Can getting more exercise help your insomnia? Jesse walked 10,000 steps a day to find out.

walking ten thousand steps
The pandemic has made me incredibly lazy. That’s partly because I’ve experienced an increase in fatigue-like symptoms since getting vaccinated. Having zero energy on top of symptoms of depression – like apathy and no motivation – is not a great combo. Especially when it comes to exercise. Whilst I do still walk the dog twice a day, these walks have also been getting shorter and shorter.  18 months ago I was cycling to work, working out, and walking the dog every day. That was an average of 14,000 steps a day. Now I’m down to about 5,000 steps a day.

So what does this have to do with insomnia?

I’ve had insomnia for as long as I can remember. As a child, I would lay awake for hours staring at the ceiling and this has never changed.  There have been short periods where it might get a bit better or worse. But whether I like it or not; I’m a full-blown insomniac.  To add insult to injury, the symptoms have become even worse during the pandemic.  I’ve more frequently found myself awake at 4 am for no reason at all. Fretting about having to get up in a few hours and attempt to be a productive human being. I’ve tried melatonin, sleep hygiene, no-screens, sleep apps. All the things. So what else is left to try? Last week I listened to an interview with the founder of a sleep app who admitted that the only thing that has ever helped him sleep has been physical exhaustion. This got me thinking that perhaps there was a link between the decline in my steps and the increase in the symptoms of insomnia. There was only one thing to do about it: see if walking more helped me to sleep a little better.
Effect of ten thousand steps on my mood and emotions
The effect of ten thousand steps on my mood and emotions

This sounds an awful lot like that walking 10,000 steps a day thing

Yeah, kind of. At this point, I’m sure that most people are aware of the fairly ubiquitous suggestion that walking 10,000 steps a day is good for your health.  10,000 steps has some shady roots. It began life as an advertising campaign for pedometers before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. However, it seems to have stuck around for good reason. While 10,000 steps is arbitrary in itself, it handily ensures that you meet the recommended weekly exercise requirements outlined by the CDC.  Interestingly, there are no large scale studies to show that 10,000 steps is more effective than 5,000 steps at keeping you healthy or alive. BUT there is evidence that shows that:
    1. The more exercise you do the better (within reason)
    2. That walking more than 5000 steps a day can factor into helping you to live longer
Everyone is different though. 10,000 steps might not be for you and it’s important to set your own goals. My goals are to sleep a little better and to try to do that by walking at least as much as I used to before the pandemic. 
The effect of ten thousand steps on my energy levels
The effect of ten thousand steps on my energy levels

Walking 10,000 steps a day for a week

10,000 steps is roughly 5 miles, so I planned a route around the cliff tops and bays near my home. The benefit of this walk was that it was through fields, along beaches, and up the side of rocky coastal paths. Which I hoped would make me (and the dog) a bit more exhausted. I made sure that I’d finish the walk at least 4 hours before going to bed so that it wouldn’t disrupt my sleep and made sure to stay as hydrated as possible along the way.

Day one: I walked 15,454 steps. About seven miles across the course of the day. This included a 4,500 step dog walk in the morning. It was a warm sunny Saturday and this made wanting to walk in the evening easy. 

Day two: I walked 12,522 steps. About 5.5 miles. Walking along the cliffs was a nice way to end the weekend and to begin thinking about the week ahead.

Day three: 14,137 steps. About 6 miles. I walked for an hour in the morning so took a shorter route in the afternoon. I also began bringing someone with me on the walk. This made the time pass a little faster. 

Day four: 13,806 steps. Between 5.5 and 6 miles. Walking on weekday evenings was a nice way to separate work life and real life. Colder, greyer days made it a bit more difficult to want to go but I still enjoyed the walk.

Day five. 11,158 steps. About 5 miles. I was starting to get lazier in the mornings because I knew I’d be walking in the evening.

Day six. 13,516 steps. Approx. 5.5 miles. I added a couple of short walks during the day because of the nice weather. 

Day seven. 10,701 steps. Approx. 5 miles. I was a bit lazy because it was the “last day” and I also had to run some errands in the evening. 

