Tune into plenty of productivity experts, and it’s simple to think that a nap is a powerful tool: rather than a quick fix after a bad night’s sleep, but a path to a better memory, improved mood and possibly a faster 5k run time. Premier League soccer players swear by it – and so are professional piano players, UFC champions and business leaders. But if you don't have a room for napping or a career that encourages regular snoozing, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a quick nap to justify the hassle? Does there exist a dependable method to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to honestly promise you will arise feeling better, instead of groggy?
Understanding Your Reasons for Napping
“There are three key drivers for daytime sleep for many people,” says an expert sleep science specialist. “The first is termed compensatory napping, which is what happens when you’ve had poor sleep overnight. The second is prophylactic napping, where you are preparing for sleep loss coming up, for instance during overnight shifts. The third reason is “appetitive drive”, which simply comes down to wanting: there is an opportunity to nap during the day, and it feels nice to nap.”
The primary task to undertake, therefore, is to examine your reason for napping. “Napping can be truly beneficial when overnight rest gets interrupted due to causes outside your control – for instance, if you’re caring for an infant, or recovering from illness or strenuous activity,” states a sleep specialist. “Yet when you take a nap as your night sleep feels fragile or poor, that can be a sign your need for sleep is not at the level required. In such situations, daytime sleep can turn into a contributing factor, instead of the fix. Utilize daytime sleep as a temporary measure for short-term problems – the priority must always be a strong and predictable overnight rest.”
The Optimal Nap Duration
This implies that napping ought not to be long enough to interfere with your sleep at night, and preferably should not occur after about 3pm (contingent on the time you sleep overnight). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. From a prominent study on the subject, space agency scientists found that crew members experienced improvements of over 50% in attentiveness plus a 34% rise in task performance after a 26-minute nap (to be precise, this included an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “My advice is setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals doze off quickly,” says a specialist. “There is plenty of recommendations about the perfect length of time, yet that often cause people to feel more worried than anything else – and the least helpful action you can do when attempting to nod off is to stress over it.”
Should you decide to take an extended nap, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that promotes that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling when you wake. “The science indicates it's more effective to opt for a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the professor. “Three-quarters of an hour is enough time to plunge you into slow-wave sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy when you wake up – whereas if you nap for a little longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you will probably to be on the end a full cycle and will probably awaken feeling more rejuvenated. However, if you're dozing for a long period, it may impact the quality of your sleep that night.”
Creating an Ideal Sleep Space
Regarding specific techniques, suggestions are diverse. Certain specialists propose employing comparable habits one would use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a supportive surface and as much darkness as is feasible. Others suggest that one could simply nap on the sofa in the existing light is available – to prevent sleep inertia and to maintain your bedroom as the space you associate with proper sleep. “Napping is something really tricky to will,” explains a specialist. “If you don’t have any drowsiness, it becomes harder to recline and practically instruct yourself to go to sleep. You need some sleep pressure there to start the process to begin with. For me, it's possible to snooze in broad daylight and awaken on my own without a timer, but what helps a lot of people is to wait for a time when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and then simply allow sleep to come.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if options are scarce – for instance, when aiming to fit in 40 winks on a train or in a work pod – it's acceptable to use sleep aids. “Coaching footballers, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
