Hear a few performance podcasters, and you'll be tempting to think that a nap is a superpower: not just a sticking plaster after a bad night’s sleep, but a route towards improved recall, better spirits and possibly quicker running times. Elite athletes swear by it – as do musicians, UFC champions & business leaders. But if you don't have a room for napping or a job that encourages regular snoozing, is it *truly* worthwhile perks to a quick nap to justify the hassle? Does there exist a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?
Identifying Your Reasons for Napping
“Experts note three main reasons for napping among most adults,” explains an expert sleep science professor. “The first is known as recovery napping, which is what happens after experiencing insufficient sleep overnight. Secondly, there's preparatory napping, which involves anticipating a sleep deficit ahead, for example when working on night shifts. Finally, there's “appetitive drive”, which basically comes down to wanting: you get a chance to sleep in the afternoon, and it feels nice to do it.”
The primary task to consider, then, is to examine why you want to nap. “Daytime sleep can be genuinely useful when nighttime sleep is being disrupted because of factors beyond your control – such as, when you are a new parent, or you’re recovering from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep physiologist. “Yet when you take a nap since your sleep at night is unstable or unreliable, that’s often a sign your body's sleep pressure is not at the level required. In such situations, napping can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Use napping as a short-term solution for temporary issues – the priority ought to remain a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Perfect Snooze Time
This means that napping must not be too extended to affect your overnight rest, and preferably shouldn’t take place post-3 p.m. (based on when you retire at night). What's a reasonable length? Guidelines are mixed. In one of a prominent study regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists found that astronauts showed up to a 54% increase in vigilance and a 34% increase in cognitive performance post a 26-minute snooze (technically, this included a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest using an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – the majority doze off quickly,” says a specialist. “There’s a lot of recommendations about the optimal amount of minutes, yet that often make people feel more stressed than anything – and the worst thing you can do when attempting to get to sleep is to be anxious.”
If you plan to nap for a longer period, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “The science would say it's more effective to opt for a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” says the professor. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to send you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel groggy when you get up – whereas if you nap for a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to finish a natural sleep cycle and will probably awaken feeling more alert. But if you nap for an hour and a half, it will affect how you sleep in the evening.”
Creating the Perfect Snooze Setting
Regarding exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. Certain specialists suggest employing similar routines you’d use to promote restful sleep: a silent space, a supportive surface and as much darkness as you can manage. Others suggest that you should just doze on the sofa in whatever light is available – both to discourage that groggy feeling and to “protect” your bedroom as the environment you associate with nighttime rest. “Napping is notoriously difficult to will,” says an expert. “If you don’t have the urge to sleep, it becomes harder to get comfortable and essentially command yourself to fall asleep. There must be some drive there to initiate sleep to begin with. For me, it's possible to snooze in full light and awaken on my own alarm-free, though, what aids many individuals is to wait for an instance when they are naturally slightly tired and then simply relax into it.”
It’s worth experimenting, and when you have few options – such as, when aiming to fit in 40 winks during a commute or in a work pod – it is perfectly fine to employ sleep aids. “In my work with elite athletes, I recommend that they don’t get used to their own bed for naps, as they’re going to have|they will
