There are times I wish I could instantly access a bibliography, which would take me back to the original reference of something I recall reading. In this case, it relates to sleep quality, the summary of which is that hospital doctors on call, who are getting just a few hours of sleep, have extremely poor sleep quality. Of course, the duration of the sleep is a big contributor, but the kicker is that they know that they could be woken at any time.

On the other hand, there is a benefit to knowing when you must wake up if sleep time is limited.

I suspect that I read this in the Gospel According to Peter (Outlive by Peter Attia), but I can’t find my copy in the house, and I also cannot recall lending it to anyone. Perhaps I need a lending list before I need a bibliography.

Sleep quality of this nature was top of mind on Tuesday and Wednesday, when my BP readings were depressingly high considering the trend that I thought was in progress. On both Monday and Tuesday nights I was sure I’d be called to assist with mares foaling. I didn’t sleep at all well.

I also didn’t sleep well on Wednesday night, but that could have been more about me getting over excited about having wine for the first night this week. I had a lovely evening, but in the process probably had just one glass too much, and again didn’t sleep well.

By this point I was ready to toss the entire project. It seemed that whether I had any wine or not, I had sub-optimal sleep and higher BP readings. I should mention that it’s highly unusual for me to have two bad nights in a row. Also, my sleep pattern is that I fall asleep within a couple of minutes of my head hitting the pillow. Once or twice a week, I may wake up at some point between 1:30 and 3:30, but I always fall asleep again. Having two nights in a row was not the norm.

Of course, the one element that had been missing from my week was the Tuesday bike ride, which I missed because it was so horrendously cold, wet and windy. Even if I’d had my best winter riding gear with me, it’s possible I wouldn’t have headed out.

Back in Cape Town on Wednesday, I jumped on my bike but was no more than 15 minutes out when a mechanical failure required me to turn around. You can imagine how desperate I was by Thursday, for normal service to resume.

Thursday’s ride was the perfect opportunity to tick off the August challenge of my social mountain biking group. This involved an all-out effort for 35 minutes, bookended by warm-up and cool-down.

I had a few glasses of red wine with dinner on Thursday night, slept extremely well, and produced the lowest BP reading of this project on Friday morning. Monday’s numbers were also close to threshold, which gives some cause for positivity.

Saturday’s numbers were also slightly elevated, reflecting less-than-perfect sleep on Friday night.

On a few days this week I took a second reading in the 45 minutes to an hour after waking, following quiet time on couch getting the day started. In every case, these BP numbers were lower, which I find interesting.

There’s one week to go. If I’d been asked on Tuesday or Wednesday, I would have said I’m taking the pills. Now I’m not so sure.

The Week in Numbers

Sunday (post social)
BP: 151/89 (146/84)
Bike (rain day): One hour, mostly zone 2, with seven mins in zone 4

Monday
BP: 137/80

Tuesday
BP: 146/87
Bike: nil

Wednesday
BP: 150/93
Bike: 29 mins

Thursday
BP: 152/92
Bike: One hour on trail, of which 34 mins in zone 4

Friday
BP: 139/82 (131/79)

Saturday 
BP: 146/89 (140/85)
Bike: 90 minutes on trail, range of zones, with 18 mins in zone 4.