Does being in shape help you stay awake when on call?

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I eat fast food(BK, McDonalds, Wendys, Chick-fil-a) every other day, don't even know what the gym near our hospital looks like(just found out it exists last month!) and I never have a problem staying awake and having energy in the wee hours of the night

Take that as you will :O
 
I think being in shape in general will help your energy level, but like KnuxNole I also haven't been to a gym or done any serious exercise regimen lately (not since high school, with the exception of a few months in medical school), and I never had trouble staying awake. I do eat healthy however, and at least by BMI I'm considered "in-shape."

But, as an intern I also don't take call--I just do night float. But a number of times I couldn't fall asleep or I woke up early and ended up getting just a few hours of sleep prior to my shift and I still didn't have any trouble. Unless it was a really slow night--but then I'd have trouble staying awake regardless. But when it was that slow me and the senior took turns catching some z's.
 
NeedToStudy said:
I was wondering whether being in good physical shape in any way makes a difference in being able to stay awake when on call?
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Doubtful. First, If you are getting up early to squeeze in a workout each day, you are going to be more tired by the end if the week than the guy who just rolls out of bed and into his scrubs each morning. There's also no good correlation between sleep requirements and body shape -- your 23 year old weight lifter may need 7-8 hours of sleep a night while a not very toned 65 year old attending does fine on five. I'd say in my experience the night owls, insomniacs, and caffeine addicts do better on call and the health and fitness oriented people tend to better when they get to sleep.
 
Law2Doc said:
Doubtful. First, If you are getting up early to squeeze in a workout each day, you are going to be more tired by the end if the week than the guy who just rolls out of bed and into his scrubs each morning. There's also no good correlation between sleep requirements and body shape -- your 23 year old weight lifter may need 7-8 hours of sleep a night while a not very toned 65 year old attending does fine on five. I'd say in my experience the night owls, insomniacs, and caffeine addicts do better on call and the health and fitness oriented people tend to better when they get to sleep.
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Agree. I tried the whole work out before I get to the hospital thing as a PGY2. It lasted about a month and I was exhausted the entire time. It's just an unfortunate reality of some residencies. If you're worried about staying in shape you can do quick workouts at home. That requires you actually doing them, though, which most people don't. Eating healthy when you're surrounded by fried food is probably the biggest obstacle.
 
ram006 said:
Agree. I tried the whole work out before I get to the hospital thing as a PGY2. It lasted about a month and I was exhausted the entire time. It's just an unfortunate reality of some residencies. If you're worried about staying in shape you can do quick workouts at home. That requires you actually doing them, though, which most people don't. Eating healthy when you're surrounded by fried food is probably the biggest obstacle.
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The oreos, lornadoodles and rice crispy treats in our snack kitchen are my downfall.
 
I'm ripped jacked and tan, I hog all of the buff-- I'm like bane building a tunnel under Gotham city and storing the buff underground in my traps, I push the earth down when I do pushups. I sleep when I hit the treadmill.
 
If I have learned anything about fitness and call shifts it's that pre-workout drink mixes will get you jacked no matter how sleep deprived you are.

Mr Hyde... It's like IV push rockstar while freebasing espresso beans.
 
I think it's telling that the last two posters talking bane-like workouts and pre-workout fitness drinks were med students while the people lauding the benefits of Lorna doons were residents. These youngsters will see the light of the magic sustaining powers of shortbread cookies at 3 am. These give you a burst of energy and stay down. The guy drinking whey, caffeine and ginseng for 24 hours after an early morning workout is going to puke after sprinting up a flight of stairs to the code no matter how jacked he is. Don't mistake the doughy exterior of the typical resident as softness. They have spent 3-7 years spending countless hours working toward that shape and tone, a lot more than the couple of hours a day those med student lift. The gym rat may look the part of a doctor from general hospital casting, but that's not who you want caring for you when you are circling the drain in the wee hours. 🙂
 
