Tune into plenty of self-improvement podcasters, and you'll be tempting to think that napping is a powerful tool: more than a band-aid after a bad night’s sleep, but a path to enhanced cognition, better spirits and perhaps improved athletic performance. Premier League athletes swear by it – and so are professional piano players, mixed martial artists & high-profile executives. Yet, when you don't have a dedicated nap-room or employment that encourages daytime sleep, can there *honestly* worthwhile perks to a quick nap to merit the kerfuffle? Can you find a surefire technique to get to sleep quickly enough? Furthermore, can you honestly promise you’ll wake up feeling refreshed, instead of groggy?
Understanding Your Nap Motivation
“There are three primary motivations for napping in the adult population,” explains an expert circadian rhythm researcher. “One is known as make-up sleep, essentially what you do after experiencing insufficient sleep overnight. Secondly, there's prophylactic napping, which involves anticipating insufficient sleep coming up, such as if you’re working overnight shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which basically comes down to desire: you get a moment to doze in the daytime, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The initial step to undertake, then, is to think about why you want to nap. “Naps can be truly beneficial when nighttime sleep gets interrupted for reasons outside your control – for instance, when you are caring for an infant, or if you are healing from sickness or strenuous activity,” states a sleep expert. “Yet when you take a nap since your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or broken, that is frequently a signal your need for sleep is not where required. In those cases, naps can become a contributing factor, rather than the answer. Employ naps as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the priority must always be a strong and predictable overnight rest.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that napping must not be long enough to affect your sleep at night, and best should not occur after about 3pm (based on what time you retire at night). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. Among a prominent study regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists found that crew members had a boost of up to 54% in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (to be precise, this counted a six-minute long nodding-off period). “I recommend setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – most people fall asleep in under ten minutes,” says a sleep coach. “You'll find much recommendations about the ideal number for sleeping, but that tends to lead individuals to become more anxious above all – and the most counterproductive thing you can do when trying to nod off is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that encourages sleep inertia, that foggy state upon waking. “Research would say it's more effective to take a lengthier snooze of 60 to 90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” says the professor. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to put you into deep sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy upon awakening – however, if you extend it a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be completing a full cycle and should awaken feeling more rejuvenated. But if you're dozing for a long period, it can influence your sleep that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for precise methods, suggestions are diverse. A few professionals propose using the same protocol one would use to promote a good night’s sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as is feasible. Others suggest that it's fine to simply nap in a chair in whatever light is available – to prevent sleep inertia and to preserve your bedroom as the environment you associate with nighttime rest. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to command,” explains an expert. “Without any drowsiness, it becomes harder to recline and practically instruct yourself to go to sleep. There must be a natural inclination present to bring the sleep on to begin with. For me, it's possible to take a nap in full light and awaken on my own without a timer, however, what assists most folks is to wait for a moment when they are naturally slightly tired and calmly ease into sleep.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if options are scarce – such as, when aiming to grab 40 winks during a commute or at the office – there’s nothing wrong to employ some accessories. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I recommend that they not rely on napping in bed, as they’re going to have|they will
