Tune into plenty of self-improvement podcasters, making it tempting to convince yourself that dozing is a superpower: not just a band-aid following restless night, but a path towards enhanced cognition, improved mood and possibly improved athletic performance. Elite athletes do it regularly – and so are concert pianists, mixed martial artists & high-profile executives. Yet, when you lack a dedicated nap-room or a career that allows daytime sleep, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a quick nap for it to be worth the effort? Is there a dependable method to nod off promptly? And can you really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling better, rather than worse?
Identifying Your Nap Motivation
“We can identify three key drivers for daytime sleep among most adults,” explains a professor of circadian rhythm specialist. “The first is known as recovery napping, essentially the action you take after experiencing poor sleep overnight. The second is prophylactic napping, when you are anticipating sleep loss in the future, for instance if you’re working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which essentially comes down to wanting: you get an opportunity to nap during the day, and it's pleasant to nap.”
The first thing to undertake, then, is to examine why you want to nap. “Daytime sleep can be truly beneficial when nighttime sleep gets interrupted for reasons outside your control – for example, if you’re a new parent, or you’re recovering from illness or strenuous activity,” explains a sleep specialist. “Yet when you take a nap as your sleep at night seems unreliable or poor, that can be an indicator your need for sleep is not at the level it should be. In such situations, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, rather than the answer. Use napping for brief periods to address immediate needs – the main goal ought to remain a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Perfect Nap Length
This means that napping must not be long enough to interfere with your overnight rest, and ideally shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (depending on the time you retire at night). How long is sensible? Recommendations vary. In one of the most referenced research on the subject, experts found that crew members showed a boost of up to 54% in alertness plus a 34% rise in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (to be precise, this included a six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend setting a timer for 20 to 30 minutes – most people are asleep in under ten minutes,” notes a sleep coach. “There is plenty of advice around concerning the optimal amount of time, however, that can cause people to feel more worried than anything – and the worst thing you can possibly do when trying to nod off is to stress over it.”
If you plan to take an extended nap, steer clear of the period between 45 and 60 minutes that induces that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling when you awaken. “Studies suggests it's more effective to opt for an extended nap lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” notes the sleep scientist. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to plunge you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel sluggish when you get up – however, if you extend it a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to finish a natural sleep cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more rejuvenated. But if you nap for a long period, it will affect your sleep that night.”
Creating the Perfect Sleep Space
As for precise methods, advice differs. Some experts recommend employing comparable habits one would use to foster quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and as much darkness as possible. Alternatively, experts propose that one could just doze in a chair with ambient lighting happens to be around – both to discourage sleep inertia and to preserve your bed as the place your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is something really tricky to will,” explains an expert. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is more challenging to recline and basically instruct yourself to go to sleep. There must be some drive present to bring the sleep on initially. Personally, I can often snooze in full light and naturally wake up without an alarm, but what helps many individuals is to anticipate an instance when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and then simply ease into sleep.”
It’s worth experimenting, and should your choices are limited – such as, when aiming to grab a quick nap during a commute or in a work pod – there’s nothing wrong to use a few tools. “When I’m working with footballers, I suggest that they not rely on napping in bed, as they’re going to have|they will
