Listen to a few performance podcasters, making it tempting to think that napping is a powerful tool: more than a band-aid after a bad night’s sleep, but a shortcut towards enhanced cognition, a brighter outlook and perhaps improved athletic performance. Professional footballers swear by it – as do concert pianists, fighters & high-profile executives. However, if you don't have a room for napping or employment that encourages 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 really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Exploring The Nap Motivation
“Experts note three main reasons for taking a nap in the adult population,” says an expert sleep science researcher. “The first is termed make-up sleep, that is the action you take when you’ve had a lack of sleep the previous night. Secondly, there's pre-emptive sleep, where you are pre-empting sleep loss in the future, such as if you’re working overnight shifts. The third reason is “appetitive drive”, which basically boils down to wanting: there is a moment to nap during the day, and it feels nice to nap.”
The initial step to consider, then, is to think about why you want to nap. “Napping can be really helpful when nighttime sleep is disturbed because of factors outside your control – such as, if you’re caring for an infant, or you’re recovering after being ill or strenuous activity,” states a sleep expert. “But if you’re napping as your night sleep feels fragile or unreliable, that can be a sign your need for sleep is not where it should be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the problem, instead of the fix. Utilize daytime sleep for brief periods for short-term problems – the focus ought to remain a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Nap Length
Therefore that napping must not be long enough to affect your overnight rest, and best are not recommended in the late afternoon (depending on what time you sleep at night). What duration is wise? Recommendations vary. From the most referenced research on the subject, experts noted that crew members had improvements of over 50% in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this included an initial six-minute falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting a timer for 20-30 minutes – the majority are asleep within 10 minutes,” notes a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of advice around regarding the perfect length of minutes, however, that can cause people to feel more anxious above all – and the worst thing you can possibly do when attempting to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
Should you decide to nap for a longer period, avoid the 45-60 minute window that induces sleep grogginess, that foggy state when you awaken. “Studies would say it is preferable to opt for an extended nap of one to one and a half hours rather than a mid-length nap,” notes the professor. “Three-quarters of an hour is enough time to put you into slow-wave sleep making it more likely to feel disoriented when you wake up – while if you take it a bit longer to 60 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 alert. However, if you're dozing for a long period, it may impact how you sleep that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for specific techniques, recommendations vary. A few professionals suggest employing comparable habits you’d use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a quiet room, a comfortable bed and minimal light as possible. Alternatively, experts propose that you should just doze on the sofa in whatever light happens to be around – to avoid sleep inertia and to preserve your bed as the place you associate with nighttime rest. “Falling asleep is notoriously difficult to force,” notes a specialist. “Without any drowsiness, it becomes harder to lie down and basically tell yourself to go to sleep. You need some drive available to start the process initially. Personally, I can often nap in full light and naturally wake up alarm-free, however, what assists most folks is to wait for a moment that they’re naturally slightly tired and calmly relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and if options are scarce – such as, if attempting to grab a quick nap on a train or in a soundproof office pod – it is perfectly fine with bringing some accessories. “Coaching footballers, I advise that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
