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Why Afternoon Napping Is Actually A Smart Choice

Jan 29, 2018

Now You Can Take A Guilt-Free Nap

Why Afternoon Napping Is Actually A Smart Choice

Taking A Nap Helps Your Mind And Body

If you've often felt your energy depleted in the mid-afternoon between 1:00 pm and 3:00, you're not alone. This common occurrence is experienced by people across the globe. If you're struggling to keep your eyes open during this time of drowsiness, consider trying to squeeze in a nap. Pausing for some shut-eye during the afternoon can snap your mind and body back into action. It can give you that extra boost of energy to make it through the rest of your day. In fact, studies show that napping can improve your lifestyle in a number of significant ways. Why Do We Nap? Lots of people, both young and old choose to take naps. Reasons for napping include:

Roughly half the population takes a nap on at least a weekly basis. In many countries, napping is even more common. Places such as Mexico, Greece, and Brazil often allow for daily naps or times of rest and relaxation for both children and adults. In some areas, locals refer to this time of respite as a "siesta." Countries which follow a "siesta" schedule have average napping rates of over 70 percent of people napping up to four times weekly. Advantages of Napping Naps have been shown to have numerous health and wellness benefits, such as:

Some studies demonstrate that napping on a regular basis can heighten attentiveness even more than napping once in a while. Research also shows that improved motor skill acquisition is another positive by-product of napping. Taking a nap may even provide the same type of boost in energy and alertness that caffeine drinkers feel from drinking a cup of coffee. The difference is that napping isn't addictive or known to cause restless sleep the way regular caffeine consumption does. Nap Lengths Vary From Peron To Person Each person's napping habits tend to be different. Some factor impacting those habits could be upcoming events you need to get ready for, your desired outcome for the napping experience, or simply the time you're able to include in your schedule for napping. Longer naps tend to produce greater amounts of refreshment. Napping for a couple of hours daily will cut down on the amount of sleep you will need that night. If you notice that napping is making it difficult to fall asleep when you go to bed at night, you could consider adjusting your nap time accordingly. One and a half hours is the time of a normal sleep cycle wherein a person enters into a deep sleep followed by a period of lighter sleep. This length of nap is particularly restful. Waking up from deep sleep can be jarring and disorienting, so if you can get in a whole sleep cycle during your nap, you may see improvement in your ability to function in an alert manner after waking from your nap. Even if you miss the light sleep portion of a nap and wake during deep sleep, the sluggish feeling should dissipate quickly. Some people choose to have shorter naps lasting up to about 10 or 15 minutes. Even this brief amount of rest can help with combatting moodiness, drowsiness, and lack of focus. Since you're not asleep long enough in these short naps to get into a deep sleep state, you should wake up feeling refreshed rather than lethargic. The best time of day to nap is usually in the mid-afternoon period, according to sleep study experts. Any time period when you start to feel overcome by tiredness, it's a good idea to take some time to get a little extra sleep.