Tune into plenty of performance experts, making it simple to think that a nap is a superpower: not just a sticking plaster following a bad night’s sleep, but a path to a better memory, better spirits and maybe quicker running times. Professional athletes are all at it – as do concert pianists, UFC champions and business leaders. But if you haven’t got a room for napping or a job that encourages daytime sleep, is it *truly* enough benefits to a short sleep to merit the effort? Is there a surefire technique to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you really guarantee you will get up feeling better, instead of groggy?
Understanding The Reasons for Napping
“There are three primary motivations for napping in the adult population,” explains a leading sleep science specialist. “Firstly, there's what we call recovery napping, essentially the action you take when you’ve had insufficient sleep the previous night. Another is prophylactic napping, when you are pre-empting sleep loss ahead, for example when working overnight shifts. The third is called “appetitive drive”, which basically boils down to desire: you have an opportunity to nap during the day, and it's pleasant to indulge.”
The primary task to consider, therefore, is consider your nap motivation. “Daytime sleep can be really helpful when nighttime sleep is disturbed because of factors outside your control – for example, for a parent of a newborn, or if you are healing from illness or heavy physical exertion,” explains a sleep specialist. “However, if you nap since your sleep at night feels fragile or poor, that is frequently a sign your sleep drive is not where it needs to be. In such situations, napping can become part of the issue, not the solution. Employ naps for brief periods for short-term problems – the main goal ought to remain a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Perfect Snooze Time
This means that napping shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to affect your overnight rest, and preferably are not recommended after about 3pm (depending on what time you sleep overnight). What duration is wise? Recommendations vary. In one of the most-cited studies regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists discovered that astronauts experienced improvements of over 50% in alertness plus a 34% rise in performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this involved a six-minute nodding-off period). “I’d suggest setting a timer for half an hour or less – the majority fall asleep in under ten minutes,” notes a sleep expert. “You'll find much advice around about the ideal number of time, however, that can cause people to feel more stressed above all – and the worst thing one can do when attempting to fall asleep is worry about it.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, bypass the 45-60 minute window that encourages sleep grogginess, that foggy state when you wake. “Research would say it's more effective to take an extended nap of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” notes the expert. “Forty-five minutes is enough time to plunge you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel groggy upon awakening – while if you extend it a little longer to 60 or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to finish a natural sleep cycle and should get up feeling more alert. Though if you're dozing for a long period, it can influence how you sleep later that night.”
Creating an Ideal Sleep Space
As for specific techniques, advice differs. Certain specialists propose employing the same protocol you use to encourage quality nighttime sleep: a peaceful area, a cozy bed and minimal light as you can manage. Some advise that it's fine to just doze in a chair with ambient lighting happens to be around – to prevent sleep inertia and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the place you associate with *real* sleep. “Napping is notoriously difficult to will,” notes a specialist. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is tougher to get comfortable and basically tell yourself to nod off. There’s got to be a natural inclination there to bring the sleep on initially. For me, it's possible to snooze in broad daylight and naturally wake up without a timer, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for a moment when they are naturally somewhat sleepy and then simply ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and should you have few options – for instance, when aiming to grab some shut-eye during a commute or at the office – there’s nothing wrong to employ sleep aids. “Coaching elite athletes, I recommend that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
