Hear plenty of self-improvement experts, and you'll be easy to believe that dozing is a superpower: more than a sticking plaster following poor sleep, but a route towards improved recall, a brighter outlook and maybe a faster 5k run time. Professional soccer players swear by it – as do concert pianists, mixed martial artists & business leaders. But if you don't have a dedicated nap-room or a career that allows regular snoozing, can there *honestly* enough benefits to a quick nap to justify the effort? Can you find a reliable way to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you’ll wake up feeling better, instead of groggy?
Identifying The Nap Motivation
“We can identify three main reasons for napping for many people,” notes a professor of circadian rhythm specialist. “The first is termed compensatory napping, that is the action you take following insufficient sleep overnight. Another is prophylactic napping, where you are preparing for a sleep deficit ahead, such as when working graveyard shifts. The third is called “appetitive drive”, which simply comes down to desire: you get a moment to doze in the afternoon, and it feels nice to indulge.”
The initial step to do, then, is consider why you want to nap. “Napping can be genuinely useful when overnight rest is disturbed for reasons outside your control – such as, when you are caring for an infant, or recovering from illness or strenuous activity,” states a sleep expert. “However, if you nap since your nighttime sleep feels fragile or poor, that’s often a sign your body's sleep pressure is not at the level it needs to be. In those cases, napping can become part of the issue, rather than the answer. Utilize daytime sleep as a short-term solution for short-term problems – the focus should still be a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
Therefore that napping shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and best shouldn’t take place post-3 p.m. (depending on the time you retire in the evening). What duration is wise? Advice differs. Among the most referenced research about napping, experts discovered that space travelers showed improvements of over 50% in alertness and a 34% increase in performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this counted a six-minute long nodding-off period). “I’d suggest using an alarm for half an hour or less – most people doze off within 10 minutes,” says a sleep coach. “There’s a lot of guidance out there about the perfect length of time, yet that often make people feel more stressed above all – and the worst thing you can do when trying to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that promotes sleep grogginess, that foggy state upon waking. “Research indicates it is preferable to opt for a lengthier snooze of 60 to 90 minutes than a medium-length one,” notes the expert. “45 minutes is enough time to put you into a deep sleep stage and you’re more likely to feel disoriented upon awakening – however, if you nap for a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you will probably to be on the end a natural sleep cycle and will probably wake up feeling more refreshed. Though if you nap for a long period, it will affect how you sleep that night.”
Finding the Perfect Nap Environment
When it comes to specific techniques, advice differs. A few professionals propose employing similar routines one would use to encourage restful sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and minimal light as is feasible. Alternatively, experts propose that you should simply nap in a chair in the existing light is available – both to discourage sleep inertia and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the space you associate with proper sleep. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to command,” says an expert. “If you don’t have the urge to sleep, it becomes harder to lie down and basically tell yourself to fall asleep. You need a natural inclination available to start the process initially. Personally, I can often snooze during the day and naturally wake up without an alarm, though, what aids a lot of people is to wait for a time when they are naturally slightly tired and calmly relax into it.”
It’s worth experimenting, and should your choices are limited – for example, when aiming to squeeze in 40 winks on a train or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to use a few tools. “When I’m working with footballers, I suggest that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will
