Tune into a few performance experts, and you'll be easy to think that napping is a powerful tool: rather than a band-aid after poor sleep, but a route to improved recall, better spirits and maybe quicker running times. Premier League soccer players are all at it – along with professional piano players, UFC champions and media moguls. But if you lack a dedicated nap-room or a career that allows regular snoozing, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to merit the hassle? Is there a surefire technique to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?
Understanding Your Nap Motivation
“Experts note three main reasons for daytime sleep for many people,” says an expert circadian rhythm specialist. “One is termed recovery napping, that is the action you take after experiencing insufficient sleep the night before. The second is preparatory napping, when you are preparing for a sleep deficit ahead, for example if you’re working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which essentially is about desire: there is a chance to doze during the day, and it feels nice to do it.”
The initial step to undertake, then, is consider your nap motivation. “Daytime sleep can be really helpful when overnight rest is being disrupted due to causes outside your control – such as, for a parent of a newborn, or you’re recovering from sickness or intense exercise,” says a sleep expert. “But if you take a nap because your nighttime sleep feels fragile or poor, that’s often an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not where it should be. Under those circumstances, naps can become a contributing factor, rather than the answer. Employ naps as a short-term solution for short-term problems – the main goal should still be a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Ideal Snooze Time
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be long enough to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally should not occur after about 3pm (depending on when you retire overnight). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. From the most referenced research about napping, researchers at Nasa noted that crew members had improvements of over 50% in vigilance and a 34% increase in performance post a 26-minute snooze (to be precise, this involved a six-minute long nodding-off period). “I’d suggest setting a timer for half an hour or less – most people are asleep within 10 minutes,” notes a sleep coach. “There is plenty of recommendations about the optimal amount for sleeping, but that tends to lead individuals to become more anxious above all – and the least helpful action you can do when attempting to nod off is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, steer clear of the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces that sluggish feeling, that disoriented sensation when you awaken. “Studies suggests it is preferable to opt for a longer nap lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” explains the professor. “45 minutes is long enough to put you into deep sleep and it is more probable to feel groggy when you wake up – whereas if you extend it a little longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be on the end of a sleep cycle and are likely to awaken feeling more rejuvenated. However, if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it may impact how you sleep later that night.”
Finding an Ideal Nap Environment
Regarding specific techniques, advice differs. Some experts recommend employing comparable habits you’d use to encourage quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as possible. Some advise that it's fine to simply nap in a chair in the existing light happens to be around – both to discourage sleep inertia and to maintain your bed as the environment your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Sleep is something really tricky to force,” says an expert. “Without any drowsiness, it becomes harder to recline and essentially command yourself to go to sleep. There must be some drive there to initiate sleep in the first place. For me, it's possible to nap in broad daylight and wake up naturally without a timer, however, what assists a lot of people is to anticipate an instance where they feel naturally feeling a bit drowsy and calmly allow sleep to come.”
Experimentation is key, and if you have few options – such as, if attempting to squeeze in 40 winks while traveling or in a work pod – there’s nothing wrong to employ a few tools. “When I’m working with footballers, I recommend that they not rely on their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
