Tune into a few productivity gurus, making it easy to convince yourself that a nap is a powerful tool: rather than a sticking plaster following poor sleep, but a path to enhanced cognition, improved mood and perhaps quicker running times. Premier League footballers swear by it – along with professional piano players, mixed martial artists and business leaders. But if you don't have a special sleep space or a job that permits regular snoozing, can there *honestly* worthwhile perks to a quick nap for it to be worth the effort? Does there exist a reliable way to nod off promptly? And can you really guarantee you will get up feeling better, rather than worse?
Exploring The Nap Motivation
“There are three primary motivations for taking a nap for many people,” says a leading circadian rhythm specialist. “The first is known as recovery napping, that is what happens after experiencing insufficient sleep the night before. Secondly, there's pre-emptive sleep, when you are pre-empting insufficient sleep coming up, such as when working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which essentially boils down to wanting: there is an opportunity to nap in the afternoon, and it's pleasant to indulge.”
The first thing to do, so, is to examine your nap motivation. “Napping can be truly beneficial when night sleeping is disturbed due to causes beyond your control – for instance, if you’re caring for an infant, or you’re recovering after being ill or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep specialist. “But if you take a nap as your nighttime sleep feels fragile or poor, that’s often an indicator your sleep drive is not as strong as required. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the problem, instead of the fix. Employ naps for brief periods for short-term problems – the main goal should still be a robust and regular sleep at night.”
The Optimal Nap Length
This means that naps shouldn’t be too extended to affect your sleep at night, and preferably should not occur in the late afternoon (contingent on when you retire at night). What duration is wise? Advice differs. In one of the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists discovered that astronauts experienced improvements of over 50% in alertness plus a 34% rise in task performance after a 26-minute nap (in detail, this involved an initial six-minute sleep onset time). “I recommend using an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – many individuals fall asleep in under ten minutes,” explains a sleep expert. “You'll find much advice around regarding the ideal number for sleeping, however, that can make people feel more anxious than anything – and the worst thing you can do when trying to nod off is to stress over it.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, steer clear of the 45 to 60 minute range that encourages sleep inertia, that foggy state when you awaken. “The science suggests it is preferable to have an extended nap of 60 to 90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the expert. “45 minutes is enough time to send you into deep sleep making it more likely to feel sluggish upon awakening – while if you take it a little longer to a full sleep cycle, you will probably to finish a full cycle and will probably awaken feeling more rejuvenated. Though if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it can influence how you sleep later that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Sleep Space
As for exact methodologies, advice differs. Some experts propose employing comparable habits you’d use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a quiet room, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that you should merely snooze in a chair with ambient lighting happens to be around – both to discourage that groggy feeling and to “protect” your bedroom as the environment your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is something really tricky to will,” explains an expert. “Without the urge to sleep, it is more challenging to recline and essentially instruct yourself to go to sleep. There must be some drive present to start the process in the first place. For me, it's possible to take a nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up without a timer, however, what assists many individuals is to look for an instance when they are naturally somewhat sleepy and calmly allow sleep to come.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when you have few options – for instance, if attempting to squeeze in a quick nap during a commute or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to employ a few tools. “When I’m working with footballers, I recommend that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will