Overall, I felt the experience was helping with my anxiety more than my insomnia but what did the data in bearable tell me?

The impact of 10,000 steps a day on my health

Average Mood Score improved by 11% Average Symptom Score improved by 39% Average Energy Levels improved by 27% Average Sleep Quality improved by 3% Average Sleep Quantity improved by 1%

Some of my most improved symptoms were

Avoiding People improved by 83% Irritability improved by 79% Avoiding my interests improved by 59% Fear of criticism improved by 59% Lack of motivation improved by 48% Tiredness improved by 47%

The symptoms that became worse were

Avoiding my appearance increased by 119% Finding no enjoyment in things increased by 37% Comparing my looks to others increased by 25% Binge eating increased by 25% Worrying about my appearance increased by 14%
The negative effect of 10,000 steps on my symptoms
The negative effect of 10,000 steps on my symptoms

My thoughts on the experience of walking over 10,000 steps a day for a week

I set out on this journey with the aim of improving my sleep and that didn’t really happen. What’s not totally clear in this data is that whilst I slept roughly the same amount as normal, I was also sleeping a lot earlier than usual.  My bedtime changed from about 1 am to 10:30 pm, this meant I was able to wake up earlier in the mornings and generally start the day in a more relaxed way.  My mood and energy did improve and I found that I felt more balanced, calm, focused, and less tired during the day. I even began some new online drawing classes that I’d been putting off. The biggest problem I had with this new routine was that it didn’t initially pair well with intermittent fasting (something I’ve been doing for about 3 years). After my 90 minute walks, I’d get home and feel hungry but wasn’t meant to be eating.  This triggered episodes of binge eating during the days to try to avoid feeling hungry later on. In turn, binge eating (a symptom of my disordered eating) caused symptoms of my BDD to flare up. Things like avoiding my appearance, being self-critical, comparing my looks to others, being overly concerned about my weight, etc. Despite this, I’ve continued to walk over 10,000 steps a day and now – about 2.5 weeks after my first walk – my binge eating and BDD are more under control.  Overall, I’ve found that walking over 10,000 steps a day has been pretty great for my overall health, mood, and well being. Even if it hasn’t really done much to improve my sleep.
The effect of walking 10,000 steps on my sleep quality
The effect of walking 10,000 steps on my sleep quality

Would I recommend walking over 10,000 steps a day?

Yes… BUT, as mentioned earlier, I don’t think it’s the number of steps that count, or even the steps themselves.  What strikes me as being important here is:
    1. Spending more time outdoors
    2. Recognising when you’re getting lazy
    3. Setting achievable goals for yourself
    4. Getting some form of exercise every day
This really wasn’t so much about walking 10,000 steps as it was about recognising that the pandemic had caused me to spend all of my time in a single room in front of a laptop screen. Something I’d let happen over the course of the last year without really acknowledging it. I believe that a lot of the benefits of this experience also came from setting myself a challenge and achieving it and from spending more time in nature and getting more Vitamin D.  Being the height of summer, I think it’s a good time to reflect on the last year and look at the ways it might have impacted your routines and health. Then, to set small goals for yourself to tackle one at a time.  It’s easy to want to set bigger targets, but like the research says, even 5,000 steps a day is good for your health. So maybe focus on starting small. That could be adding a few thousand steps a day to your routine, getting outside more often, giving yourself a break from work at the end of each day. … Or just patting yourself on the back for not letting the pandemic eat away at your previously healthy lifestyle like I did.  Good luck.

Running your own experiments with Bearable?

If you enjoyed this experiment or have run any of your own we’d love to hear about it. You can reach out to us on Instagram at @BearableApp or post your own experiments using bearable using #BearableApp (on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter). — Note: The advice given in this article is not intended as a substitute for medical advice. Please consult a medical professional before undertaking activities intended to impact your health and/or existing medical conditions. Photo credit: Freepik

Can Writing A Journal Improve Your Health? Jesse Kept A Diary For A Week To Find Out.

