Originally Posted by CdCf
I've also experienced poor sleep and unusual fatigue during the late afternoons (fell asleep for 1-2 hours at 5 pm both yesterday and the day before). No cold, no allergies, no stress or any other such problems that could produce similar symptoms.
Does this sound like overtraining?
It sounds more like undersleeping.
This would account totally for the afternoon fatigue--the classic symptom of poor sleep.
The RHR can also be an indirect result of sleep disturbance. During the night, HR varies dramatically depending on the stage of sleep you're in. If you wake up during a period of Higher sleep HR, your RHR will reflect this. If you're a well-trained sleeper, you'll wake up naturally, and your HR will be lower. To be suddenly jerked out of sleep by an alarm clock could certainly raise your HR.
The only way I know of to control for this would be to lie quietly in bed for several minutes
before you check your RHR, and some books recommend this.