The Key to an Ideal Kip: Timing, Location & Duration?
Hear enough productivity podcasters, and you'll be tempting to convince yourself that napping is a secret weapon: more than a quick fix after poor sleep, but a route to enhanced cognition, better spirits and possibly quicker running times. Elite athletes are all at it – and so are musicians, UFC champions and high-profile executives. Yet, when you lack a special sleep space or a job that encourages daytime sleep, is it *truly* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to merit the kerfuffle? Can you find a dependable method to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling refreshed, rather than worse?
Identifying Your Reasons for Napping
“There are three primary motivations for taking a nap for many people,” notes a leading sleep and circadian science specialist. “One is known as compensatory napping, essentially what happens after experiencing a lack of sleep the previous night. Another is prophylactic napping, which involves anticipating a sleep deficit ahead, for example when working on night shifts. The third is called “pleasure-based sleep”, which simply comes down to the wish: you get a chance to nap in the daytime, and it's pleasant to do it.”
The initial step to consider, therefore, is to examine why you want to nap. “Napping can be truly beneficial when overnight rest is disturbed because of factors you cannot change – for instance, when you are a new parent, or recovering from illness or heavy physical exertion,” states a sleep expert. “Yet when you nap as your nighttime sleep seems unreliable or unreliable, that’s often an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not at the level required. Under those circumstances, daytime sleep can turn into part of the issue, rather than the answer. Employ naps for brief periods for short-term problems – the focus ought to remain a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”
The Perfect Snooze Time
Therefore that napping must not be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your overnight rest, and preferably shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (depending on what time you retire in the evening). What duration is wise? Guidelines are mixed. In one of the most referenced research about napping, experts discovered that crew members had up to a 54% increase in vigilance and a 34% increase in performance post a 26-minute snooze (to be precise, this included a six-minute sleep onset time). “My advice is using an alarm for 20-30 minutes – the majority are asleep within 10 minutes,” notes a sleep expert. “There is plenty of recommendations about the perfect length of time, however, that can lead individuals to become more worried than anything – and the most counterproductive thing you can possibly do when trying to get to sleep is worry about it.”
If you plan to take an extended nap, avoid the period between 45 and 60 minutes that promotes sleep grogginess, that disoriented sensation when you awaken. “Studies suggests it is preferable to take a lengthier snooze lasting 60-90 minutes than a medium-length one,” notes the professor. “Forty-five minutes is sufficient to send you into slow-wave sleep and you’re more likely to feel groggy when you get up – whereas if you extend it a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to finish a natural sleep cycle and are likely to get up feeling more refreshed. Though if you’re sleeping for an hour and a half, it may impact your sleep that night.”
Creating the Perfect Snooze Setting
As for exact methodologies, advice differs. A few professionals recommend using similar routines one would use to encourage restful sleep: a peaceful area, a comfortable bed and maximum darkness as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to merely snooze on a couch in whatever light is present – both to discourage sleep inertia and to maintain your bedroom as the environment your brain links with nighttime rest. “Sleep is something really tricky to command,” explains a sleep coach. “Without the urge to sleep, it is tougher to recline and basically command yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be a natural inclination available to start the process in the first place. I can usually nap in broad daylight and naturally wake up without a timer, however, what assists many individuals is to wait for a time where they feel naturally slightly tired and calmly ease into sleep.”
It’s worth experimenting, and if your choices are limited – such as, when aiming to squeeze in a quick nap on a train or in a work pod – it's acceptable with bringing sleep aids. “Coaching footballers, I advise that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, since they’re going to have|they will