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Law2Doc said:
I think it's telling that the last two posters talking bane-like workouts and pre-workout fitness drinks were med students while the people lauding the benefits of Lorna doons were residents. These youngsters will see the light of the magic sustaining powers of shortbread cookies at 3 am. These give you a burst of energy and stay down. The guy drinking whey, caffeine and ginseng for 24 hours after an early morning workout is going to puke after sprinting up a flight of stairs to the code no matter how jacked he is. Don't mistake the doughy exterior of the typical resident as softness. They have spent 3-7 years spending countless hours working toward that shape and tone, a lot more than the couple of hours a day those med student lift. The gym rat may look the part of a doctor from general hospital casting, but that's not who you want caring for you when you are circling the drain in the wee hours. 🙂
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My new mental image of Law2Doc:

wow-slob.jpg
 
Law2Doc said:
I think it's telling that the last two posters talking bane-like workouts and pre-workout fitness drinks were med students while the people lauding the benefits of Lorna doons were residents. These youngsters will see the light of the magic sustaining powers of shortbread cookies at 3 am. These give you a burst of energy and stay down. The guy drinking whey, caffeine and ginseng for 24 hours after an early morning workout is going to puke after sprinting up a flight of stairs to the code no matter how jacked he is. Don't mistake the doughy exterior of the typical resident as softness. They have spent 3-7 years spending countless hours working toward that shape and tone, a lot more than the couple of hours a day those med student lift. The gym rat may look the part of a doctor from general hospital casting, but that's not who you want caring for you when you are circling the drain in the wee hours. 🙂
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God knows I tried so hard to do both but, truthfully, if you're working out every day you're not reading enough...
 
ram006 said:
God knows I tried so hard to do both but, truthfully, if you're working out every day you're not reading enough...
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I'm sure they can fit in 30-60 mins a day to read AND workout a lot. It happens a lot.

Besides, orthopods need to pass their boards too right? 😛
 
KnuxNole said:
I'm sure they can fit in 30-60 mins a day to read AND workout a lot. It happens a lot.

Besides, orthopods need to pass their boards too right? 😛
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As was discussed in another thread, 30-60 mins a day to read isn't really cutting it for a lot of specialties.
 
Law2Doc said:
As was discussed in another thread, 30-60 mins a day to read isn't really cutting it for a lot of specialties.
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Hold the phone, people study in residency? And here I am thinking doing good on step 2 ck will give you enough knowledge to last through residency.
 
ram006 said:
Agree. I tried the whole work out before I get to the hospital thing as a PGY2. It lasted about a month and I was exhausted the entire time. It's just an unfortunate reality of some residencies. If you're worried about staying in shape you can do quick workouts at home. That requires you actually doing them, though, which most people don't. Eating healthy when you're surrounded by fried food is probably the biggest obstacle.
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Here Here. Hospital food is horrible unhealthy, and the salad bar gets really old really fast. The key for me was to bring my own snacks, like fruit and trail mix. Trail mix is gold. It will fill the hole, give you energy, and its not french fries.

When all else fails, a snickers bar isn't the worst thing to eat if you know you are going a surgery and havn't eaten. hungry, why wait.
 
KnuxNole said:
I'm sure they can fit in 30-60 mins a day to read AND workout a lot. It happens a lot.

Besides, orthopods need to pass their boards too right? 😛
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Um, if you're only studying an hour a day for specialty boards, then you're doing it wrong. This isn't a shelf exam.
 
DermViser said:
Um, if you're only studying an hour a day for specialty boards, then you're doing it wrong. This isn't a shelf exam.
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That is true...I don't envy those ortho docs who have an insane schedule and on top of that, have to read THAT much!

I barely have the motivation/energy to read during residency, an hour seems like a colossal accomplishment, if I even read at all that day D:
 
KnuxNole said:
That is true...I don't envy those ortho docs who have an insane schedule and on top of that, have to read THAT much!

I barely have the motivation/energy to read during residency, an hour seems like a colossal accomplishment, if I even read at all that day D:
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I'm talking about any specialty boards residency. Those darn In-Training Exams that every specialty has is why we have to study on top of everything residents do.
 
DermViser said:
I'm talking about any specialty boards residency. Those darn In-Training Exams that every specialty has is why we have to study on top of everything residents do.
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Don't remind me...studying is the worst! 🙁
 
DermViser said:
I'm talking about any specialty boards residency. Those darn In-Training Exams that every specialty has is why we have to study on top of everything residents do.
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If you study for the ABIM exam for 2 hours for every month you're in residency and don't pass it, you don't deserve to be a licensed physician. They're not that freakin' hard.
 
gutonc said:
If you study for the ABIM exam for 2 hours for every month you're in residency and don't pass it, you don't deserve to be a licensed physician. They're not that freakin' hard.
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I'm more talking about the ITE exams that you have to study for that come every year and show improvement. An hour a day is not really enough - assuming you're coherent and not exhausted during that hour.
 
