Hear a few self-improvement experts, and you'll be easy to convince yourself that a nap is a superpower: more than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a shortcut to improved recall, improved mood and possibly a faster 5k run time. Professional soccer players are all at it – along with concert pianists, fighters and business leaders. However, if you lack a room for napping or a job that allows frequent naps, can there *honestly* sufficient advantages to a short sleep for it to be worth the kerfuffle? Can you find a surefire technique to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you’ll wake up feeling better, rather than worse?
Exploring Your Nap Motivation
“We can identify three main reasons for daytime sleep for many people,” explains a leading sleep and circadian science researcher. “One is termed recovery napping, that is the action you take when you’ve had insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is pre-emptive sleep, which involves preparing for insufficient sleep in the future, such as during overnight shifts. Finally, there's “appetitive drive”, which basically comes down to the wish: there is a moment to sleep during the day, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The initial step to consider, so, is consider your reason for napping. “Naps can be really helpful when nighttime sleep is being disrupted due to causes beyond your control – for instance, if you’re caring for an infant, or recovering after being ill or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep specialist. “But if you’re napping because your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or broken, that’s often a sign your sleep drive is not at the level required. Under those circumstances, naps can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Use napping as a temporary measure for temporary issues – the priority must always be a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Optimal Nap Length
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be long enough to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and best should not occur after about 3pm (depending on the time you go to bed in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Guidelines are mixed. In one of the most referenced research on the subject, researchers at Nasa found that crew members had improvements of over 50% in attentiveness and a 34% increase in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this counted a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20-30 minutes – the majority doze off quickly,” notes a sleep coach. “You'll find much advice around regarding the optimal amount for sleeping, however, that can cause people to feel more stressed than anything – and the least helpful action one can do when trying to get to sleep is worry about it.”
If you plan to nap for a longer period, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that encourages sleep inertia, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “Studies indicates it's more effective to have a lengthier snooze of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” says the sleep scientist. “Forty-five minutes is enough time to send you into deep sleep and it is more probable to feel disoriented upon awakening – while if you nap for a little longer to a full sleep cycle, it's likely you'll to be completing a natural sleep cycle and are likely to get up feeling more refreshed. However, if you nap for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep in the evening.”
Creating the Perfect Snooze Setting
When it comes to precise methods, recommendations vary. Some experts suggest employing the same protocol one would use to promote restful sleep: a quiet room, a cozy bed and minimal light as is feasible. Some advise that it's fine to merely snooze in a chair in the existing light is available – to avoid sleep inertia and to maintain your bed as the environment your brain links with *real* sleep. “Sleep is something really tricky to force,” says an expert. “Lacking the urge to sleep, it becomes harder to recline and practically instruct yourself to fall asleep. You need a natural inclination present to start the process in the first place. Personally, I can often nap during the day and wake up naturally without an alarm, though, what aids a lot of people is to anticipate an instance that they’re naturally feeling a bit drowsy and just gently relax into it.”
It’s worth experimenting, and when you have few options – for example, if attempting to squeeze in 40 winks during a commute or at the office – there’s nothing wrong to employ a few tools. “In my work with footballers, I suggest that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
