The Key to a Perfect Snooze: Timing, Where and Duration?
Tune into enough productivity podcasters, and it’s tempting to believe that dozing is a secret weapon: more than a band-aid after a bad night’s sleep, but a shortcut to a better memory, a brighter outlook and perhaps a faster 5k run time. Professional soccer players are all at it – and so are professional piano players, mixed martial artists & business leaders. But if you haven’t got a special sleep space or a career that permits regular snoozing, are there *really* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to justify the effort? Is there a surefire technique to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling better, not worse?
Identifying Your Reasons for Napping
“Experts note three key drivers for daytime sleep for many people,” explains a leading sleep science researcher. “Firstly, there's what we call make-up sleep, which is what happens following a lack of sleep the night before. Another is pre-emptive sleep, when you are preparing for insufficient sleep in the future, such as when working on night shifts. The third reason is “hedonic napping”, which basically comes down to desire: there is a moment to sleep in the afternoon, and it's enjoyable to nap.”
The primary task to consider, then, is consider your reason for napping. “Daytime sleep can be genuinely useful when overnight rest is being disrupted due to causes outside your control – for instance, when you are caring for an infant, or if you are healing from sickness or intense exercise,” explains a sleep expert. “But if you nap as your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or broken, that can be a signal your sleep drive is not at the level it should be. In such situations, napping can become part of the problem, rather than the answer. Employ naps as a short-term solution for short-term problems – the main goal must always be a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Snooze Time
This implies that daytime sleep shouldn’t be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your sleep at night, and preferably are not recommended after about 3pm (contingent on what time you sleep overnight). What's a reasonable length? Recommendations vary. In one of the most referenced research on the subject, researchers at Nasa found that space travelers showed a boost of up to 54% in alertness and a 34% increase in cognitive performance following a nap of 26 minutes (to be precise, this included a six-minute sleep onset time). “My advice is setting an alarm for half an hour or less – the majority doze off quickly,” explains a specialist. “There’s a lot of advice around regarding the perfect length of time, but that tends to lead individuals to become more anxious above all – and the worst thing you can possibly do when trying to nod off is to be anxious.”
If you plan to nap for a longer period, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that encourages that sluggish feeling, that disoriented sensation when you awaken. “Studies would say it's more effective to take an extended nap of 60 to 90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” says the expert. “Forty-five minutes is sufficient to put you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel sluggish when you wake up – while if you take it a little longer to a full sleep cycle, you will probably to finish a natural sleep cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. But if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it can influence the quality of your sleep that night.”
Creating an Ideal Sleep Space
When it comes to precise methods, recommendations vary. Some experts suggest employing similar routines you’d use to foster a good night’s sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and minimal light as possible. Others suggest that one could merely snooze on the sofa in the existing light is available – both to discourage that groggy feeling and to “protect” your bedroom as the place you associate with *real* sleep. “Falling asleep is quite challenging to will,” explains an expert. “Lacking any drowsiness, it is tougher to get comfortable and essentially command yourself to go to sleep. There must be some drive there to initiate sleep initially. For me, it's possible to snooze during the day and naturally wake up without an alarm, though, what aids a lot of people is to look for a time where they feel naturally slightly tired and then simply relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and when your choices are limited – for instance, if you’re trying to squeeze in 40 winks on a train or at the office – it is perfectly fine to employ some accessories. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I suggest that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, because they’re going to have|they will
