Listen to plenty of self-improvement podcasters, making it simple to think that napping is a powerful tool: not just a band-aid after restless night, but a shortcut to enhanced cognition, a brighter outlook and possibly improved athletic performance. Elite athletes are all at it – and so are concert pianists, fighters and high-profile executives. However, if you lack a dedicated nap-room or a job that allows frequent naps, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a quick nap to merit the hassle? Is there a surefire technique to fall asleep fast? Furthermore, can you honestly promise you will get up feeling improved, not worse?
Understanding The Nap Motivation
“There are three key drivers for daytime sleep in the adult population,” says an expert sleep and circadian science professor. “One is what we call make-up sleep, essentially what you do following insufficient sleep the previous night. Secondly, there's prophylactic napping, when you are anticipating sleep loss in the future, for example if you’re working graveyard shifts. Finally, there's “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially comes down to desire: you get a moment to nap in the daytime, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The primary task to consider, so, is to examine your nap motivation. “Napping can be genuinely useful when night sleeping is disturbed due to causes outside your control – for instance, for a new parent, or recovering from sickness or intense exercise,” says a sleep expert. “But if you take a nap since your nighttime sleep feels fragile or unreliable, that’s often a signal your sleep drive is not as strong as it needs to be. In those cases, napping can become part of the issue, rather than the answer. Use napping for brief periods for short-term problems – the main goal ought to remain a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Optimal Snooze Time
Therefore that daytime sleep must not be sufficiently lengthy to affect your overnight rest, and best are not recommended in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you retire overnight). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. From the most-cited studies about napping, researchers at Nasa discovered that space travelers had up to a 54% increase in attentiveness and a 34% increase in performance after a 26-minute nap (technically, this counted a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I recommend using an alarm for 20-30 minutes – most people fall asleep within 10 minutes,” notes a specialist. “There is plenty of advice around regarding the perfect length of time, but that tends to make people feel more stressed than anything – and the most counterproductive thing you can possibly do when trying to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, avoid the 45 to 60 minute range that encourages that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling when you awaken. “The science indicates it's more effective to take a lengthier snooze of one to one and a half hours rather than a mid-length nap,” says the sleep scientist. “Three-quarters of an hour is sufficient to plunge you into deep sleep making it more likely to feel sluggish upon awakening – however, if you nap for slightly longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you will probably to be on the end of a sleep cycle and should get up feeling more rejuvenated. Though if you nap for 90 minutes, it may impact your sleep in the evening.”
Creating an Ideal Sleep Space
Regarding exact methodologies, advice differs. Certain specialists recommend employing similar routines you use to promote restful sleep: a peaceful area, a supportive surface and minimal light as possible. Some advise that you should simply nap in a chair with ambient lighting is present – both to discourage that groggy feeling and to “protect” your bedroom as the place your brain links with *real* sleep. “Napping is quite challenging to force,” says a sleep coach. “If you don’t have any sleepiness, it is tougher to lie down and essentially instruct yourself to nod off. There’s got to be some drive there to start the process in the first place. Personally, I can often snooze during the day and naturally wake up without an alarm, though, what aids many individuals is to anticipate a time where they feel naturally somewhat sleepy and calmly relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and if you have few options – for example, when aiming to fit in some shut-eye on a train or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to employ sleep aids. “When I’m working with elite athletes, I recommend that they not rely on their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
