Tune into a few self-improvement gurus, and it’s tempting to believe that a nap is a superpower: not just a band-aid following restless night, but a path towards a better memory, better spirits and maybe quicker running times. Professional soccer players swear by it – and so are concert pianists, fighters and high-profile executives. However, if you don't have a special sleep space or a job that encourages regular snoozing, can there *honestly* enough benefits to a short sleep to justify the effort? Can you find a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Furthermore, can you really guarantee you will arise feeling better, rather than worse?
Identifying Your Nap Motivation
“We can identify three main reasons for napping for many people,” notes an expert sleep science professor. “One is known as compensatory napping, essentially the action you take following insufficient sleep the previous night. Another is preparatory napping, when you are anticipating sleep loss in the future, for instance if you’re working overnight shifts. Finally, there's “pleasure-based sleep”, which basically is about wanting: you get an opportunity to doze during the day, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The primary task to undertake, so, is consider your nap motivation. “Naps can be genuinely useful when overnight rest gets interrupted due to causes beyond your control – for instance, if you’re caring for an infant, or recovering from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep specialist. “But if you take a nap because your night sleep feels fragile or unreliable, that is frequently a sign your need for sleep is not at the level it should be. In such situations, naps can become part of the issue, rather than the answer. Use napping as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the priority ought to remain a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Nap Length
This means that naps must not be too extended to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and best are not recommended in the late afternoon (depending on the time you go to bed overnight). How long is sensible? Advice differs. In one of the most referenced research about napping, space agency scientists discovered that space travelers showed up to a 54% increase in vigilance plus a 34% rise in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this included an initial six-minute nodding-off period). “I recommend setting a timer for half an hour or less – the majority doze off in under ten minutes,” says a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of advice around about the ideal number for sleeping, however, that can lead individuals to become more worried than anything – and the least helpful action you can possibly do while aiming to get to sleep is worry about it.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep grogginess, that foggy state upon waking. “Studies indicates it is preferable to have an extended nap of 60 to 90 minutes than a medium-length one,” explains the professor. “45 minutes is long enough to send you into slow-wave sleep and it is more probable to feel sluggish upon awakening – however, if you nap for a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to finish a full cycle and are likely to awaken feeling more rejuvenated. But if you’re sleeping for a long period, it will affect how you sleep in the evening.”
Finding the Perfect Snooze Setting
As for specific techniques, advice differs. Some experts propose employing similar routines you’d use to encourage restful sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and maximum darkness as you can manage. Some advise that one could simply nap in a chair with ambient lighting is present – both to discourage post-nap grogginess and to maintain your bedroom as the place you associate with proper sleep. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to force,” says a sleep coach. “Without any drowsiness, it is tougher to recline and basically tell yourself to go to sleep. There’s got to be a natural inclination there to initiate sleep to begin with. Personally, I can often take a nap during the day and awaken on my own alarm-free, however, what assists a lot of people is to look for an instance when they are naturally slightly tired and just gently ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and if options are scarce – for example, if attempting to fit in some shut-eye on a train or in a work pod – it's acceptable with bringing sleep aids. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I advise that they not rely on sleeping in their bed, since they’re going to have|they will
