Hear plenty of productivity experts, and you'll be tempting to convince yourself that napping is a secret weapon: rather than a band-aid following restless night, but a path towards improved recall, a brighter outlook and maybe improved athletic performance. Professional soccer players swear by it – as do concert pianists, fighters & business leaders. However, if you don't have a room for napping or a career that allows frequent naps, is it *truly* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to justify the hassle? Can you find a dependable method to nod off promptly? Furthermore, can you really guarantee you will arise feeling better, rather than worse?
Identifying The Reasons for Napping
“We can identify three primary motivations for napping for many people,” explains a leading sleep and circadian science researcher. “Firstly, there's termed make-up sleep, which is what happens when you’ve had a lack of sleep the previous night. Another is pre-emptive sleep, which involves preparing for sleep loss coming up, for instance when working on night shifts. The third is called “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially comes down to wanting: you get a chance to doze during the day, and it feels nice to do it.”
The initial step to consider, then, is to examine your nap motivation. “Naps can be truly beneficial when overnight rest is being disrupted due to causes outside your control – for example, if you’re caring for an infant, or you’re recovering from sickness or intense exercise,” says a sleep physiologist. “However, if you nap because your nighttime sleep is unstable or poor, that’s often a signal your need for sleep is not as strong as it needs to be. In those cases, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, instead of the fix. Use napping as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the focus must always be a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Perfect Nap Duration
This implies that napping ought not to be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your sleep at night, and ideally should not occur in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you go to bed in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. Among a prominent study about napping, space agency scientists discovered that space travelers showed up to a 54% increase in vigilance and a 34% increase in task performance post a 26-minute snooze (in detail, this involved a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting an alarm for half an hour or less – the majority are asleep within 10 minutes,” explains a specialist. “You'll find much recommendations concerning the ideal number of time, but that tends to cause people to feel more stressed above all – and the least helpful action you can possibly do when attempting to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, steer clear of the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “Research indicates it is preferable to have a longer nap lasting 60-90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” says the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is enough time to send you into slow-wave sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy when you wake up – however, if you nap for a little longer to a full sleep cycle, you’re likely to finish of a sleep cycle and will probably get up feeling more rejuvenated. But if you’re sleeping for a long period, it can influence the quality of your sleep in the evening.”
Establishing an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for specific techniques, advice differs. A few professionals propose adopting the same protocol you use to foster restful sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and as much darkness as you can manage. Some advise that one could simply nap in a chair in whatever light happens to be around – to prevent sleep inertia and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the environment you associate with nighttime rest. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to will,” explains a specialist. “Lacking any sleepiness, it becomes harder to get comfortable and practically command yourself to nod off. There’s got to be some drive there to start the process to begin with. For me, it's possible to snooze in full light and wake up naturally alarm-free, however, what assists most folks is to look for a time where they feel naturally somewhat sleepy and calmly allow sleep to come.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when you have few options – such as, if attempting to grab some shut-eye while traveling or in a work pod – there’s nothing wrong to employ some accessories. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I suggest that they not rely on napping in bed, as they’re going to have|they will
