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Hear a few self-improvement experts, making it simple to convince yourself that napping is a secret weapon: more than a sticking plaster following poor sleep, but a route to a better memory, a brighter outlook and maybe quicker running times. Elite soccer players swear by it – and so are concert pianists, fighters and business leaders. But if you haven’t got a room for napping or a job that permits regular snoozing, can there *honestly* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye to justify the effort? Is there a dependable method to get to sleep quickly enough? Plus, is it possible to really guarantee you’ll wake up feeling improved, not worse?

Exploring The Reasons for Napping

“Experts note three key drivers for daytime sleep in the adult population,” notes an expert sleep and circadian science specialist. “One is known as make-up sleep, which is what you do following a lack of sleep the previous night. Another is preparatory napping, when you are anticipating insufficient sleep in the future, for example if you’re working graveyard shifts. Finally, there's “appetitive drive”, which simply is about desire: you get a moment to doze in the afternoon, and it feels nice to do it.”

The first thing to do, so, is consider your nap motivation. “Daytime sleep can be genuinely useful when night sleeping is disturbed for reasons beyond your control – such as, for caring for an infant, or you’re recovering from sickness or intense exercise,” states a sleep specialist. “Yet when you’re napping since your nighttime sleep feels fragile or unreliable, that can be a sign your body's sleep pressure is not as strong as it needs to be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the issue, instead of the fix. Use napping as a short-term solution for short-term problems – the priority ought to remain a solid and consistent night’s sleep.”

The Perfect Nap Length

Therefore that daytime sleep must not be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally shouldn’t take place after about 3pm (contingent on when you sleep in the evening). What's a reasonable length? Guidelines are mixed. Among the most referenced research regarding daytime sleep, experts discovered that space travelers had a boost of up to 54% in vigilance plus a 34% rise in performance following a nap of 26 minutes (technically, this counted an initial six-minute sleep onset time). “I recommend setting an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes – most people are asleep in under ten minutes,” notes a sleep expert. “There is plenty of guidance out there concerning the perfect length of time, but that tends to make people feel more worried above all – and the least helpful action you can possibly do while aiming to get to sleep is worry about it.”

Should you decide to take an extended nap, avoid the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes that sluggish feeling, that foggy state when you wake. “The science would say it's more effective to opt for a lengthier snooze of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” says the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is sufficient to plunge you into slow-wave sleep making it more likely to feel disoriented upon awakening – however, if you take it slightly longer to a full sleep cycle, it's likely you'll to finish a natural sleep cycle and should get up feeling more refreshed. But if you're dozing for 90 minutes, it can influence your sleep in the evening.”

Finding an Ideal Sleep Space

When it comes to exact methodologies, suggestions are diverse. A few professionals recommend employing similar routines you’d use to foster a good night’s sleep: a silent space, a comfortable bed and minimal light as is feasible. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to simply nap in a chair with ambient lighting is present – to prevent sleep inertia and to “protect” your sleeping quarters as the place you associate with proper sleep. “Falling asleep is notoriously difficult to command,” notes a specialist. “If you don’t have any drowsiness, it becomes harder to lie down and practically instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be some drive there to start the process in the first place. Personally, I can often nap during the day and awaken on my own without an alarm, but what helps a lot of people is to anticipate a time where they feel naturally feeling a bit drowsy and just gently allow sleep to come.”

It’s worth experimenting, and if options are scarce – for instance, when aiming to fit in 40 winks during a commute or at the office – there’s nothing wrong to use sleep aids. “Coaching professional sportspeople, I recommend that they don’t get used to sleeping in their bed, as they’re going to have|they will