Tune into enough performance experts, and you'll be tempting to convince yourself that dozing is a superpower: more than a quick fix after restless night, but a path to improved recall, improved mood and maybe improved athletic performance. Premier League athletes swear by it – and so are concert pianists, mixed martial artists and media moguls. However, if you lack a dedicated nap-room or employment that encourages frequent naps, is it *truly* enough benefits to a short sleep for it to be worth the effort? Is there a reliable way to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you really guarantee you will get up feeling refreshed, instead of groggy?
Identifying The Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three primary motivations for napping in the adult population,” explains a leading circadian rhythm specialist. “Firstly, there's known as compensatory napping, that is what happens following insufficient sleep overnight. Secondly, there's prophylactic napping, where you are anticipating a sleep deficit coming up, for example when working overnight shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which simply comes down to the wish: you get a moment to sleep during the day, and it feels nice to nap.”
The initial step to do, then, is consider why you want to nap. “Naps can be genuinely useful when night sleeping gets interrupted because of factors outside your control – for instance, when you are a new parent, or recovering from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” says a sleep expert. “However, if you take a nap because your night sleep is unstable or broken, that can be a sign your body's sleep pressure is not where it should be. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, rather than the answer. Employ naps as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the priority ought to remain a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Optimal Snooze Time
This means that napping ought not to be long enough to interfere with your sleep at night, and ideally should not occur post-3 p.m. (based on when you retire at night). How long is sensible? Advice differs. From a prominent study regarding daytime sleep, experts found that astronauts had up to a 54% increase in vigilance and a 34% increase in task performance after a 26-minute nap (in detail, this involved a six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend using an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals are asleep quickly,” notes a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of guidance out there about the optimal amount for sleeping, but that tends to make people feel more anxious above all – and the least helpful action you can do when attempting to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you plan to take an extended nap, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “Studies 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. “45 minutes is sufficient to put you into deep sleep making it more likely to feel groggy when you get up – whereas if you extend it a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be completing a natural sleep cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. Though if you’re sleeping for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep in the evening.”
Creating the Right Snooze Setting
Regarding exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. Some experts recommend using the same protocol you use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a peaceful area, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as possible. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to just doze in a chair with ambient lighting happens to be around – to avoid that groggy feeling and to maintain your sleeping quarters as the space your brain links with proper sleep. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to will,” explains a sleep coach. “Lacking any drowsiness, it becomes harder to lie down and practically instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be a natural inclination present to initiate sleep initially. Personally, I can often nap during the day and naturally wake up without an alarm, however, what assists a lot of people is to anticipate a time where they feel naturally feeling a bit drowsy and calmly ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and should your choices are limited – for instance, if you’re trying to fit in 40 winks while traveling or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to use some accessories. “When I’m working with elite athletes, I suggest that they not rely on sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