Expressive Writing Self Care Diary and Bullet Journal
Journaling might seem like an odd – or perhaps even obvious – topic to write about considering that using Bearable is a form of journaling already.  You’re probably thinking “Of course they’re going to say journaling is great” but I wanted to take a look at the impact of journaling on my mood, sleep, and symptoms. Just like I have with other forms of self-care. To be clear, I’m not talking about simply tracking the impact of using Bearable on my health but the impact of spending 20 minutes a day writing expressively in a journal.   More than anything, I want to track the impact that consciously working through negative thoughts can have on my health. With the aim of answering the question: Is there an advantage to writing a journal as well as keeping track of my symptoms, factors, sleep, etc.? With good reason too.  Journaling has become a trend in the productivity, self-care, and self-improvement spaces. With more and more notebooks and apps pushing their users to set goals, read motivational quotes, and bullet their tasks for the day/week/month/year.  So it’s important to ask: Does journaling really work?

How is journaling supposed to impact your health?

Journaling is a form of expressive writing or writing therapy that enables “the writer to gain mental and emotional clarity, validate experiences and come to a deeper understanding of him/herself” through self-reflection. Essentially, it’s a way of expressing your thoughts and feelings without having to talk about them. As a result, it’s possible to obtain some of the benefits that people might often associate with something like therapy.  In fact, studies have found that journaling has helped to improve mental health, heal wounds faster, and lead to fewer visits to the doctor. However, it’s important to point out that some studies have shown that journaling doesn’t help everyone.  So who can it help?
    • People that struggle to talk about their feelings
    • Introverted people
    • People who struggle to concentrate or organise their thoughts
    • People with little social support
    • People with high levels of social constraints
    • People who have issues with their memory
Essentially, if you already reflect openly with a strong support network of friends and family. Then you’re less likely to reap the benefits of journaling. That shouldn’t stop you from trying though. As someone that’s introverted and struggles with concentration. I’m interested to see how journaling can support my day-to-day decision making, mood, and anxiety.
The overall effect of journaling on my mood
The effect of journaling on my mood.

Isn’t journaling just writing a diary?

It can be. But studies suggest that expressive writing can be more impactful than simply keeping a diary. Often, journaling is most useful when it’s practised daily and it’s recommended that you commit to 20 minutes every day for four days. At least during times when you need to work through specific challenges in your life. As a quick overview of how to practice an effective form of expressive writing or journaling:
    1. Find a quiet place
    2. Write continuously for 20 minutes
    3. Write about something that’s personal and important to you
    4. Don’t worry about spelling or grammar
    5. If something feels too difficult to write about, don’t write about it
Be aware that It’s common to feel a lower mood or even sad after writing but this is meant to go away after an hour or two.  Some people also recommend not restricting yourself to writing but to feel free to draw, diagram, and anything else that helps you to organise your thoughts.  Perhaps if you’re not trying to tackle a difficult issue, creating a bullet journal is a helpful way to maintain the practice and also organize your thoughts and tasks for the day.
The overall effect of journaling on my health
The overall effect of journaling on my symptoms.

How was my first week of writing a journal?

Instead of a pen and notepad, I decided to write my journal using the notes section in Bearable. This way I’d be able to see the impact of specific notes on my symptoms, mood, sleep, and energy.

Day One: I sat down with my pad and pen and didn’t really know what to write about. After about 5 minutes I began by writing a normal diary entry; things I did that day. It quickly became easy to allocate the thoughts that I needed to journal about.

Day Two: I was incredibly grumpy and stressed but I was struggling to figure out why. Journaling came a bit more easily when I had a specific problem that I wanted to think about and understand. 

Day Three: The symptoms of my depression had been getting worse and I was feeling a bit hopeless and lacked any energy or motivation. Writing the journal became an act of gratitude. I tried to write about all the things that I appreciated and felt good about. 

Day Four: I wrote about an ongoing issue in my personal life. It felt good to externalise some of my thoughts but it also left me feeling a bit sad.

Day Five: I was incredibly grumpy again and was struggling to understand why. Journaling helped me to gain some perspective and see a bigger picture. Whilst it didn’t resolve the issue, it at least helped me to understand my mood.

