Hear plenty of performance gurus, and it’s simple to convince yourself that dozing is a secret weapon: rather than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a route towards a better memory, improved mood and possibly improved athletic performance. Premier League footballers swear by it – as do professional piano players, mixed martial artists and business leaders. However, if you lack a special sleep space or employment that permits frequent naps, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a quick nap to justify the effort? Does there exist a surefire technique to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you will arise feeling better, rather than worse?
Understanding Your Drive to Snooze
“Experts note three main reasons for daytime sleep for many people,” says a leading circadian rhythm researcher. “Firstly, there's termed compensatory napping, which is what happens when you’ve had a lack of sleep the previous night. Secondly, there's prophylactic napping, when you are preparing for insufficient sleep in the future, for example if you’re working overnight shifts. The third is called “hedonic napping”, which simply is about the wish: there is an opportunity to nap in the daytime, and it's pleasant to do it.”
The initial step to consider, then, is to examine why you want to nap. “Daytime sleep can be really helpful when overnight rest is being disrupted for reasons you cannot change – such as, if you’re a new parent, or if you are healing from sickness or intense exercise,” states a sleep expert. “But if you take a nap as your sleep at night feels fragile or unreliable, that’s often a signal your sleep drive is not as strong as it should be. Under those circumstances, napping can become part of the problem, not the solution. Utilize daytime sleep as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the main goal ought to remain a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Perfect Snooze Time
This means that napping ought not to be too extended to affect your nighttime sleep, and ideally are not recommended in the late afternoon (contingent on what time you sleep overnight). What duration is wise? Recommendations vary. From the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, experts found that astronauts experienced improvements of over 50% in attentiveness and a 34% increase in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (to be precise, this included a six-minute long sleep onset time). “I recommend setting a timer for half an hour or less – many individuals fall asleep quickly,” explains a sleep expert. “You'll find much guidance out there concerning the perfect length of minutes, yet that often lead individuals to become more anxious than anything else – and the most counterproductive thing you can do while aiming to nod off is worry about it.”
If you’re going to sleep for longer, avoid the 45 to 60 minute range that induces sleep inertia, that disoriented sensation when you wake. “The science suggests it is preferable to opt for a lengthier snooze lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” says the expert. “45 minutes is sufficient to put you into deep sleep and it is more probable to feel disoriented when you get up – whereas if you take it slightly longer to an hour or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be on the end of a sleep cycle and will probably get up feeling more rejuvenated. However, if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep later that night.”
Finding the Perfect Nap Environment
Regarding precise methods, advice differs. A few professionals propose using the same protocol you’d use to foster restful sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and minimal light as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that one could just doze on the sofa in whatever light is present – to prevent sleep inertia and to “protect” your bedroom as the space your brain links with nighttime rest. “Napping is something really tricky to will,” notes an expert. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is more challenging to get comfortable and essentially instruct yourself to nod off. There must be some sleep pressure there to initiate sleep in the first place. Personally, I can often take a nap during the day and awaken on my own without an alarm, though, what aids most folks is to anticipate a moment when they are naturally slightly tired and calmly relax into it.”
It’s worth experimenting, and should you have few options – for example, if attempting to fit in a quick nap while traveling or at the office – it's acceptable to employ sleep aids. “When I’m working with footballers, I recommend that they not rely on sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
