According to the Pew Research Center, as many as one-third of American adults are indulging in naps. So even if you don’t take naps yourself, you know someone who does.
Power naps are meant to be less than 30 minutes long, but do they provide you with the benefits of nighttime deep sleep without impacting falling asleep at the end of the day?
Power naps work by harnessing the natural sleep cycles that humans go through when sleeping. To go through a full sleep cycle, it takes about 90 minutes. The point of a power nap is not to complete an entire sleep cycle of 90 minutes but to instead sleep for from 10 to 30 minutes, with the ideal length being between 20 minutes and 30 minutes.
Tips for an Awesome Power Nap:
Timing – When it comes to power napping, timing is everything. Set your alarm for 20 minutes, which should allow your body enough time to get about three minutes of stage two sleep, which will help you feel rejuvenated.
Avoid frustration – If you’re not tired, don’t take a power nap. If you can’t fall asleep, then you may become frustrated, which will defeat the entire purpose of trying to nap in the first place.
Understand you may not sleep – The simple act of laying down quietly and relaxing can make you feel refreshed, so if you don’t fall asleep, that’s OK. Simply relaxing in a quiet room can improve your memory too.
Now that you understand how to power nap like a professional, see how you can put it to work in your daily life — and still get to sleep on time at night.
