The Secret to a Flawless Kip: Timing, Location and Duration?
Tune into enough performance experts, and you'll be tempting to think that dozing is a superpower: not just a quick fix after restless night, but a shortcut to enhanced cognition, a brighter outlook and possibly quicker running times. Premier League athletes do it regularly – as do musicians, fighters and business leaders. Yet, when you don't have a dedicated nap-room or a career that allows regular snoozing, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a short sleep to merit the hassle? Can you find a surefire technique to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you will get up feeling improved, rather than worse?
Understanding Your Reasons for Napping
“There are three primary motivations for napping for many people,” says a professor of sleep and circadian science researcher. “The first is termed make-up sleep, which is what happens following a lack of sleep the night before. Secondly, there's pre-emptive sleep, which involves pre-empting a sleep deficit ahead, for instance during overnight shifts. The third is called “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially is about wanting: there is a moment to sleep in the afternoon, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The initial step to consider, then, is to examine your reason for napping. “Naps can be truly beneficial when overnight rest is disturbed for reasons beyond your control – for instance, when you are a parent of a newborn, or recovering from illness or strenuous activity,” explains a sleep specialist. “Yet when you take a nap since your sleep at night seems unreliable or unreliable, that can be a signal your need for sleep is not where required. In such situations, napping can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Use napping as a temporary measure to address immediate needs – the main goal ought to remain a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Optimal Nap Length
This implies that napping must not be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and best are not recommended after about 3pm (depending on when you retire at night). How long is sensible? Guidelines are mixed. From the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, researchers at Nasa discovered that space travelers experienced up to a 54% increase in attentiveness plus a 34% rise in performance post a 26-minute snooze (in detail, this counted a six-minute long falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals are asleep quickly,” says a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of recommendations about the perfect length of time, but that tends to make people feel more worried than anything – and the worst thing you can possibly do while aiming to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you’re going to take an extended nap, steer clear of the period between 45 and 60 minutes that promotes that sluggish feeling, that spaced-out feeling upon waking. “The science suggests it’s better to have a lengthier snooze lasting 60-90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” notes the expert. “45 minutes is enough time to put you into slow-wave sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy when you get up – whereas if you extend it slightly longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to be completing of a sleep cycle and are likely to get up feeling more alert. However, if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it may impact the quality of your sleep later that night.”
Creating an Ideal Sleep Space
Regarding specific techniques, advice differs. A few professionals propose adopting similar routines you use to encourage restful sleep: a quiet room, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as possible. Some advise that one could merely snooze on a couch in whatever light is available – to prevent sleep inertia and to preserve your bedroom as the place you associate with proper sleep. “Sleep is something really tricky to will,” notes a specialist. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is tougher to get comfortable and essentially tell yourself to nod off. There must be a natural inclination there to initiate sleep to begin with. For me, it's possible to take a nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up without an alarm, but what helps many individuals is to anticipate a time that they’re naturally slightly tired and calmly relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and when you have few options – such as, if attempting to grab a quick nap on a train or in a work pod – it's acceptable to use some accessories. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I recommend that they not rely on their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
