Hear plenty of productivity podcasters, and it’s tempting to think that napping is a superpower: rather than a quick fix after poor sleep, but a shortcut to enhanced cognition, improved mood and maybe improved athletic performance. Elite athletes do it regularly – as do musicians, UFC champions and business leaders. But if you don't have a dedicated nap-room or employment that permits regular snoozing, are there *really* enough benefits to a quick nap to justify the hassle? Can you find a dependable method to nod off promptly? Furthermore, can you really guarantee you will get up feeling better, not worse?
Identifying Your Nap Motivation
“There are three primary motivations for taking a nap for many people,” says a leading circadian rhythm specialist. “One is termed make-up sleep, that is what you do following insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is prophylactic napping, where you are anticipating sleep loss coming up, for instance if you’re working overnight shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which simply comes down to the wish: you have an opportunity to doze in the daytime, and it feels nice to nap.”
The initial step to consider, therefore, is consider why you want to nap. “Naps can be truly beneficial when night sleeping is being disrupted because of factors beyond your control – such as, if you’re a parent of a newborn, or recovering after being ill or intense exercise,” states a sleep physiologist. “However, if you nap since your sleep at night is unstable or unreliable, that’s often a signal your sleep drive is not as strong as it should be. In those cases, napping can become part of the issue, instead of the fix. Employ naps for brief periods for temporary issues – the focus ought to remain a robust and regular sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be too extended to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and preferably are not recommended post-3 p.m. (contingent on when you sleep overnight). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. From a prominent study on the subject, experts found that crew members showed up to a 54% increase in vigilance and a 34% boost in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (to be precise, this counted a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20-30 minutes – most people are asleep within 10 minutes,” explains a sleep expert. “You'll find much guidance out there regarding the optimal amount of time, yet that often cause people to feel more anxious above all – and the worst thing you can possibly do while aiming to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to take an extended nap, avoid the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes sleep grogginess, that foggy state when you wake. “The science indicates it is preferable to have a longer nap of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the expert. “Three-quarters of an hour is long enough to send you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel groggy upon awakening – whereas if you nap for a little longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you’re likely to finish a natural sleep cycle and will probably awaken feeling more rejuvenated. But if you nap for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep later that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Nap Environment
When it comes to specific techniques, advice differs. Certain specialists suggest employing comparable habits one would use to promote a good night’s sleep: a silent space, a supportive surface and as much darkness as possible. Others suggest that you should just doze on the sofa in the existing light happens to be around – to avoid sleep inertia and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the place you associate with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to will,” notes an expert. “Lacking any sleepiness, it is more challenging to lie down and basically instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be some drive available to start the process initially. I can usually take a nap in broad daylight and awaken on my own without a timer, though, what aids many individuals is to wait for a moment where they feel naturally slightly tired and then simply relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and when you have few options – such as, if attempting to squeeze in 40 winks while traveling or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to employ a few tools. “In my work with footballers, I advise that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will
