Listen to enough self-improvement podcasters, and it’s easy to convince yourself that napping is a superpower: more than a sticking plaster after restless night, but a shortcut to a better memory, a brighter outlook and perhaps a faster 5k run time. Elite athletes swear by it – and so are musicians, UFC champions & business leaders. However, if you haven’t got a room for napping or employment that allows daytime sleep, is it *truly* enough benefits to a burst of shut-eye to merit the hassle? Can you find a surefire technique to nod off promptly? And can you really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Exploring The Nap Motivation
“There are three primary motivations for taking a nap among most adults,” notes an expert sleep and circadian science specialist. “Firstly, there's what we call compensatory napping, essentially what happens following poor sleep overnight. Another is prophylactic napping, when you are pre-empting sleep loss in the future, for instance during overnight shifts. The third reason is “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially boils down to wanting: there is an opportunity to nap in the afternoon, and it's pleasant to nap.”
The initial step to consider, therefore, is to examine why you want to nap. “Daytime sleep can be truly beneficial when overnight rest is being disrupted because of factors outside your control – for example, when you are a new parent, or recovering from sickness or strenuous activity,” states a sleep specialist. “However, if you’re napping because your nighttime sleep is unstable or unreliable, that can be an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not as strong as it needs to be. In those cases, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, instead of the fix. Utilize daytime sleep for brief periods for short-term problems – the priority ought to remain a robust and regular night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
This implies that napping shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and best shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (based on when you retire at night). How long is sensible? Recommendations vary. Among the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists discovered that space travelers experienced improvements of over 50% in vigilance and a 34% boost in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this counted an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “My advice is using an alarm for half an hour or less – many individuals doze off quickly,” says a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of guidance out there concerning the perfect length of time, yet that often make people feel more anxious than anything else – and the worst thing you can do when attempting to nod off is worry about it.”
If you plan to take an extended nap, steer clear of the 45-60 minute window that promotes sleep grogginess, that foggy state upon waking. “Research indicates it’s better to opt for a longer nap of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” notes the professor. “Forty-five minutes is enough time to send you into deep sleep and you’re more likely to feel disoriented when you get up – however, if you extend it slightly longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to finish a full cycle and will probably get up feeling more refreshed. However, if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it can influence your sleep later that night.”
Finding the Right Snooze Setting
As for exact methodologies, recommendations vary. A few professionals recommend employing comparable habits one would use to encourage a good night’s sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and minimal light as you can manage. Others suggest that one could merely snooze on the sofa in the existing light is present – both to discourage post-nap grogginess and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the place your mind associates with nighttime rest. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to force,” says a specialist. “If you don’t have the urge to sleep, it becomes harder to recline and practically command yourself to nod off. You need some drive there to start the process initially. For me, it's possible to snooze during the day and wake up naturally without a timer, however, what assists most folks is to anticipate a moment that they’re naturally slightly tired and then simply relax into it.”
It’s worth experimenting, and when options are scarce – for instance, if attempting to grab a quick nap while traveling or at the office – it's acceptable to use sleep aids. “Coaching professional sportspeople, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, as they’re going to have|they will