Day Six: I was in a very good mood. With no big problems to resolve today, I wrote about why I was happy as a reminder to myself, something to reflect on. I also spent some time planning some goals and tasks to work towards.

Day Seven: I was in another good mood and struggled to have anything to write about. I ended up exploring the ideas behind why I was happy, what was making me happy, why it was making me happy, and how I could try to ensure that I had more of these experiences in my life. 

What did the data in Bearable tell me about the impact of journaling on my health?

Average Mood Score improved by 10% Average Symptom Score improved by 25% Average Energy Score improved by 8% Average Sleep Quality worsened by 4% Average Sleep Quantity worsened by 2%

How were symptoms of Anxiety, Depression, Insomnia, and BDD impacted by journaling?

Binge eating improved by 86% Being self-critical improved by 69% Avoiding people improved by 69% Tiredness improved by 67% Difficulty sleeping improved by 39% Lack of interest improved by 21% Avoiding my appearance worsened by 40% Worrying about my body shape worsened by 16% Worrying about my weight worsened by 8% The negative effect of journaling on my symptoms

What impact did journaling have on my health?

This experiment coincided with a period when symptoms of my body dysmorphia and disordered eating were worse than they had been for some time. So it’s of interest to me to see how journaling impacted these symptoms as well as others. Overall, I think journaling helped me to:
    • Better understand problems
    • More quickly understand root causes of problems
    • Identify solutions to problems
    • Feel better about problems
    • Find ways to communicate my problems with others
    • Organise my thoughts, plans, and intentions
As a result of these benefits, I tended to feel less jaded, less exhausted, and more confident around other people. However, there were also some negatives that came from this experience:
    • I dwelled on, or over-thought some problems
    • Problems without solutions caused me frustration
    • I often felt down or sad after writing and this didn’t always go away
    • I dug up some problems that were better left buried
    • I tended to compare myself to others more often
Where I feel journaling really helped me was with smaller, everyday problems. Problems that could be resolved. Things that I was directly in control of. Anything bigger than that left me feeling worse.  On the flip-side of that, journaling when I had no problems helped me to feel grateful, positive, and also led to more constructive planning and goal setting. It has been especially helpful to look back on the notes I took on positive days and to remind myself of that mindset.  I can’t say that journaling had a huge impact on my health or symptoms but it’s 100% a useful tool for self-reflection that can help to give you some control over your thoughts and emotions. Where it helped me the most was on days when I didn’t know why I was in a low mood and needed to reflect. AND on days when I felt great and needed to channel that energy into something constructive by creating a plan. Overall, it did help to improve my mood and to reduce some of the symptoms of my anxiety. The positive effect of journaling on my symptoms

One Reason You Should Try Journaling.

Journaling was quite a mixed experience for me but you might be one of the people that it works wonders for. I certainly feel it was more of a positive than a negative experience and was able to see the benefits after just a day or two of writing. On the days when journaling helped me, it felt like I gained some much-needed clarity and focus. Writing expressively forced me to dig a bit deeper into the reasons behind my thoughts and actions. So If you’re someone that’s interested in getting to know themselves better, then I wholeheartedly recommend that you try journaling.  This is especially true if you’re someone that knows they struggle to share their thoughts or feelings with other people. Or if you’re someone that wants to experiment with new ways of organising, planning, and solving problems in their day-to-day life. Journaling is recommended as a complementary therapy alongside forms of talking therapy and I can see how it might help someone to reflect on and organise their thoughts around counselling sessions. Or just to find alternative ways to communicate with a therapist. I’ll continue to journal on days when I can’t figure out why I’m in a terrible mood and maybe this is a good place for you to start too. If you give it a try, good luck.

Running your own experiments with Bearable?

If you enjoyed this experiment or have run any of your own we’d love to hear about it. You can reach out to us on Instagram at @BearableApp or post your own experiments using bearable using #BearableApp (on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter). — Note: The advice given in this article is not intended as a substitute for medical advice. Please consult a medical professional before undertaking activities intended to impact your health and/or existing medical conditions. Photo credit: Freepik