Power Nap Time - My Experiments and Conclusion

I take power naps regularly. I thought I was the only person who enjoys this, but good to see, you too, and many others as well, I guess. A very good article!

After a power nap, I refresh myself with sprinkling water on my face (some facewash, if possible), it feels great. Power naps are especially required post 1 hours of lunch. Body becomes tired and productivity becomes less. We can see the productivity pre and post lunch are completely different. I guess everyone should try this.

There are schools and colleges, which should have this session. I heard, some of the play schools make children sleep for an hour or two post lunch. I like this concept. This should be implemented in institutions as well.

So, folks working in front of computer screens, start booking a seat corner to the cube if you are on bad eye of you manager and wants to enjoy this free refreshment! 😁

I love to try this out , but my problem is if I sleep to get to sleep i will take 30 mins and if I sleep i will sleep for longer hours.

Currently sleeping only from 2 AM to 6 Am 3 days a week and 12 AM to 6 AM 3 days and 12 AM to 10 AM 1 day 😀

I used to do this power nap post luch for 20-30 min and it was really refreshing.
Even I did while exam time for afternoon papers. I use to sleep 30min just before leaving from my place, and for the record I scored my highest in those semesters. In those days I use sleep max 4-5 hours in a go and 2-3 power naps.

I was first introduced to the world of power naps when I was in school, 9th grade to be precise. Until then, I never thought that people sleeping in the afternoon had anything to do with productivity. In fact, exactly the opposite. People sleeping at random times throughout the day were said to be either lethargic or lazy.

In my 9th grade, one of our teachers told us how power nap was an important and powerful skill that if acquired can lead to significant increase in productivity and level of energy for the rest of the day. She went on to tell us about how power naps can help boost memory & cognitive skills in youngsters and how a fixed regular power nap time can actually enhance your perceptive senses. It is way better than drinking the so-called 'energy drinks', she used to say.

[As she told us the whole concept behind power naps after she had caught a student dozing off in a 1:00 pm class & then scolded him for missing an important topic, I always thought she was just trying to cheer us up.
Now that I've read much on the topic, I know she wasn't making it up.]

From what she told us and what I've come to believe after reading various blogs about it, a power nap is a sleep session that happens during the day (ideally between 1:00 to 4:00 PM). The power nap time has discussed above by Kaustubh & Anoop has to be limited to 20 minutes and shouldn't be exceeded more than 30 minutes. Naps taken after 4:00 PM can disrupt your regular nighttime sleep. Therefore 1-4 pm is the best time. (Incidentally, that's also the time we feel the most drowsy after having a stomach-full of lunch.)

Our teacher back then told us to practice taking power naps by lying down and then within first 1-2 minutes thinking about the exact time you want to wake up. (This is done so that your body setups an automatic alarm clock) After that, loosen up all your body parts and focus on breathing. If you are already feeling sleepy just before the nap, you will soon go into deep sleep and if you aren't, fixing a regular time for power nap and following it religiously can help go into sleep faster.

I've tried power naps during my exams in engineering and they've worked wonders for me. I would usually read the complete text of a new topic or chapter, make notes, draw diagrams to support the text I've just read and finally close the book. After this I would lie down for 20 minutes and try to sleep. With practice, I could wake up after 20-25 minutes without feeling sleepy at all. To my surprise, I would also be able to recall or explain the topic with much clarity.

I guess, I should get back to power naps at work too. 😀

After reading this- I practised power nap yesterday to understand how can i do.
I woke up at 6 yesterday and had to complete some work it was till 10. Having breakfast other things etc I spent sometime till 12.

I decided to take a power nap, and these are the steps:

1. Your room should be clean.
2. Sleep only after you take your bath.
3. keep your room relatively dark.
4. Dont let anything distract you for the time you sleep.
5. Lie down, and I switched on some soothing music and i slept within 15 mins.

I slept till 12.50 though- its not a power nap but again I was able to work till 1 AM without any issues 😀

it works but the problem is we need to practise it well and there are many external factors effecting it if you are not at home.

Power naps are great if u are feeling tired and u need to be superactive at particular time of day, but for long run, nothing beats a good night sleep. With proper sleep and proper diet, it is possible to work whole day with full enthusiasm 😀