Tune into plenty of productivity experts, and it’s simple to believe that dozing is a superpower: rather than a band-aid following a bad night’s sleep, but a path to enhanced cognition, better spirits and perhaps improved athletic performance. Premier League athletes are all at it – along with professional piano players, fighters & high-profile executives. However, if you lack a dedicated nap-room or a career that encourages frequent naps, is it *truly* worthwhile perks to a burst of shut-eye to justify the hassle? Can you find a surefire technique to nod off promptly? And can you honestly promise you will arise feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Understanding The Drive to Snooze
“Experts note three primary motivations for daytime sleep in the adult population,” says a leading circadian rhythm specialist. “The first is known as make-up sleep, essentially the action you take after experiencing insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is preparatory napping, which involves anticipating insufficient sleep ahead, for example if you’re working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which simply comes down to desire: there is a moment to nap in the daytime, and it feels nice to do it.”
The first thing to undertake, then, is consider your reason for napping. “Naps can be genuinely useful when nighttime sleep is disturbed for reasons beyond your control – for instance, if you’re a new parent, or you’re recovering after being ill or strenuous activity,” says a sleep physiologist. “But if you’re napping since your nighttime sleep feels fragile or poor, that’s often an indicator your need for sleep is not where required. In such situations, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, not the solution. Employ naps as a short-term solution for short-term problems – the focus should still be a robust and regular night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that daytime sleep must not be long enough to affect your sleep at night, and ideally should not occur post-3 p.m. (contingent on what time you sleep in the evening). How long is sensible? Recommendations vary. In one of the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists found that astronauts showed a boost of up to 54% in vigilance and a 34% boost in task performance post a 26-minute snooze (to be precise, this included a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20-30 minutes – many individuals fall asleep within 10 minutes,” explains a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of guidance out there concerning the perfect length for sleeping, however, that can lead individuals to become more anxious than anything else – and the worst thing one can do while aiming to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to nap for a longer period, avoid the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes sleep grogginess, that spaced-out feeling when you awaken. “Studies suggests it is preferable to have an extended nap of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” explains the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is long enough to plunge you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel groggy when you wake up – whereas if you take it a little longer to an hour or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be on the end a natural sleep cycle and are likely to get up feeling more rejuvenated. But if you nap for 90 minutes, it will affect the quality of your sleep later that night.”
Creating the Perfect Sleep Space
As for exact methodologies, advice differs. Some experts recommend using similar routines you’d use to foster quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as possible. Alternatively, experts propose that one could merely snooze on the sofa in the existing light is present – to avoid sleep inertia and to maintain your sleeping quarters as the environment your mind associates with proper sleep. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to command,” notes an expert. “If you don’t have any sleepiness, it is more challenging to lie down and basically command yourself to go to sleep. There must be a natural inclination there to bring the sleep on to begin with. For me, it's possible to snooze in full light and naturally wake up without a timer, though, what aids most folks is to wait for a moment when they are naturally somewhat sleepy and calmly allow sleep to come.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when you have few options – for instance, if you’re trying to squeeze in some shut-eye while traveling or in a soundproof office pod – it is perfectly fine with bringing some accessories. “In my work with elite athletes, I suggest that they not rely on their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