DermViser said:
I'm more talking about the ITE exams that you have to study for that come every year and show improvement. An hour a day is not really enough - assuming you're coherent and not exhausted during that hour.
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Specialty dependent. In IM, we're explicitly instructed NOT to study specifically for the in-training exam, which is only a benchmark that is used to gauge how you're progressing overall as a resident. So you study for your day-to-day work and keep up with reading/lectures, but no one except graduating third years is explicitly studying for a test.
 
Raryn said:
Specialty dependent. In IM, we're explicitly instructed NOT to study specifically for the in-training exam, which is only a benchmark that is used to gauge how you're progressing overall as a resident. So you study for your day-to-day work and keep up with reading/lectures, but no one except graduating third years is explicitly studying for a test.
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Yes, but I'm sure esp. in IM, you're compared to other residents in your class by your PD with where you fall on that exam, which then subliminally will affect their writing of a letter of recommendation when it comes to writing a LOR for fellowship. If you don't do so hot on the ITE, the PD calls you to his office to talk to you.
 
DermViser said:
Yes, but I'm sure esp. in IM, you're compared to other residents in your class by your PD with where you fall on that exam, which then subliminally will affect their writing of a letter of recommendation when it comes to writing a LOR for fellowship. If you don't do so hot on the ITE, the PD calls you to his office to talk to you.
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It's true, if you don't do so hot on the ITE the PD calls you into their office to discuss a study plan with you... because they don't want their board pass rate to go down. The test is used to gauge who may need additional help.

Is it possible the PD's letter will also be subliminally affected by this? Sure. But it's also subliminally (or actively) affected by a hell of a lot of other things, including three years worth of evals. The test isn't the end-all be-all, and if my classmates are studying multiple hours a day in the weeks upcoming to that test, I'll eat my keyboard.
 
All I would care about is not being called in by the PD in terms of the yearly ITE. I don't want fellowships nor care how I compare with my interns(I already know I feel like the dumbest of the bunch, so no surprises there!). All I want to do is be a physician...
 
KnuxNole said:
All I would care about is not being called in by the PD in terms of the yearly ITE. I don't want fellowships nor care how I compare with my interns(I already know I feel like the dumbest of the bunch, so no surprises there!). All I want to do is be a physician...
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Yup, pretty much a keep your head down and make it thru mentality.
 
if anything, doing exercise makes you sleep better, imo
 
Raryn said:
It's true, if you don't do so hot on the ITE the PD calls you into their office to discuss a study plan with you... because they don't want their board pass rate to go down. The test is used to gauge who may need additional help.

Is it possible the PD's letter will also be subliminally affected by this? Sure. But it's also subliminally (or actively) affected by a hell of a lot of other things, including three years worth of evals. The test isn't the end-all be-all, and if my classmates are studying multiple hours a day in the weeks upcoming to that test, I'll eat my keyboard.
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I can't speak for your program, but in my experience there will always be tests that are billed as things that are just meant to gauge your progress and supposedly don't need to be studied for, and yet people get praised/rewarded when they do well and talked to when you don't. So people in fact the scores matter and as a result some of th people who do well arent naturally gifted and actually do study for them. And commercial materials exist designed to help you study for them. There's always a sucker or two who buys into the whole "you don't need to study for this and it's not meant to be used against you" notion. But if you do poorly on one, then you'll find out if your PD really cares and puts those scores into your file. The whole -- this is to see your progress routine is really a trap for the unwary in my experience.
 
Law2Doc said:
I can't speak for your program, but in my experience there will always be tests that are billed as things that are just meant to gauge your progress and supposedly don't need to be studied for, and yet people get praised/rewarded when they do well and talked to when you don't. So people in fact the scores matter and as a result some of th people who do well arent naturally gifted and actually do study for them. And commercial materials exist designed to help you study for them. There's always a sucker or two who buys into the whole "you don't need to study for this and it's not meant to be used against you" notion. But if you do poorly on one, then you'll find out if your PD really cares and puts those scores into your file. The whole -- this is to see your progress routine is really a trap for the unwary in my experience.
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Agreed. It still boggles my mind that after all these years-undergrad, the MCAT, med school, licensinsg exams- that some people STILL have themselves convinced that test scores aren't all that important...

