Hear a few productivity gurus, and it’s simple to believe that dozing is a superpower: more than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a shortcut to enhanced cognition, better spirits and possibly a faster 5k run time. Premier League soccer players are all at it – and so are concert pianists, mixed martial artists and business leaders. But if you haven’t got a dedicated nap-room or a job that encourages daytime sleep, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a short sleep to justify the kerfuffle? Does there exist a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, rather than worse?
Identifying Your Nap Motivation
“There are three key drivers for daytime sleep in the adult population,” explains a professor of sleep and circadian science professor. “The first is termed compensatory napping, essentially what happens when you’ve had a lack of sleep the night before. Secondly, there's prophylactic napping, when you are pre-empting sleep loss in the future, for instance during graveyard shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which simply comes down to the wish: you get a chance to nap during the day, and it's pleasant to indulge.”
The primary task to consider, so, is consider your reason for napping. “Naps can be really helpful when overnight rest gets interrupted for reasons you cannot change – for instance, for a new parent, or recovering from illness or strenuous activity,” says a sleep expert. “However, if you nap as your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or poor, that’s often a sign your body's sleep pressure is not as strong as required. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, not the solution. Use napping as a temporary measure to address immediate needs – the priority ought to remain a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Ideal Nap Length
This implies that naps ought not to be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your overnight rest, and best should not occur in the late afternoon (contingent on what time you retire overnight). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. Among a prominent study about napping, experts discovered that crew members showed a boost of up to 54% in alertness and a 34% increase in cognitive performance post a 26-minute snooze (to be precise, this involved an initial six-minute sleep onset time). “My advice is setting an alarm for half an hour or less – most people fall asleep within 10 minutes,” says a specialist. “There is plenty of advice around regarding the perfect length of minutes, but that tends to make people feel more worried than anything else – and the most counterproductive thing you can possibly do when trying to get to sleep is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, steer clear of the 45 to 60 minute range that encourages sleep grogginess, that foggy state when you wake. “Research suggests it’s better to have an extended nap lasting 60-90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” notes the expert. “45 minutes is long enough to put you into slow-wave sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy when you get up – however, if you extend it a bit longer to a full sleep cycle, you’re likely to finish a natural sleep cycle and are likely to awaken feeling more alert. However, if you nap for 90 minutes, it can influence the quality of your sleep that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for exact methodologies, advice differs. Some experts propose employing the same protocol you use to foster quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that you should merely snooze on a couch in whatever light is available – to avoid that groggy feeling and to maintain your bed as the place your mind associates with proper sleep. “Falling asleep is something really tricky to force,” explains an expert. “Without any sleepiness, it is tougher to get comfortable and practically instruct yourself to go to sleep. There’s got to be some drive there to bring the sleep on to begin with. For me, it's possible to take a nap in full light and awaken on my own without a timer, however, what assists most folks is to wait for a moment that they’re naturally slightly tired and just gently allow sleep to come.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and should options are scarce – for example, if attempting to fit in some shut-eye on a train or at the office – it's acceptable with bringing some accessories. “In my work with footballers, I recommend that they avoid becoming accustomed to napping in bed, as they’re going to have|they will
