Hear enough self-improvement gurus, and it’s tempting to convince yourself that dozing is a superpower: not just a quick fix following poor sleep, but a path towards improved recall, better spirits and possibly a faster 5k run time. Premier League athletes are all at it – and so are concert pianists, UFC champions and business leaders. However, if you lack a room for napping or a career that encourages regular snoozing, are there *really* enough benefits to a quick nap to merit the effort? Is there a reliable way to nod off promptly? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?
Understanding The Drive to Snooze
“There are three key drivers for napping in the adult population,” explains a professor of sleep and circadian science specialist. “Firstly, there's termed make-up sleep, essentially what you do after experiencing poor sleep the night before. Another is prophylactic napping, when you are pre-empting sleep loss ahead, for example if you’re working graveyard shifts. The third is called “pleasure-based sleep”, which simply boils down to the wish: you get a moment to doze during the day, and it's enjoyable to indulge.”
The first thing to consider, therefore, is to examine why you want to nap. “Daytime sleep can be really helpful when night sleeping is disturbed because of factors outside your control – for example, if you’re caring for an infant, or if you are healing from sickness or intense exercise,” says a sleep physiologist. “Yet when you’re napping as your sleep at night is unstable or unreliable, that is frequently a signal your sleep drive is not at the level it needs to be. Under those circumstances, napping can become a contributing factor, instead of the fix. Employ naps as a short-term solution to address immediate needs – the focus must always be a strong and predictable sleep at night.”
The Optimal Nap Duration
This implies that naps shouldn’t be long enough to affect your nighttime sleep, and preferably are not recommended in the late afternoon (contingent on the time you retire overnight). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. From the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, space agency scientists found that crew members showed improvements of over 50% in alertness and a 34% boost in task performance post a 26-minute snooze (technically, this counted an initial six-minute sleep onset time). “My advice is setting a timer for half an hour or less – the majority fall asleep in under ten minutes,” notes a sleep coach. “You'll find much recommendations regarding the optimal amount of time, however, that can cause people to feel more worried than anything – and the least helpful action one can do while aiming to fall asleep is worry about it.”
Should you decide to sleep for longer, steer clear of the 45-60 minute window that encourages sleep grogginess, that disoriented sensation upon waking. “The science suggests it’s better to opt for a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” notes the professor. “45 minutes is enough time to plunge you into slow-wave sleep making it more likely to feel disoriented when you get up – however, if you extend it slightly longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you will probably to be completing of a sleep cycle and will probably wake up feeling more refreshed. Though if you nap for an hour and a half, it may impact how you sleep later that night.”
Creating an Ideal Nap Environment
As for precise methods, suggestions are diverse. A few professionals suggest using comparable habits you use to foster a good night’s sleep: a silent space, a supportive surface and minimal light as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that you should just doze in a chair in the existing light is present – to prevent post-nap grogginess and to preserve your sleeping quarters as the environment your brain links with *real* sleep. “Sleep is quite challenging to will,” explains a sleep coach. “Lacking any sleepiness, it is more challenging to get comfortable and basically command yourself to nod off. There’s got to be some drive there to start the process initially. I can usually take a nap in broad daylight and wake up naturally without a timer, but what helps many individuals is to anticipate an instance that they’re naturally somewhat sleepy and then simply allow sleep to come.”
Trying different approaches is valuable, and when options are scarce – for example, if attempting to grab a quick nap on a train or in a soundproof office pod – there’s nothing wrong with bringing some accessories. “In my work with elite athletes, I recommend that they don’t get used to napping in bed, since they’re going to have|they will
