Hear plenty of productivity gurus, and it’s tempting to believe that napping is a superpower: rather than a sticking plaster after restless night, but a shortcut to improved recall, a brighter outlook and possibly improved athletic performance. Premier League footballers are all at it – along with concert pianists, mixed martial artists and business leaders. However, if you lack a room for napping or a job that encourages regular snoozing, is it *truly* worthwhile perks to a short sleep to justify the hassle? Can you find a reliable way to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling refreshed, not worse?
Understanding The Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three primary motivations for taking a nap among most adults,” says a professor of sleep and circadian science researcher. “Firstly, there's termed recovery napping, that is the action you take following poor sleep the previous night. The second is pre-emptive sleep, where you are pre-empting sleep loss ahead, for instance during graveyard shifts. The third reason is “appetitive drive”, which essentially boils down to wanting: you get a moment to sleep in the afternoon, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The primary task to do, therefore, is to examine your reason for napping. “Naps can be truly beneficial when nighttime sleep gets interrupted because of factors outside your control – for instance, for a parent of a newborn, or recovering after being ill or intense exercise,” states a sleep specialist. “However, if you’re napping because your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or poor, that’s often an indicator your sleep drive is not at the level required. In those cases, naps can become part of the problem, not the solution. Employ naps for brief periods for short-term problems – the main goal ought to remain a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be too extended to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally are not recommended in the late afternoon (depending on what time you go to bed at night). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. Among a prominent study on the subject, space agency scientists found that astronauts had a boost of up to 54% in alertness and a 34% boost in performance after a 26-minute nap (technically, this included a six-minute long nodding-off period). “I’d suggest setting a timer for half an hour or less – many individuals doze off within 10 minutes,” explains a sleep coach. “You'll find much recommendations regarding the perfect length of time, but that tends to cause people to feel more worried above all – and the worst thing you can do while aiming to get to sleep is to stress over it.”
If you plan to nap for a longer period, steer clear of the 45 to 60 minute range that encourages sleep grogginess, that spaced-out feeling when you awaken. “Research would say it's more effective to opt for an extended nap of 60 to 90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” says the expert. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to plunge you into deep sleep and it is more probable to feel groggy when you wake up – however, if you extend it a bit longer to a full sleep cycle, you will probably to finish a full cycle and should get up feeling more alert. But if you’re sleeping for 90 minutes, it can influence the quality of your sleep later that night.”
Finding the Perfect Sleep Space
As for precise methods, suggestions are diverse. Certain specialists propose employing similar routines you’d use to encourage quality nighttime sleep: a quiet room, a comfortable bed and as much darkness as you can manage. Some advise that it's fine to merely snooze on the sofa in whatever light happens to be around – to avoid sleep inertia and to maintain your bedroom as the place you associate with proper sleep. “Napping is quite challenging to command,” notes an expert. “Without any drowsiness, it becomes harder to lie down and essentially tell yourself to fall asleep. You need a natural inclination present to bring the sleep on to begin with. For me, it's possible to nap in full light and naturally wake up without a timer, though, what aids most folks is to look for a time where they feel naturally somewhat sleepy and then simply ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and should your choices are limited – such as, if you’re trying to fit in some shut-eye during a commute or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to use sleep aids. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I recommend that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, since they’re going to have|they will
