Listen to plenty of productivity podcasters, and you'll be simple to believe that a nap is a powerful tool: more than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a route to improved recall, a brighter outlook and possibly a faster 5k run time. Professional athletes are all at it – as do musicians, mixed martial artists & high-profile executives. However, if you lack a special sleep space or a job that allows frequent naps, can there *honestly* enough benefits to a short sleep for it to be worth the effort? Is there a reliable way to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, instead of groggy?
Exploring Your Reasons for Napping
“We can identify three primary motivations for napping among most adults,” says an expert sleep science specialist. “The first is what we call make-up sleep, essentially what you do after experiencing a lack of sleep the night before. Another is prophylactic napping, where you are pre-empting a sleep deficit in the future, for instance when working on night shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which basically is about the wish: you get a chance to nap during the day, and it's enjoyable to indulge.”
The first thing to undertake, so, is to think about your nap motivation. “Naps can be really helpful when nighttime sleep is disturbed because of factors you cannot change – for example, when you are caring for an infant, or recovering from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep expert. “Yet when you nap since your sleep at night feels fragile or poor, that is frequently a signal your sleep drive is not at the level it should be. In those cases, naps can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Use napping as a temporary measure for short-term problems – the priority ought to remain a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Length
This implies that daytime sleep must not be sufficiently lengthy to affect your overnight rest, and ideally shouldn’t take place in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you retire at night). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. Among a prominent study about napping, experts noted that astronauts showed up to a 54% increase in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this included an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “My advice is setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – the majority fall asleep in under ten minutes,” notes a sleep expert. “You'll find much advice around about the optimal amount for sleeping, however, that can cause people to feel more anxious above all – and the worst thing one can do when attempting to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to nap for a longer period, steer clear of the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep inertia, that disoriented sensation when you awaken. “The science suggests it’s better to take an extended nap lasting 60-90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” explains the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is long enough to put you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel groggy when you get up – however, if you nap for slightly longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you will probably to be on the end a natural sleep cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. However, if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it may impact your sleep in the evening.”
Establishing the Right Sleep Space
As for precise methods, suggestions are diverse. Certain specialists suggest using the same protocol one would use to encourage quality nighttime sleep: a quiet room, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to merely snooze in a chair in whatever light is present – to avoid sleep inertia and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the place you associate with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is notoriously difficult to command,” notes an expert. “Without the urge to sleep, it is more challenging to get comfortable and essentially tell yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be some sleep pressure there to bring the sleep on in the first place. I can usually take a nap in full light and awaken on my own without an alarm, however, what assists many individuals is to anticipate a moment where they feel naturally feeling a bit drowsy and then simply ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when you have few options – for instance, if attempting to squeeze in some shut-eye while traveling or in a work pod – it's acceptable to employ some accessories. “When I’m working with footballers, I recommend that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
