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Tune into plenty of productivity gurus, and it’s simple to think that a nap is a superpower: not just a quick fix following restless night, but a route towards a better memory, a brighter outlook and possibly quicker running times. Premier League athletes do it regularly – along with concert pianists, mixed martial artists and high-profile executives. But if you lack a special sleep space or a career that encourages regular snoozing, can there *honestly* sufficient advantages to a burst of shut-eye for it to be worth the hassle? Does there exist a dependable method to fall asleep fast? Plus, is it possible to truly ensure you will get up feeling better, not worse?

Identifying Your Drive to Snooze

“We can identify three main reasons for taking a nap for many people,” explains a leading sleep and circadian science specialist. “The first is what we call compensatory napping, that is the action you take when you’ve had insufficient sleep overnight. Another is prophylactic napping, which involves anticipating sleep loss ahead, for instance when working on night shifts. The third is called “pleasure-based sleep”, which simply is about the wish: there is a chance to doze in the afternoon, and it's pleasant to nap.”

The first thing to undertake, so, is consider your reason for napping. “Napping can be truly beneficial when overnight rest is disturbed for reasons outside your control – such as, for a parent of a newborn, or you’re recovering from sickness or strenuous activity,” explains a sleep physiologist. “However, if you’re napping because your night sleep seems unreliable or unreliable, that is frequently an indicator your sleep drive is not at the level it should be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the issue, not the solution. Employ naps for brief periods for short-term problems – the priority ought to remain a robust and regular overnight rest.”

The Optimal Nap Length

Therefore that daytime sleep ought not to be sufficiently lengthy to disrupt your nighttime sleep, and ideally shouldn’t take place post-3 p.m. (depending on the time you go to bed overnight). What duration is wise? Advice differs. From the most referenced research about napping, experts noted that astronauts showed improvements of over 50% in alertness and a 34% increase in cognitive performance after a 26-minute nap (technically, this counted a six-minute long nodding-off period). “I’d suggest setting an alarm for 20-30 minutes – many individuals are asleep in under ten minutes,” says a sleep expert. “There’s a lot of recommendations about the ideal number for sleeping, yet that often make people feel more stressed above all – and the most counterproductive thing one can do when attempting to nod off is to stress over it.”

If you plan to sleep for longer, bypass the 45 to 60 minute range that promotes sleep inertia, that spaced-out feeling when you wake. “The science indicates it is preferable to opt for a longer nap of one to one and a half hours than a medium-length one,” explains the sleep scientist. “Forty-five minutes is long enough to put you into slow-wave sleep and it is more probable to feel sluggish when you wake up – while if you take it a bit longer to an hour or 90 minutes, you’re likely to be on the end a full cycle and will probably wake up feeling more rejuvenated. Though if you nap for 90 minutes, it will affect the quality of your sleep later that night.”

Finding the Right Nap Environment

When it comes to precise methods, recommendations vary. A few professionals recommend using comparable habits you use to promote quality nighttime sleep: a quiet room, a cozy bed and maximum darkness as possible. Alternatively, experts propose that it's fine to just doze on the sofa in the existing light is present – to avoid post-nap grogginess and to maintain your bed as the place your mind associates with proper sleep. “Napping is notoriously difficult to force,” notes a sleep coach. “If you don’t have the urge to sleep, it becomes harder to lie down and basically instruct yourself to fall asleep. There’s got to be a natural inclination available to initiate sleep initially. For me, it's possible to snooze during the day and awaken on my own without a timer, though, what aids most folks is to look for a moment that they’re naturally feeling a bit drowsy and calmly relax into it.”

It’s worth experimenting, and when you have few options – for instance, if you’re trying to squeeze in a quick nap during a commute or in a soundproof office pod – there’s nothing wrong to use sleep aids. “When I’m working with professional sportspeople, I recommend that they avoid becoming accustomed to their own bed for naps, as they’re going to have|they will