Listen to a few performance gurus, and it’s easy to think that napping is a secret weapon: not just a band-aid following a bad night’s sleep, but a path to a better memory, a brighter outlook and possibly improved athletic performance. Professional footballers are all at it – as do professional piano players, fighters & business leaders. However, if you lack a dedicated nap-room or a career that allows frequent naps, is it *truly* worthwhile perks to a short sleep for it to be worth the hassle? Does there exist a reliable way to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you really guarantee you will arise feeling improved, rather than worse?
Exploring The Nap Motivation
“Experts note three key drivers for taking a nap among most adults,” explains a professor of circadian rhythm researcher. “Firstly, there's what we call make-up sleep, essentially what you do after experiencing a lack of sleep the previous night. The second is pre-emptive sleep, which involves anticipating insufficient sleep ahead, such as during graveyard shifts. Finally, there's “appetitive drive”, which basically comes down to wanting: you have a moment to nap during the day, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The initial step to consider, therefore, is to think about your reason for napping. “Naps can be genuinely useful when overnight rest gets interrupted for reasons outside your control – for instance, for a parent of a newborn, or recovering from illness or strenuous activity,” explains a sleep physiologist. “But if you’re napping because your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or broken, that can be a signal your body's sleep pressure is not at the level it needs to be. In such situations, daytime sleep can turn into part of the problem, not the solution. Use napping for brief periods to address immediate needs – the priority must always be a strong and predictable overnight rest.”
The Optimal Nap Length
Therefore that daytime sleep must not be too extended to disrupt your overnight rest, and preferably shouldn’t take place post-3 p.m. (depending on the time you go to bed at night). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. From a prominent study on the subject, space agency scientists discovered that crew members experienced improvements of over 50% in alertness and a 34% boost in task performance following a nap of 26 minutes (in detail, this included a six-minute long sleep onset time). “I’d suggest using an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – most people are asleep within 10 minutes,” explains a specialist. “There is plenty of recommendations about the perfect length for sleeping, yet that often lead individuals to become more worried above all – and the most counterproductive thing you can do while aiming to get to sleep is to be anxious.”
If you plan to nap for a longer period, bypass the period between 45 and 60 minutes that promotes that sluggish feeling, that foggy state when you wake. “Research suggests it's more effective to opt for a lengthier snooze of 60 to 90 minutes than a medium-length one,” says the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is sufficient to put you into deep sleep making it more likely to feel disoriented upon awakening – while if you nap for slightly longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be completing of a sleep cycle and should awaken feeling more rejuvenated. Though if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it can influence how you sleep in the evening.”
Creating the Perfect Snooze Setting
When it comes to exact methodologies, recommendations vary. A few professionals suggest adopting the same protocol one would use to encourage restful sleep: a silent space, a cozy bed and as much darkness as possible. Others suggest that you should simply nap in a chair in whatever light happens to be around – to avoid post-nap grogginess and to preserve your bedroom as the environment you associate with nighttime rest. “Sleep is something really tricky to force,” explains a specialist. “Lacking any drowsiness, it becomes harder to get comfortable and practically instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be a natural inclination present to initiate sleep in the first place. For me, it's possible to nap during the day and naturally wake up without a timer, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for a moment when they are naturally feeling a bit drowsy and calmly ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and should your choices are limited – for instance, if attempting to squeeze in a quick nap while traveling or in a work pod – it is perfectly fine with bringing a few tools. “Coaching footballers, I suggest that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
