The Formula to a Flawless Snooze: When, Where & Duration?
Tune into a few productivity experts, and it’s easy to think that a nap is a superpower: more than a band-aid following restless night, but a shortcut towards enhanced cognition, improved mood and perhaps improved athletic performance. Elite footballers swear by it – and so are musicians, fighters & media moguls. However, if you lack a special sleep space or a job that encourages regular snoozing, are there *really* worthwhile perks to a burst of shut-eye for it to be worth the hassle? Can you find a dependable method to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you will get up feeling better, instead of groggy?
Identifying Your Reasons for Napping
“We can identify three main reasons for taking a nap in the adult population,” notes a professor of sleep and circadian science researcher. “The first is known as compensatory napping, that is what happens following a lack of sleep the previous night. The second is prophylactic napping, where you are pre-empting insufficient sleep ahead, for instance when working graveyard shifts. The third reason is “pleasure-based sleep”, which essentially comes down to desire: you have a moment to sleep during the day, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The primary task to undertake, then, is to examine why you want to nap. “Naps can be really helpful when nighttime sleep is being disrupted due to causes you cannot change – such as, when you are a new parent, or you’re recovering from sickness or strenuous activity,” explains a sleep expert. “Yet when you nap because your night sleep seems unreliable or unreliable, that is frequently an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not at the level it should be. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into a contributing factor, instead of the fix. Employ naps for brief periods to address immediate needs – the priority should still be a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
Therefore that daytime sleep shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your sleep at night, and ideally shouldn’t take place post-3 p.m. (based on when you sleep in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. Among the most referenced research on the subject, experts found that space travelers experienced improvements of over 50% in alertness and a 34% boost in task performance after a 26-minute nap (technically, this included a six-minute long sleep onset time). “I recommend setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – most people doze off quickly,” says a specialist. “You'll find much advice around about the optimal amount of minutes, but that tends to make people feel more worried than anything else – and the most counterproductive thing one can do while aiming to nod off is to stress over it.”
If you plan to sleep for longer, avoid the 45-60 minute window that encourages that sluggish feeling, that disoriented sensation upon waking. “Studies suggests it’s better to have a lengthier snooze of 60 to 90 minutes compared to a medium-length nap,” notes the professor. “45 minutes is enough time to put you into a deep sleep stage and it is more probable to feel sluggish when you get up – whereas if you take it slightly 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. But if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it will affect your sleep that night.”
Establishing an Ideal Snooze Setting
As for specific techniques, recommendations vary. Certain specialists propose using the same protocol you use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a silent space, a comfortable bed and minimal light as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that you should merely snooze on the sofa in whatever light is available – to prevent post-nap grogginess and to preserve your bedroom as the place your brain links with nighttime rest. “Falling asleep is notoriously difficult to will,” says a sleep coach. “Without any drowsiness, it becomes harder to recline and essentially instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be some drive available to start the process in the first place. For me, it's possible to nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up without a timer, but what helps most folks is to look for an instance when they are naturally slightly tired and calmly ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and if you have few options – such as, when aiming to squeeze in some shut-eye on a train or in a work pod – it's acceptable with bringing sleep aids. “In my work with footballers, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, since they’re going to have|they will
