Napping

[Winnow]

I try to take a nap at lunch when I get a chance. I found this story interesting:

Full story:

http://ririanproject.com/2006/08/23/pow ... rformence/

How Long Is A Good Nap?

THE NANO-NAP: 10 to 20 seconds Sleep studies haven’t yet concluded whether there are benefits to these brief intervals, like when you nod off on someone’s shoulder on the train.

THE MICRO-NAP: two to five minutes Shown to be surprisingly effective at shedding sleepiness.

THE MINI-NAP: five to 20 minutes Increases alertness, stamina, motor learning, and motor performance.

THE ORIGINAL POWER NAP: 20 minutes Includes the benefits of the micro and the mini, but additionally improves muscle memory and clears the brain of useless built-up information, which helps with long-term memory (remembering facts, events, and names).

THE LAZY MAN’S NAP: 50 to 90 minutes Includes slow-wave plus REM sleep; good for improving perceptual processing; also when the system is flooded with human growth hormone, great for repairing bones and muscles.

It's all about the Nano Nap! I try to nano nap 10 seconds out of every minute!

[Lynks]

I like taking about 200 nano-naps in a row.

[Xanupox]

I take the Lazy Man about 2-3 times a shift

[Kwonryu DragonFist]

I like takin' 6 Lazy Man's Naps in a row.

[miir]

I always feel more tired after taking a nap... so I don't nap.
I don't even sleep much. Six hours is about enough for me.

[Animalor]

I would love to be able to take an afternoon siesta every now and again.

Much love for the Lazy man

[Lalanae]

I wish I was one of those people who could just fall asleep whenever, but I can't. Napping isn't something I can do unless I'm genuinely sleepy/tired.

[Truant]

I always feel more tired after taking a nap... so I don't nap.
I don't even sleep much. Six hours is about enough for me.

I'm exactly the same way, on both points.

[Keverian FireCry]

I thought this was interesting.

BOB HIRSHON (host):
Meditate to stay awake. I'm Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.

Meditation beats a nap for curing that mid-afternoon slump. That’s according to neuroscientist Bruce O’Hara from the University of Kentucky. He and his student Prashant Kaul tested vounteers’ alertness before and after 40 minutes of meditation in the mid-afternoon, when people are generally drowsy. They found meditation made people much more vigilant. Compare that to people who napped for 40 minutes—he says their scores went down because they were groggy for an hour or more after their nap.

BRUCE O’HARA (University of Kentucky):
The so-called power nap of 10 or 20 minutes is probably not a real nap. People may not really enter sleep, and I would actually perhaps argue that what they’re really getting is the meditative state, if you will.

HIRSHON:
He says most of his volunteers had never meditated before, so even novice meditators can see benefits.

I'm Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.

I'm definitely a noob when it comes to meditation, but naps usually just make me groggy, so I've been doing more of it. I find it works a lot better to give me a boost of energy and puts me in a more 'centered' and calm state. For me 'meditation' just consists of closing my eyes, listening to some laid back music, and relaxing my breathing until I zone out for a while.

[Sirensa]

Big fan of the nap But I can't do the 20 minute thing. If I fall asleep mid-day, it's because I'm tired, and I'll be out for 2-3 hours.

[Neziroth]

The only kind of nap I take is when I'm out way too late on a work night.

My sleep schedule looks something like this for a week straight sometime:

Work 6am - 3pm,
Eat,
Nap 6pm - 10pm
Out 11pm - 3am
Sleep 3:30am - 5:30 am

Repeat.

I guess my nap is actually from 3:30 - 5:30.

Sometimes I think I feel better this way, too.

Off topic: I definitely feel better (the next day) after being out having fun at night and only sleeping 4 or so hours than I do if I stay in and go to bed early at like 9 or 10 pm.

Why?