zone" have anything to say about this issue? I realize there are a lot of hormonal systems at play and other complexities, but I'm just looking for some guidance at best way to sleep.

Your numbers/balance is probable off. You should pay attention to your evening snack. Maybe shift a little more protien to the evening snack. I sleep like a baby and have since about a month after starting the Zone way of life. There are so many life factors that can play into our sleep; certainly what we put in our mouths is a big part of that. With proper balance you should experience blessful rest.

Hi Jonathon - a great homeopathic sleep aid is Hyland's Calms Forte (3 pills) + Hyland's Nerve Tonic (6 pills) taken about 30 to 60 minutes before going to bed.

Jonathon,

I generally do not have any difficulty sleeping at all.

But, I do have a friend who has difficulty, and she takes a small amount of concentrated cherry juice at bedtime, it is a natural source of melatonin. I don't know how many carbs a "small amount" would entail, and juices are generally not favorable carb, but if it was a small enough amount, it could be incorporated into your bedtime snack.

My wife does, too, sometimes - have difficulty sleeping.
So, occasionally she takes 3 mg melatonin.