Listen to enough performance experts, and it’s tempting to convince yourself that dozing is a powerful tool: rather than a quick fix after a bad night’s sleep, but a path towards a better memory, a brighter outlook and possibly quicker running times. Elite footballers are all at it – as do musicians, fighters and media moguls. However, if you lack a room for napping or employment that encourages daytime sleep, can there *honestly* worthwhile perks to a burst of shut-eye to justify the effort? Does there exist a reliable way to fall asleep fast? Furthermore, can you really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?
Exploring Your Drive to Snooze
“Experts note three primary motivations for taking a nap among most adults,” explains a professor of circadian rhythm researcher. “One is what we call make-up sleep, which is the action you take following insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is prophylactic napping, when you are preparing for a sleep deficit in the future, for example during overnight shifts. The third reason is “pleasure-based sleep”, which simply comes down to desire: you get a moment to nap in the daytime, and it feels nice to do it.”
The primary task to do, so, is to think about why you want to nap. “Naps can be really helpful when night sleeping gets interrupted because of factors you cannot change – such as, for a new parent, or if you are healing from illness or strenuous activity,” states a sleep physiologist. “But if you nap as your night sleep seems unreliable or unreliable, that can be a signal your body's sleep pressure is not where required. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, not the solution. Utilize daytime sleep as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the focus ought to remain a solid and consistent sleep at night.”
The Perfect Nap Length
This implies that naps shouldn’t be long enough to disrupt your sleep at night, and preferably shouldn’t take place in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you sleep overnight). How long is sensible? Guidelines are mixed. From the most referenced research on the subject, experts noted that astronauts had up to a 54% increase in vigilance plus a 34% rise in cognitive performance post a 26-minute snooze (in detail, this included a six-minute sleep onset time). “My advice is setting an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – many individuals doze off in under ten minutes,” explains a specialist. “There is plenty of guidance out there concerning the perfect length of time, however, that can cause people to feel more stressed above all – and the worst thing you can do when trying to get to sleep is worry about it.”
Should you decide to take an extended nap, steer clear of the 45-60 minute window that induces that sluggish feeling, that disoriented sensation when you wake. “Research indicates it's more effective to take a longer nap of one to one and a half hours rather than a mid-length nap,” notes the sleep scientist. “Three-quarters of an hour is long enough to put you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel groggy upon awakening – however, if you extend it slightly longer to a full sleep cycle, you’re likely to be completing of a sleep cycle and will probably get up feeling more refreshed. But if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep in the evening.”
Finding the Perfect Snooze Setting
Regarding specific techniques, suggestions are diverse. Some experts propose employing similar routines you’d use to foster restful sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as is feasible. Some advise that one could just doze on the sofa with ambient lighting is present – to prevent sleep inertia and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the environment your brain links with *real* sleep. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to force,” notes a specialist. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is more challenging to recline and essentially 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 in full light and awaken on my own without a timer, though, what aids many individuals is to anticipate a moment when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and then simply relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and if options are scarce – for instance, if attempting to fit in some shut-eye on a train or in a soundproof office pod – it's acceptable to employ a few tools. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I advise that they not rely on sleeping in their bed, because they’re going to have|they will
