Tune into plenty of self-improvement experts, and it’s simple to believe that napping is a secret weapon: not just a quick fix after poor sleep, but a path towards a better memory, a brighter outlook and maybe improved athletic performance. Premier League footballers do it regularly – and so are musicians, fighters & media moguls. Yet, when you lack a room for napping or a job that encourages regular snoozing, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a short sleep to merit the effort? Is there a reliable way to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you’ll wake up feeling refreshed, instead of groggy?
Exploring The Drive to Snooze
“We can identify three key drivers for taking a nap for many people,” explains a leading sleep and circadian science specialist. “Firstly, there's termed compensatory napping, which is what you do after experiencing insufficient sleep the previous night. Another is prophylactic napping, which involves preparing for sleep loss ahead, for example during on night shifts. The third is called “hedonic napping”, which basically comes down to the wish: there is a chance to doze in the afternoon, and it's pleasant to do it.”
The first thing to undertake, so, is consider your nap motivation. “Napping can be genuinely useful when overnight rest is being disrupted for reasons you cannot change – for instance, when you are a parent of a newborn, or if you are healing after being ill or intense exercise,” states a sleep specialist. “However, if you take a nap as your sleep at night seems unreliable or poor, that’s often an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not where it needs to be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the issue, not the solution. Utilize daytime sleep as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the focus must always be a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Perfect Nap Duration
This means that naps ought not to be long enough to affect your sleep at night, and ideally should not occur post-3 p.m. (depending on what time you go to bed in the evening). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. From a prominent study regarding daytime sleep, researchers at Nasa noted that space travelers experienced a boost of up to 54% in vigilance and a 34% boost in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this counted an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – the majority doze off within 10 minutes,” explains a specialist. “There’s a lot of guidance out there about the optimal amount of time, but that tends to make people feel more worried above all – and the least helpful action you can possibly do when trying to get to sleep is worry about it.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that encourages sleep grogginess, that foggy state when you awaken. “The science indicates it's more effective to take a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” says the expert. “Forty-five minutes is sufficient to put you into a deep sleep stage and you’re more likely to feel groggy upon awakening – whereas if you take it a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to finish a full cycle and should wake up feeling more refreshed. However, if you’re sleeping for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep that night.”
Finding the Perfect Snooze Setting
When it comes to precise methods, advice differs. A few professionals recommend employing similar routines you’d use to foster quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as possible. Some advise that one could merely snooze in a chair with ambient lighting is available – both to discourage post-nap grogginess and to preserve your bed as the space you associate with proper sleep. “Sleep is something really tricky to force,” notes an expert. “Without any drowsiness, it is tougher to lie down and basically instruct yourself to nod off. There must be some drive available to initiate sleep to begin with. I can usually nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up without an alarm, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for a time where they feel naturally somewhat sleepy and then simply allow sleep to come.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when your choices are limited – such as, if attempting to fit in 40 winks during a commute or at the office – it is perfectly fine with bringing sleep aids. “In my work with footballers, I advise that they not rely on their own bed for naps, as they’re going to have|they will
