Listen to enough productivity gurus, and it’s easy to believe that dozing is a superpower: more than a sticking plaster following restless night, but a path to enhanced cognition, improved mood and maybe quicker running times. Premier League soccer players swear by it – and so are concert pianists, fighters & high-profile executives. Yet, when you haven’t got a room for napping or a job that allows daytime sleep, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to justify the hassle? Can you find a reliable way to fall asleep fast? And can you truly ensure you will arise feeling improved, rather than worse?
Understanding Your Reasons for Napping
“There are three main reasons for napping in the adult population,” says a leading sleep science researcher. “The first is known as make-up sleep, that is what you do when you’ve had insufficient sleep the night before. Another is prophylactic napping, which involves preparing for sleep loss ahead, for instance when working overnight shifts. The third is called “hedonic napping”, which simply is about desire: you have an opportunity to nap during the day, and it feels nice to do it.”
The first thing to do, then, is to examine your nap motivation. “Napping can be truly beneficial when night sleeping is being disrupted because of factors you cannot change – such as, if you’re a new parent, or recovering after being ill or heavy physical exertion,” says a sleep expert. “Yet when you nap because your night sleep feels fragile or poor, that’s often an indicator your sleep drive is not as strong as it needs to be. Under those circumstances, napping can become part of the problem, instead of the fix. Employ naps as a temporary measure to address immediate needs – the main goal should still be a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
This means that napping shouldn’t be too extended to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and best should not occur in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you retire overnight). What's a reasonable length? Guidelines are mixed. From the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, researchers at Nasa discovered that crew members experienced up to a 54% increase in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance after a 26-minute nap (in detail, this involved a six-minute nodding-off period). “My advice is setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals doze off within 10 minutes,” notes a specialist. “There is plenty of recommendations concerning the ideal number for sleeping, yet that often lead individuals to become more worried than anything – and the most counterproductive thing you can possibly do when trying to fall asleep is to be anxious.”
If you plan to sleep for longer, steer clear of the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes sleep inertia, that foggy state when you wake. “Research would say it’s better to opt for a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes than a medium-length one,” explains the expert. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to plunge you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel disoriented when you get up – whereas if you extend it slightly longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to finish a full cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more refreshed. However, if you’re sleeping for a long period, it can influence how you sleep later that night.”
Finding the Perfect Nap Environment
When it comes to precise methods, advice differs. Some experts suggest employing comparable habits one would use to encourage restful sleep: a silent space, a comfortable bed and minimal light as is feasible. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to just doze on the sofa in the existing light is present – to avoid post-nap grogginess and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the space your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Napping is notoriously difficult to command,” says a sleep coach. “Lacking the urge to sleep, it becomes harder to lie down and practically command yourself to go to sleep. You need a natural inclination available to bring the sleep on to begin with. I can usually take a nap in broad daylight and awaken on my own without an alarm, however, what assists a lot of people is to look for an instance where they feel naturally slightly tired and calmly ease into sleep.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and should your choices are limited – such as, if you’re trying to squeeze in a quick nap during a commute or at the office – it's acceptable to employ sleep aids. “When I’m working with footballers, I recommend that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
