Hear enough productivity experts, making it tempting to believe that a nap is a secret weapon: not just a sticking plaster following restless night, but a shortcut to improved recall, a brighter outlook and possibly a faster 5k run time. Professional soccer players are all at it – along with musicians, mixed martial artists and high-profile executives. But if you don't have a special sleep space or a job that allows daytime sleep, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a short sleep for it to be worth the kerfuffle? Can you find a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to honestly promise you’ll wake up feeling better, not worse?
Identifying Your Reasons for Napping
“There are three key drivers for daytime sleep among most adults,” explains an expert circadian rhythm professor. “Firstly, there's termed compensatory napping, which is the action you take when you’ve had insufficient sleep overnight. The second is preparatory napping, which involves preparing for sleep loss ahead, for instance when working overnight shifts. The third reason is “appetitive drive”, which basically is about wanting: you get a moment to sleep during the day, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The primary task to consider, so, is to think about why you want to nap. “Napping can be genuinely useful when overnight rest is disturbed for reasons outside your control – such as, when you are a new parent, or recovering after being ill or intense exercise,” says a sleep physiologist. “However, if you nap since your sleep at night seems unreliable or poor, that’s often a signal your sleep drive is not as strong as it needs to be. In such situations, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, not the solution. Use napping for brief periods for temporary issues – the priority must always be a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that daytime sleep shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your overnight rest, and ideally should not occur post-3 p.m. (based on what time you sleep in the evening). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. Among the most-cited studies about napping, space agency scientists noted that crew members showed up to a 54% increase in alertness and a 34% boost in task performance post a 26-minute snooze (technically, this counted an initial six-minute nodding-off period). “My advice is setting a timer for half an hour or less – most people fall asleep in under ten minutes,” explains a specialist. “There is plenty of advice around about the ideal number of time, but that tends to lead individuals to become more stressed than anything else – and the most counterproductive thing you can do when trying to get to sleep is worry about it.”
If you’re going to take an extended nap, avoid the 45-60 minute window that induces that sluggish feeling, that foggy state when you wake. “Studies would say it is preferable to opt for a longer nap of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is enough time to plunge you into deep sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy upon awakening – whereas if you nap for slightly longer to 60 or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be on the end a full cycle and should awaken feeling more alert. But if you nap for an hour and a half, it can influence your sleep later that night.”
Establishing the Perfect Sleep Space
As for precise methods, recommendations vary. Some experts propose employing similar routines one would use to promote restful sleep: a quiet room, a cozy bed and minimal light as you can manage. Some advise that it's fine to simply nap on the sofa with ambient lighting happens to be around – to avoid that groggy feeling and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the environment your mind associates with nighttime rest. “Napping is quite challenging to force,” explains a specialist. “If you don’t have any drowsiness, it is more challenging to recline and practically instruct yourself to go to sleep. There’s got to be some drive there to initiate sleep in the first place. I can usually nap in broad daylight and awaken on my own without an alarm, however, what assists most folks is to anticipate a time where they feel naturally somewhat sleepy and just gently relax into it.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if you have few options – for instance, when aiming to squeeze in a quick nap during a commute or at the office – it is perfectly fine to use some accessories. “When I’m working with elite athletes, I suggest that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
