Tune into enough productivity gurus, and it’s simple to think that dozing is a superpower: more than a band-aid after restless night, but a path towards improved recall, improved mood and possibly improved athletic performance. Professional footballers do it regularly – and so are musicians, fighters and business leaders. Yet, when you don't have a special sleep space or employment that permits daytime sleep, is it *truly* sufficient advantages to a quick nap to justify the effort? Does there exist a surefire technique to nod off promptly? Furthermore, can you truly ensure you’ll wake up feeling improved, rather than worse?
Understanding The Reasons for Napping
“We can identify three primary motivations for napping for many people,” says a professor of circadian rhythm researcher. “One is termed compensatory napping, essentially the action you take when you’ve had poor sleep the previous night. The second is pre-emptive sleep, where you are anticipating a sleep deficit in the future, for example if you’re working on night shifts. The third reason is “pleasure-based sleep”, which simply boils down to desire: you have a moment to doze in the afternoon, and it feels nice to do it.”
The first thing to consider, therefore, is to examine your nap motivation. “Napping can be genuinely useful when nighttime sleep gets interrupted due to causes you cannot change – for example, when you are a parent of a newborn, or if you are healing from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep physiologist. “But if you nap since your night sleep seems unreliable or broken, that can be a signal your body's sleep pressure is not where it needs to be. In such situations, napping can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Use napping as a temporary measure for short-term problems – the focus should still be a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your overnight rest, and preferably should not occur after about 3pm (based on what time you go to bed in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. In one of a prominent study regarding daytime sleep, researchers at Nasa discovered that crew members showed a boost of up to 54% in alertness plus a 34% rise in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this counted a six-minute falling asleep phase). “My advice is setting an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – most people doze off quickly,” notes a specialist. “There’s a lot of recommendations concerning the ideal number of minutes, yet that often make people feel more anxious above all – and the worst thing you can do while aiming to fall asleep is to stress over it.”
If you’re going to nap for a longer period, avoid the 45-60 minute window that encourages that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “The science would say it’s better to take a longer nap lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” explains the professor. “Three-quarters of an hour is long enough to put you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel disoriented when you wake up – while if you extend it slightly longer to a full sleep cycle, you’re likely to be on the end of a sleep cycle and should wake up feeling more refreshed. Though if you're dozing for an hour and a half, it may impact how you sleep that night.”
Finding an Ideal Nap Environment
When it comes to exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. Some experts recommend using similar routines one would use to promote restful sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as you can manage. Others suggest that you should just doze on a couch in whatever light happens to be around – to avoid that groggy feeling and to preserve your bedroom as the environment you associate with proper sleep. “Sleep is quite challenging to will,” says an expert. “Without the urge to sleep, it is tougher to lie down and practically instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be a natural inclination available to start the process initially. For me, it's possible to snooze in broad daylight and awaken on my own alarm-free, though, what aids a lot of people is to look for a time that they’re naturally somewhat sleepy and just gently relax into it.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and if your choices are limited – such as, if attempting to grab a quick nap on a train or at the office – it is perfectly fine to use a few tools. “In my work with footballers, I advise that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will
