Tune into plenty of performance gurus, making it easy to think that napping is a secret weapon: not just a quick fix after restless night, but a route towards enhanced cognition, a brighter outlook and perhaps improved athletic performance. Premier League soccer players are all at it – as do musicians, UFC champions & media moguls. However, if you don't have a room for napping or a job that allows frequent naps, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a short sleep to justify the hassle? Can you find a surefire technique to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you will get up feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Exploring The Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three key drivers for napping among most adults,” notes an expert circadian rhythm researcher. “Firstly, there's termed make-up sleep, which is the action you take when you’ve had insufficient sleep the night before. The second is prophylactic napping, when you are pre-empting a sleep deficit coming up, for instance if you’re working on night shifts. The third reason is “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially boils down to the wish: you get an opportunity to sleep during the day, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The first thing to consider, so, is to examine your nap motivation. “Naps can be truly beneficial when nighttime sleep gets interrupted because of factors outside your control – such as, when you are a parent of a newborn, or if you are healing from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep specialist. “But if you’re napping since your night sleep feels fragile or broken, that’s often a sign your body's sleep pressure is not at the level it should be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the issue, not the solution. Employ naps as a short-term solution for temporary issues – the main goal ought to remain a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Optimal Nap Length
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be too extended to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (depending on the time you go to bed in the evening). What duration is wise? Advice differs. Among the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, experts noted that astronauts experienced up to a 54% increase in attentiveness and a 34% boost in performance following a nap of 26 minutes (to be precise, this involved an initial six-minute nodding-off period). “I’d suggest setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals are asleep within 10 minutes,” explains a specialist. “There’s a lot of advice around regarding the ideal number of minutes, yet that often make people feel more worried than anything – and the least helpful action you can do when attempting to nod off is worry about it.”
Should you decide to nap for a longer period, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep inertia, that spaced-out feeling when you awaken. “Studies suggests it’s better to opt for a lengthier snooze lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” notes the expert. “Forty-five minutes is enough time to put you into slow-wave sleep and you’re more likely to feel sluggish upon awakening – however, if you take it a little longer to a full sleep cycle, it's likely you'll to be completing of a sleep cycle and should get up feeling more refreshed. But if you’re sleeping for 90 minutes, it can influence your sleep that night.”
Finding the Perfect Sleep Space
Regarding exact methodologies, advice differs. Some experts propose adopting the same protocol one would use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and minimal light as possible. Others suggest that one could merely snooze on the sofa in the existing light is present – to prevent post-nap grogginess and to maintain your bedroom as the place you associate with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is something really tricky to command,” notes a specialist. “Without any drowsiness, it is tougher to lie down and essentially instruct yourself to go to sleep. There must be some sleep pressure there to initiate sleep to begin with. Personally, I can often snooze in broad daylight and wake up naturally without a timer, though, what aids many individuals is to look for a moment where they feel naturally slightly tired and then simply ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and if your choices are limited – for example, when aiming to squeeze in 40 winks during a commute or in a soundproof office pod – it is perfectly fine to employ a few tools. “In my work with elite athletes, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
