Listen to enough productivity experts, and you'll be tempting to believe that dozing is a superpower: more than a band-aid after restless night, but a path towards a better memory, better spirits and maybe quicker running times. Professional athletes are all at it – as do concert pianists, UFC champions and media moguls. However, if you lack a special sleep space or a career that permits daytime sleep, are there *really* enough benefits to a short sleep to merit the effort? Is there a reliable way to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you honestly promise you will arise feeling better, not worse?
Exploring Your Reasons for Napping
“Experts note three key drivers for napping among most adults,” says a leading sleep science specialist. “Firstly, there's what we call make-up sleep, essentially what you do following insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is pre-emptive sleep, where you are preparing for a sleep deficit ahead, for example during overnight shifts. Finally, there's “appetitive drive”, which simply boils down to the wish: you have a chance to doze in the afternoon, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The first thing to consider, then, is consider your nap motivation. “Daytime sleep can be really helpful when overnight rest gets interrupted for reasons beyond your control – for example, when you are caring for an infant, or if you are healing after being ill or strenuous activity,” states a sleep specialist. “However, if you nap since your night sleep seems unreliable or broken, that can be a sign your need for sleep is not at the level it needs to be. In those cases, napping can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Employ naps for brief periods for temporary issues – the priority must always be a robust and regular sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be long enough to affect your overnight rest, and preferably shouldn’t take place post-3 p.m. (based on the time you sleep in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. From the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, researchers at Nasa noted that space travelers had up to a 54% increase in attentiveness and a 34% boost in performance post a 26-minute snooze (in detail, this included a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20-30 minutes – the majority doze off in under ten minutes,” says a specialist. “You'll find much advice around about the optimal amount for sleeping, however, that can lead individuals to become more anxious than anything else – and the worst thing one can do when trying to fall asleep is worry about it.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, bypass the 45-60 minute window that encourages that sluggish feeling, that disoriented sensation when you awaken. “Research suggests it's more effective to opt for an extended nap lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” notes the professor. “45 minutes is sufficient to put you into deep sleep making it more likely to feel sluggish when you get up – while if you nap for slightly longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to be on the end of a sleep cycle and should awaken feeling more rejuvenated. Though if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it may impact how you sleep later that night.”
Creating the Perfect Sleep Space
Regarding precise methods, suggestions are diverse. Some experts recommend using comparable habits you’d use to foster a good night’s sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and minimal light as you can manage. Some advise that you should merely snooze on a couch in whatever light happens to be around – both to discourage sleep inertia and to maintain your bedroom as the space you associate with nighttime rest. “Napping is something really tricky to command,” says an expert. “If you don’t have any sleepiness, it is tougher to get comfortable and essentially command yourself to nod off. There’s got to be some drive present to start the process in the first place. I can usually nap during the day and naturally wake up without a timer, though, what aids most folks is to look for an instance that they’re naturally slightly tired and then simply ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and if options are scarce – such as, when aiming to squeeze in 40 winks during a commute or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable with bringing some accessories. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I advise that they not rely on napping in bed, as they’re going to have|they will
