Listen to enough performance experts, and it’s easy to believe that dozing is a superpower: not just a sticking plaster after restless night, but a route to enhanced cognition, better spirits and perhaps quicker running times. Professional footballers do it regularly – along with professional piano players, mixed martial artists & business leaders. Yet, when you don't have a special sleep space or a career that allows daytime sleep, can there *honestly* worthwhile perks to a burst of shut-eye to justify the hassle? Does there exist a surefire technique to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you will get up feeling better, not worse?
Identifying Your Nap Motivation
“We can identify three primary motivations for napping among most adults,” explains an expert sleep science specialist. “The first is known as make-up sleep, that is what you do following insufficient sleep overnight. The second is preparatory napping, when you are preparing for sleep loss coming up, such as when working on night shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which simply boils down to the wish: you get a moment to doze during the day, and it feels nice to nap.”
The primary task to consider, then, is to examine your nap motivation. “Napping can be truly beneficial when night sleeping is disturbed because of factors outside your control – for instance, for a new parent, or recovering from sickness or heavy physical exertion,” explains a sleep physiologist. “However, if you nap as your nighttime sleep is unstable or poor, that’s often a signal your body's sleep pressure is not as strong as required. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, not the solution. Use napping as a short-term solution for temporary issues – the main goal should still be a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Perfect Nap Length
Therefore that naps shouldn’t be long enough to interfere with your sleep at night, and ideally are not recommended in the late afternoon (contingent on what time you go to bed overnight). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. Among a prominent study on the subject, space agency scientists noted that space travelers had up to a 54% increase in alertness plus a 34% rise in task performance post a 26-minute snooze (in detail, this involved a six-minute sleep onset time). “My advice is setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – most people fall asleep within 10 minutes,” says a specialist. “There’s a lot of guidance out there concerning the optimal amount of minutes, however, that can lead individuals to become more worried than anything else – and the most counterproductive thing one can do when attempting to get to sleep is worry about it.”
If you plan to take an extended nap, avoid the 45-60 minute window that promotes sleep grogginess, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “Research indicates it’s better to have a lengthier snooze of 60 to 90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” explains the expert. “Forty-five minutes is sufficient to send you into deep sleep and you’re more likely to feel sluggish upon awakening – while if you nap for a bit longer to a full sleep cycle, it's likely you'll to be on the end a full cycle and should awaken feeling more refreshed. Though if you nap for a long period, it will affect your sleep that night.”
Finding an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for precise methods, suggestions are diverse. Certain specialists recommend adopting similar routines you’d use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as is feasible. Some advise that it's fine to just doze in a chair in whatever light is present – both to discourage post-nap grogginess and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the place your brain links with *real* sleep. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to force,” notes a specialist. “Without any drowsiness, it is tougher to lie down and practically command yourself to nod off. There’s got to be a natural inclination present to bring the sleep on in the first place. For me, it's possible to take a nap during the day and wake up naturally without a timer, however, what assists many individuals is to anticipate a time when they are naturally slightly tired and just gently allow sleep to come.”
Experimentation is key, and when your choices are limited – for instance, if you’re trying to squeeze in 40 winks during a commute or in a work pod – there’s nothing wrong with bringing sleep aids. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
