Tune into enough self-improvement experts, and it’s easy to believe that a nap is a powerful tool: more than a quick fix following a bad night’s sleep, but a path to improved recall, improved mood and maybe a faster 5k run time. Premier League athletes do it regularly – and so are concert pianists, UFC champions & high-profile executives. But if you lack a dedicated nap-room or a career that permits frequent naps, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a short sleep to merit the kerfuffle? Is there a dependable method to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to honestly promise you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?
Understanding Your Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three primary motivations for taking a nap in the adult population,” notes a professor of sleep science specialist. “One is what we call make-up sleep, which is what you do when you’ve had poor sleep the night before. The second is prophylactic napping, when you are pre-empting insufficient sleep ahead, for instance during graveyard shifts. The third reason is “appetitive drive”, which essentially boils down to the wish: there is an opportunity to nap in the daytime, and it feels nice to do it.”
The initial step to do, so, is to examine why you want to nap. “Naps can be genuinely useful when night sleeping is being disrupted for reasons outside your control – such as, when you are a parent of a newborn, or recovering from sickness or strenuous activity,” says a sleep physiologist. “Yet when you nap since your night sleep seems unreliable or broken, that’s often a signal your body's sleep pressure is not where required. In such situations, daytime sleep can turn into a contributing factor, not the solution. Utilize daytime sleep as a temporary measure for short-term problems – the focus ought to remain a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Optimal Nap Duration
This implies that napping must not be too extended to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and preferably shouldn’t take place in the late afternoon (based on when you retire in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. In one of the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists noted that space travelers had improvements of over 50% in vigilance and a 34% increase in performance after a 26-minute nap (to be precise, this included an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend setting a timer for half an hour or less – the majority are asleep quickly,” explains a sleep expert. “There is plenty of recommendations about the ideal number of time, but that tends to make people feel more anxious than anything – and the most counterproductive thing you can possibly do when trying to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you plan to sleep for longer, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep grogginess, that foggy state when you wake. “The science indicates it's more effective to take a longer nap of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the professor. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to plunge you into deep sleep making it more likely to feel sluggish when you get up – however, if you nap for a little longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be completing a natural sleep cycle and will probably awaken feeling more refreshed. Though if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it may impact how you sleep that night.”
Establishing the Perfect Sleep Space
As for precise methods, recommendations vary. A few professionals propose using comparable habits you’d use to promote a good night’s sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and as much darkness as you can manage. Others suggest that you should just doze in a chair in the existing light is present – both to discourage that groggy feeling and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the environment your brain links with nighttime rest. “Napping is quite challenging to will,” explains an expert. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is tougher to lie down and basically instruct yourself to go to sleep. You need a natural inclination available to initiate sleep initially. I can usually take a nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up alarm-free, but what helps a lot of people is to look for a moment where they feel naturally feeling a bit drowsy and calmly ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when you have few options – for example, when aiming to fit in some shut-eye while traveling or at the office – it's acceptable to employ sleep aids. “Coaching professional sportspeople, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, since they’re going to have|they will
