Hear a few self-improvement gurus, and it’s simple to convince yourself that a nap is a secret weapon: more than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a route towards enhanced cognition, a brighter outlook and maybe improved athletic performance. Premier League soccer players are all at it – along with concert pianists, fighters and business leaders. However, if you lack a dedicated nap-room or employment that permits regular snoozing, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a short sleep to justify the kerfuffle? Can you find a reliable way to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to honestly promise you will arise feeling refreshed, instead of groggy?
Understanding The Drive to Snooze
“There are three key drivers for daytime sleep among most adults,” says a professor of sleep science professor. “One is termed compensatory napping, that is what you do following insufficient sleep the night before. Secondly, there's prophylactic napping, which involves anticipating sleep loss ahead, for instance if you’re working on night shifts. The third is called “appetitive drive”, which simply is about wanting: there is a moment to doze in the afternoon, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The first thing to do, then, is to examine your reason for napping. “Naps can be really helpful when night sleeping is being disrupted for reasons you cannot change – for example, if you’re a new parent, or recovering after being ill or heavy physical exertion,” says a sleep expert. “However, if you take a nap because your sleep at night feels fragile or broken, that is frequently an indicator your need for sleep is not at the level required. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, not the solution. Employ naps as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the main goal should still be a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Optimal Snooze Time
Therefore that daytime sleep shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your sleep at night, and ideally shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (based on the time you retire overnight). What's a reasonable length? Guidelines are mixed. From the most-cited studies regarding daytime sleep, experts discovered that space travelers experienced up to a 54% increase in attentiveness and a 34% boost in task performance post a 26-minute snooze (to be precise, this involved an initial six-minute nodding-off period). “I’d suggest using an alarm for half an hour or less – many individuals fall asleep quickly,” explains a specialist. “There’s a lot of advice around regarding the ideal number of time, but that tends to lead individuals to become more worried above all – and the most counterproductive thing one can do when attempting to nod off is to stress over it.”
If you’re going to take an extended nap, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that encourages sleep grogginess, that spaced-out feeling when you wake. “Research suggests it's more effective to opt for a lengthier snooze of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the professor. “Three-quarters of an hour is sufficient to put you into slow-wave sleep making it more likely to feel disoriented when you wake up – while if you extend it slightly longer to 60 or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be on the end a natural sleep cycle and are likely to awaken feeling more alert. However, if you’re sleeping for a long period, it may impact the quality of your sleep that night.”
Creating an Ideal Snooze Setting
Regarding exact methodologies, recommendations vary. Certain specialists suggest employing the same protocol one would use to encourage restful sleep: a quiet room, a supportive surface and minimal light as is feasible. Some advise that it's fine to just doze on a couch with ambient lighting is present – to avoid post-nap grogginess and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the environment your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to will,” notes a specialist. “Without any drowsiness, it is more challenging to lie down and essentially tell yourself to fall asleep. There must be some sleep pressure there to initiate sleep in the first place. I can usually snooze in full light and awaken on my own alarm-free, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for an instance when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and calmly ease into sleep.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if options are scarce – such as, if attempting to fit in 40 winks while traveling or in a work pod – there’s nothing wrong to employ some accessories. “In my work with footballers, I suggest that they not rely on their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
