Hear plenty of self-improvement podcasters, and it’s tempting to believe that dozing is a secret weapon: rather than a band-aid after a bad night’s sleep, but a shortcut towards enhanced cognition, improved mood and perhaps quicker running times. Elite footballers swear by it – along with concert pianists, fighters and business leaders. Yet, when you haven’t got a dedicated nap-room or a career that allows frequent naps, can there *honestly* sufficient advantages to a quick nap to merit the hassle? Can you find a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you will get up feeling improved, not worse?
Understanding The Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three key drivers for taking a nap among most adults,” explains a professor of sleep and circadian science researcher. “The first is known as make-up sleep, essentially the action you take when you’ve had poor sleep the previous night. Secondly, there's pre-emptive sleep, where you are anticipating insufficient sleep in the future, for example during graveyard shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which basically is about wanting: you get an opportunity to sleep in the daytime, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The primary task to do, therefore, is to examine your reason for napping. “Daytime sleep can be truly beneficial when overnight rest is being disrupted due to causes outside your control – for instance, for a parent of a newborn, or you’re recovering after being ill or strenuous activity,” explains a sleep specialist. “But if you’re napping because your sleep at night feels fragile or poor, that is frequently a sign your sleep drive is not as strong as required. Under those circumstances, napping can become a contributing factor, instead of the fix. Use napping as a temporary measure for short-term problems – the priority ought to remain a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that naps ought not to be too extended to affect your sleep at night, and best shouldn’t take place in the late afternoon (based on what time you retire at night). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. In one of the most referenced research about napping, experts noted that astronauts showed improvements of over 50% in vigilance and a 34% boost in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this included a six-minute long nodding-off period). “I recommend using an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – many individuals fall asleep within 10 minutes,” notes a sleep coach. “There’s a lot of advice around about the ideal number of time, however, that can lead individuals to become more stressed than anything else – and the least helpful action you can do when attempting to nod off is to stress over it.”
If you’re going to nap for a longer period, bypass the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling when you awaken. “Research suggests it is preferable to take an extended nap lasting 60-90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” explains the professor. “Three-quarters of an hour is long enough to send you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel disoriented upon awakening – whereas if you extend it a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to be completing a full cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. But if you're dozing for a long period, it can influence how you sleep that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Nap Environment
As for specific techniques, suggestions are diverse. Some experts propose adopting similar routines you’d use to promote a good night’s sleep: a peaceful area, a cozy bed and as much darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that you should merely snooze on a couch in the existing light is available – to avoid sleep inertia and to “protect” your bed as the space your mind associates with proper sleep. “Napping is something really tricky to force,” notes a specialist. “If you don’t have any sleepiness, it becomes harder to recline and practically command yourself to nod off. There’s got to be some sleep pressure present to initiate sleep in the first place. For me, it's possible to snooze in full light and naturally wake up without an alarm, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for a time that they’re naturally feeling a bit drowsy and just gently relax into it.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and if you have few options – for example, when aiming to squeeze in some shut-eye during a commute or in a work pod – it is perfectly fine to employ sleep aids. “Coaching professional sportspeople, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
