Listen to enough self-improvement gurus, and you'll be tempting to believe that a nap is a superpower: rather than a quick fix following a bad night’s sleep, but a shortcut towards a better memory, improved mood and perhaps a faster 5k run time. Elite soccer players are all at it – and so are professional piano players, mixed martial artists and high-profile executives. Yet, when you haven’t got a room for napping or employment that encourages regular snoozing, is it *truly* sufficient advantages to a short sleep for it to be worth the hassle? Does there exist a reliable way to fall asleep fast? And can you really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling better, instead of groggy?
Identifying The Nap Motivation
“Experts note three key drivers for napping for many people,” notes an expert sleep and circadian science specialist. “The first is termed compensatory napping, that is the action you take following a lack of sleep overnight. Another is prophylactic napping, which involves preparing for a sleep deficit ahead, such as during overnight shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which basically comes down to wanting: there is a chance to nap during the day, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The primary task to do, therefore, is to think about your nap motivation. “Naps can be really helpful when night sleeping is disturbed for reasons outside your control – for instance, when you are a parent of a newborn, or recovering after being ill or intense exercise,” says a sleep specialist. “But if you take a nap because your sleep at night seems unreliable or unreliable, that is frequently a sign your need for sleep is not at the level required. In those cases, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, rather than the answer. Use napping for brief periods to address immediate needs – the focus ought to remain a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Perfect Nap Duration
This means that napping ought not to be sufficiently lengthy to affect your sleep at night, and ideally shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (based on the time you retire at night). How long is sensible? Recommendations vary. In one of a prominent study on the subject, experts noted that crew members had up to a 54% increase in vigilance and a 34% increase in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this involved a six-minute long sleep onset time). “I recommend setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – most people fall asleep within 10 minutes,” explains a sleep expert. “You'll find much recommendations concerning the perfect length for sleeping, but that tends to cause people to feel more stressed than anything else – and the least helpful action you can do when trying to nod off is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to take an extended nap, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that promotes that sluggish feeling, that foggy state when you awaken. “Research indicates it’s better to have a lengthier snooze of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” says the professor. “Forty-five minutes is sufficient to plunge you into a deep sleep stage and you’re more likely to feel sluggish upon awakening – while if you take it a bit longer to a full sleep cycle, you’re likely to be completing a full cycle and should wake up feeling more rejuvenated. But if you nap for a long period, it may impact how you sleep in the evening.”
Finding an Ideal Nap Environment
Regarding exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. Some experts suggest adopting similar routines one would use to encourage restful sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and maximum darkness as possible. Some advise that you should simply nap on a couch with ambient lighting happens to be around – to prevent that groggy feeling and to maintain your bed as the environment your mind associates with proper sleep. “Napping is notoriously difficult to command,” notes an expert. “If you don’t have any sleepiness, it is more challenging to get comfortable and essentially command yourself to go to sleep. There’s got to be some sleep pressure available to initiate sleep in the first place. Personally, I can often nap during the day and wake up naturally without a timer, however, what assists many individuals is to anticipate a moment where they feel naturally slightly tired and just gently allow sleep to come.”
It’s worth experimenting, and when options are scarce – for example, when aiming to grab 40 winks during a commute or at the office – it is perfectly fine to use a few tools. “In my work with footballers, I suggest that they not rely on sleeping in their bed, since they’re going to have|they will
