Short naps have always been recommended for a mental boost.
Not just that, weekend naps featured in your nap schedule can help reduce fatigue, increase awareness and alertness, enhance your mood, cause better memory, better response, improve performance at work, and so much more provided you get a healthy nap time.
Are Weekend Naps Really Necessary?
Yes, of course. Weekend naps are essential. Here are the reasons why:
- When you don’t get enough healthy sleep during the week
Life today is tough. Too busy to even sleep is no longer an excuse, but a reality. So draft in a healthy nap time. But when? An afternoon nap on weekends might be the only saviour!
Taking an hour off on Saturday and Sunday as nap sleep can end up making you feel refreshed, rejuvenated, feeling rested and healthy and a nap sleep can make you ready to take on the world.
- Your coffee intake will be under control
Usually, it is during the weekends that we might take more coffee or nap sleep than usual because we don’t need to wake up on time or maintain a nap sleep schedule.
By including weekend naps in your weekend routine, you will become careful of your caffeine intake to make sure your afternoon nap is not affected.
- Gives your brain the rest it needs
Checking social media or Netflix and chilling might feel like a rest, but it isn’t nap sleep. This is because the brain gets no break. It functions the same way whether you are working on an excel sheet or scrolling through your favourite actor’s Instagram page.
Give your brain the rest by scheduling a healthy nap time it needs by getting weekend naps as it is healthy.
- You deserve it
You have worked really hard through the week, and an afternoon nap of whatever length in the weekend is something you have earned for yourself. So take a break from the world and cuddle up for a nap sleep with someone you love for weekend naps.
- Fatigue
Weekend is the time when you get the time to get rid of the fatigue that might be caused due to the busy life of the weekdays. Fatigue can also cause unexpected sleepiness at the weekend especially after a hearty meal. So when your body and mind craves this napping, why not indulge in it! This is also the right time for the mind and body to relax and destress from the weekday hustle and bustle but ensure the nap length is not too much.
- Future sleep loss
Napping during the weekend might be a good idea for those who are planning to work a long shift in the coming week. This is one way of making sure of adjusting the sleep that you are about to lose. Napping at noon of considerable length is also a good option for those who are working late night shifts and want to ensure that they do not fall asleep at work.
Napping Tips
Yes, there are dos and don’ts of weekend naps!
Here are some afternoon nap tips that you can follow to help you get the best weekend naps possible.
- An hour of rest
The weekend naps should be an hour-long rest. If it is possible for you to take an afternoon nap on weekdays too (you come back home for lunch or you work from home), then limit your nap sleep to twenty minutes. This afternoon nap is not just for professional athletes and NBA players but also for common people. Additionally, the afternoon nap length should be not just a quick nap in minutes but in hours for a healthy nap time.
However, try not to extend your afternoon nap beyond 90 minutes or a maximum of two hours as it can hinder your sleep quality at night.
- The schedule
Just like how it is important to maintain your nighttime sleep schedule, the same applies to weekend naps in the afternoon as well. Pick a healthy nap time that suits you best. Experts like David Samson says a sleep anthropologist at the University of Toronto suggest 2 to 3 or 3 to 4 in the afternoon as an ideal nap sleep time. However, after 4 is not a good time for nap sleep because one, it makes you feel groggy, and two, since it is too close to bedtime, your nighttime sleep quality is bound to suffer.
- Create the space
If you are not a natural afternoon nap taker, then you need to create the right ambience to get you in the mood for nap sleep!
Before your healthy nap time; Draw the curtains, lower the temperature a little, get under the sheets, and listen to a calming story. There are a number of apps out there, which will help you nap sleep in less than five minutes.
When is Napping a Bad Idea?
Nothing is universally good for everyone, except maybe kindness! An afternoon nap can cause issues such as sleep inertia. When the nap sleep is not timed, it can make you feel groggy and irritated. If you are not used to naps, even a healthy nap time, could also leave you feeling disoriented for a while. An afternoon nap is a bad idea for people with insomnia as it can worsen your sleep quality at night. Long naps even at a healthy nap time especially can degrade the problem of lack of sleep at night.
However, if these conditions don’t apply to you, then consider taking an afternoon nap this weekend as it is healthy and refreshing. It is a long weekend after all!
This is a long weekend. Why not give an afternoon nap a shot?
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