Hear enough performance gurus, and you'll be tempting to think that dozing is a powerful tool: not just a band-aid after a bad night’s sleep, but a path towards a better memory, better spirits and perhaps improved athletic performance. Professional soccer players are all at it – and so are professional piano players, fighters & business leaders. However, if you haven’t got a special sleep space or a job that allows frequent naps, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a short sleep for it to be worth the effort? Does there exist a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you honestly promise you’ll wake up feeling improved, rather than worse?
Understanding The Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three primary motivations for taking a nap for many people,” notes a professor of sleep and circadian science professor. “One is termed compensatory napping, essentially what you do following poor sleep overnight. Another is preparatory napping, when you are pre-empting a sleep deficit ahead, for example if you’re working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “appetitive drive”, which basically comes down to wanting: there is a moment to nap in the afternoon, and it feels nice to indulge.”
The primary task to consider, so, is to think about why you want to nap. “Napping can be truly beneficial when nighttime sleep gets interrupted because of factors beyond your control – such as, for a new parent, or if you are healing after being ill or intense exercise,” says a sleep expert. “But if you take a nap since your sleep at night is unstable or broken, that can be a sign your need for sleep is not at the level required. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into a contributing factor, not the solution. Employ naps for brief periods for short-term problems – the focus ought to remain a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Perfect Snooze Time
Therefore that napping must not be too extended to interfere with your sleep at night, and preferably are not recommended after about 3pm (depending on what time you sleep in the evening). How long is sensible? Recommendations vary. From a prominent study about napping, space agency scientists discovered that astronauts experienced up to a 54% increase in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance after a 26-minute nap (technically, this involved a six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend using an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – most people doze off in under ten minutes,” says a sleep expert. “You'll find much guidance out there about the ideal number of time, however, that can cause people to feel more stressed above all – and the most counterproductive thing you can possibly do when attempting to fall asleep is worry about it.”
If you plan to nap for a longer period, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep grogginess, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “The science indicates it is preferable to take a longer nap lasting 60-90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the expert. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to put you into slow-wave sleep and it is more probable to feel sluggish when you wake up – while if you nap for a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be completing a natural sleep cycle and will probably get up feeling more rejuvenated. However, if you’re sleeping for 90 minutes, it may impact how you sleep later that night.”
Finding an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for specific techniques, recommendations vary. Some experts recommend using comparable habits you use to encourage restful sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and minimal light as is feasible. Others suggest that you should merely snooze on a couch with ambient lighting happens to be around – to prevent sleep inertia and to preserve your bed as the space your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to command,” says a specialist. “Without any sleepiness, it is tougher to recline and essentially tell yourself to fall asleep. You need some sleep pressure there to bring the sleep on in the first place. I can usually take a nap in full light and awaken on my own without an alarm, but what helps many individuals is to look for a time when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and then simply allow sleep to come.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if your choices are limited – such as, if attempting to fit in 40 winks on a train or in a work pod – it is perfectly fine to use a few tools. “Coaching elite athletes, I advise that they not rely on their own bed for naps, as they’re going to have|they will