It's cool, though. Keep half-assing the ABSITE, it just makes my life easier...
 
Law2Doc said:
I can't speak for your program, but in my experience there will always be tests that are billed as things that are just meant to gauge your progress and supposedly don't need to be studied for, and yet people get praised/rewarded when they do well and talked to when you don't. So people in fact the scores matter and as a result some of th people who do well arent naturally gifted and actually do study for them. And commercial materials exist designed to help you study for them. There's always a sucker or two who buys into the whole "you don't need to study for this and it's not meant to be used against you" notion. But if you do poorly on one, then you'll find out if your PD really cares and puts those scores into your file. The whole -- this is to see your progress routine is really a trap for the unwary in my experience.
Click to expand...

Look, no one is saying your scores don't go into your file. They do. But so do 1,000,001 other things, and no one outside of the program administration reads will ever read your file.

All I said is that there's a fundamental difference among how specialties approach their respective ITEs. With regards to the IM-ITE, my program (and the program at my medical school as far as I know) keeps track of your scores to identify those residents who may need additional help. They explicitly state no one else ever sees your score, something supported by the fact that the ACP and AAIM (who write the damn test) explicitly forbid them from doing so. Residents who do well at my program (and I did fine) just get an email from the program director saying "good job", while residents who do poorly were called to meet with, not to be berated, but to work with them on a study plan. We are explicitly told not to study for the test, and while I wouldn't be surprised if some of my co-residents amped up their reading in the weeks before it, I'd be surprised if it was a significant proportion. Is it within the realm of possibility that your three IM-ITE scores influence your PD's letter? Sure. But I'd bet the PD is more influenced by 36 months worth of evaluations. That's just my n=1-2 for IM though.

Contrast that with the ABSITE, where scores are heavily emphasized, often posted publicly, and explicitly submitted when you apply for fellowship. That's a very different situation, and my friends who went into surgery started studying for that test from the beginning. I prefer the approach of just reading along with patient care, and screw the test.
 
Raryn said:
Look, no one is saying your scores don't go into your file. They do. But so do 1,000,001 other things, and no one outside of the program administration reads will ever read your file.

All I said is that there's a fundamental difference among how specialties approach their respective ITEs. With regards to the IM-ITE, my program (and the program at my medical school as far as I know) keeps track of your scores to identify those residents who may need additional help. They explicitly state no one else ever sees your score, something supported by the fact that the ACP and AAIM (who write the damn test) explicitly forbid them from doing so. Residents who do well at my program (and I did fine) just get an email from the program director saying "good job", while residents who do poorly were called to meet with, not to be berated, but to work with them on a study plan. We are explicitly told not to study for the test, and while I wouldn't be surprised if some of my co-residents amped up their reading in the weeks before it, I'd be surprised if it was a significant proportion. Is it within the realm of possibility that your three IM-ITE scores influence your PD's letter? Sure. But I'd bet the PD is more influenced by 36 months worth of evaluations. That's just my n=1-2 for IM though.

Contrast that with the ABSITE, where scores are heavily emphasized, often posted publicly, and explicitly submitted when you apply for fellowship. That's a very different situation, and my friends who went into surgery started studying for that test from the beginning. I prefer the approach of just reading along with patient care, and screw the test.
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That's great if that's how it works at your program, but it shouldn't be too hard to imagine that a test you are asked not to study for, to "see how you are doing" in the wrong hands can be a very dangerous evaluation tool. And I've been on enough committees to know that the way places talk about certain people behind closed doors can be very different than the spin that you hear in person. Anything negative that gets put into your file can be used as ammunition by the program if circumstances warrant, so that, in an of itself is not even a neutral action. If the $&@$ hits the fan, and they need to portray you as a habitual screw up, they will somehow forget that they told you not to study.
 
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So then why lie? I assumed I would study because I'm scared to fail. Otherwise, I would have never picked up a book...and that's IF I have time to read! Even reading a topic on UTD/Journal article(which is 99% of what we are told to read) is challenging when you have a lot of work, and balancing the free time :O
 
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