Hear enough productivity experts, and you'll be simple to convince yourself that napping is a secret weapon: not just a quick fix after restless night, but a route to improved recall, a brighter outlook and maybe quicker running times. Professional athletes do it regularly – as do musicians, fighters and business leaders. However, if you don't have a dedicated nap-room or a job that allows daytime sleep, is it *truly* enough benefits to a burst of shut-eye to justify the effort? Is there a reliable way to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to honestly promise you will get up feeling improved, rather than worse?
Exploring Your Reasons for Napping
“There are three main reasons for napping among most adults,” explains an expert circadian rhythm researcher. “Firstly, there's termed compensatory napping, that is what happens when you’ve had insufficient sleep the night before. Another is pre-emptive sleep, where you are preparing for a sleep deficit coming up, such as when working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which essentially boils down to the wish: you have a moment to nap in the daytime, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The initial step to consider, so, is to think about your nap motivation. “Naps can be really helpful when nighttime sleep gets interrupted for reasons you cannot change – for instance, if you’re a parent of a newborn, or if you are healing from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” says a sleep physiologist. “Yet when you nap as your sleep at night seems unreliable or unreliable, that is frequently an indicator your need for sleep is not at the level required. In those cases, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, rather than the answer. Utilize daytime sleep for brief periods for temporary issues – the main goal must always be a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Optimal Snooze Time
Therefore that naps must not be too extended to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally are not recommended post-3 p.m. (depending on what time you retire in the evening). How long is sensible? Guidelines are mixed. Among the most-cited studies on the subject, researchers at Nasa found that astronauts had up to a 54% increase in attentiveness plus a 34% rise in performance post a 26-minute snooze (to be precise, this included an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend setting a timer for half an hour or less – most people are asleep in under ten minutes,” says a sleep coach. “You'll find much guidance out there regarding the perfect length of time, yet that often lead individuals to become more anxious than anything – and the most counterproductive thing you can do when attempting to nod off is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to take an extended nap, avoid the 45-60 minute window that promotes sleep inertia, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “The science would say it is preferable to take a longer nap of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” explains the sleep scientist. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to send you into slow-wave sleep and it is more probable to feel disoriented upon awakening – however, if you nap for a little longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you will probably to be completing of a sleep cycle and will probably awaken feeling more refreshed. But if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it will affect how you sleep in the evening.”
Finding an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. Certain specialists propose using the same protocol you use to foster a good night’s sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and minimal light as is feasible. Some advise that one could just doze in a chair in whatever light is available – to prevent sleep inertia and to preserve your bedroom as the space your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to command,” says a specialist. “Without any sleepiness, it becomes harder to get comfortable and essentially command yourself to fall asleep. There must be a natural inclination present to bring the sleep on in the first place. Personally, I can often take a nap during the day and naturally wake up without an alarm, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for an instance where they feel naturally feeling a bit drowsy and then simply ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when options are scarce – such as, when aiming to squeeze in 40 winks during a commute or in a work pod – there’s nothing wrong to employ a few tools. “Coaching professional sportspeople, I advise that they not rely on napping in bed, because they’re going to have|they will
