Hear plenty of performance podcasters, and you'll be simple to believe that a nap is a powerful tool: more than a sticking plaster following a bad night’s sleep, but a path towards a better memory, improved mood and possibly quicker running times. Premier League athletes do it regularly – along with musicians, mixed martial artists and business leaders. But if you lack a dedicated nap-room or a job that permits regular snoozing, can there *honestly* enough benefits to a quick nap to justify the kerfuffle? Does there exist a reliable way to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?
Understanding Your Nap Motivation
“We can identify three key drivers for napping in the adult population,” notes a professor of sleep and circadian science professor. “The first is what we call compensatory napping, that is the action you take after experiencing poor sleep the previous night. The second is prophylactic napping, where you are anticipating insufficient sleep ahead, for example when working overnight shifts. Finally, there's “hedonic napping”, which simply boils down to desire: you get a moment to doze in the afternoon, and it's pleasant to indulge.”
The initial step to consider, then, is to think about your nap motivation. “Naps can be truly beneficial when night sleeping is disturbed for reasons beyond your control – for example, when you are a parent of a newborn, or if you are healing from illness or intense exercise,” explains a sleep specialist. “Yet when you nap because your night sleep seems unreliable or poor, that can be an indicator your need for sleep is not as strong as required. In those cases, naps can become a contributing factor, not the solution. Use napping as a short-term solution for temporary issues – the focus should still be a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”
The Optimal Snooze Time
This implies that naps shouldn’t be long enough to disrupt your overnight rest, and ideally should not occur in the late afternoon (depending on the time you retire overnight). What's a reasonable length? Advice differs. Among the most-cited studies regarding daytime sleep, researchers at Nasa discovered that crew members had improvements of over 50% in alertness and a 34% boost in performance after a 26-minute nap (to be precise, this included a six-minute nodding-off period). “I’d suggest setting a timer for half an hour or less – the majority doze off within 10 minutes,” says a sleep coach. “You'll find much guidance out there about the optimal amount of minutes, but that tends to cause people to feel more stressed above all – and the worst thing you can do when attempting to nod off is worry about it.”
If you plan to take an extended nap, steer clear of the 45 to 60 minute range that encourages sleep inertia, that disoriented sensation when you awaken. “Research suggests it's more effective to take an extended nap of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” explains the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is enough time to send you into deep sleep and it is more probable to feel groggy when you get up – however, if you take it a little longer to 60 or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be completing a full cycle and are likely to awaken feeling more refreshed. Though if you're dozing for an hour and a half, it can influence your sleep in the evening.”
Creating the Right Sleep Space
As for precise methods, suggestions are diverse. A few professionals suggest adopting similar routines one would use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as is feasible. Some advise that one could simply nap in a chair in whatever light is available – both to discourage sleep inertia and to maintain your bed as the space your mind associates with *real* sleep. “Sleep is notoriously difficult to command,” explains an expert. “Lacking any sleepiness, it is more challenging to get comfortable and essentially instruct yourself to fall asleep. There must be some sleep pressure present to bring the sleep on to begin with. Personally, I can often take a nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up without an alarm, though, what aids most folks is to wait for a time where they feel naturally slightly tired and then simply ease into sleep.”
Experimentation is key, and if you have few options – such as, if you’re trying to fit in a quick nap on a train or in a soundproof office pod – there’s nothing wrong with bringing a few tools. “Coaching elite athletes, I recommend that they avoid becoming accustomed to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will
