Tune into a few performance experts, making it easy to believe that dozing is a powerful tool: rather than a quick fix after poor sleep, but a route towards enhanced cognition, a brighter outlook and perhaps a faster 5k run time. Premier League soccer players do it regularly – and so are professional piano players, mixed martial artists and media moguls. Yet, when you haven’t got a special sleep space or a job that encourages frequent naps, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a short sleep for it to be worth the hassle? Does there exist a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Furthermore, can you truly ensure you will arise feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Identifying Your Drive to Snooze
“Experts note three main reasons for napping for many people,” explains a professor of sleep and circadian science researcher. “Firstly, there's termed make-up sleep, which is the action you take after experiencing poor sleep overnight. Secondly, there's pre-emptive sleep, when you are pre-empting a sleep deficit coming up, for example when working overnight shifts. The third is called “appetitive drive”, which essentially boils down to wanting: there is a moment to sleep during the day, and it feels nice to do it.”
The first thing to do, therefore, is to examine your reason for napping. “Naps can be genuinely useful when overnight rest gets interrupted for reasons beyond your control – such as, when you are a parent of a newborn, or recovering after being ill or intense exercise,” says a sleep specialist. “However, if you take a nap since your nighttime sleep feels fragile or broken, that’s often an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not where it should be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the issue, not the solution. Use napping for brief periods to address immediate needs – the priority must always be a robust and regular sleep at night.”
The Ideal Snooze Time
Therefore that napping ought not to be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally should not occur after about 3pm (depending on the time you sleep overnight). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. Among a prominent study on the subject, space agency scientists noted that crew members experienced a boost of up to 54% in vigilance plus a 34% rise in task performance after a 26-minute nap (in detail, this involved a six-minute sleep onset time). “I recommend using an alarm for half an hour or less – many individuals doze off in under ten minutes,” explains a sleep expert. “There is plenty of advice around about the optimal amount of time, yet that often make people feel more anxious than anything – and the least helpful action you can possibly do while aiming to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to nap for a longer period, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces sleep inertia, that disoriented sensation upon waking. “The science suggests it's more effective to opt for an extended nap of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” notes the professor. “Forty-five minutes is sufficient to put you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel groggy when you wake up – while if you nap for a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be completing a full cycle and will probably wake up feeling more rejuvenated. However, if you nap for 90 minutes, it can influence your sleep that night.”
Finding the Perfect Snooze Setting
Regarding specific techniques, suggestions are diverse. A few professionals suggest using similar routines you use to foster a good night’s sleep: a peaceful area, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as is feasible. Alternatively, experts propose that you should merely snooze on a couch in the existing light is available – to prevent sleep inertia and to “protect” your bedroom as the place your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Napping is notoriously difficult to will,” explains a specialist. “Without any drowsiness, it is more challenging to recline and essentially command yourself to nod off. There must be a natural inclination there to bring the sleep on in the first place. I can usually snooze during the day and awaken on my own without an alarm, but what helps a lot of people is to look for a moment when they are naturally slightly tired and then simply ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and should you have few options – for instance, if attempting to squeeze in some shut-eye during a commute or in a soundproof office pod – there’s nothing wrong with bringing some accessories. “In my work with footballers, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
