Hear plenty of performance experts, and you'll be simple to convince yourself that dozing is a powerful tool: rather than a sticking plaster following a bad night’s sleep, but a shortcut towards improved recall, improved mood and maybe quicker running times. Premier League athletes swear by it – and so are professional piano players, UFC champions & business leaders. However, if you haven’t got a special sleep space or employment that permits regular snoozing, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to merit the hassle? Does there exist a surefire technique to fall asleep fast? And can you honestly promise you will get up feeling better, instead of groggy?
Exploring Your Reasons for Napping
“Experts note three main reasons for taking a nap in the adult population,” says a professor of sleep and circadian science researcher. “Firstly, there's what we call make-up sleep, that is what happens when you’ve had insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is preparatory napping, when you are preparing for a sleep deficit ahead, for instance if you’re working graveyard shifts. Finally, there's “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially comes down to the wish: you have an opportunity to sleep in the daytime, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The primary task to undertake, so, is consider your reason for napping. “Napping can be genuinely useful when overnight rest is being disrupted for reasons you cannot change – for instance, if you’re a new parent, or you’re recovering after being ill or strenuous activity,” states a sleep physiologist. “However, if you’re napping because your night sleep is unstable or unreliable, that’s often a signal your body's sleep pressure is not where it should be. In such situations, naps can become a contributing factor, instead of the fix. Employ naps as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the priority should still be a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Optimal Snooze Time
This implies that naps ought not to be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and best shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (depending on the time you retire in the evening). How long is sensible? Advice differs. From the most-cited studies about napping, researchers at Nasa found that astronauts had improvements of over 50% in alertness plus a 34% rise in performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this included a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – many individuals are asleep in under ten minutes,” explains a specialist. “There is plenty of advice around regarding the ideal number of time, yet that often make people feel more anxious than anything – and the most counterproductive thing one can do while aiming to get to sleep is to stress over it.”
If you’re going to nap for a longer period, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep inertia, that spaced-out feeling when you wake. “The science would say it’s better to take a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” explains the professor. “Three-quarters of an hour is long enough to put you into slow-wave sleep and it is more probable to feel groggy when you get up – however, if you extend it a little longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to finish a full cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. However, if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it may impact your sleep in the evening.”
Creating an Ideal Nap Environment
When it comes to exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. Some experts suggest employing similar routines one would use to promote a good night’s sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and as much darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to simply nap on a couch in the existing light is available – to avoid sleep inertia and to maintain your bedroom as the place your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Napping is quite challenging to command,” says a specialist. “If you don’t have any sleepiness, it is more challenging to lie down and essentially tell yourself to go to sleep. There’s got to be some sleep pressure present to start the process initially. I can usually take a nap in broad daylight and awaken on my own alarm-free, though, what aids many individuals is to wait for a moment when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and just gently ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and should you have few options – such as, when aiming to grab a quick nap while traveling or in a work pod – it is perfectly fine to employ some accessories. “When I’m working with footballers, I suggest that they not rely on their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
