Hear enough productivity experts, making it tempting to think that a nap is a powerful tool: rather than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a shortcut towards a better memory, better spirits and maybe a faster 5k run time. Premier League athletes do it regularly – along with professional piano players, UFC champions & high-profile executives. However, if you don't have a room for napping or a career that permits regular snoozing, is it *truly* enough benefits to a burst of shut-eye for it to be worth the kerfuffle? Does there exist a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you will get up feeling refreshed, not worse?
Identifying The Reasons for Napping
“We can identify three key drivers for napping for many people,” notes an expert sleep science researcher. “One is known as recovery napping, that is what happens following poor sleep the night before. Another is pre-emptive sleep, where you are pre-empting sleep loss ahead, for instance during overnight shifts. The third reason is “pleasure-based sleep”, which basically boils down to the wish: you get a chance to doze in the afternoon, and it feels nice to indulge.”
The primary task to do, therefore, is consider your reason for napping. “Daytime sleep can be really helpful when overnight rest is being disrupted due to causes beyond your control – for example, when you are caring for an infant, or if you are healing from sickness or intense exercise,” says a sleep physiologist. “But if you take a nap since your night sleep feels fragile or broken, that is frequently an indicator your need for sleep is not as strong as it needs to be. In such situations, napping can become part of the problem, rather than the answer. Use napping as a temporary measure for temporary issues – the priority must always be a robust and regular sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
Therefore that napping ought not to be long enough to affect your nighttime sleep, and preferably should not occur after about 3pm (based on the time you retire at night). How long is sensible? Guidelines are mixed. In one of the most-cited studies regarding daytime sleep, experts found that space travelers showed up to a 54% increase in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this included a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – most people fall asleep quickly,” notes a sleep expert. “You'll find much advice around about the perfect length for sleeping, yet that often lead individuals to become more stressed than anything else – and the most counterproductive thing you can do when trying to nod off is worry about it.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, steer clear of the 45-60 minute window that induces sleep grogginess, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “Research indicates it is preferable to opt for an extended nap of one to one and a half hours rather than a mid-length nap,” says the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is enough time to put you into deep sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy upon awakening – whereas if you extend it slightly longer to an hour or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to finish of a sleep cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. However, if you nap for 90 minutes, it may impact how you sleep that night.”
Finding the Perfect Sleep Space
When it comes to precise methods, advice differs. A few professionals suggest employing the same protocol one would use to promote restful sleep: a peaceful area, a cozy bed and as much darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that one could just doze on a couch in whatever light happens to be around – to avoid that groggy feeling and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the environment you associate with proper sleep. “Napping is quite challenging to force,” notes an expert. “Lacking any sleepiness, it is tougher to lie down and basically tell yourself to fall asleep. You need some drive there to bring the sleep on initially. For me, it's possible to take a nap in full light and awaken on my own without an alarm, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for a time where they feel naturally slightly tired and calmly relax into it.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and should you have few options – for example, if attempting to fit in some shut-eye on a train or in a soundproof office pod – there’s nothing wrong to use some accessories. “Coaching professional sportspeople, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to napping in bed, because they’re going to have|they will
