The Formula for an Ideal Nap: Timing, Location and Duration?
Tune into a few performance gurus, and you'll be tempting to think that a nap is a superpower: not just a band-aid following restless night, but a shortcut towards improved recall, a brighter outlook and possibly quicker running times. Professional footballers do it regularly – along with musicians, mixed martial artists & high-profile executives. However, if you don't have a special sleep space or employment that encourages daytime sleep, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a burst of shut-eye to justify the kerfuffle? Is there a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you really guarantee you will get up feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Understanding Your Nap Motivation
“There are three key drivers for napping in the adult population,” says an expert circadian rhythm researcher. “The first is what we call recovery napping, essentially what happens when you’ve had insufficient sleep overnight. The second is pre-emptive sleep, which involves preparing for a sleep deficit in the future, such as when working overnight shifts. The third is called “hedonic napping”, which simply comes down to desire: you have an opportunity to doze in the afternoon, and it's enjoyable to do it.”
The primary task to do, then, is to think about why you want to nap. “Napping can be really helpful when nighttime sleep is disturbed because of factors you cannot change – for example, for a parent of a newborn, or recovering after being ill or strenuous activity,” states a sleep expert. “However, if you nap because your night sleep is unstable or broken, that can be a sign your need for sleep is not where it should be. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, instead of the fix. Use napping as a temporary measure for short-term problems – the priority ought to remain a robust and regular overnight rest.”
The Perfect Snooze Time
Therefore that napping shouldn’t be long enough to interfere with your nighttime sleep, and ideally shouldn’t take place in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you sleep at night). How long is sensible? Recommendations vary. From a prominent study about napping, researchers at Nasa noted that space travelers had improvements of over 50% in attentiveness and a 34% increase in performance post a 26-minute snooze (technically, this counted a six-minute falling asleep phase). “I’d suggest using an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals are asleep in under ten minutes,” notes a specialist. “There is plenty of advice around concerning the perfect length of time, however, that can cause people to feel more worried above all – and the worst thing one can do when attempting to nod off is to stress over it.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that encourages sleep grogginess, that disoriented sensation when you wake. “The science suggests it is preferable to have a longer nap of one to one and a half hours compared to a medium-length nap,” explains the expert. “Three-quarters of an hour is enough time to put you into a deep sleep stage and you’re more likely to feel groggy upon awakening – however, if you nap for a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be on the end a natural sleep cycle and will probably get up feeling more refreshed. However, if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it will affect your sleep that night.”
Finding the Perfect Snooze Setting
As for specific techniques, advice differs. Some experts suggest using similar routines you’d use to encourage restful sleep: a silent space, a comfortable bed and minimal light as possible. Alternatively, experts propose that one could merely snooze on a couch with ambient lighting is available – both to discourage sleep inertia and to “protect” your bedroom as the environment your mind associates with proper sleep. “Falling asleep is notoriously difficult to will,” says a specialist. “If you don’t have the urge to sleep, it is more challenging to lie down and practically tell yourself to nod off. There’s got to be some sleep pressure available to start the process initially. I can usually take a nap during the day and wake up naturally without an alarm, though, what aids a lot of people is to look for an instance where they feel naturally somewhat sleepy and just gently allow sleep to come.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if options are scarce – for example, when aiming to squeeze in 40 winks on a train or in a work pod – it is perfectly fine with bringing sleep aids. “When I’m working with elite athletes, I recommend that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will
